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Newbie questions - tech, broomstick, etc in Philly area


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I know this is still so far away, but I like to plan ahead. I got a 1996 Mazda Miata with a HDHCHTDD M2 roll bar (meets SCCA guidelines). Stock seats. I plan on attending the Aug5-6 HPDE event in Thunderbolt Raceway. Questions:

 

1) Where do I get a tech inspection about a couple of weeks prior to the event?

2) On the Broomstick test, my helmet is below the roll bar, but only about 1/2", not two inches. Is this acceptable?

3) How much seat time do you get on these events and how many cars are on the course per event?

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On the tech issues, contact the regional HPDE director, cause if he ain't happy it doesn't matter what we say.

 

As far as HPDE goes, there will probably be 20-30 other cars on the track (depending on the size of the track) and you'll get 3-4 20 min sessions per day.

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I know this is still so far away, but I like to plan ahead. I got a 1996 Mazda Miata with a HDHCHTDD M2 roll bar (meets SCCA guidelines). Stock seats. I plan on attending the Aug5-6 HPDE event in Thunderbolt Raceway. Questions:

 

1) Where do I get a tech inspection about a couple of weeks prior to the event?

2) On the Broomstick test, my helmet is below the roll bar, but only about 1/2", not two inches. Is this acceptable?

3) How much seat time do you get on these events and how many cars are on the course per event?

 

Our tech inspection list is here:

http://nasaracing.net/pretech.htm

take the seat cushion foam out of the stock seat to get your head down lower.

In MA there are 3 25 min track sessions and 3 1 hour classroom sessions each day

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also worth mentioning.

 

Whatever upgrades you do to the drivers side in safety, make sure you do the same or greater to the passenger side for the instructor.

 

This is something I keep in mind when making changes.

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But let's also remember although the upgrades to the passenger side are highly, highly suggested, they are not required. The instructor does however reserve the right not to get in the car if s/he thinks it is unsafe for him.

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thanks for that addition to my post Jim. That is a very good point of information that is little known in the beginning stages of HPDE.

 

I went into my first weekend with a six point harness and the instructor was limited to stock belts. I learned the safety and respect value of equal equipment through the classroom instructor. Its only fair that you provide your instructor with the same safety measures that you take for yourself.

 

Side note....my second weekend the instructor (Ken, who was my first also) had a six point harness also and thanked me for providing the harness for him.

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  • 3 weeks later...

Thanks for all the replies. No doubt I will provide the same protection to the instructor/passenger seat as whatever I have on my end, which is stock seats and seat belts now. I have attended only one HPDE event before with a local club. I am looking to do more this year.

 

I plan on running stock tires (Goodyear Eagle F1 GSD3). I figured I'll stock with these for now and any plan to upgrades would come in the "safety" aspect first before more speed (R-compounds or supercharging).

 

Question on the seats. From what I read in the SCCA forum, the best places to install seats would be pro-racing shop. I don't know of any such area within an hour of driving distance. Can anyone recommended a shop to do racing seats install in the area?

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Thanks for all the replies. No doubt I will provide the same protection to the instructor/passenger seat as whatever I have on my end, which is stock seats and seat belts now. I have attended only one HPDE event before with a local club. I am looking to do more this year.

 

I plan on running stock tires (Goodyear Eagle F1 GSD3). I figured I'll stock with these for now and any plan to upgrades would come in the "safety" aspect first before more speed (R-compounds or supercharging).

 

Question on the seats. From what I read in the SCCA forum, the best places to install seats would be pro-racing shop. I don't know of any such area within an hour of driving distance. Can anyone recommended a shop to do racing seats install in the area?

Is Doylestown PA to far for you?

call Chris at http://www.bimmerparts.com

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Question on the seats. From what I read in the SCCA forum, the best places to install seats would be pro-racing shop. I don't know of any such area within an hour of driving distance. Can anyone recommended a shop to do racing seats install in the area?

 

Something you might want to consider...

 

I took out my stock seats and installed my own seats from ultrashield. I did this by going to my local hardware supercenter and buying 4 cold rolled 2 inch wide plates 3/16th thick and 24 inches long as that was the shortest I could get. I measured and cut the plates to leave a touch extra for bends. I made bends to use the stock seat mounting holes in the car and drilled the holes. Your 1996 (NA) should require the same as my 1991 (NA). This way you can put your stock seats back in if needed and no one would be able to tell.

 

101_0461.jpg

 

After this I positioned the drivers seat to my liking and marked the drill points, drilled the holes in the seats and then marked the plates and drilled them. I used good bolts, good washers and locktight to fasten down the seats to the plate. Looking to do the same to a 1996 (NA) in the near future as a new friend is also looking into installing new seats.

 

Total price for materials was just under $50. Peace of mind knowing exactly what is there and the care taken to instal is priceless for peace of mind.

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101_0461.jpg

 

 

Let me see if I get this. The steel plates (24 inch long ones) are bolted onto the racing seat. Since there are washers/nuts on the seat, won't you feel those washers or nuts when you're seated?

 

The base of the seats must be small enough then such that there is still space to bolt the seats into the car. In other words, the plates are longer than the seats then, or else you won't have any space to work to bolt the plates into the car. Right?

 

What do you think about using the stock seat sliders?

 

How did you bolt the anti-sub belt into the car? Are you using 5 or 6 point harness?

 

Appreciate you answering these questions.

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Let me see if I get this. The steel plates (24 inch long ones) are bolted onto the racing seat. Since there are washers/nuts on the seat, won't you feel those washers or nuts when you're seated?

 

With my seats...which are Ultrashield Spec Miata Seats, the bolts are very near the edges of the seat. I do not feel them at all, even with the limited padding of the UltraShield seat cover. I have a Size 15 seat which is not a tight fit, but snug enough that I wont move around.

 

The base of the seats must be small enough then such that there is still space to bolt the seats into the car. In other words, the plates are longer than the seats then, or else you won't have any space to work to bolt the plates into the car. Right?

 

Yes the plates are longer then the seats. Keep in mind that the plates themselves bolt back into the factory seat slider bolt down places. I will take pictures of them mounted in the car this weekend if needed. I can see about 3 inches of plate in front of my seat in place. If I went all the way back, I could not fully press in the clutch and I am 6' 2". You can get to the back bolts but you better be limber. I bolted down the plates first and then bolted the seats to the plates. But even this way, you need small arms and nimble fingers to hold the nuts to start them. If you dont go all the way back with the seat then there should be enough room to get a socket on the back mounts.

 

What do you think about using the stock seat sliders?

 

I am sure this could be done. But the metal is quite thin in the places the UltraShield seats would mount to. I looked into this first and decided it would not be a good idea from a safety point. Now if this is a daily driver, with my application you could switch seats on a matter of minutes for comfort purposes.

 

How did you bolt the anti-sub belt into the car? Are you using 5 or 6 point harness?

 

I use a 6 point and mount the sub belt to the front factory seat bolt location over the seat plate. Plenty of space in the bolt to accomidate this. Now if you have a 5 point. I would suggest adding a cross plate or angle plate to mount to as to have it in the center.

 

To me, by bolting down the seats in the factory locations seems like a good idea. I really dont want to drill through the bottom of the car to mount the seats as some have done. I think overall I gained an inch in head room and my seats are straight and upright. I could gain more headroom if I added spacers in the front of the seat to tilt it back. I tried several seat positions for the back of the seat and found I liked the straight way was for me.

 

I hope this info helps. Feel free to ask questions. If you dont ask....you are just guessing.

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Great. This helps quite a bit. I never really understood the mounting aspect.

 

"Ultrashield Spec Miata Seats" Are these the Spec Miata seats or is it just the name? I am mean, if you're doing spec Miata, do you have to use these seats or can you go with other brands as such Sparco Sprint 5?

 

 

 

The base of the seats must be small enough then such that there is still space to bolt the seats into the car. In other words, the plates are longer than the seats then, or else you won't have any space to work to bolt the plates into the car. Right?

 

Yes the plates are longer then the seats. Keep in mind that the plates themselves bolt back into the factory seat slider bolt down places. I will take pictures of them mounted in the car this weekend if needed. I can see about 3 inches of plate in front of my seat in place. If I went all the way back, I could not fully press in the clutch and I am 6' 2". You can get to the back bolts but you better be limber. I bolted down the plates first and then bolted the seats to the plates. But even this way, you need small arms and nimble fingers to hold the nuts to start them. If you dont go all the way back with the seat then there should be enough room to get a socket on the back mounts.

 

That would be really appreciated if you can take pictures.

 

With the Ultrashield Spec Miata Seats, is your seat at the center of the steering wheel? Did you have to made modifications to the center tunnel?

 

Thanks again.

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I will take pictures for you this weekend...

 

I made no alterations to the tunnel and the seat is center to the steering wheel. The whole process took me about 3 hours total as I examined and measured everything about 50 times. If I had to do it again I probably could to it from start to finish in about 45 minutes to an hour for both seats.

 

Please feel free to email me directly at 55miata-at-earthlink.net if you want.

 

Ultrashield is the manufacturing company. I dont think that a seat is a class spec...It is at best guess a top choice seat for spec miata. I liked it from the first one I sat in.

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Stringer, thanks. That helps quite a bit.

 

One question... the picture attached with arrows... what are these harness attachments for? Is it for the side (lap) harness?

 

EDIT: Wait, I got it. The bolts were for the center (sub-belt).

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Stringer, thanks. That helps quite a bit.

 

One question... the picture attached with arrows... what are these harness attachments for? Is it for the side (lap) harness?

 

EDIT: Wait, I got it. The bolts were for the center (sub-belt).

 

When I ran my sub-belt I used the rear seat mounting bolts as my anchor points. I think that the way you have it routed, that it will pull on the front of the seat and not the anchor bolts as it should.

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When I ran my sub-belt I used the rear seat mounting bolts as my anchor points. I think that the way you have it routed, that it will pull on the front of the seat and not the anchor bolts as it should.

 

_________________

Kim Reed

# 482 HPDE 3

2001 ZO6

 

Never thought about that. Very good point. I would have to look a little closer at the pull points...but I think they pull side to side and down. But I am going to seriously look into what you mentioned. Makes sense for sure.

 

Thanks for this bit of info. The more I think about it....the better and safer it sounds.

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Mounting points for sub straps depends on the intent of the manufacturer. Some are supposed to go down and back while others should not. G-Force should not go back. Down to slightly forward preferred. http://www.gforce.com/pdf/harnessinstall.pdf

 

Certain Schroth harnesses go certain ways. http://www.schrothracing.com/docs/Competition_Instructions.pdf

 

One thing I can see wrong is the M buckles on your straps. Page 35 in the Schroth manual shows how to route the straps properly through an M buckle.

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My 6 point is a G-Force.

 

As far as the m buckle is concerned....This picture was taken as a test length and not the final product. I merely test fitted all in place real quick like and plan to secure every thing as it should be.

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When I had my '03 Must/Cobra I used the OMP Big seat for the driver's side and a OMP .... I can't think of the style right now, on the passenger side. I used the Simpson 6 point on both. I now run the stock seat in my ZO6 with Simpson 6 point but the set up is very different. Sorry I do not have a picture of my current set up.

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I now run the stock seat in my ZO6 with Simpson 6 point but the set up is very different. Sorry I do not have a picture of my current set up.

 

Is it safe to run 6-point harness on a non-racing seats on the Z06? Once I rode on the passenger side of a C5 Z06 in the Pocono Raceway. The guy had stocks seats as well with 6-point harness. Are the Z06 seats any different from other cars seats then that it would make it safe to do so?

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The harness that I use have a sternum strap on them that keeps the shoulder strap in place. You are correct that if I did not have the sternum straps it would not be a safe set up. There are some people who do not like the sternum straps for various reason. I hope to get race seats some time in the future to improve on my set up.

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The harness that I use have a sternum strap on them that keeps the shoulder strap in place. You are correct that if I did not have the sternum straps it would not be a safe set up. There are some people who do not like the sternum straps for various reason. I hope to get race seats some time in the future to improve on my set up.

I witnessed a driver struggle to get out of a burning Toyota Atlantic because of a sternum strap. Whatever setup you settle on, practice getting out of the car with your eyes closed.

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