Roll Cage

[CPAKCP]

Hey guys, I need to step up to a cage, but I don't want to give up my rear deck speakers. I have seen (at the Nationals) cages which have the rear bars that don't go through the deck speakers. Anyone here know anyone who has this type of cage??

Thanks for your help!!

 

[dconnor]

Are you planning to use a "kit" or have one built at a shop? With the kits you'll pretty much be SOL, they all go through the speakers holes as far as I know. If using a shop, just ask them to move the bar just to the inside or outside of the speaker holes. Just inside would be easier because of the welding involved, may not want it going on so close to the 1/4 window....

With a good front stage (kick panel or custom door pods with a good component set) & sub in the trunk, the rear deck speakers become superfluous anyways.

Doug C.

 

[CPAKCP]

Originally posted by dconnor
Are you planning to use a "kit" or have one built at a shop? With the kits you'll pretty much be SOL, they all go through the speakers holes as far as I know. If using a shop, just ask them to move the bar just to the inside or outside of the speaker holes. Just inside would be easier because of the welding involved, may not want it going on so close to the 1/4 window....

With a good front stage (kick panel or custom door pods with a good component set) & sub in the trunk, the rear deck speakers become superfluous anyways.

Doug C.

Doug, that may be the ticket - what would you recommend?? I'm still running the original deck. Money has all gone into the drivetrain

Thanks

 

[dconnor]

To retain the "factory" style radio appearance you'll want a din & a half radio, Pioneer makes a couple of different models that have a lot of nice features which sell for around $250 or so. Or you can use the Monsoon stereo from a late model f-body, but need to be sure and run an amp, as they don't have an internal power supply for the speakers. Otherwise you can go with just about any 1 din sized head unit, I like Pioneer & Panasonic. Good brands with a lot of features for the money & are nice and reliable.

As for speakers, a set of Q-forms kick panel pods will work well with a good 5.25 component set (Cerwin Vega, Audiobahn and Infinity are all very good), or get in touch with Audiowizard for a set of his custom door pods. Since you are a racer/weekend warrior like I am, I'd suggest a single 10" or 12" subwoofer for the lows. Should only add around 35~50 lbs depending on what you go with & the extra weight sitting right over the axle actually helps traction a bit.

I'd go with a sealed box for ease of construction & have been really happy with Cerwin Vega "Vega" series subwoofers. I'm in the middle of redoing my system right now & after listening to several cars, have decided to give Audiobahn a try this go-around. For the amp, HiFonics is the best deal going IMHO. They have a TON of great features for the money, are built rock solid & their customer service is top notch. A 4 channel amp (50~75 watts RMS per channel) should fit the bill for ya, run the front speakers off two of the channels & bridge the other two to run the sub.

Doug C.

 

[CPAKCP]

Doug,
Thanks for the input, would you kill the dash speakers?? Are they really needed??

James

 

[dconnor]

Dash speakers get pretty muddied up reflecting off of the winshield, so can be dropped once a set of kick panel pods are installed. One alternative is to install a tweeter there since the highs aren't effected by the glass nearly as much as the mid's the 3.5"s are there for.

Doug C.

 

[6APPEAL]

I think the cage type dconner is referring to is one where the rear bars go in the split of the rear seat at the seat belts. I've seen a couple of cars done this way, but they were all done custom by shops. HTH

 

[dconnor]

Nope, through the rear deck just move the bars inboard a little bit so you they don't interfere with the stock rerar deck speaker location. I've seen several cars with the rear tubes going through the "crack" of the seat, doesn't look too good IMHO.

Doug C.

 

[bob86gn]

Check out cotton's roll bar. He custom bends them to clear the speakers. It is the cleanest installation I have seen to date. He is pretty busy and hates to do them due to the time needed in installation. But it is a phenominal fit.