[RedBarchetta]

Is anyone here interested in seeing before/after photos of this simple mod?

I recently read some other threads on driveshaft universal joints that have let go, causing a lot more damage than one would imagine. In both cases (one of them an SPF), each car had a factory-installed safety hoop and the front universal joint (closest to the tranny) is the one that let go. And in both cases, the factory u-joint did not fully contain the driveshaft, causing damage to the surrounding fiberglass work/tranny tunnel. Although a rare event, I decided to improve what I have. I crawled under 'ol #747 and decided that the factory hoop wasn't going to do much.

There were a few creative alternatives that were posted, including a steel "tunnel" by Buckshot Fabrication. I decided to go a slightly easier route (I did not want to pull the trans tunnel out of the car at this time) and bought a universal safety hoop kit from Summit Racing ($25 + $10 handling). The steel is considerably thicker and wider than the factory SPF hoop, and the installation was fairly straight forward. You will require a cut-off wheel to shorten the outriggers on the new hoop (or plasma cutter, if you are so blessed). You may also require a Dremel tool with cut-off wheel to trim some of the glass on the floorpan (I had to do this to clear the bolt nuts on the driver's side). Otherwise, it was a "measure twice, cut once" job. It's not a 100% solution, but it's a ton better than what was there originally.

The pics are on my home PC and I can post late tonight. Let me know.

Regards,

-Dean #747