Tufast Posted January 10, 2011 Share Posted January 10, 2011 Well my DD is also my WW & I would like to install a race seat, 5 or 6 point harness & a harness bar to help keep me in place during track events, then remove them after the event to return to daily driving. But I'm worried this may be dangerous if I end up in a roll over w/o a cage stuck in place with the harness & hans device. Then again, I worry if I install a cage & I'm driving on the street without my helmet & get into an accident that will be just as dangerous. I know the best solution is to have a dedicated race car & this car will eventually become that, but at this point it continues to serve two purposes. So which is better; 1) Leave things as they are with no cage harness bar etc, 2) Install the cage & deal with it on the street, or 3) Install harness bar with harness' on track days & remove them when I return to the street? BTW I attended 4 events last year & expect to do the same this year Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
[email protected] Posted January 11, 2011 Share Posted January 11, 2011 Which HPDE group are you currently in and what type of car are you driving. Depending on the type of car, there are companies who make bolt in roll bars. I generally tell students that once they have been signed off to solo and have started running track tires like RA1s, Hoosiers etc, it is time to consider safety gear because of the increase in speed. Have you considered a roll bar? I wouldn't recommend a full roll cage in your daily driver for the reason you mentioned. My dad did drivers ed events for years including time as an instructor in his car with a harness bar, harness and race seat without issue and never came close to rolling his car. That said, for HPDE, I would go with a properly installed roll bar until you transition your car into a dedicated track car. You could have a cage builder do the roll bar in a way that down the road you can add the front section to make it a complete cage. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kbrew8991 Posted January 11, 2011 Share Posted January 11, 2011 alot of it really depends on the car and how strong its OEM roll structure is Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tufast Posted January 11, 2011 Author Share Posted January 11, 2011 The car is a 2010 Hyundai Genesis Coupe R-Spec 2.0t M/T. It received 5 star crash test results, including roll over if I remember correctly & has a rather rigid body structure. I attended the 1st four events last year & graduated to HPDE2 on the last event, but I've haven't been back since then at Roebling Rd. The car is rather slow in stock form (176rwhp) compared to what I used to drive, but the brakes, suspension & structural rigidity is rather good considering it is stock. I only upgraded brake pads, fluid, shifter, wheel & tires (RS3s) last year keeping the power down to increase my learning curve. I'm a very devoted enthusiast & find it hard not to modify, so this year I will be sitting at around 265whp with bolt-ons & a tune. I was planning on just running a drivers race seat, harness bar & 6pt harness, then removing them after each event. Looks like I may have to add a roll bar to that list. Would the roll bar sit back far enough not to be dangerous on the street? I would prefer not to have to remove it in addition to the other items after each event. I know that there are several harness bars available for my vehicle, but I believe I've only seen one roll bar option as of yet. As for the full roll cage, I would prefer not to incorporate the removable roll bar into that & would rather have a professionally welded in competition cage when the time comes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GOFASTT Posted January 14, 2011 Share Posted January 14, 2011 When dealing with a daily driver/track car less is really more. I would stay away from race seats, roll bars and harnesses instead focus on continued learning and put that money towards a dedicated track car! A real good option for factory belts are the CG locks-they install and remove quickly, inexpensive and really help keep your butt from sliding around. http://www.cg-lock.com/index.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Calif_Kid Posted January 14, 2011 Share Posted January 14, 2011 A real good option for factory belts are the CG locks-they install and remove quickly, inexpensive and really help keep your butt from sliding around. Just wondering - when I used to take my street car with standard seatbelt and airbag on track, it was suggested that one option, was to move the seat way back, and then to give the seatbelt a quick jerk to set the ratchet, and then to move the seat back forward to its regular position, so the whole belt (lap and upper part) were both snug/tight. By doing that, the whole belt was tight and held me in place pretty well. Is that a bad idea when on the race track for a standard seat belt with ratchet? - Jim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
krystar Posted January 14, 2011 Share Posted January 14, 2011 from perspective of keeping your butt from sliding around in the seat, that's good too. i did that for a while in autocross. but be mindful that most if not all newer cars have the inside buckle attached to an explosive retractor that pretensions the belt in case of a crash. if the belt is already tensioned...not sure what that retractor will do. might cause u some more bodily injury in the event of an incident. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jason Posted January 17, 2011 Share Posted January 17, 2011 I would and did run a race seat ,bar ,and belts before caging my car. I felt A hard horizontal impact was a lot more likely than a rollover in my car. Make your compromises and be willing to live with them. Your safety is up to you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tufast Posted January 21, 2011 Author Share Posted January 21, 2011 Thanks for all the responses. Gofastt, thanks for the recommendation & I contemplated picking a GC lock up until it was recommended that I do what Calif_Kid is speaking of & have been using that method ever since to help keep me in place. Krystar, I'm not sure what the pretensioner will do either, but am pretty sure since it is already tight, it will just lock in place. Jason, I agree with you & guess I will think on it a while longer until I can come to a decision. In the mean time I will continue to use the car with the OEM safety equipment & the seat belt tension trick. I'm an agressive driver, but I've gained a few pounds since last year so maybe that will help me stay snugger in the seat...LoL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevelaclair Posted February 1, 2011 Share Posted February 1, 2011 The way was taught was to go all or none. I've been using a CG lock for a while and it's a great little tool as it only locks the lap belt and you're glued in. It has served me well while saving for the plethora of safety gear required to make it all come together. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cosm3os Posted February 8, 2011 Share Posted February 8, 2011 The way was taught was to go all or none. +1. Safety is a system and OEM systems are designed differently than race systems. Mixing the two can have bad consequences. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
72Vega Posted March 15, 2011 Share Posted March 15, 2011 Good advice above to spend money on seat time to improve your skills. I am driving hpde 3/4 this season with Toyo RA1s and all electronics turned off. I have the oem 3 point belts that have a built in locking feature. I am purchasing a Safety Solutions R3 head and neck restraint. This can be used with both oem belts and harnesses if you add them later. I did some research on this piece of safety gear and concluded that it is worth the $600. As you go faster, you need to balance driver safety with performance upgrades. The Hyundai engineers built in significant safety features for your car -- might as well use them. A low cost, low tech way to keep from sliding around in your seat after cinching yourself in is to put a piece of the woven rubber-like shelf paper on the bottom seat cushion. Get a whole roll for $5. I was amazed how much this helped keep me from sliding around! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
krystar Posted March 15, 2011 Share Posted March 15, 2011 lol vega, that's great idea. yer talking about pantry shelf liners right? another tip for oem 3point is get your seat in proper position, then move the seat back 4-5 clicks, tug on the belt to lock it, then move the seat forward till the belt is tight around you. besides....that's free Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
72Vega Posted March 15, 2011 Share Posted March 15, 2011 Krystar - yep, shelf liner at WalMart for 5 bucks a roll! C6 vettes have incredibly bad seats for track use, so I rigged it up so the shelf liner went up the seat back also...looked pretty tacky when I wasn't sitting in the car, but it works! Get black shelf liner - doesn't show up as much! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevelaclair Posted April 4, 2011 Share Posted April 4, 2011 If you're looking for a great way to stay planted with your stock belts then look into the CG Lock... Best $40 I ever spent and has held me over before taking the expensive safety dive. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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