Driver safety

[Herman Pahls]

Am I the only FB driver that is willing to compromise the traditional look of a Formula car for better driver protection from track debris or cockpit intrusion?
I am willing to pay someone for potential esthetic designs that would incorporate a more protective roll cage and an aero shaped wind screen (I would use at least 3/8ths thick polycarbonate as used on some Top Fuel Dragsters) that would satisfy the SCCA rules.
Thanks Herman

[Purple Frog]

I remember a FF that ran at the Runoffs in the early 70's that had a full cage. Can't find the old Instamatic pictures. It has been done. Egress is the issue.

[Brands]

I wonder how racing in the rain or with oil smudged on the wind shield would work out. These are meant to be open wheel, open cockpit cars after all. I do like the Red Bull X1 though. What a shame the IRL weren't more adventurous in their design brief to Dallara or we might have ended up with something similar rather than the dogs dinner we have now.

[Stan Clayton]

Actually, Brands may be on to something, Herman. The Red Bull X1 windscreen concept could be chopped off at the front roll bar so you still have an open cockpit and easy ingress/egress. Change your main roll hoop to full width and run forward braces to the forward roll hoop to give you protection from wayward wheels/armco, like the Cheetah DSR has (see photo below), and you're there without building a sprint car.

[RobLav]

Didn't the DB4 have a sort of windscreen? And I recall at the runoffs a few years back that an Atlantic had a rollcage.