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Can't they just have an over the shoulder belt?

Yea that popped up as an idea. I imagine that you could just use and not get rid of the over the shoulder belt. I mean you really need to get rid of it. Just use the 4/5 point harness when needed. Or is this not possible? Also I have one question on this topic i was looking at Corbeau since i have never heard of them and thier prices look amazing i mean like $240 in chosen color for a fixxed back seat and like $10 more for reclining are these usuable in sanctioned?

A reclining bucket? Get the lazy boy bucket. So does the harness come out of the seat or do you need to put something there? Like the shoulder strap has that thing near the door.

the harness does not come out of the seat, it is illegal to have regular belts and harnesses both installed. as I said, the harnesses go over a harness bar on the rollcage.




As you can imagine this is not conducive to having rear passengers, and generally requires the complete removal of rear seats. (and in some cases, the welding up of the mounting holes)

You also have to fit plates in the transmission tunnel to mount the inside strap, and if its a 5-point, a plate on the seat mounting-rail that is welded to the floor of the chassis.

So this is why some people have 2 cars. One for normal use and the other for racing.

Speaking of harness bars, 240z's HAVE a built in harness bar mounting point on the body. Back when they used to rally race old Z's, they mounted the rollbar to those points


You can get bolt in cage's that are certified for racing though.

Fused hit it right on the head. Even though a properly installed harness is "Safer" per say, it restricts your body from being able to turn around and check your blind spots. My personal argument for them is, that they are certified to be used in motor sports by the FIA.

FIA > DMV?

I'm sure there are DOT legal harnesses though.
Anyways, the seatbelts in my old bug are no more restricting than a 4 point racing harness. They're solid mounted, so you can't move your body in them. and Honestly, it doesn't take more than turning your head to be able to check your blind spot. You really don't need to rotate your entire body.

who cares what the french think anyways?

There was a local guy here with a beetle that had racing seats and a harness in it for autocross. he got pulled over on the freeway because the cops saw his shoulder belt dangling and though the was driving without a seat belt. when they approached his driver window they saw the harness he was wearing instead of his shoulder belt and let him go without any warnings or anything since he was wearing a seat belt, just not the stock one.

so I guess it's only illegal in some areas if you try to do it in a cheap quick manner. do it right and legally and your fine.

Having tried both there's quite a difference, supporting yourself with your knees isn't exactly an A+ for safety, you should be able to sit further back than that. The GTP has factory buckets that sit very low, immediate difference from the usual position.

Over here, you have to use the regular seat belt that the car was equipped with. I can't find a better passage , but this one applies :

I'm a master at finding loopholes, and quite frankly, I don't see how the addition of a bucket seat and harness can break that law, so long as you leave the both the stock belt and buckle in place and usable. You could likely be fined for not wearing a seat belt, if the harness doesn't meet the Canadian equivalent of the DOT's standards.

That's what I get out of that. If there's more to it, then my reasoning could be very well null and void.

Bolded the part that the cop will pick, just so he can earn his donut money. Because the law says you are supposed to wear the restraint that the car came with. And I don't think anyone is going to be wearing the harness and the belt at the same time. >_<

Okay, now I have this undeniable urge to see a pic of this...

Aaaaactually, It doesnt specify that it must be the one the car came with, it only specifies that the restraint in use must meet the requirements in place when the car was manufactured or imported, and be functional. Lawyers hate loopholes, I have no doubt, that were it intended to be the OE belt, it would have been directly specified as such.

Well, you can't remove the seat belt assembly, so the cop can ( and will from what I've heard ) give you a ticket for not wearing a seatbelt, even though you are wearing a five point harness. >_<

I got pulled over in my bug once because at the time I only had LAP belts. The cop was trying to give me a hard time too, because my car didn't have an inspection sticker (Because it was a 62) THEN I had to explain to him, that lapbelt only is ORIGINAL and that's how it came, and that my car doesn't need a sticker because it's SO DAMN OLD.

then I got a shoulder harness and mounted them in. those suckers are tight. unless you give it (Unsafe) slack, you can't move around much. I sure was glad when my car rolled into a ditch when I had those too. I felt nice and snug hanging upside down >_<

anyways, in the case of an old bug (my 62) I would say that I could put a 5 point harness and not get any shit from cops, since ORIGNALLY it only had a lap belt. I don't think they would really be able to argue the fact that me wearing a racing harness isn't as safe as just wearing a lap belt haha

This post has been edited by Kazuki on Aug 6 2008, 09:26 PM

I got pulled over once for something (burnouts probably), in my 68 Camaro. The cop tried to tack on a seat belt charge, but, my car was never equipped with belts, they were an option at the time. He "let me off" (really, there was jack shit he could do) with a warning and told me that I should get a seat belt for the car. So, I did. I bought a loop of belt with buckle and all. It was actually being sold as a belt, to hold your pants up. So, It sits in the back seat, next time I get pulled over in that car, I'll put it on and see what the cops say about that.

So you drive with out seatbelts?

Anyway, seeing as my topic has turned into a discussion about harnesses and harness bars etc, I think the only issue which "might" occur, concerning having a harness bar or not, "might" be if the car rolls...

I was out with the rally boys all day yesterday, and not one of them had a harness bar, even though they all compete in national rallies... Each time I was a passenger, I was strapped in as tight as possible, and that was it.

Who here actually has a harness? I do, a sabelt one, but to be honest, I only use it when at a practice session, where I know I dont have to look around for other cars .
Otherwise, my 3-point seat belt and a bucket seat provide sufficient support.
Obviously for the passenger, they would still fly around (mainly forwards towards the dashboard) with a 3-point seat belt, because theyre not holding the wheel etc etc

Anyway, bucket seats for the win daily driving and track

Bucket seats are cool, I would really appreciate to have one, but damn, I don't have a car or a license just yet. I would say BRIDE bucket seats should be a good option for Japanese street cars as long it fits to the style of the car.

Are bucket seats lighter or heavier than the regular factory chair cars usually come with?

I personally would appreciate driving with bucket seats. Well, not the FIA grade bucket seats that cannot be adjusted for something like reclining the backrest. Something that's partly adjustable but very suportive during turns would be nice. Our family owns a car and we're often going to our province which requires driving thru winding roads. With experience, you probably are able to drive quite fast in these roads (but not necessarily racing on them) and the support of these good seats will be nice....

I'd like some decent bucket seats in my S13, though I probably don't NEED them yet... I've currently got some of the rare S14 "Silvia" insignia seats which are supportive enough.

I've been trying to find a decent pair of Recaro SR-2 seats out of an Integra Type R to throw in my Silvia... the ex-but-not-quite-ex-girlfriend in Japan has agreed to send some over for my birthday if I can find some for less than 20,000yen... hah.

^ A buddy of mine has the JDM ITR Recaros in his Civic, they're REALLY snug... I like them