Installed a 4 point Watson cage this week in the M1

[raidernixon]

This has been a roughly 6 month waiting project (waiting 1 month for cage, 1 month for rear seat delete kit, 1 month for powder coat, 3 months for 2027 harness), but I finally installed my Watson cage this week. The ultimate goal was to be able to utilize a HANS/Harness system out on track, as I am tired of being thrown around in the car while on track despite the Recaros. The harnesses are Schroth anti-sub 4 point belts, approved for use with HANS devices. Eventually, the car will get fixed bucket seats and I'll incorporate the anti sub belts to make it a six point system, but this should suffice for now. This car is about 90% track use, 10% street use.

The install was a pain in the a$$, but pretty straightforward - it is definitely a 2 person job.

I started with a silver cage and then had it powder coated to color match the orange accents present on the FJG cars. I also utilized trim panels off of a salvage car so I didn't have to cut up my original panels.

There are plenty of tutorial out there on how to install, but I did take some photos along the way to share:

After powder coating:

Strip the car down:

Lots of junk in the trunk...

Setting the hoop, lining things up

Setting the trim

Finished product:

I test drove the car for a little while today and no rattles, squeaks or random "race car sounds", so it looks to be pretty well fit into the car and good to go. I'm looking forward to getting some use out of it this season!

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[trackd]

Nice install! What's the weight of that 4-point rollbar? Also assuming that's NASA and SCCA legal? Thx

 

[raidernixon]

Nice install! What's the weight of that 4-point rollbar? Also assuming that's NASA and SCCA legal? Thx

The cage installed is about 55lbs.

As far as NASA goes, I don't think it is legal for WTW racing ( I think they want side bar protection) but is OK for HPDE and TT. I am not an expert on that, and don't do much with NASA so others likely know better. I do know that the tubing grade, diameter and thickness requirements are satisfied.

SCCA has different "levels" of safety...I believe this setup brings the car to somewhere between level 1 and 2 legal.

 

[chefwally32]

nice to see those pics, turned out awesome! Gives me a way better idea going forward as my Watson 4pt arrived two weeks ago and going in asap thanks for posting pics!

 

[Tones GT]

Looks awesome! I plan on doing the same. I currently have the factory rear seat delete. Does it need to be modified to accept the roll bar? Also what is the color code for the orange on the rollbar to match the FJG cars?

 

[Atlas1]

Looks great! How did you address the warning light after installing the rear seat delete?

 

[raidernixon]

Looks great! How did you address the warning light after installing the rear seat delete?

I left the seat belt buckles installed with the sensor wire still attached. I placed some bubble wrap around the buckles to keep them from banging around. There are no clearance issues with the rear seat delete in place . I've had the rear seat delete installed like this for about 4 months now and have not heard them once, nor have I had the seat belt warning light go off.

 

[raidernixon]

Looks awesome! I plan on doing the same. I currently have the factory rear seat delete. Does it need to be modified to accept the roll bar? Also what is the color code for the orange on the rollbar to match the FJG cars?

The factory rear seat delete will need to be modified. You have to drill two holes for the rear bars to pass through. You will also have to trim the front corners to clear around the main hoop. Watson includes some dimensional suggestions in the instructions to help with this. I suggest using the "L-channel" method noted in the instructions to mark and drill the holes in the RSD shell for the rear bars.

I used a color called "Juju Orange" which is a powder coat color offered by Prismatic Powders. It is virtually identical to the orange on the Brembo calipers.

 

[S550VIN54]

This has been a roughly 6 month waiting project (waiting 1 month for cage, 1 month for rear seat delete kit, 1 month for powder coat, 3 months for 2027 harness), but I finally installed my Watson cage this week. The ultimate goal was to be able to utilize a HANS/Harness system out on track, as I am tired of being thrown around in the car while on track despite the Recaros. The harnesses are Schroth anti-sub 4 point belts, approved for use with HANS devices. Eventually, the car will get fixed bucket seats and I'll incorporate the anti sub belts to make it a six point system, but this should suffice for now. This car is about 90% track use, 10% street use.

The install was a pain in the a$$, but pretty straightforward - it is definitely a 2 person job.

I started with a silver cage and then had it powder coated to color match the orange accents present on the FJG cars. I also utilized trim panels off of a salvage car so I didn't have to cut up my original panels.

There are plenty of tutorial out there on how to install, but I did take some photos along the way to share:

After powder coating:

Strip the car down:

Lots of junk in the trunk...

Setting the hoop, lining things up

Setting the trim

Finished product:

I test drove the car for a little while today and no rattles, squeaks or random "race car sounds", so it looks to be pretty well fit into the car and good to go. I'm looking forward to getting some use out of it this season!

Very nice! I wanted to add this to my boss years ago. I feel it's a must these days just for interstate driving....lol.

 

[gone_n_60]

Wow this is super timely as I am signed up to start my track experience as a Novice. Since I have a convertible I need a roll cage installed and had found the Watson recommended as one that can also be uninstalled later. You say the ordering was a month wait?

 

[raidernixon]

Wow this is super timely as I am signed up to start my track experience as a Novice. Since I have a convertible I need a roll cage installed and had found the Watson recommended as one that can also be uninstalled later. You say the ordering was a month wait?

In my case, yes it was a month wait for it to arrive, but that was back in September 2021. I have no idea what lead times are like now (if any).

 

[TrackMustang]

Very well done, looks gorgeous. Jealous…

 

[gone_n_60]

In my case, yes it was a month wait for it to arrive, but that was back in September 2021. I have no idea what lead times are like now (if any).

Thanks. Watson claims their roll cage installs in the Ford factory bolt holes did your install have any alignment issues? just anticipating possible snags.

 

[raidernixon]

Thanks. Watson claims their roll cage installs in the Ford factory bolt holes did your install have any alignment issues? just anticipating possible snags.

That is correct, the main hoop ties into three factory bolt locations on each side. The rear legs will require drilling a total of 12 holes in the trunk in line with the rear crossmember support.

Alignment will vary from car to car...in my case it lines up pretty spot on. The trick is to leave the main hoop bolts and rear leg bolts that mount to the main hoop loose while you are lining everything up. You will be able to rock the main hoop back and forward to help get the rear legs lined up to the crossmember. Leaving the bolts to the rear legs loose will help you further fine tune...you will have less than 1/8th of an inch of play to work with. Once everything is lined up how you want, the main hoop bolts can be torqued to fix it into position. It is a two person job.

The real fun starts with drilling the 12 holes for the rear supports...you need a second person to monitor the drilling and make sure no brake lines are going to be hit by the drill....they are extremely close and were in the way for atleast four of the 12 holes on my car (using a step drill bit will help mitigate this). I had to bend a brake line out of the way to keep them from rubbing against the mount plate.

One last tip - make sure the machined joints for the main hoop/rear leg connections are clean. Mine had a few burrs and the tolerances are so tight that this created fitment issues. I took a small Dremel with a mild cleaning grinder to clean it up and it made things much more workable.

 

[NGOT8R]

Great work! Nice and clean install.

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