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Racing seat and belt options/opinions?


barspen
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I'm thinking about investing in racing belts for track events, with the main goal of being better planted in my seat, while remaining safe. The stock 3-point seat belt offers little help with taking a corner at high speed.

 

I'm not looking to invest in a full roll cage or Recaros (price).

 

Would like a happy medium for a car that is primarily used on street, but can hit the track 2-4 times a year. Currently running in the intermediate group, but expect to make the jump to the advanced group this fall. I have no plans on racing competitively...just looking to have a better experience road courses.

 

I'd like to keep my stock seats and use a harness system that is compatible (if that is even possible). Not opposed to a seat belt harness bar if I can remove part of it to fit passengers in the back seat on occasion. Also willing to do some assembly before track days to get the setup I want. I'd like to keep the stock seat belt system in place for street driving.

 

Looking for any opinions on cost effective system that will help keep my butt planted better in the seat on track day, but provides some flexibility to 'go back to almost-stock'.

 

THX!

 

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Barry,

 

My suggestion to you is to go out and buy a racing seat (1 piece) and get one that fits you like a glove. Put that seat on slide adjusters and a "Planted Technologies" seat mount bracket. Then get a set of 5 point seat harness (belts) from Schroth Racing and use a Corbeau harness bar. You can search the web on how to place a plug in resistor set up for your electrical to shut off the dash indicators. This may sound like a lot but, it will provide you with a set up that only takes undoing the 2 bolts and 2 nuts that hold your drivers seat in and unplugging/plugging in the one connector under the driver's seat. The one piece race seat will securely hold you in place along with helping prevent the impact issues/concerns of just using a harness bar. The "submarine belt can be mounted to the PT seat mount base which is mounted directly to the floor. The whole set up only takes 15 minutes to change out (if you leave the harness bar in place) or an hour if you are going to change out the harness bar to go from "stock" to "track" or vice-a-versa. It is not CHEAP $ but it is a SMART way to go and is completely valid $ as a resalable item to another "OPEN TRACKER". I also recommend investing in a neck restraint item. Safety - Safety - SAFETY!!!

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Thanks for the suggestions Albino and appreciate the advice.

 

Do you see any in-between steps to get to a final setup or is more of a 'do everything or do nothing' choice? Budget is a concern and tires are next on the track mod upgrade list.

Edited by barspen
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Watch for ads on the harness bar, check on RacingJunk.com for used belts (ask about the date codes) and go somewhere that you can sit in a wide variety of seats (at a store or at the track - people will usually let you sit in their car if you let them know that you're looking to buy a racing seat) before you actually go shopping for one. This IS the intermediate between stock and racing with a roll bar and/or roll cage. Once you know what seat fits your needs best then you can start looking for one at the end of the race season online or elsewhere.

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I installed four point 3" belts from Crow in my car. Used the factory mounts for the lap and drilled the panel behind the rear seats where the rear upper shocks mount to anchor the shoulder belts. I can store the shoulder belts in the trunk if I want and lay the lap belts off to the side of the seat. I expect the next comment will be from Albino telling me what's wrong with my set up.

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  • 1 year later...

Just came off my first HPDE Open Track Event and I hear you Barspen! I am too small for these seats and stock seatbelts! But, what I have found in talking to aftermarket Ford Performance and Bumberas Racing Outfitters - this is the "inbetween" for the secured fit we are looking for- even for a few times on the track each year. I have plans to be out there about every 2 months or so and its worth the investment and loss of the back seat access. There are some quickset 5 point harness systems that attach to your back seat seatbelt latches, but not sure how tight and secure they hold. They are at AmericanMuscle.com if you want to take a look. Again, probably worth it to go with Albono500's advice. Just my 2 cents- I'm a novice- but, I'm all in!

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Hi Suzanne

 

Congrats on your first HPDE day! Just warning you, it is addictive and can be expensive. Just wait until you're thinking "If I did this, I could shave of .2 secs on my lap time". :)

 

I've done a lot of thinking about safety mods and I'm 'all in'. Getting Watsons roll bar, rear seat bracket for the belts, 6-point harness and HANS. I will lose the back seat with this setup, but I can go back to stock with a few extra hours of work.

 

At the end of the day, If I want to continue my hobby of driving my car fast on a track, I owe it to my wife, kids and parents to do it as safely as possible. Some of my buddies will think it's overkill. But it only takes one mechanical incident, an overly aggressive driver or a minor misjudgment to change your life. Hedging my bets and doing it the right way :-)

 

Enjoy carving turns in your GT350!

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  • 2 years later...

Exactly my point, you do realize harnesses have an expiration date? People refer back to threads for info about what other people have done and this will give them the option of having the most up to date harness for their ride. Thanks for trying to help though.

Edited by justin emanuel
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