<Misc> Rollbars

[Kennedy Simon <Kennedy.Simon@xxxxxxx>]

OK folks; I've gotten several responses to my e-mail about rollbars, and
made a couple of calls, and here are the results.

AutoPower (619-297-3300) makes a bar w/ a removable diagonal out of 1 3/4"
Mild steel for $320.  The bar weighs around 50 pounds, and they want about 2
weeks to get you one.  Freight (to Chicago: they're based in CA) is about
$100.  People who have them say the fit is good, but probably not as good as
a TC Kline bar.  Autopower doesn't pad the bars, but will sell you the
padding in 3' lengths for $6.  The color is black.

TC Kline (614-771-7744) makes a bar w/ a removable diagonal out of
Chrome-Moly for $550 (for BMW CCA members).  The bar weighs about 55 pounds,
and they ask for a 3 week lead time on delivery.  Freight (to Chicago; they
have offices in OH and CA) is about $70.  They wil paint the bar any color
you like.  *Everybody* (and their are a fair number of digesters w/ TC's
bar) who has a Kline bar says the fit is perfect and the quality top-notch.
Kline custom builds each bar, and apparently their attention to detail
shows.  They do not sell padding, and say that 90% of their customers do not
pad their bars as the fit is so tight and there is really no way for a front
seat passenger to hit the bar anyhow.  

Which brings us to the biggest issue w/ putting a bar in a street car:
*rear* passenger safety.  Both AutoPower and TC Kline do not recommend
putting passengers in the rear seat of a car w/ one of their bars.  Kline
did allow that this was mostly a question of liability, and that their
employees have in fact carried rear-seat passengers cross-country in a
bar-equipped car, but that they still didn't think regular use of the back
seat, especially by three passengers, was a good idea.  No hard data seems
to exist, but even I, w/ my desire for a bar, am beginning to think this
might not be such a hot idea for people like me for whom their M3 is their
only car and who therefore do in fact use the back seat on occasion (yes, I
have more than one friend).  

YMMV, caveat emptor, etc.

Hope somebody finds this helpful.

Simon Kennedy
'95 M3

------------------------------