Alan C.

bruinbro, I have driven my car with a full cage on the street and I DID USE the 6 points! It was for short hops to the shop.

Alan Herod

Good thread. I believe there are four areas of concern that others have mentioned directly or indirectly and another which concerns me.

1. Head striking cage. For reasons somewhat beyond my control, my cage equipped 911 is doing a lot more street duty then I had planned. That said, I considered the same thing s that Jack mentioned concerning proximity to B-pillar and edge of roof above the windows which is not very well padded and presents a hard edged corner. With my seat/cage combination, I am actually farther away from a hard object then I was with the stock seat/no cage. Seat is mounted lower and farther toward center then stock mounting. Also, head containment style seat creates its own new set of problems; while reducing the likelihood of striking the cage.

2. Risk to other extremeties. I believe that risk to my lower leg is increased with any cage, less so with mine because it basically follows the A-pillar to door pillar to the sill; but it is still not flush with the body. This is obviously an acceptable risk with a track car; but, perhaps not with a street car. Still looking for a solution.

3. Impaired Visibilty. The issue of visibility is not an issue for me, as my former and future daily driver is my Boxster, and the 911 with the cage is clearly superior in that respect and the Wink mirror pretty much solves the blind spot problem, but is terrible at night.

4. Harnesses vs Stock Belts. I use the six point harness (Schroth) when driving on the street; although I have the stock three point system in place. I drive the car to and from all events. Next year I plan on trailering. ( I have heard that Schroth was the only harness system legal for street use.

5. Not mentioned but one which concerns me, Headrest padding. Lack of padding in the seat's headrest (Sparco Circuit Pro) designed for use with a helmet. Also wings on the head restraint portion may presented unwanted edges to unhelmeted head.

I will try to post some pictures of the install and the approach to the door bars -- I believe that the solution is very workable.

bruinbro

Well, you're lucky this guy didn't hear about it.





Bro

bruinbro

It is not safe (plus probably illegal) to drive on the streets using your competiton harnesses. In a nutshell, those harnesses restrict your body movement to the point where a moderate to severe crash can literally tear your head off of your neck. Racing harnesses are part of a safety system that includes the seat, helmet and a head and neck restraint device. It's a bad rumour that somehow keeps getting propogated that Shcroth belts are street legal. Ain't so. Use the 3-points when you are on the street, unless you feel you need to become a member of this guy's club



Bro

Alan Herod

Bro -- good point and thanks for clarifying on the legality issue. Actually my plan includes a Hahns next year; therefore, without even considering the speed issue, I have less risk of ripping my head off on the street, then I do on the track.

Informal survey reveals that more and more folks are using head and neck restraints in amateur events; however, there are far more folks participating in DEs with seats, harnesses, and helmet. A much smaller percentage are using head and neck restraints. Should this be considered a safety issue? The weight of the helmet only increases the likelihood of this type of injury.

Jon Moeller

You might want to get your facts straight on that. The only thing that prevents my six point Schroth Profi II harness from being street legal is the fact that it does not have the FE single button release. I equipped mine with the ASM shoulder belts, so that they could safely be run as 4 points, which is something I'll need to change when I pick up a HANS.

Schroth harnesses can be made street legal.

If 6 point harnesses tear your head off in accidents, then I'm curious to know how all those race car drivers survived accidents prior to the invention of the HANS, especially given the added weight of the helmet.

If you don't believe me, give the guys at HMS Motorsport a ring, I'm sure they'd be happy to outfit you with a set of STREET LEGAL SCHROTH HARNESSES.

Tech: Schroth's site, including NHTSA requirements
-Jon

TD in DC

Before this goes any further, I would like to point out that whether 6-point belts are "street legal" or not depends upon the specific state at issue. So, it is possible that both of you are right. Nonetheless, you need to check the laws of your specific state.

In order to be legal in your state, the harnesses would have to satisfy BOTH the standards of DOT as well as the specific laws and regulations of the state at issue.

Alan Herod

TD, thanks for pointing that out, I thought that was so. I must admit that I was not particularly concerned about the legal aspects of the belts since this is not an inspection issue and I did retain the stock seat belts. I am most concerned about the safety aspects. The six points seem safer to me then the three point except when I try to use the radio and the cell phone at the same time since it is hard to reach the tuner or change CDs while tightly strapped in.

TD in DC

Yeah, I have the same problem when I try to use the in-dash espresso machine in the 996.

Alan Herod

One thing that I have noticed is that the roll cage and harnesses provide more spaces to hang stuff. Although I can't fit the espresso machine in the dash because of the lower bar, I can attach NASCAR style drink holders to it.

Actually, I am concerned about areas where I may have increased risk and if decreasing risk in one area has increased it in another.