6 point harness question

[X25]

Originally Posted by Mgizzle

As X stated if your harness keeps you pinned to seat you should have a roll cage since the harness will hold your head in place and in a rollover you cant bend/collapse, which is not good.

X, how does the harness blow the stitches in a rollover since I would assume the tigh belts prevent a lot of weight from going to the shoulder belts in a roll over?

By the way, OEMs are now making sure all roll hoops are welded or bolted to the B pillar as well since ina forward collision the floor moves backwards, rotating the hoop due to the back bars, loosening your shoulder harnesses. Not good. So if you do run a harness bar B pillar connection is crucial. The Bauer kruesse one has me wondering since it mounts to tank plates that will slide backwards, loosening shoulder belts.

Supposedly your shoulder movement generates enough stress to blow the stitches. It is tested and approved somewhere? I think they have documentation, but I've never looked to be honest.

It's good to know about the floor movement.
I'm not an expert, just my thoughts about this: BK's main anchor is actually the rear bottom seat belt anchors by c pillar; do they move as well? The connection by the tank plate only determines the angle (and exact distance and height) of the shoulder belts. Actually, if the floor and the plates were to move back, the harness bar would move up (not necessarily forward). I presume, though, moving floor moves the seat as well, so it would hopefully not crush you. Actually, seats would move faster (they move linear, while the harness bar draws an arc), so I suppose it would get a bit loose.

[Mgizzle]

You are right on the BK, just saw it uses lower B pillar mount, thats really good actually since it is one of the strongest points... I thought it only used the tank plate as a connection. However, it still causes concern with harnesses during roll over unless the Schroth really breaks one side of the shoulder belt.

[White_SS/RS]

I think tying into the B pillar is a great idea since there’s been incidences of roll bars being shoved through the floor in roll overs, allowing the roofline to collapse as if there wasn’t a bar at all. In any case, like X25 mentioned, if the floors going to move then the seats will move with it and at that point it’s not really going to matter where the belts are anchored. Actually, a best case scenario would be to anchor the lap belts to, or close to the seat bracket. This would allow it to move as one with the seat, however, it still leaves the shoulder belts as an issue. All things to consider for sure. Also, for those of us using the OEM seats remember that the hinge point for the seat back can fail and allow the seat to fold forward or backward. Probably a good thing in a situation where the roofline fully collapses. My speculation is with shoulder harnesses it will likely fail backward, especially considering most have some degree of rearward lean in the seat back to begin with.

Truthfully we could discuss all the different ways that anything short of a full cage and racing harnesses will leave you for dead and even a full on racecar isn’t ‘safe’ by any means. The way I see it is, when it’s your time to go, it’s your time but that doesn’t mean be foolish but taken with due care. I figure with the ratio of severe injury or death per mile on track vs. street, that I’m safer on the track. And let’s be honest here, the OEM system is not designed or intended for racing. So I’ve always thought that whatever you can do to increase your margin of safety is a step in the right direction.