Likewise, ask Subdriver if the full T1 spec padded cage, HANS device, helmet, window net, race seat, etc. afforded more protection than a harness bar and helmet, sans HANS device, would have.
I didn't claim a harness afforded no protection. I said it is safer, but not as safe as a dedicated track or racecar, and it isn't. Furthermore, it can be argued the OEM restraint system in combination with the SRS, i.e. airbag/s is just as safe (or even safer, depending on the crash) for HPDE events.
Frankly, taking a street car to the track is, generally speaking, relatively safe if one obeys the rules and regulations although it is not as safe as some seem to think it is. On can also argue the street is even less safe, and it often is. The point is, a production street car is not a racecar and one should not be under any illusion they are.
HPDE events are fun and very educational. They can make one a better driver. But they are not races nor do they pretend to be, although some people treat them as if they are. In those cases the more safety equipment installed, the better.
One can't possibly argue that a stock vehicle is as safe as a T1 equipped car for example when doing 150+ mph, or that even a harness bar, harness and helmet is as safe; safer, granted, but not as safe as it could be considering the speeds and potential crash scenarios at those speeds.
Furthermore, one can argue that a harness and harness bar alone is even less safe in the, albeit fairly uncommon, instance where the vehicle rolls compared to the OEM system.
Which would you rather be involved in, a crash with subsequent roll at 55 or at 155 mph? Again, the answer is obvious, but at even HPDE speeds I sure as Hell would prefer to have a roll cage than not.
At street speeds rollovers are often survivable. I know, as a former volunteer firefighter and rescue squad member, I've extricated a number of people from vehicles involved in rollover crashes as well as others (on the street).
Of course, one makes compromises based on monetary considerations and other factors. I'm well aware of that. Nevertheless, rationalization based on the perception it "isn't likely" is not wise. The fact is the potential is there and the outcome at typical track speeds is often invariably more severe than at legal street speeds.
Granted, a production street car capable of nearly 200 mph is cool as heck, but to do so either on the street or track, in stock form, is sheer idiocy. Doing the same in a NASCAR Cup car or F1 car is only slightly less so.
