car_slave

Would anyone run a 2 inch HANS specific harness for the passenger seat in a DE car?
If you didn’t use a HANS would you ride in a car with 2inch shoulder belts?

Thoughts?

bonehead

I asked a similar question here.

Auto_Werks 3.6

I guess the over the top answer would be to setup an 8 point like the F1 guys run. You lay the 3" belts on the shoulder, and a second set of 2" shoulder belts to hold the HANS device.

Tom W

The answer to me is "no". I'd run a 3" as there might be a person in the passenger seat without a HANS. A 2" belt is only allowed with a HANS. It is not a problem to use a 3" with a HANS (although I find the 2" more comfortable).

An F1-type harness is not designed for seat with as upright a posture as what we use.

bonehead

I've been told through sources that have spoken to Schroth that they now say that a 2" harness is okay to use without a HANS. Of course, I don't see this documented in writing, so use this info at your own peril.

C4S/GT3

You might want to consider a Simpson R3 head & neck restraint system, which works with a standard 3 point system all the way to 6. An added benefit you can remove your helmet with the devisce still on, which is really handy for my in-car post track debrief or in some cases scolding.

http://simpsonraceproducts.com/head-neck/r3.html

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Auto_Werks 3.6

The above is misinformation.

With 5 minutes of research I found an 8 point harness that is designed to go to a harness bar on a GT car. I made a quick call to SAFERACER to make sure I was interpreting the installation and design properly. He confirmed that this harness is acceptable for an upright seated GT car, and it is ok to run without the HANS in place.

http://www.sparcousa.com/product/8pt-double-shoulder

The other thing you need to pay attention to is the rules of the sanctioning body you run with. At an SCCA event, you are not allowed to use 2" shoulder straps without specific head and neck restraints as identified in the GCR. Your results may vary at NASA or PCA.

car_slave

Thanks, I'm just thinking about the safety of the guy in the passenger seat. I'll be using a HANS with 2 inch straps.

Tom W

I guess I was not clear. What I meant was a harness designed for an F1 car will not be suitable for our cars. What I should have said is to verify that the harness is designed for the seat and installation type where you plan to use it. Given that the question was for the passenger seat of a DE car ...

mglobe

I've always heard that you should not use 2" harnesses without a HANS, but I've never seen the documentation on that. It makes sense to me though that you would want a wider belt going over your shoulder/collar bones if possible to distribute the force more effectively.

All that said, instructors always have the right to refuse to ride with you if they feel that your safety equipment is not up to standards that THEY are comfortable. My guess is that there would be more instructors without a HANS who would refuse to ride in a car with 2" shoulder belts than there would be instructors with a HANS who would refuse to use 3" belts. I'd go with the 3".

Renn 951

I installed 2" for drivers seat and 3" for passenger seat. As an instructor with a HANS I'd have no issue sitting in the right side with either 2" or 3" belts, but I would think twice about riding without a HANS with 2" shoulder belts since the documentation says that is "not approved."

Why put the passenger on the spot to have to make a decision? Just install 3" belts and avoid the issue.

car_slave

Three inch for the passenger was the plan. I ended up with two 2 HANS belts by mistake. I'm in the process of sending one back. Thought I'd field the issue before doing that because a lot of the instructors I know use a HANS - just not all of them...