Seat belts and off road

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Do you ware your belt off road?

  • My landy has a what belt???

    Votes: 5 16.7%

  • Yes, i dont have a roll cage but it makes sence.

    Votes: 17 56.7%

  • Yes, the government man told me to.

    Votes: 2 6.7%

  • Yes, my roll cage wouldent count for **** otherwise.

    Votes: 2 6.7%

  • Hell no, if there a problem im getting out!

    Votes: 2 6.7%

  • Does it matter? Im screwed eather way.

    Votes: 2 6.7%
  • Total voters
    30
when off road i have me seatbelt on unless, i am going through a technical section where i need to have me heed out of the window to see me wheel, i am lining up to recover someone or driving through heavily wooded sections where i need to be free to hop out and remove branches that may have fallen
 
and .......

if yer ever in a situation where yer brakes have failed but you can steer - and you've got no other option other than to hit either a tree or a brick wall

aim fer the wall
 
I used to have normal seat belts in my 90 and harnesses for the summer with the roof off. Has anyone ever tried to trial with harnesses that are adjusted correctly? Well its its a bloody pain in the ass its so difficult. I have removed the harnesses and only use them for summer on the road when my seat belts are not there.

As for brick wall or tree Defo brick wall trees are usually imovable and stop you dead hopefully the wall may absorb some of the impact (hopefully) Jai
 
had a belt on fer 45 mins in my hole life, me drivin test , ah seen / kno that many people who have been killed with them , its luck of the draw,
 
90truckcab said:
had a belt on fer 45 mins in my hole life, me drivin test , ah seen / kno that many people who have been killed with them , its luck of the draw,
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Yea it is, but on the road its gona be somthing like 10 people saved by waring belts for every one saved by not waring one. Quite a fiew people on here say theve had crashes and were glad they had it on, havent read any say they were glad they wernt yet. But still its your choice.
 
jai_landrover said:
I used to have normal seat belts in my 90 and harnesses for the summer with the roof off. Has anyone ever tried to trial with harnesses that are adjusted correctly? Well its its a bloody pain in the ass its so difficult. I have removed the harnesses and only use them for summer on the road when my seat belts are not there.

As for brick wall or tree Defo brick wall trees are usually imovable and stop you dead hopefully the wall may absorb some of the impact (hopefully) Jai
Click to expand...
Jai, how have you attached your harnesses when you've got your roof off. I'm thinking of adding some to my series as it has no belts at all atm, just some impreza bucket seats


boydy1989 said:
when i wrote off my escort i'm glad i had my seatbelt on, as without it i would probably have been through the screen/door window etc.
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Yeah i was glad I had my seatbelt on when somone reversed at high speed into my front;)
 
I used the Bulkhead with large spreader plates for the top harnesses. and the bottom I attached to my Mud seat rails. Jai
 
top of the rear bulkhead where the steel capping/upside down U sectionis I bloted through there and used 2 inch spreader plates it didn't look neat but it wasnt going to fail. Jai
 
The rear bulkhead will definately not maintain its structural integrity. or hold your body weight, in a crash. Also harnesses should never go straight down at the back or be parallel to your body. As the shock loading on them can crush your spine in the event of a crash. IIRC the maximum angle should be 30 degrees.
 
jai_landrover said:
top of the rear bulkhead where the steel capping/upside down U sectionis I bloted through there and used 2 inch spreader plates it didn't look neat but it wasnt going to fail. Jai
Click to expand...

I had thought of that as I'd like 4 point harnesses in my 90 eventually, but the thing that worried me is if you do crash or roll, the rear tub will probably crumple up like a used tissue, and the bulkhead could move forward or back or side to side, loosening, or tightening(!!!) the seatbelt with dangerous results. It's for this reason that you're not supposed to loop harnesses around a rear strut brace in a road car, as suspension turrets will be the first thing to deform in a rear impact or a big roll. Doesn't stop people doing it though.

Another possible issue is that you should have your top harnesses extending as close to horizontal as possible, and certainly not more than at 45 degrees. You want them to be holding you back into the seat, whereas if they go straight down onto the bulkhead capping they will be more likely to compress your shoulders down in an accident, either doing damage or 'submarining' you out of the bottom of the harness if you haven't got decent seats or a 5 point.

All in all I've decided harnesses are no good without a cage to strap them to :D and I'm much safer with a 40 year old fraying lap belt and rusty buckles :D

Edit: Just realised I've said the same thing as redhand but taken a lot longer saying it :p
 
Last edited:
To be honest I had the roof off when using the harnesses and never really went on the road more off road and when I did I left the harnesses un done. The plan is to get them mounted to an internal rollcage but thats way off now. I use the standard mounts as they are fine. Jai
 
when i have made and fitted a roll hoop to the 109 i am gonna fit a pair of harnesses the only problem is the will have to run through the rear of the truck cab, the plan is to cover them in a rubber sheath or summat
 
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