Harness on stock ZR1 seats
09-28-2012, 02:48 PM
#1
Le Mans Master
Thread Starter
Harness on stock ZR1 seats
Is it possible to run a 4 or 6 point harness system on stock ZR1 seats? I'm a skinny guy and so I'm getting tossed around like a rag doll.
09-28-2012, 03:35 PM
#2
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Not really. The shoulder harnesses have to wrap around the seat which means they can come off your shoulders in an incident. Stock belt also goes around the seat but since it is only one side your body pivots forward and around the shoulder belt thus holding it and the lap belt tight during an incident.
If you are in the 5' 10" range you can get your stock belts and seat to do a credible job holding you in if you use the seat bolster bladders and the seat belt cinch feature. Blow the bladders up all the way, move your seat all the way to the rear, then using the power seat switch tilt the seat backwards. Then fasten the belt, pull the shoulder belt out until it stops and release, put your right hand on the shoulder belt where it goes through the latch and pull it up and backwards to make the lap belt tight across your waste. As you are doing that feed the slack in the shoulder belt into the shoulder belt take up reel in the quarter panel. Once the belt is as tight as you can get it use the power seat switch to run the seat forward until the lap belt feels like it is going to cut you in half. The shoulder belt should also be so tight that you would have a hard time breathing if you were breathing hard. I just did this at my last track event instead of using my race seats. It worked quite well.
Bill
If you are in the 5' 10" range you can get your stock belts and seat to do a credible job holding you in if you use the seat bolster bladders and the seat belt cinch feature. Blow the bladders up all the way, move your seat all the way to the rear, then using the power seat switch tilt the seat backwards. Then fasten the belt, pull the shoulder belt out until it stops and release, put your right hand on the shoulder belt where it goes through the latch and pull it up and backwards to make the lap belt tight across your waste. As you are doing that feed the slack in the shoulder belt into the shoulder belt take up reel in the quarter panel. Once the belt is as tight as you can get it use the power seat switch to run the seat forward until the lap belt feels like it is going to cut you in half. The shoulder belt should also be so tight that you would have a hard time breathing if you were breathing hard. I just did this at my last track event instead of using my race seats. It worked quite well.
Bill
09-28-2012, 04:14 PM
#3
Le Mans Master
Not really. The shoulder harnesses have to wrap around the seat which means they can come off your shoulders in an incident. Stock belt also goes around the seat but since it is only one side your body pivots forward and around the shoulder belt thus holding it and the lap belt tight during an incident.
If you are in the 5' 10" range you can get your stock belts and seat to do a credible job holding you in if you use the seat bolster bladders and the seat belt cinch feature. Blow the bladders up all the way, move your seat all the way to the rear, then using the power seat switch tilt the seat backwards. Then fasten the belt, pull the shoulder belt out until it stops and release, put your right hand on the shoulder belt where it goes through the latch and pull it up and backwards to make the lap belt tight across your waste. As you are doing that feed the slack in the shoulder belt into the shoulder belt take up reel in the quarter panel. Once the belt is as tight as you can get it use the power seat switch to run the seat forward until the lap belt feels like it is going to cut you in half. The shoulder belt should also be so tight that you would have a hard time breathing if you were breathing hard. I just did this at my last track event instead of using my race seats. It worked quite well.
Bill
If you are in the 5' 10" range you can get your stock belts and seat to do a credible job holding you in if you use the seat bolster bladders and the seat belt cinch feature. Blow the bladders up all the way, move your seat all the way to the rear, then using the power seat switch tilt the seat backwards. Then fasten the belt, pull the shoulder belt out until it stops and release, put your right hand on the shoulder belt where it goes through the latch and pull it up and backwards to make the lap belt tight across your waste. As you are doing that feed the slack in the shoulder belt into the shoulder belt take up reel in the quarter panel. Once the belt is as tight as you can get it use the power seat switch to run the seat forward until the lap belt feels like it is going to cut you in half. The shoulder belt should also be so tight that you would have a hard time breathing if you were breathing hard. I just did this at my last track event instead of using my race seats. It worked quite well.
Bill
5/6 point belts can seperate upon impact and send you through the windshield...AND you should never use harness without a HANS device (eg. bobble head).
I dealt with this situation early on and it is all or nothing, stock set up or full race seat with harness and HANS. In my opinion any kind of combination of the two is not safe.
09-28-2012, 04:40 PM
#4
Track Junky
09-28-2012, 06:02 PM
#6
Le Mans Master
Thread Starter
Yeah I am 6'2'' at 175lbs. Small fry I know. Ok so the hunt for a seat continues.
And Bill I do the whole scoot the seat back, cinch the belt and edge up but its not enough. I got out after 2 days at Road Atlanta this past time with bruises on the sides of both of my knees.
And Bill I do the whole scoot the seat back, cinch the belt and edge up but its not enough. I got out after 2 days at Road Atlanta this past time with bruises on the sides of both of my knees.
09-28-2012, 06:45 PM
#7
Safety Car
Yeah I am 6'2'' at 175lbs. Small fry I know. Ok so the hunt for a seat continues.
And Bill I do the whole scoot the seat back, cinch the belt and edge up but its not enough. I got out after 2 days at Road Atlanta this past time with bruises on the sides of both of my knees.
And Bill I do the whole scoot the seat back, cinch the belt and edge up but its not enough. I got out after 2 days at Road Atlanta this past time with bruises on the sides of both of my knees.
09-28-2012, 07:25 PM
#10
Track Junky
I don't do TT or compete yet, this is for HDPE and street driving only. I have passed inspection for all 4 clubs I drive with. As I progress to TT, a full race cage and seat will be installed.
Last edited by taken19; 09-29-2012 at 09:17 AM.
09-29-2012, 04:03 AM
#12
Track Junky
09-29-2012, 09:05 AM
#13
Burning Brakes
You shouldn't. This is serious stuff. PCA and many other organizations do not allow modified seats to run in HPDE. The seat must be designed for use with harnesses, and must have a pass through for the sub-strap.
This is not just about keeping you from moving around while driving, it's about keeping you safe during an impact. Modified stock seats simply allow the belts to pass through but do not have the structural strength/reinforcement needed for use with harnesses.
If you think this is not important or that I'm just preaching you're wrong. As Safety Chair for my club I investigated an incident last year where a reputable manufacturer's slider peeled/bent back from the floor mounts of a C6Z in a 5g (from actual data acquisition) rearward impact in T2 at Summit. This allowed the seat to move enough that the driver came loose in his harnesses allowing his head to knock the rear view mirror off the windshield. (open face helmet w/ no HANS) I would highly advise against using a slider and going with the Hardbar style fixed mounts and a quality race seat. Take it back out when you're not at the track or just learn to live with it while street driving. We use this example to explain to students in lower run groups why they need to spend money on safety equipment before tires and performance upgrades.
Our cars are simply too fast to short-cut on safety equipment and if you're driving fast enough that the stock seats and belts aren't doing the job, then it's time to upgrade, but do it right.
This is not just about keeping you from moving around while driving, it's about keeping you safe during an impact. Modified stock seats simply allow the belts to pass through but do not have the structural strength/reinforcement needed for use with harnesses.
If you think this is not important or that I'm just preaching you're wrong. As Safety Chair for my club I investigated an incident last year where a reputable manufacturer's slider peeled/bent back from the floor mounts of a C6Z in a 5g (from actual data acquisition) rearward impact in T2 at Summit. This allowed the seat to move enough that the driver came loose in his harnesses allowing his head to knock the rear view mirror off the windshield. (open face helmet w/ no HANS) I would highly advise against using a slider and going with the Hardbar style fixed mounts and a quality race seat. Take it back out when you're not at the track or just learn to live with it while street driving. We use this example to explain to students in lower run groups why they need to spend money on safety equipment before tires and performance upgrades.
Our cars are simply too fast to short-cut on safety equipment and if you're driving fast enough that the stock seats and belts aren't doing the job, then it's time to upgrade, but do it right.
09-29-2012, 10:31 AM
#14
Pro
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Joe Aquilante at Phoenix Performance has this and other setups figured out nicely-- I'd give him a call to talk about options (610) 482-0141.
09-30-2012, 03:04 AM
#15
Le Mans Master
Thread Starter
You shouldn't. This is serious stuff. PCA and many other organizations do not allow modified seats to run in HPDE. The seat must be designed for use with harnesses, and must have a pass through for the sub-strap.
This is not just about keeping you from moving around while driving, it's about keeping you safe during an impact. Modified stock seats simply allow the belts to pass through but do not have the structural strength/reinforcement needed for use with harnesses.
If you think this is not important or that I'm just preaching you're wrong. As Safety Chair for my club I investigated an incident last year where a reputable manufacturer's slider peeled/bent back from the floor mounts of a C6Z in a 5g (from actual data acquisition) rearward impact in T2 at Summit. This allowed the seat to move enough that the driver came loose in his harnesses allowing his head to knock the rear view mirror off the windshield. (open face helmet w/ no HANS) I would highly advise against using a slider and going with the Hardbar style fixed mounts and a quality race seat. Take it back out when you're not at the track or just learn to live with it while street driving. We use this example to explain to students in lower run groups why they need to spend money on safety equipment before tires and performance upgrades.
Our cars are simply too fast to short-cut on safety equipment and if you're driving fast enough that the stock seats and belts aren't doing the job, then it's time to upgrade, but do it right.
This is not just about keeping you from moving around while driving, it's about keeping you safe during an impact. Modified stock seats simply allow the belts to pass through but do not have the structural strength/reinforcement needed for use with harnesses.
If you think this is not important or that I'm just preaching you're wrong. As Safety Chair for my club I investigated an incident last year where a reputable manufacturer's slider peeled/bent back from the floor mounts of a C6Z in a 5g (from actual data acquisition) rearward impact in T2 at Summit. This allowed the seat to move enough that the driver came loose in his harnesses allowing his head to knock the rear view mirror off the windshield. (open face helmet w/ no HANS) I would highly advise against using a slider and going with the Hardbar style fixed mounts and a quality race seat. Take it back out when you're not at the track or just learn to live with it while street driving. We use this example to explain to students in lower run groups why they need to spend money on safety equipment before tires and performance upgrades.
Our cars are simply too fast to short-cut on safety equipment and if you're driving fast enough that the stock seats and belts aren't doing the job, then it's time to upgrade, but do it right.
10-01-2012, 01:57 PM
#18
Tech Contributor
Member Since: Oct 1999
Location: Charlotte, NC (formerly Endicott, NY)
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Yeah I am 6'2'' at 175lbs. Small fry I know. Ok so the hunt for a seat continues.
And Bill I do the whole scoot the seat back, cinch the belt and edge up but its not enough. I got out after 2 days at Road Atlanta this past time with bruises on the sides of both of my knees.
And Bill I do the whole scoot the seat back, cinch the belt and edge up but its not enough. I got out after 2 days at Road Atlanta this past time with bruises on the sides of both of my knees.
Bill