dilemma: 2004 Cabriolet 996TT factory OEM seat belt stinks - constantly slips off my shoulder - also local DE rules state that both seats must have same same setups.

When I went to the local respected indy, the solution was get rid of my seats, put in a proper harness, that attaches to (non-existant) roll-cage.

I'll likely never put in a roll cage - it's a daily drivers, sees about 7 DE days a year max, but I want a seat harness that works. However I don't want to dump in $3-5K. I'd rather spend $500 all in. What are my options?

Is the a 3 point solution that works well-enough? I just need something that works better than OEM - which doesn't work - at all. Just slips right off my left shoulder.

What does the might brain trust here at 6speed recommend?

 

the trick with stock belts is to start with your seat back a little..then click the belt in then slide the seat forward to normal seating postion..that should tension the belt enough to keep it from slipping off...otherwise, cant' recommend racing seat with 5/6 point harness without roll protection...you don't need a full cage..an oem roll bar will do...you can pick them up used...don't think you can do it all for $500 tho

 

get cg lock...actually works quite well.

 

You didn't say which seats you have, so I am assuming stock. PCA has spent some effort looking into various types of restraints. According to them, current research seems to show that 5/6 point harnesses are less effective than standard 3-points unless you have both: seats with holes for harnesses to pass through, and roll bar or harness bar to tie the harnesses to. Most PCA DE's have adopted this as a rule. If you don't have both of these you have to use a three point belt.

One issue is that the 5/6 point harnesses can slip off the shoulder even more easily than the 3-point if they aren't routed through the seat. The other one is that if you don't have the correct angle of the harness going across your shoulder, provided by the roll or harness bar, then the harness can crush your spine in certain types of impact.

Having rolled a car once in a DE, I am a strong proponent of the additional protection. I have GT3 seats and a roll bar. You don't need a cage. I also use a HANS device.

Jon

 

Quick question quick answer asked for:

Where to mount lower point in a 996TT, if using 5/6 point harness? Is there any spot ready to mount a bolt or does welding operations apply?

 

I use these and they work great. They use existing mounting points and are always in place, so you can just clip in your lap belts whenever you desire. The sub bar mounts under the seat and is pre-made to fit the 996 sliders - perfect bolt-on fit.

http://www.bkauto.com/porsche/r9001.php

http://www.bkauto.com/porsche/r9003.php

http://www.bkauto.com/porsche/r9033.php

http://www.bkauto.com/porsche/r2030.php

tunnel side


outside


clip-on belts

 

I have some "strong" opinions on this subject...

Rollbars (please, let's stop calling them cages OK?) are cheap and easy to instal. They take less than 2 hours in a coupe, and much less in a cabrio..

Now, Harnesses do NOT work well with seats that aren't designed for a "headrest" pass through. Also "harnesses" aren't designed for UV abuse. There's a reason they come with inspection tags that are dated.

I use the bits offered by Brey-Kraus for my harness mounts, Teamtech harness, an ultrashielf seat and DaSport Rollbar. It's a package deal and it's supposed to work as a "system". Using harnesses with the stock seats, that's just asking for trouble.

Mike

 

Brey-Kraus makes a great anti-sub bar for this... Bolts to the GT3 Eurospec seat rails... Or you can have someone weld up a small bar that will bolt to your specific seatrails...

Mike

 

To clarify the BK parts I mentioned above - yes, they are designed to be used with a race style seat with pass thru openings for the shoulder belts and lower opening for the sub belt, etc. I use the OEM GT3 seats and they work very well with the BK parts and a 5-6 point harness.