13 replies to this topic

[cyates]

1990 998 mini racing green

Hello all,
Right lets get the new boy the old fart bit out of the way as I am trying to help my lad fit decent 6 point harnesses to his mini without losing the rear seats. Can anyone tell me if there is a lower bar or kit that can be fitted to the floor to make this work or is it time for me to retire and stop re-living my youth when I had rakes of minis that were all cut and carved by my own hands.
All the best,
Callum

[samsfern]

fix the shoulder ones to the parcel shelf, and can i ask why you dont want to take the rear seats out? and why 6 point, i only use 4 point 3" harness in my peugeot 106 raly car, 6 point are not needed and take ages to put on and take-off. your not exactly gonna go flying in a 998 anyways, sound harsh, but 3/4 point would be good enough for road use, dont use 2"straps, they cut and hurt !

Edited by samsernie, 26 May 2009 - 09:36 PM.

[cyates]

fix the shoulder ones to the parcel shelf, and can i ask why you dont want to take the rear seats out?

Hello buddy,
its not my choice i have got to go with the wee mans wishes and he wants to keep them in, i suppose to get a couple of mates in the back now and again,
thanks

[Globule]

fix the shoulder ones to the parcel shelf

Surely that would still make the rear seat un-usable, unless the passenger literally sat inbetween the straps!

Also i think it's a bad idea to bolt them onto the parcel shelf, theres a diagram on here somewhere about the angles that the straps should be so if you do crash bad enough to need the harnesses, they remain funtional!

In answer to the question, i think SafetY Devices do a type of "wrap around" harness bar but i can't say i've ever seen one or understand how they work for that matter, Minisport seem to stock alot of Safety Devices items so maybe give them a browse?

*You can juse use 3 points and bolt it to the rear seatbelt mount, depends how adament you are about the 6 points!*

Edited by Globule, 26 May 2009 - 09:38 PM.

[MGMT]

You could do it with a 3 point harness but bolting the rear point to the one thats on your right (on the drivers side) dont know how safe it is but it works

[cyates]

fix the shoulder ones to the parcel shelf

Surely that would still make the rear seat un-usable, unless the passenger literally sat inbetween the straps!

Also i think it's a bad idea to bolt them onto the parcel shelf, theres a diagram on here somewhere about the angles that the straps should be so if you do crash bad enough to need the harnesses, they remain funtional!

In answer to the question, i think SafetY Devices do a type of "wrap around" harness bar but i can't say i've ever seen one or understand how they work for that matter, Minisport seem to stock alot of Safety Devices items so maybe give them a browse?

*You can juse use 3 points and bolt it to the rear seatbelt mount, depends how adament you are about the 6 points!*

not too worried about 6 points, 5 points or 4 points i just want to finish the bloody thing which he has made a cracking job with, but i will give Safety Devices a look, cheers Globule and Samsernie

[Tomf]

Have a look in the FAQ here and you will see you wont be able to fit the harnesses and use the rear seat.

[samsfern]

i suppose some sort of tube, attached to the "rear bins" or somewhere some how may be acceptable, i took my back seats out because people took the p--s wanting to ride in my car, my petrol all the time! if you look at some of the race/rally minis, they are fixed on the parcel shelf, and pass scruteneering, i suppose for norm street use, they should be ok bolted to the floor with some big steel plates underneath to spread the load, if they are six point, and say your son ways sixty kilos, the weight will be spread ot amongst the others, equalling to 10 kilos a point.

[miller 666]

what ever you do, do not use the parcel shelf as a mounting point for a harness! It will not hold your weight in a crash.

[danny1]

i agree dont use the parcel shelf it will just cause more damge.

and there is no way you can have harness and rear seats just not possible, or safe, and 6 poin is a bit over the top for a 998

[miller 666]

i wouldnt say a 6 point is over the top, just safer, im going to have one harness for the drivers side then use the rear passenger side normal belt and fron passenger to use normal belt.

[davegreory42]

correct me if i'm wrong but i didn't think there were any 6point harnesses that use a standard seat belt clip and not a twist release one, and as such, they are not road legal?

similarly, from what i can remember reading on here over the years, mounting them to the floor can be just as dangerous as mounting them to the parcel shelf (something to do with the possibility of crushing your spine in a crash)

in short, as said, i dont think there is a way to keep the rear seats with harnesses, unless you keep the standard belts aswell and use them when there's somebody in the back

[mini_mad69]

Ive got a 4 point harness on mine, bolts to standard fit rear seat belt mounts and down on the tunnel and sill standard front points. The harness in the back poke through the rear seat where the seat back and base meet.

You should not have 2 seat belts attatched to one point as there is more weight on that one point and is considered dangorous.

As my car is 85 I do not legaly have to have my rear belts fitted as the became mandatory in 1987.
So I have 4 point harness with the rear seat in place, although I do not carry rear passengers as I don't realy like the idea of them coming through me in the event of an accident.

Although if needs must I can carry a rear seat passenger if needs must. Legally aswell I might add. I have done this, they sat inbetween the harness straps and all was well. (takes around 2-3 minutes for the passenger to get out though)

It can be done, although I'm not sure where the 6 points tend too mount and as your son's car is a 1990 it would mean that rear seat belts must be fitted if the rear seat is in place.

This could be done by fitting a rear cage and using a harness bar, this means the shoulder straps of the harness would be strapped the the harness bar of the cage, the rear lap belts can be used and then the rest of the harness mounted around the front of the vehicle. Although as my passenger found out, it's not fun, safe or clever at all to be sitting in the back of a car with a roll cage/diagonal or a harness bar fitted.

Either way it's going to be complicated and not 100% safe. You could stick a standard 3 point inertia on the passenger side meaning that the standard rear nearside belt can be used and have the harness just for the driver.



Ben

[dave21478]

DO NOT fit the rear sections of harnesses to the floor or any low point near the rear of the drivers seat. The harness straps must be within a certain range of angles as specified by the manufacturer. Having the straps dropping steeply behind the seat will collapse the seat and and cause serious injuries in the event of an accident.
Far too many people mess with their seat-belts with little or no idea of what effects their changes make on the safety of their car.

Also, as someone pointed ut above, as far as I am aware, no six-point harness is approved for road use. Aircraft style "twist" buckles are definately not approved.