door bar drama...... poppers?

[xcm]

So, after messing around with my door bars, it seems theres no way to get it the way i want, AND be able to pull the door handles.... so the way i see it, ive got three choices.

1- install a door popper system, like those found in ricer's/mini's/show trucks.
2- move my switch panel (power doors)
3- go with the way ive got it now, which is ugly as sin, and a total compromise...


or, does anyone have an ingenius door bar layout (with a 2ndary a-pillar) that doesnt get in the way of the door handle, but still allows somewhat easy ingress? im allready needing a quick release wheel. cage is 1.5 .120 dom, door bars are .150 for cali traffic (supply issue, really). xj is a 4dr daily driver. im no gymnast. i have no dignity to lose getting in/out.

 

[tbburg]

Could you post a pic of what you have now, so we have an idea of the problem/layout?
A pic of the cage with the door open, and a pic of the driver;s door taken from the passenger seat would be really helpful.

Other then pics, what setup do you have now? "X" brace? When you say secondary A-pillar, do you mean a straight bar running from the floor up to the roof? (kind of triangulating the a pillar bar)
Our race truck has single door bars running from the B-hoop at about door latch level at the back, down to the lower leg of the A-pillar bars a couple inches from the floor up front.

 

[xcm]

sorry about the camera phone pics.... my digi is down.



looks booty like that... i dont like it, but i dont seem to have a choice if i want to be able to open the front doors.

 

[FatCity Ryan]

Piece of cake. Build a new door latch that will work with your idea.

 

[thechief86]

doors are overrated...

 

[GrimmJeeper]

doors are overrated...

not on a prerunner, they keep quite a bit of silt and rocks from hitting you in the leg/side/head.


XCM there is no way I could get in with a set up like that, maybe dukes of hazzard style. I would have done something like what tbburg described. actually I am planning to do something like the Fat City guys did to stobaugh's XJ, pics in thier build thread.

 

[GSequoia]

I'd move the latch back to a clear area then shorten the rods, after building a cage that should be cake to do.


I wouldn't go with fancy poppers in a race vehicle, I'd wonder about their longevity to severe dust and vibration and I'd also be concerned about them in an emergency (such as a fire that takes the battery out).


Edit: It'll be really weird when getting out. After all the years of XJs you'll find your hadn going to the wrong spot!

 

[I Beamed Jeep]

Here's mine it clears but it's close, so some trimming on the roll bar padding was all that was needed.

 

[xcm]

ibeam: thats what i was going for... except my rig still has the stock dash, so the bottom of the a-pillar doesnt go as far forward as youres does...

im gonna pull apart a spare door, to see how much work re-working the lock/latch rods...

 

[xcm]

grim: a friend was complaining about entry, i told her i could leave the passenger side unprotected, if thats what she wanted...

she didnt take it well.

entry aint that bad, i think a removable steering wheel will help A LOT.

 

[tbburg]

How about; remove the red dotted bars, and add a new diagonal door bar and a pillar brace as shown? My paint skills suck, but the bars would appear straight when viewed from the side. The bends would move the bars out toward the doors. Clear as mud?
'Would make entry easier.
(Also, critique: If you don't change anything, you should extend that a-pillar brace down to the floor.)

 

[xcm]

thats exactly what i want, but it blocks the door handles =\

ttburg: i thought you'd know by now, i move very, very slowly. all those dead tubes arent gonna stay that way, im trying to figure out what to do with them.

i AM gonna run em like you posted, i just gotta figure out the handle situation.

 

[tbburg]

Sorry, I thought you were having problems with the door bar, not the A-pillar brace.
From the look of the pics I-Beamed-Jeep posted, it looks like moving the latch back will interfere with the window mechanism.

Well,... 'out of brilliant ideas. Have to ponder some more. How about late model doors? Without the wind-wing, the window extends all the way forward.
If the late model latches are a different design that can fit between the window and the inner door, maybe you could swap the latch handle mechanism(or the whole door)