Oooh, that does look nice. I'm with @rsporsche, might have to pull the trigger on that. The part attached directly to the shoulder bolster is workable but it sometimes slips out when you don't want it to.
The endless seatbelt update question
- Thread starter e9Leveque
- Start date
The unit is screwed in from the end. Not sure if it will stay put. You can orient it on inside or outside which ever works best.
i think the best idea might be to get another piece (longer piece) made that attaches to the other side and bolt them together with a threaded rod. or maybe get one machined that goes from post to post using this as an idea.
I'd be a bit wary of things like this. As @eriknetherlands pointed out, the dynamics and forces of a crash are quite severe. If the belt is coming from the rear, and across the top of the seat I would think you would want to avoid interfering with it in any structural way. In a crash the body is going to move forward, hopefully straight forward, and the belt, being more or less in a straight line back should restrain it somewhat. To the extent that the belt is re-directed , the forces on the belt will be applied in some way to the structure that is redirecting the belt. In this case the metal piece will probably swing forward, dragged by the belt, and may then pose a hazard as the body moves back after the crash impulse (or worse if there are additional crash impulses, like someone rear ending you after you rear ended someone else). . Not sure I'd want a piece of metal sticking out in the same area where my neck or head are likely to come back into. I would think the softer approach, like the leather strap someone posted would be safer. If there is a lot of force on it the leather will either break or get pulled off the seat, and it is not going to injure you if you subsequently encounter it in the backlash.
i agree with you + Erik about the force dynamics during a crash. my belt will be coming from below - either on the B pillar base or from the existing mount on the rocker rail - my idea image comes from @paul cain (see below).
the idea for me is to run it along the top of the seat (scheel 400) - the seat belt would be on the door side of the seat headrest and not in between. originally i was thinking of placing a 'turning' point on the top of the B pillar ... i just don't know how to get that area strong enough to withstand the forces during a crash. in my former P cars (911 + cayman), the turning point was at the top of the door on the B pillar and it worked great. i guess i could put a lot of steel in to do that on the coupe, but it has to be thin to not interfere with the side panel. my thought is going up / over the edge of the seat could be good as long as you can keep the belt from shifting to the side of the seat (falling off the shoulder of the seat) and that is what this idea tends to do. my guess is that in a crash this will destroy the headrest post and probably the metal piece ... but will probably stay in place ... it would have a greater chance of staying in place if it was connected to both headrest posts.
oh, if anybody can identify the source (what car has these - BMW or other) of the piece that the seatbelt is exiting the door panel ... i would like to know.
the idea for me is to run it along the top of the seat (scheel 400) - the seat belt would be on the door side of the seat headrest and not in between. originally i was thinking of placing a 'turning' point on the top of the B pillar ... i just don't know how to get that area strong enough to withstand the forces during a crash. in my former P cars (911 + cayman), the turning point was at the top of the door on the B pillar and it worked great. i guess i could put a lot of steel in to do that on the coupe, but it has to be thin to not interfere with the side panel. my thought is going up / over the edge of the seat could be good as long as you can keep the belt from shifting to the side of the seat (falling off the shoulder of the seat) and that is what this idea tends to do. my guess is that in a crash this will destroy the headrest post and probably the metal piece ... but will probably stay in place ... it would have a greater chance of staying in place if it was connected to both headrest posts.
oh, if anybody can identify the source (what car has these - BMW or other) of the piece that the seatbelt is exiting the door panel ... i would like to know.
Attachments
I agree that that option with it emerging from the B-pillar looks the nicest. Unfortunately not an option for me because I don’t have the attachment point in the headliner and I don’t think there is anything structurally strong enough to serve as the “behind my shoulder level” in my vehicle. I know some people have that small guide bracket drilled through the wood at the top of that panel, but having just taken apart that rear panel area, I’m not sure that there’s much there that is very strong. I did order the bracket linked above and will let you guys know what I find once it arrives. The thought of bracing it across to the other side would make it stronger in terms of any lateral rotation, but also as mentioned would distribute the force over towards the middle of the car and behind the head in a way that might be less optimal.
I've been in contact with guy named Kolby Burtner at SeatbeltPlanet who has been awesome. I sent him pictures of my current belts and am going to pull them tonight and send back to him for trimming down. These were ones purchased from them as "BMW E9 set". Turns out when he looks through their records there are 3 different configurations that they have made for E9s and he looked through some forum photos and understands the difficulties we all have with retractable belts. I sent him photos of tape measure lengths between all of the attachment points for my configuration (rear armrest to left shoulder, shoulder to right side of waist, right side waist to left side attachment). Once I have them back and confirm that they fit, allow for some forward non-locked movement and appropriate amount of retraction he is planning to "save" that as one option. I'm hoping that others here are willing/able to take similar measurements of their setup. I have no financial interest in them, but given Kolby's willingness to provide awesome customer service, would seem to be a good service partner for the group, and my goal is that others after us can say "I want seatbelts matching configuration #X for my E9" based on photos here and they could supply ones that we know fit perfectly. I know that Al is an option, especially for the headliner attachment point with the dropdown strap Don mentioned earlier in this thread, but for many of us that option unfortunately doesn't work.
I've been in contact with guy named Kolby Burtner at SeatbeltPlanet who has been awesome. I sent him pictures of my current belts and am going to pull them tonight and send back to him for trimming down. These were ones purchased from them as "BMW E9 set". Turns out when he looks through their records there are 3 different configurations that they have made for E9s and he looked through some forum photos and understands the difficulties we all have with retractable belts. I sent him photos of tape measure lengths between all of the attachment points for my configuration (rear armrest to left shoulder, shoulder to right side of waist, right side waist to left side attachment). Once I have them back and confirm that they fit, allow for some forward non-locked movement and appropriate amount of retraction he is planning to "save" that as one option. I'm hoping that others here are willing/able to take similar measurements of their setup. I have no financial interest in them, but given Kolby's willingness to provide awesome customer service, would seem to be a good service partner for the group, and my goal is that others after us can say "I want seatbelts matching configuration #X for my E9" based on photos here and they could supply ones that we know fit perfectly. I know that Al is an option, especially for the headliner attachment point with the dropdown strap Don mentioned earlier in this thread, but for many of us that option unfortunately doesn't work.
i'm right there with you on not having the headliner attachment point ... so right now, i just have lap belts ... but with a new @sfdon engine, i need something better. i also agree that there isn't enough meat behind the wood trim at the top of the rear side panel to support the lateral forces needed to hold a seatbelt. since my rear windows have been out i get to see how flimsy that metal is. even when adding the bracing, it gets better, but not enough. when i have time / when i get back to the interior, i will look to see if i can find any other options. i am planning to use early e24 seat belts mounted in the low part of the B pillar with extra steel connecting everything to support the seatbelt mount ... its all about figuring out how to support the pivot point
@rsporsche yep it's that B-pillar part that is the kicker. I also just had my rear windows out to do the window motor upgrade and refurbish that whole area. I suppose if one were to get creative you could weld sometime that bridged the mid-portion of the B-pillar (up near top of panel) down to the frame, but inherently that's going to be less than ideal, and the window gets in the way of any bridging back to the armrest attachment point. I think that @paul cain's beautiful B-pillar version was using the headliner attachment. I also thought about adding that pivot point in the wood panel in lieu of having the strap run over the headrest shoulder bolster, but still think that this would be less structurally sound and would involve drilling through that wood panel. In our cars if I were in a crash and the belt locked up first but then the pivot point pulled out of the wood as I was thrown forward, that difference in length is perhaps 4" or so? Probably would still keep me from slamming into the steering wheel, but it does seem odd to envision the belt being hooked laterally at least 5" below the top of my shoulder height on that side panel. I worry it would essentially slide off my shoulder, at which point it's not doing anything.
Hmmm, I think I'm back to "what I currently have isn't perfect but is probably safer than what the car came with, and in a bad enough crash there may be other factors at play that matter more to my life than this". At least I'd go out in style.
Hmmm, I think I'm back to "what I currently have isn't perfect but is probably safer than what the car came with, and in a bad enough crash there may be other factors at play that matter more to my life than this". At least I'd go out in style.
After watching all the seat belt discussion, I still like my application with one exception. Running the shoulder belt over the headrest is the right height except that in an accident the headrest could slide down. I need to find something to lock the posts from going down in an accident. Any ideas on how to lock the headrest posts?
I know it's a big job, but has anyone who is doing a bare metal restoration looked into how the head liner bracing is done on the cars that have it?? Seems that should be fairly easy to replicate, although it would require welding, so only realistic of the car is getting repainted.
great point - i didn't remove my headliner during repaint ... and i was hesitant to add any changes for risk of further delay in getting it finished
as i remember, the 2002 had 'notched' headrest posts. don't remember if the coupe has them or not
Anybody needs the seatbelt blocks that get welded to the top, I have them in stock at the shop.
Don, do you have a picture of those? I suspect you mean the ones underneath the headliner that many of us don't have. How much of a job is that to do? Sounds like you'd have to remove the headliner and then weld in the part then replace the headliner. What is it welded to up there - is there a structural crossbeam?
You are lucky if you can move them, mine are frozen in place 
They weren't when I bought the car. I had to remove them with a ratchet straps with the seat back secured to the base of my press.You are lucky if you can move them, mine are frozen in place
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I’m on the road - the shop may open tomorrow.
Try to get pics.