New Porsche 914 Richie Ginther Windscreen Smoked Lexan

I know nothing about this other than waht is in the ebay ad.

Windscreen

Just wonder, how are these attached to the car? Isn't the lexan going to be heavier than fiberglass?

-Britain

I maybe wrong but I think SCCA says you need to be able to see thru it. That's why it is lexan.

Rivets, quick release (Zeus) fastners or quick release pins all work.

We're going to put mine back on using quick release zeus fastners.

Well....damn, it's gone. Who'da thunkit?

Do the SCCA rules say it has to be "see thru" all the way across?

I was thinking it would be a lot cheaper to do the fiberglass ($250) but just add a lexan piece (rivet in) in front of the driver.

From the GCR:

Portions of the windscreen, which
are not in the driver’s line of sight, may be constructed
of a polycarbonate or composite material. Any portion
of the windscreen that is in the driver’s line of sight
shall be constructed of a clear transparent material. The
windscreen shall not exceed the height or width of the
original windshield/screen and frame. The replacement
windscreen shall be fitted within the vertical planes of
the frontmost and rearmost elements of the original
windshield/screen and frame.

Good news on using lexan for the part that is in front of the driver; however, iIf the latter part of the rule, as outlined above, is correct, all the Ginther Windscreens I've seen are out of specification, i.e., they extend beyond the plane represented by the (cut) front pillar.

I agree. I want to measure an uncut car before I cut down a Ginther screen to legal dimensions.

regarding the definition of "drivers line of sight"

it seems to me that nearly the whole width of a ginther would be within my line of sight... it might be to the right or left of center but still within my line of sight.

so my opinion of that rule would seem to reinforce that the entire screen still needs to be transparent or see through

brant

No question, it can be argued either way. Who is the official person to ask for clarification?


BTW one would think that the rule administrators would allow lexan just in front of the driver, as actually the driver looks (way) over the Ginther windscreen.

Another way of looking at it (ETP), if you had to look through the Ginther windscreen to drive you'd have to be sitting on the ground.

I'd agree with you that a driver looks over and not through a ginther screen
but I don't think this is how the SCCA thinks.

you may want to get a copy of the GCR's
they are rather large
the club (imho) has a lot of rules
I gather that the reason for that is because often things have needed to be "clarified"

I'm certain that you could get that clarification you seek if you were willing to go through the significant red tape...
however there is still a good chance that they would not change the rule, only inforce it the way it is written.

I'm certain that to change a rule would be even more red tape.

its one of those things where you may want to either:
1) just buy the smoked lexan windshield and not rock the boat
or
2) build a fiberglass one and never ask for permission until you are questioned.


if you don't have a GCR, you probably ought to see its enormity...
if your building an scca car, you will have many things like this that could be a problem later.

brant

That section of the rules is VERY poorly written.
WTF is line of sight......to where? Were they to say you must
be able to see the ground 20 feet in front of the car, that would make sense.

The Ginther screen was designed for and made legal by the SCCA for the Production classes. Has something changed?

I think you guys are a bit too worried about this one. The way I've seen "line of sight" interpreted is "what the driver has to look to to see the ground" and these are plenty legal from that standpoint. I'm not convinced of the "keeping in the original frame outline" part of it though.

The GCR can be downloaded from the SCCA website.


JP, 20 feet would not be a good rule for me because I'm pretty sure I can't see anything 20 feet in front of my car. Not because of any windscreen, but because I sit too low in it.

I concur with both statements.
I was using 20 feet as an example tho 20 feet is too far
for an AXer.

I don't think my Ginther screen obstructs the front view at all, i.e., on or off I see the same place on the ground in front of the car.

J.P.,
I didn't know you could SEE 20 feet anyways.

I think if you could superimpose an overhead image of a car with ginther windscreen and a car with stock windshield frame it would be apparent the windscreen meets the rules. Ie., viewed from above it doesn't go past the rearmost portion of the windshield frame.
At one time I think the rules required a see-thru windscreen but now a fully fiberglass unit is fine since if it were clear all you would see through it is car.

Chris is correct. They view it from the top of the windshield down.

The tops of our windshields end at the stainless window guide in the door. This is why you see the Ginthers hanging over the tops of the doors.

I love them. I wish I could have met Ritchie Ginther. Just the fact that he had *some* factory support with 914 racing is awesome!

Maybe our guy Brian will right a Ginther book one day (one of the 914 book writers is on our board every day posting..)


B

Makes sense, but I'll still check to make sure before I install it.

The windshield frame goes back at least as far as the front edge of the floorpan crossmember.