23/03/2026
1976 Ferrari Dino 308 GT4 Race Safety Systems.
This build started out as a straightforward race car with a bolt-in cage on a Ferrari Dino 308 GT4. By the time I left the first meeting, it had already changed direction.
Working alongside Mario from Veloce Motorsport and the car owner, Mick from (Mick & Ori’s podcast), the goal quickly became something much more involved — a car that could operate as a race car, but also be configured for road use without compromising safety or usability. That decision shaped everything that followed.
The final system was designed so the rear section of the cage remains in the car and is ADR-compliant, incorporating the seatbelt mounting points. For road use, the front section can be removed, allowing the car to be driven without the full cage in place. When it’s time to go racing, the front section is reinstalled and the car is back to a full cage configuration.
The seats remain consistent between both setups, using ADR-approved Velo Racing seats, so the driver environment doesn’t change between road and track. The aim was to avoid building two separate systems and instead create one that works properly in both scenarios.
Everything was also designed with reversibility in mind. Aside from the foot plates and crotch harness mounts, the system can be removed and the car returned close to its original state. That influenced how mounting points, structure, and integration were approached from the start.
From a fabrication point of view, this wasn’t a one-pass job.
The main structure was developed in the car to suit the chassis and driver position, then removed so critical areas like the roof structure, gussets, pillar connections, and final welding could be completed accurately on the table. It then went back in for fitment, adjusted, removed again, and refined until everything aligned correctly.
A key part of the process was integrating ADR seatbelt mounting into the structure. This required working through mounting positions, geometry, and load direction, and liaising with a LEVS engineer to ensure the approach met requirements. The important part here is that the seatbelt system influenced the structure early, rather than being added on at the end.
At the same time, everything had to work around the driver. Vision through the A-pillar and bars, entry and exit with the door bar arrangement, seating position, control reach, and helmet clearance all needed to be considered together, particularly in a tight cabin.
By the end of the build, what’s in the car isn’t just a cage. It’s a modular system that allows the car to move between road and track configurations, while keeping structure, safety, and driver position consistent.
’ll break down each stage of the process in more detail over the next few posts.
