dingo

I've looked at the different brands of harnesses, and can't really find where they would mount in my car (83 gs). Do any of you guys run a harness in your first gen (without a rollcage), and where did you mount it?

RacerX7fb

Although I dont really think that a rear strut bar would offer much more rigidity, it would make a very good place to mount harnesses.

dingo

Yeah I have thought about that, is there really no other place to mount one without adding anything extra? Granted, rear strut bars are relatively cheap. I was thinking possibly it could be mounted to the bolts that hold the sun-roof glass in

851stgen12a

There are a few people that make a harness bar that mounts to the mounting points with the origional belts.

adssoccer

i have a 5 point in my 84-se, but i assume it would mount the same for you. i have the shoulder straps bolted on with the bolt going from right behind the driver seat into the little storage compartment. and the two side straps bolt right in where the normal seat-belt bolts up. for the fifth strap i made a homeade loop through a bar on the bottom of the seat (not the strongest or really safest, but this strap isn't load bearing). i can get some pics if none of this made sense.

MyRxBad

If you have shoulder straps for a 5 point, they are supposed to be bolted behind you at the same level (height) as you shoulders. You should not mount (bolt) them any lower then that or else you run the risk of getting seriously injured in an accident.

Mr. ImportGuy

Do NOT mount a harness to a strut bar. A strut bar is not only at the wrong angle but, it is also not made to take the force of your body, and any body flex in an impact. I can't stop you from mounting it to one anyways but just some advice. Also if you do not have at least a roll bar, the idea of being stuck upright in a roll over doesn't excite me. A roll bar would give you at least some roll over protection along with a place to mount the harness correctly. The bars that go where the seatbelts attach look ok... I've seen them in person and they at least get the angle pretty close. Just think about these things if you plan on using the harness for anything more than AutoX.

moremazda

iTrader: (4)

A harness with out a roll bar/cage is more of a safety risk than a feature in a street car. The whole point of the harness is to hold you up-right in the vehical during high, sustained lateral foces. The vehical is DISGNED or in other words INTENDED to colpase in the event of a collission, including roll overs. If a roll over occurs the resulting impact would likely kill someone (YOU) even if you are wearing a helmet.

You should go to the local track and find the safety officials. Ask them what they allow as far as safety gear for the track days. You are intending on using these five points on the track, aren't you????

The reason people use harness bars in auto cross is because they are usually cheaper than a full roll bar or cage. And most of the cars that have eliminated the stock seat belts with that harness bar, are not driven daily. You do go to auto cross, don't you???

If you don't race it why in the hell would you want safety harnesses.

Thanks for listening

Ryan

nickj

I can see the benefits of a harness in a street car, but I agree with the roll bar recommendations. I've seen FDs without a bar go belly up at track sessions, and the roof does cave. The driver's usually okay if he's got a helmet, an empty passenger seat, and a stock seat belt.

adssoccer

dingo, why are you putting the harness in? is it for street, autox, track? mine is strictly for autox, so its only job is to keep me upright and having it bolted to the cargo box works perfect for that, plus i didnt have to put in any bars, just drill a hole. if its for track, that MIGHT be a different story. it is mounted pretty low. MyRxBad, how would you get seriously injured mounting the straps lower? i'm just curious as to what the difference is.

Manntis

Although I carry rear strut tower bars, I STRONGLY discourage anyone from buying them with the intent to mount harnesses to them.

PROPERLY MOUNT YOUR HARNESS. It could save your life.

gamble302

idea: get someone to make harness bars for us or source it through ioport

im gonna go roll bar if i go harnesses though....

Lt. Dan

The reason you should only use a harness with a rollbar is simple. When you mount the shoulder straps for your harness to the floor, instead of at shoulder height, it follows the a path like this: /\. Now, imagine your shoulders are at the top of that peak. When you are in an accident, your body is going to try to slide forward, pulling on that harness. the top of that peak will come down in height, RIGHT ONTO YOUR SHOULDERS, compressing your spine. The other reason you shouldn't use a harness without a rollbar is because of rollovers. a five point harness is designed to hold you in an upright position, with little movement. what happens if you roll your car, and the roof collapses? Where are you gonna go?

Dan

Sudox_E

well, I can say from experience that I HAVE rolled a car while wearing my stock seat belt. Suprisingly, the seat belt held me upside down, quite nicely too. I think the outcome would have been the same with racing belts, with me escaping any serious injury. Another thing, all the cars I have seen roll, the roof caves in the most right at the top of the windshield, and the sheetmetal over the drivers head remains untouched for the most part.

dingo

my thread exploded hehe...

I will be using a harness for Auto-X 90% of the time... I may get into Solo1/Road racing later on this year. I found a rollcage at http://www.optauto.com that I could mount a harness to (I've been looking at the Schroth Rallye 4 pt. harness).

I think the rollcage+quick release harness would be best, since this is also a street car (not my main car though).


Thanks everyone for your input on this

dingo

On a side note, what about a harness guide bar?
http://www.ioportracing.com/Merchant...oduct_Code=GB3

looks interesting

adssoccer

that bar looks like it'd work pretty well. if you're just using it for autox, or at least to start out, i'd just bolt it in. it saves money and saves the added weight of a cage, plus its lots easier. but if/when you get to solo1 or road racing, be sure to get it all set up for max safety with a harness bar at the least.

dingo

I think I've foudn what i'm going to go with:
http://www.ioportracing.com/Merchant...ory_Code=AP531

with the options of a removable cross brace, and removable harness bar.

Once again thanks for everyones input