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05-17-2017, 11:28 AM | #1 |
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Full Cage for BMW Club Racing
Hi everyone. Completed the BMW race school this past weekend, so I now have my provisional license. The school was way cool...found out I can take corners a little faster without my arm out the window!
One spin in turn 3 at Summit Point...it had been raining and some driver I was closing on decide to pop the brakes at the apex, I lifted (you can't, but I thought no other option) and found myself sideways going up the hill. Keep it sliding on the track until I could scrub off the speed, then let it go off the track with the rear-end leading the way. Very glad I was able to stay on the pavement...there was nothing but standing water on the right side, and then a wall. Saw a Viper T/A flip and hit the wall 2 weeks ago...not pretty at all...now there are 149 of those cars. All that aside, I'm going to cage the Z now. I've searched for sure, but it seems the only real route is custom work. I'm in Virginia...any suggestions? I've already reached out to RRT, just curious if any options to compare. |
05-17-2017, 08:58 PM | #2 |
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Garage List E86 Z4 M [10.00]
F15 X5 xDrive35i [9.17] F10 550i (Retired) [9.17] F25 X3 xDrive35i (R ... [9.43] E82 135is (Retired) [9.53] E85 Z4 M (Retired) [9.41] E90 328i xDrive (Re ... [9.25] E86 Z4 3.0si (Retired) [8.93] |
Few of us have half cages but have yet to see a full cage as that would require stripping the interior and cutting through the dash. Door bars will make it even tougher...
Here's my roll bar |
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05-18-2017, 05:58 AM | #3 |
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Regardless of the chassis, if you're going racing you should only be considering a custom cage. The first thing you need to decide is what class are you building for? Prepared and Sport only allow a 6+2 cage. Modified and GTS allow for far more ellaborate cages. The interior of your car will have to go. Don't even think about driving the car on the street after it's caged.
Shop around for reputable race shops. Meet the cage builder and sit down and discuss your wants and needs. Review the rules book thoroughly. A cage is permenant. You want to get it right. When I did my cage for my IP car, I studied cage designs at length before collaborating with a local race shop on my cage design. RRT is probably one of the better shops in the country, let alone your area. You may also want to contact Jason Crist for advise. He's near you and has built two cars. I believe Jason was the lead instructor in your school. Last edited by Michael9218; 05-18-2017 at 06:54 AM.. |
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05-18-2017, 10:14 AM | #4 |
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Yes Jason was the lead instructor. Bimmerworld is on my list to talk with as well, but with any of these shops, the Z isn't something they work on all the time.
As far as the car goes, it's a foregone conclusion that it will be stripped. When I purchased the car, I had already decided that was the path. I wanted to take it slow and learn as I went along. I'm not interested in reselling it or resale value. I've got a spare engine, transmission, and a ton of parts I picked up from the guy in Boston that I got the engine from out of a 10k mile total of 2007 model. And the trailer has already been purchased as well. From everything I've read, the Z is an oddball in that it's not really competitive in any class. Unfortunately I've chosen a path and will just live with the decision. What class would you guys build for for BMW? SCCA? There is a couple cars (twins owned by the same person) already prepped for SCCA and have a couple podium finishes. I'm thinking about just buying one of them and call it a day. Not sure what class they would fit in for BMW club. 3002... |
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05-18-2017, 01:30 PM | #6 | |
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These builds gave me a good idea of what the minimum amount of work is required on this chassis and where a Z4M coupe could run class-wise. Note that they are also closer to caged street cars and can stand to lose the nav system, interior carpets, rear bulkhead, etc. Going down the "caged race car" rabbit hole, I think that something like Spec Boxster / Cayman / e46 is just an all around better way to go - well defined specs and part kit, lots of development time and money already spent by other people that you can leverage, ability to buy a pre-built car or take yours to a builder that has already done several instead of a "1 of 1". |
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05-18-2017, 03:39 PM | #7 |
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I can't speak for SCCA, but in BMW Club Racing the Z4MC really only fits in modified and GTS (where you can also race with NASA). Both of those are expensive classes to run in...very expensive. Stock and Prepared have no cars in "H". You want to find a class with plenty of competition. Otherwise, you're pretty much just running laps.
Honestly, you're going about this wrong. You don't start with a car you like and try to make it fit. Find a class or series you like and then find a car to go racing with. In BMW, a good entry level race class would be Spec E36 or Spec E46. Right now the most competitive class is I Prepared. |
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05-18-2017, 03:45 PM | #8 |
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05-18-2017, 05:42 PM | #9 |
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Friend built an ST3 car with TC Design Motorsports in Northern California and he competes in BMWCCA regularly - I believe images are still up on the shops fbook page (or inquiry).
Car is fully stripped. |
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05-18-2017, 07:47 PM | #10 |
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Garage List E86 Z4 M [10.00]
F15 X5 xDrive35i [9.17] F10 550i (Retired) [9.17] F25 X3 xDrive35i (R ... [9.43] E82 135is (Retired) [9.53] E85 Z4 M (Retired) [9.41] E90 328i xDrive (Re ... [9.25] E86 Z4 3.0si (Retired) [8.93] |
I haven't read CCA Club Racing rules but pretty sure half cage is insufficient. I just started time trial but its safety requirements are no different than that of DE.
Last edited by 3002 tii; 05-19-2017 at 06:48 AM.. |
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05-18-2017, 08:23 PM | #11 | |
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Unless you have tight competition, you won't get the full benefit and enjoyment out of racing. You'll find "someone" to race from another class, but this is really not much different than what you can do in a DE or track day. You'll be jealous of those guys in IP that have a packed field and lots of competition. The camaraderie they have in the paddock. I really don't mean to rain on your parade, but I've seen this played out many times over the 5 years I raced in IP. Someone wants to "run what they brung" and then gets disappointed that they don't have the right car. Ironically, the car this is most found in is with the E46 M3. Lots of them running any given DE weekend (since they made 85,000 of them). But, no place to race in BMW club unless you pony up for a Mod/GTS build because no one is racing H Sport or Prepared. The E86M is in G which is even more vacant (hell, I didn't even know there was a G class until I just looked it up in the rules book). |
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05-18-2017, 10:32 PM | #12 | |
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The Z4M can be a very potent car in the right hands - albeit the S54 is a bit of a gas guzzler... |
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05-19-2017, 06:07 AM | #13 | |
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I also feel the E86M can be competitive in C Mod or GTS. No one has proven this yet since so few cars are raced. I'm building one now as a track toy, so I shall see... |
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05-19-2017, 10:59 AM | #14 |
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05-19-2017, 11:06 AM | #15 |
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Track build
Here are a few shots of my car to give you some ideas. I elected to build a half cage with door bars. The plinth at the footwell can be used to install a front hoop later if I decide. Obviously, this is a track car build not a race build, so I have no rules to be concerned with.
The E86 is a very interesting chassis that was pretty much purpose built for track use. Compared to the E36 and E46, it's much more structurally supported. If you're putting in a cage, be sure to remove the bulkhead. It's a royal PITA with 70 spot welds, but it's in the way and weighs 35 pounds. The main hoop can terminate at the shelf area to save some bar weight, but this will make X'ing the door bars a challenge. I opted for a single diagonal. The high door sills provide far more protection than the E36/46. Last edited by Michael9218; 07-07-2017 at 07:59 PM.. Reason: Fu-Q Photobucket |
10-19-2017, 09:25 PM | #16 | |
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Very nice!!! More photos please!! |
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