I mean, the “full roll cage” part would definitely put the total well over $1k. But I suppose you might be able to get away with just the butterfly brace alone if your goal was solely to stop it folding in half when it hit big bumps and not, you know, being safe or good in general.
(Also if you didn’t have a roll cage then you probably really ought to have at least a hardtop – for both rigidity and safety reasons – and I believe that alone is over $1k at this point, too.)
I’m no expert, but I’m guessing that something like https://flyinmiata.com/products/flyin-miata-butterfly-brace-v2-0 + a full roll cage would probably do the trick.
I’ve enough expertise to be certain that would do the trick. That bypasses the frame modification for not even $1k.
I mean, the “full roll cage” part would definitely put the total well over $1k. But I suppose you might be able to get away with just the butterfly brace alone if your goal was solely to stop it folding in half when it hit big bumps and not, you know, being safe or good in general.
(Also if you didn’t have a roll cage then you probably really ought to have at least a hardtop – for both rigidity and safety reasons – and I believe that alone is over $1k at this point, too.)
No one’s roll caging a lightweight, underpowered toy. If it was on the track or was an actual Jeep, then sure.