Seatbelts

Scott,
You don’t have much choice where to fit the pivot, it has to be structural/strong, going through the sheet metal of the rear window mounting just won’t do it. It also ideally needs to be higher than your shoulder so the belt works properly, obviously missing a b pillar rules that out, so I went as high as I could, strengthened the mounting point with some flat bar in the channel held by 3 10mm bolts to the door jamb. While thankfully I haven’t needed to test it in the real world I feel confident it would do its job if needed, we have some fairly stringent standards here and the engineer who signed it off commented that it was well thought out and executed. But to do it you will need to drill through the wood....

Best. John
 
John,

you are absolutely correct about the bracing ... and wherever it goes there will be flat bar stock added in to structurally support it. i have to wait until i get my car back from paint and engine transplant before i can sort it out.
 
rsporsche said:
Don, does yours have a pivot point above the reel (up by the wood trim), or does it just go up and over seat? i have scheel seats so i can't put such a piece on the headrest.


John,

if i fit the reel into the 'body box' underneath the side panel, my mechanism will not be sticking out - the 635csi belt mounts with the reel fit into the body. if i don't want to cut that box out, i will explore fitting it under the rear arm rest, like Don's is located. for me the biggest question is where to place the pivot - where bolt #5 goes.

View attachment 45406
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Scott:

I do have the little black plastic triangle hanging from a hook on each door panel. I think that's what you're referring to. I assume it is intended to serve as a belt guide. My shoulder belts do run through those but they don't really serve a function with my setup. When I need pivot the front seatback to access the rear seat area, I remove the shoulder belt from the chrome guide. Then the black triangle holds the shoulder belt but the belt is not really going anywhere anyway. And it would be too low and too weak to serve as a load-bearing point in a crash. As John mentioned, the angle of the shoulder belt needs to be above the shoulder in order to minimize spinal compression in a forward crash. I'm sure that's why BMW attached the early fixed shoulder belts near the rear package shelf.

Two other options, common in race cars with 4-point and 5-point belt systems, are belt holes in the seat itself or a horizontal bar between the b-pillars or cage. Problematic on a street car that ever needs a rear seat.

Don
 
dbower said:
Two other options, common in race cars with 4-point and 5-point belt systems, are belt holes in the seat itself or a horizontal bar between the b-pillars or cage. Problematic on a street car that ever needs a rear seat.

Don
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I run this 3-point (works as a 4-point) setup in my car, not for purists but I think it goes well with the Scheel seats. They have an electric activated reel that mounts on the parcel shelf, so you can move freely when you drive.
If somebody have to sit in the rear seat, which won’t happen often in my case, you can just unhook the belts that goes over your shoulders and use it as a two-point belt.
I like it, it gives you an illusion of safety:p

09489638-7513-4910-9B77-D6B77137FE2D.jpeg
 
they are great seats ... i have exactly the same setup. eventually i will have the fronts recovered to make them match the CSL rear seats a bit better. replace the vinyl with leather and wrap the side bolsters so the leather returns behind the center fabric ... and respace the seams of the center fabric to be more like the rear seats.
 
cheers Nils, an update from me. I've spoken to quickfit sbs and they seem to be the team to go with. The chap I spoke with (didn't ask a name) was knowledgeable about the E9 set-up options, and their prices, whilst not cheap, seem entirely reasonable. The only issue is that the work takes a few weeks. For that reason I'm going to park this one until autumn and do the work then, during the lay-up.

Taking the belts off is only a couple of bolts, so I'd post them off, quickfit will swap the belt and repair or replace the retractor reel mech, whilst keeping the buckle/etc. hardware, I then bolt them back on again. I'm up for retractor replacement (so long as I get the originals back) as the retractor reels are hidden behind the rear trim panel)

I'd found that link before, a while back. Think it probably inspired me to do something about my snaggy belts!
 
@dbower that shoulder guide is just what I need on my car, where can I order some? Got a web link?

Also it looks like you have them screwed into place already, so why the cable ties?
 
dj_efk said:
@dbower that shoulder guide is just what I need on my car, where can I order some? Got a web link?

Also it looks like you have them screwed into place already, so why the cable ties?
Click to expand...

Scott's source below is as good as any. Those are screw heads glued into the holes to resemble actual screws, which I couldn't bring myself to actually drill into the bracket. The zip ties work fine and are invisible under the belts.
 
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