badhabit_wb

I'm going to post this link for pics of most parts of the install because it's simpler than trying to post that many pics with my slow internet.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/3V6QXy9lPHGqSErb2.

Over the weekend I installed a BK harness bar and 2 Racetech seats in my z06.
I cut holes rather than slots in my sail panels and that worked fine and hopefully the sail panels are stronger than if I'd cut the slots. The top hole was about 2 1/4 square. I also cut some out of the felt below it but probably wouldn't have had to to make it work. I put the passenger side sail panel back on before sliding the harness bar in place and slid the driver side in place with the sail panel on the harness bar. It wasn't easy but I think it was worth the effort.

The seats work but it's really tight and I had to modify the AMT seat kit by putting 2 right side plates on the drivers side and 2 left side plates on the passenger side. I also put the outboard seat plate on the inside of the plate that bolts to the seat rather than the outside.
The "wings" at the top of the seat touched the door and the fiberglass portion that curves out at the end of the wing was pushing into the door panel. After talking with Racetech I trimmed off the part the rolled out and was hitting the door. Now there is foam between the shell and door panel and that shouldn't be an issue.

I know this is a really large seat for a C7 but I wanted a seat I could leave in that was comfortable on the street. I was afraid a halo seat on the street would restrict visibility too much. I know this is a compromise and not ideal either place but I think for me it's the best option.

Herman

fleming23

Looks good! As far as I am aware, this is the first RaceTech in a full interior C7 I've seen. I really debated buying one for a while but was pretty confident it was going to touch the door, which I did not want.

I too just trimmed the rear panels for my BK bar rather than cutting the entire thing as they recommend. It does look a little better, in my opinion.

Looks good, glad it worked!

fleming23

Also, you should update the following thread with your info/photos.

https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums...ar-thread.html

Edit, man looking at your photos....that thing is snug!

badhabit_wb

Thanks for offering to let me check your car out. I think with just the foam and cloth up against the door I won't have a problem but it is tight!

badhabit_wb

It's really snug! I posted on the other thread as well since I'm probably the reason Mark started it. LOL

mallett435

I'm getting ready to install the BK harness bar in my car this weekend. Do you have any tips/suggestions beyond the install guide to be aware of? The instructions say to remove the seats to put it in. Is that mandatory? It seems if the seat was forward enough, then most of the work will be done from sitting in the rear of the car. Is it a clean plug and play install beyond cutting the sail panels?

badhabit_wb

You could do it without removing the seats but it would be more work and probably take longer. There's only one plug under the seat, at least on mine, and 4 bolts holding the seat down. I'd pull the seats for sure.
I measured the cut and on the top side it's around 2 1/4 square lined up from the edge of the felt part up along the center of the curved part that goes up. I hope that makes sense. You may not have to cut into the felt at all and I would try that first.
I test fitted everything with the sail panels off. Once I was sure everything was adjusted correctly I did the final assembly.
I left the seat belt spool on on the pass side and off on the drvr. I then put the sail panel back on the pass side and left the other panels off. Then I let the sail panel hang off the harness bar on the drvr side. I placed the harness bar in place on the pass bracket and then slid the drivers side in while positioning the sail panel so that it wouldn't crack or knock a hole in the speaker. Once you get the drvr side in place you have to take the bolt out of the bracket and put the seat belt spool in place. I put the pass bolts in the harness bar before taking the driver bolt out. Don't put the nuts on the pass side until you have the bolts in the drvr side.
I did it without by myself but it would have been easier with help. Take your time and you shouldn't have any trouble. Be careful removing the panels and use a trim tool. If you have any questions I'll do my best to help.

Bill Dearborn

When my son installed the BK bar in his Z51 he had better results with the second window surround he cut than with the first. There is a first time penalty when doing this and the second mod looks better due to lessons learned on the first.

That is also the reason I installed the Shark Bar in my car. It is a cleaner install and will work with the shoulder belts as long as you aren't over a certain height. This picture (which I have posted before) shows another forum member sitting in my seat with the belt coming up from the Shark Bar.



He is several inches taller than I am and there is no way he could use a stock seat or any harness bar to get those belts to cross his shoulders properly. His solution was to install the BK bar and race seats using the upper harness mounting point on the BK bar.

There are HPDE groups that won't permit modified stock seats due to issues of verifying the installation will work properly when needed and why screw up a set of stock seats when there are alternatives available? The comp seat works for me because I have never been over 5'10" (now down to 5'9" due to age) and I don't recommend using the slot in the GT seat even if you are short. The GT seat slot isn't wide enough and doesn't let the belts come around your neck properly. To properly modify the GT seat you would need to make a higher slot and one that is at least double the width. I don't believe there is sufficient room in the seat frame to permit that. Even if it works you have a butchered stock seat that will kill resale value. Bite the bullet and get a proper race seat that fits in the car. When you sell the car you can sell the seats and mounts separately to get some of your money back. In the long run it might be lower cost to go that way.

Bill

badhabit_wb

I agree Bill. Believe it or not with these seats I used the lower bar on the BK harness bar. The upper bar was way too high. These seats are resting on the floor and I went from bumping my helmet on the top to having plenty of clearance. It's much better on the track and honestly once I got used to being belted in with a 6 point harness better on the street. Ingress and egress do suffer with the race seats.