A 182 owner rang us this week with the question this page answers: which cage. He is far from the first. The Clio 182 is one of the most caged cars we deal with, and it is genuinely well served, five brands make something for the Mk2 shell and most of it is on the shelf as a catalogued, model-specific kit.
That choice is the problem. Rear half cages, bolt-in full cages, weld-in kits, FIA papers or none, and a price spread from around £350 to north of £1,800. So this is the guide we would give him across the counter: the rear cages we rate, the full multipoint cages we rate, one pick from every brand that makes a 182 cage, and the lead times as they stand this week.
Every cage on this page is a vehicle-specific fitment for the Mk2 Clio, built for the shell, not bent to suit on the day.
Cameron’s first question when a 182 owner asks about cages is what the car actually does, because that answer picks the cage type before any brand comes into it.
A rear half cage sits behind the front seats: main hoop, back stays, a diagonal and usually a harness bar. The rear bench and boot trim come out, the front of the cabin stays standard. That is the right tool for a road car that does track days and sprints. You get proper harness mounting and rollover structure over your head without giving up the car as usable transport.
A full multipoint cage carries the structure forward, legs down the A-pillars to the front footwells, and door bars on the versions built for racing. That is what club racing, stage rally and most gridded championships expect. It is a bigger commitment: more money, more weight, and a cabin you now climb past tubes to get into.
1. SW Motorsport 172/182 bolt-in half cage. Built specifically for the 172/182 shell in CDS tube, so the feet land where the Mk2 floor wants them. SW also do a Club Basic version a shade cheaper, and either is about £577.00 including VAT. Six to eight week lead time as it stands, which is the shortest wait on this page.
2. JP Cages 172/182 half cage. The one in the photographs is the same idea done JP’s way: CDS tube, Road & Track spec, £553.20 including VAT. JP also do a DIY half cage kit for the Mk2 at £354.74 if you can weld and want the parts instead of the finished article. Around eight weeks at the moment.
3. Safety Devices Mk2 bolt-in rear cage. The dearest of the three at £585.60, and the one to buy if you want FIA-approved paperwork on a rear cage, with a single fixed diagonal and harness bar. Safety Devices production runs 8 to 14 weeks, so order this one well ahead of the season.
1. JP Cages 172/182 bolt-in multipoint competition cage. The value pick at £899.58 including VAT. A full bolt-in multipoint built for the 172/182, Road & Track spec, and no welding on a straight car. JP also make a Dash Dodger version at £873.18, which routes the front legs so the standard dashboard stays in place, the usual choice when the car keeps its interior.
2. SW Motorsport Mk2 full bolt-in MSUK cage. The one Garreth points at when the car is entering things with an MSUK licence. Full bolt-in cage built to MSUK-ready spec at £1,344.00 with a Basic version at £1,195.98 that trims the specification, not the fit. Six to eight weeks.
3. Safety Devices Mk2 6 point bent cross door bar cage. FIA approved, bolt-in, with proper door bars, £938.40 including VAT. Safety Devices do this 6 point in three door bar layouts, so the cage can follow how much of the door card you want to keep. 8 to 14 weeks at present, and worth every one of them if the regulations ask for FIA papers.
Five brands make a cage for this car and each has a personality. If you already have a favourite, this is the pick we would take from each range, with the lead times as quoted to us this week.
| Brand | The pick for a 182 | What it is | Lead time | Price inc VAT |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SW Motorsport | Mk2 full bolt-in MSUK cage | Bolt-in full cage, MSUK-ready spec | About 6 to 8 weeks | £1,344.00 |
| JP Cages | 172/182 bolt-in multipoint | Bolt-in competition cage, Road & Track | About 8 weeks | £899.58 |
| Safety Devices | Mk2 6 point, bent cross door bars | FIA approved bolt-in with door bars | 8 to 14 weeks | £938.40 |
| Custom Cages | Mk2 International Multipoint T45 | T45 weld-in kit, FIA and MSUK | 4 to 10 weeks | £1,818.30 |
| Sparco | Clio 2.0 16V multipoint weld-in | Weld-in multipoint | Ask when ordering | £1,865.58 |
The bolt-in picks from SW, JP and Safety Devices are the cards further up the page. The weld-in end of the table belongs to Custom Cages and Sparco, and the Custom Cages kits deserve a special mention: the £889.20 National CDS kit is the cheapest route to a full weld-in six point, and the T45 International kit is what we would put in a car headed for stage rally or anything run to FIA requirements.
A cage install is the natural moment to do the rest of the cabin, because the interior is already in the garage and the harness bar is the reason half these cages get bought.
The car in the photographs is a customer’s 182 that shows how it comes together: bolt-in rear cage, a pair of Mirco RTS buckets, and TRS harnesses wrapped to the bar. Seats, harnesses and the cage went in as one job instead of three separate weekends.
If you are planning the same, look at bucket seats and harnesses while the cage is on order. The lead time is the same few weeks either way, and Cameron can put the whole package together against the car in one go, seats, side mounts, harnesses and cage, so it all lands at once.
Bolt-in cages arrive finished, locate on plates bolted through the shell, and a competent home mechanic can fit one. Weld-in kits are tube sets that a fabricator welds into the shell, which makes them part of the car instead of an addition to it. If the regulations you run under accept a bolt-in, that is the simpler purchase. If the car is a dedicated competition build, the weld-in kits from Custom Cages and Sparco are the more serious answer.
Only if whatever you enter says so, and most club-level UK motorsport does not. Road & Track cages carry no certification and cover track days and road builds. MSUK-spec cages cover most domestic competition. FIA certification, which on this page means the Safety Devices FIA options and the Custom Cages International T45 kit, is for cars running under FIA regulations. Check your blue book or championship regs, or send them to us and we will read them with you.
A rear half cage is the road-friendly option and plenty of 182s run one every day. The rear bench and boot trim come out and the front cabin stays standard. Padding on any bar you could reach in a knock is the sensible finishing touch, and roll cage padding is on the site.
Yes. Every rear cage on this page stands where the bench sits, and the boot side trim usually comes out around the back stays. The 182 rear bench is heavy, so most owners call that a bonus, not a loss.
A bolt-in half cage is a realistic weekend job for two people with decent tools: trim out, cage positioned, plates drilled and bolted through. A full bolt-in cage is the same job with more of it, and getting the front legs seated properly takes patience. Weld-in kits are fabricator work, so budget for the install as well as the kit.
Because every cage is made to order for the exact shell, not pulled off a rack. The tube is cut, bent and jigged per car, and the makers batch their production runs. 8 to 14 weeks from Safety Devices and eight from JP is normal, not a delay. The only way to beat a lead time is to order before you need it.
Road car that does track days: the SW Motorsport or JP half cage, whichever lead time suits, with harnesses and buckets going in on the same weekend. Garreth’s view on the money is that the half cage plus decent seats and harnesses beats a full cage in an otherwise standard car.
Club competition: the JP multipoint if the budget is tight, the SW MSUK cage if the regulations want more. Stage rally or FIA-governed events: the Custom Cages International T45 kit, welded in by someone who does it for a living.
The 182 is lucky. Very few hot hatches have five cage makers competing over one shell, and it means the right cage exists for every version of the question, from a £354.74 DIY kit to a full T45 international build.
The lead time is the bit that catches people out, so decide early. Message us with what the car does, or is about to start doing, and we will confirm the right cage, the current lead time and the full package against your build. The whole range lives in Clio Mk2 roll cages.
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