Topic: Cage question - miatacage parcel shelf option

Hi! We have a miata (replete with dead rats and moss) that we're looking to put a cage in and bring to Lemons. Super excited to do it, just ran a junk car event with it and had an absolute blast.

Looking over the safety rules, and cage design, all the cage examples show the door bars connected to the main hoop. We have a taller driver and want to make sure that he is able to fit and be comfortable, as well as able to exit the car quickly. It seems like the main hoop coming all the way down to the floor by the driver seat can make the seating position challenging, and miatacage offers a parcel shelf option. We have several skilled fabricators/welders on the team, but no dies for bending, and this seems like a fair option for us.

Is the design below acceptable from a safety perspective?

The borrowed roll bar currently in the car also attaches to this region, where the stock seat belts are, would like to have input from Lemons before we take the plunge on the cage.

https://i.imgur.com/yxKgkge.png

Re: Cage question - miatacage parcel shelf option

Send as many pictures and drawings as possible of your design to the tech & safety contact on the web site:

TECH & SAFETY STUFF
John Pagel
Tech Boss
pagel@24hoursoflemons.com

He's really responsive and will be able to advise further.

I've never gotten a really close look at miatas, but I can tell you most people skin their doors and push the driver bars out into the door frame to get more room in tight spaces. You can angle the door bars pretty good to allow the seat to slide

Remember that Lemons also wants to see at least 2" of clearance from the drivers head to any bar (AFTER its padded) to make sure they won't immediately be slamming against a bar in a crash.

The worry here would be that if you move that main hoop back that far, then would your backstay bars be legal or not.

Best to consult the expert on this one.

1989 Merkur XR4Ti: Project Merkur Space Program - Wins: Class C - Colonel and the Sinkhole 2023 | "Heroic Fix" The Pitt Maneuver 2023 | "Halloween Meets Gasoline" The Pitt Maneuver 2022
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Re: Cage question - miatacage parcel shelf option

Thanks! I will absolutely do that. Appreciate the advice.

We'll definitely be cutting the doors down to fit the seat and cage. Possibly also a floor pan drop depending on how everything fits up.

4 (edited by duthehustle93 2023-02-20 11:28 AM)

Re: Cage question - miatacage parcel shelf option

FWIW, our cage has the parcel shelf option and I'm 99% sure it's an older miatacage cage. It's always passed with flying colors and John himself complimented it at HPR. I'm trying to find a picture of the door bars where they meet the parcel shelf/main hoop and I can't confirm if our doors meet at a node or at a spreader plate. If you shoot me an email that'll remind me to send you some pics when I get home, if you want.

As mentioned, be careful with head clearance on miatas and bring the cage out as big as possible. I'd recommend either making the cage taller or doing a seat pan drop. Our seat is floor mounted, no pan drop, with reasonable lean, and set to where our shortest driver (5'8") can barely reach the end of the clutch pedal stroke which leaves our tallest driver (6'1") slightly uncomfortable but still "good enough". However, the tallest driver only passed the broomstick test if slouched so we added an elephant bar. We purchased the car caged, with the cage set as tall as possible while still clearing a hard top.

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