johng

I've done a search on this and all the related topics seem to go off topic or are really questionable installs.

My question is where to mount the driver's right side lap belt.

In a Honda, the right seatbelt mounting location is attached to the side of the seat. I noticed that some of you are installing your lap belts to the two bolts that secure the back of the seat to the floor. Not sure if this is legal or even safe for Solo 1.

I don't have a problem with drilling a few holes and cutting up some heavy backing plates, so it looks like that's the direction I'll go unless someone who knows the rules better than I tells me otherwise. I know there's a few racers in here, so hopefully you can share your input.

PS, Before someone says anything, yes I do have a roll bar

Thanks.

EPGONZALEZ

the takata's come with a bracket to mount an eyebolt right below the e brake...directly across from the left lap belt eyebolt..hope this makes sense

SPiFF

I would think mounting the lap belt to the two back bolt locations that hold the seat is one of the safer places to attach to. Much better then attaching a plate to a hole drilled though a fraction of a mm of sheet metal.

BTW: Does Solo 1/NASA/SCCA/etc dictate where/how to attach belts? Since I am in the middle of putting in a 4-pt bar any advice on this topic is much apprteciated.


[Modified by SPiFF, 11:25 PM 6/5/2001]

krshultz

I mounted mine to the stock seat in the same place you described. I suspect that it's not ideal, but certainly workable.

I CERTAINLY wouldn't install it way back where the rear rail mounting points are. Not sure why, but this seems like a bad idea.

If you have a racing seat (I don't remember), you could pretty much go anywhere you want. Not sure what to tell you though, I haven't personally looked into it.

phat-S

I don't claim to know much on this stuff which is why I ask a lot of you guys. In my case I relied on the welder who did my 4pt. He opted to weld 3" plates under the car, drill through the floorboard, through the backing plates to secure the eyebolts. I was going to ask him if we could attach to the seat (factory seat mounting point). Before I got there he was telling me how some people do that and how strongly he is against it. I don't think I am misrepresenting him here; basically, I wouldn't swear to it but I'd put a lot of cash down that if you asked him he'd say go through the trans tunnel (RWD in my case) or second option, the floor and mounting to the seat would not be one of his options. I can't repeat what his reasons were because I don't remember and since this is a safety issue, I don't want to guess. I did/do trust him implicitly seeing as he is/was a professional driver and came highly recommended by a lot of folks in competetive driving.

Again, take anything I say in the matter as someone who has a lot more questions than answers and I surely don't want to misrepresent anything.


[Modified by phat-S, 8:24 PM 6/5/2001]

travis

If you're using the stock seat belt (not the seat itself) mounting locations with hardware that is compatible with the stock hardware, I don't see why this location isn't one of your best options. I ran a 4pt harness for a while in my ITR, and I used both of the stock mounting locations (seat for the middle, WITH the stock belt right next to it) for the lap belt. My new set of 6pt harnesses have a 3" lap belt, not 2" like the last belt, so I don't think I'll have room to use the stock center mount on the seat (since I use the factory belt for all daily driving, I need both on there at once). I intend to use the stock lateral mount for the lap belt, and use a backup plate and a new hole for the center mounts. Even if I get into a head on collision at 100 mph, I doubt that I'll be able to pull a 4"x4" backup plate through the sheet metal sideways (esp since it's only 1 of 6 mounting points), no matter how thin it is. Even if I rip a longer hole in it, it will still hold.

Crack Monkey

Yup, that seat mounted belt is a prob since it disappears when you get buckets. Doh!

Do you have a GCR? It recommends angles, plates sizes, etc for mounting belts.

The best mounting for the lap belt is so that the straps are perpendicular to the centerline of the vehicle. IE, not angled back, as they would be in the case of using the factory points. Of course, this requires drilling holes, using backing plates, and is a general hassle. I would go this route, and tack weld some heavy sheet steel as the backing plate. Use large washers and lock washers as well.

BTW, I used the factory points in my RX-7 because it was so much easier (but I also don't need street belts, so the harness is by itself). If you are going to use the factory points for the street belt AND harness, you should use an eye-bolt connection for the harness. Doubling up the stock bolt is not good - whichever belt is farthest from the floorpan will put extra sideload on the bolt and possibly cause it to shear. FYI - higher grade bolts are stronger when pulled on, but weaker in shear strength, so upgrading to grade 10 will not help.

civicrr

NASA just says to use "a large backing plate". I thought that SCCA required a 1/8X4X4 backing plate, but I am not sure. Since I made a custom mount for my seat (Momo Rookie) I added a mount so that the lap belt goes right up through the hole & isn't bunched up @ the belt hole. Drilling a hole through the tranny tunnel (low where it meets the floor) seems to be the most commonly used spot from my observations(sp?) when walking the pits. I would argue that the lap belts should be angled back SLIGHTLY. By this I mean attachment points even with the lower back portion of your seat. This will help to hold your lower back/butt in the back of the seat. Most racing seats have the lap belt openings set up for a slight backward angle. The problem with the factory point is that it is designed to accomadate a person who will slide the seat all the way back on the track. My $.02.

TonyzFBP99Si

So what if you don't want to drill holes in the floor of your car? Where is the best place to install the lap belts then??? Does anyone know what size and thread pitch the seat bolts are, and where to get those eyebolts in that size?
Thanks!