6 Point Harness Install

"mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/" (mxxxxxm24)
04/22/2019 at 15:00 • Filed to: Arisu, Miata, Miatafications, Safety, Racing

Take off the top. Grab your ratchet set. And settle in. Today we’ll be adding a 6 point harness and harness bar.

Do yourself a favor and take the seat out now. It’s easier. Now: out comes the old seatbelt. In my case I elected to remove it, because it was ripped and completely useless as a safety restraint with the hard dog sport m1 roll bar set up. I couldn’t really see a way to get the whole assembly out without removing the roll bar, so I just cut the belt at the retractor for now.

Remove the 2 large bolts (1 each side) and spacers in the seatbelt tower assembly (pictured above removed). You will also remove the soft top cover metal screw in nipple attachments. Hard dog/Bethania Garage will supply you with new spacers and 8 washers. This won’t be enough. It wasn’t for me and they installed my roll bar in the first place. I didn’t appreciate this as my seat was out of my car and I didn’t have any 7/16” washers lying around.

After waiting for my roommate to get home and getting washers from the store, I put the already wrapped shoulder straps on to test fit the bar. The extra washers you will need to fill the gap should be placed above the harness bar. If you put it below with the other washers, it will not allow you to put back the metal nipples, which won’t really matter aside from aesthetics.

This is the wrong way. The large washer had to be relocated to the top of the harness bar.

Once you’ve got that you will have to tighten everything down (not your seat yet!) and fit your harnesses. This will in some cases require you drill holes in your floor board for the sub strap(s). My pci race mount has holes specifically for this purpose. I take no responsibility for your safety, so make sure to research the best way for you!

Sub strap mounts attached, before I ended up moving them back to furthest holes.

At this point I want to say how much easier the eye bolt clip in version of harnesses are than the traditional bolt in. I didn’t think I wanted them, but I am glad I ended up with them. I used the factory belt points for attaching the lap belt eye bolts. They just screw in and are ready for the belts to clip in after re-installing the seat. I used a long bolt I had to tighten all the eye bolts.

After this I loosely attached the front seat bolts and fed the sub straps through the seat. I adjusted them to fit and clipped them to their eye bolts and bolted back the rear seat bolts. After adjusting all the straps (this is one reason why it’s so much easier having the ability to remove them with the clip in set up), I was finished!

Before final adjustments.

Thanks for reading Oppo. Remember: Live fast. Take lots of chances.

DISCUSSION (38)

ItalianJobR53 - now with added 'MERICA and unreliability > mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/
04/22/2019 at 15:05

Take lots of chances corners

FTFY

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/
04/22/2019 at 15:42

How tall are you? I definitely cannot fit in a miata with a bottom mounted seat of any kind, its just not low enough. I had to go the drill holes in the floor route due to the garage star side mounts that I have not having something convient like yours. That was probably the toughest part, ensuring that the holes were in the right place and lining everything up. Also, to chime in on the seat mount bolts for the sub straps. That is a bad idea! You want the straps as straight down as possible or else they are likely to either injure you or not be as effective. This is a challenge moreso for 5-point harnesses because you cant drill straight down due to a frame rail. But with the 6-points its pretty easy to just drill the holes, assuming you put it up on a lift for easy access.

Good luck dealing with a harness all day every day. I didnt like not being able to reach my glove box without unharnessing so I made sure to keep both. But my seat belt wasnt ripped so I had a different situation. You also dont have an airbag anyways so I suppose it makes more sense to just be harnessed in.

I’m looking forward to repeating my install again in the new-to-me miata that I just picked up. I guess I could make a neat writeup like this too!

Cash Rewards > mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/
04/22/2019 at 15:51

Im looking at this exact combo of seat/mount/roll bar (maybe m2 sport). How much clearance do you have, and how tall are you? I'm 5'11", but more torso than legs.

mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/ > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%)
04/22/2019 at 16:09

I’m 6’ 4” actually lol. I fit very well now once I’m in with this setup. The reason I started down this path of seat modifications is because of my inability to fit safely with the roll bar.

I have been considering flipping the eyelets to the bottom, placing them about where they would be if I drilled holes. I really don’t want to drill any(more) holes in her. I actually try to keep her original as possible, with most everything reversible. I just mounted them to where they most naturally seemed to fit. They are supposed to be straighter up though? How would you have room to floor mount a seat and have eyelets?

Also the deeper I get in to modifying, the more I am wanting a new daily. It’s getting to be a chore with it being pretty race oriented now . I am eying a 2009 legacy sedan 5 speed listed for 5k at a ( somewhat) local dealer.

Nick Has an Exocet > mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/
04/22/2019 at 16:10

Careful with the harness. The data is somewhat inconclusive as to whether it’s safer than a normal belt and there are lots of situations where it’s possible to be hurt worse in a collision since the same amount of energy is transferred over a shorter period of time.

We’ve both deleted our airbags, so whatever. Haha.

mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/ > Cash Rewards
04/22/2019 at 16:18

I like my set up for the most part, not sure it could be much better as a race set up (unless floor mounting) . As far as a daily it’s a b*tch getting in and out of the Sparco, but it is comfortable . I’m 6’ 4” and I actually fit perfectly. I’ve never measured clearance, but I feel like a helmet would just fit inside the hard top. I may just pass the broomstick rule. Though I have no helmet and haven’t raced her as she is currently my only car. Would it help you if I measured from the top of my head to the roof?

Cash Rewards > mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/
04/22/2019 at 16:26

Wow, if you could give me top of head to roof, or top of head to bottom bar, that’d be incredible. I got a 30 in inseam but bowled legs. I once figured out I’d be 6"1-6'2" with normal legs. Getting pedals and steering wheels in comfortable spots can be a bitch!

I use the car for autocross and fun outings with my wife. If I start doing track cross at summit point, they require a roll bar, and now way I get under one with a stock seat

mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/ > Nick Has an Exocet
04/22/2019 at 16:30

Airbags? I think you mean excess weight? But yeah people debate the safety vs oem. I personally believe this set up to be much safer all in all, plus with the Sparco seat and hd roll bar, the oem belt couldn’t function properly anymore anyways.

Though I also made the mistake of needlessly cutting the rip stop on my passenger seatbelt. People told me I needed to, but a pparently you don’t (only driver side) with the airbag removed. They will just have a harsher deceleration now with out it :/. I don’t usually have a passenger anyways, but may get a 4 point asm belt.

mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/ > Cash Rewards
04/22/2019 at 16:42

Ok I’ll get measurements for you. The one thing I would say is that you should definitely get a built in harness bar with the hd sport or whatever bar. Also, I’ve never looked at prices, but I would probably look into a roll bar from blackbird fabworx if I had to do it all over. The quality on those seem to embarrass hard dog in every way , though they are probably much more expensive and I’m not sure of fitment issues with those . Even the sport bar I have didn’t allow full seat travel as they claimed.

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/
04/22/2019 at 16:55

Damn, you must be all leg then! I know for me at 6'0" I have zero hope of fitting with a stock seat in place, even without a helmet on my head brushes against the top. Sitting in the Miata I just bought feels super silly and I have to duck to try and see traffic lights, or pull up enough to look over the roof. I went with a Boss Frog roll bar that is too tall to fit a hard top just to get some extra height out of it. It’s also further back meaning that my seat doesnt sit under the bar, so I have some clearance without a helmet on.

Your eyelets are perfectly fine where they are, thats where mine are anyways. Flipping them is certainly a good way to get them out of the way if the seat doesnt fit, but if it fits dont bother since it will certainly make it harder to access underneath it. The front of my seat is up enough to fit the eyelets, its the back of the seat that is angled down to allow me to get as low as possible. The back end of the bottom of the seat just grazes the floor. I could angle it a little bit more to get lower but I am low enough as is to have about 1 inch of clearance to the roll bar with my helmet on. And it looks like about 2 inches with the padding so its pretty good.

And yeah the “too many mods” thing definitely had me happy to be dailying my STi instead. But I miss the top down cruising life so I am happy to have it back. I will plan on keeping the stock drivers seat and just swapping it in and out for track days since its pretty easy to remove it. I still want to do a foamectomy though since I’d like to at least fit without my helmet on and still have some level of useful seat while street driving.

AestheticsInMotion > mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/
04/22/2019 at 17:10

No fitment issues, everything lines up great and installs easy with the given hardware. Seat travel wasn’t affected at all , and seat recline was only slightly affected if the seat was pushed back to the furthest position . Fits hard tops, glass and plastic softtops, all bars come with a harness bar built in, and you can either buy a single diagonal for $650ish or the x brace that I have for $850 ish. Extra $80 for powder coating in any color. I believe shipping is also included in the price...

mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/ > Cash Rewards
04/22/2019 at 17:10

Head to roof varies 2 1/2" - 3". Head to roll bar (sitting up and as far back as possible): 3"

mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/ > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%)
04/22/2019 at 17:27

I just measured my clearance and 2 1/2"- ish to hard top and 3" to roll bar, sitting up straight and far back as possible. The seat is in the path of the roll bar though and I would probably hit my hard top before the roll bar in any event. I guess my legs are longer than my torso is lol.

I’ve heard fitting in the NBs is harder than NAs, but never sat in an NB to compare. Have you noticed this? I fit ok when the car was stock, but better now all in all.

I thought you were saying the sub straps wouldn’t be straight down enough with them located on the seat mount that way?

mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/ > AestheticsInMotion
04/22/2019 at 17:33

Yeah that would be worth the extra money then. I’ve heard they are lighter too?

Cash Rewards > AestheticsInMotion
04/22/2019 at 17:45

Shipping included, you say?

Cash Rewards > mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/
04/22/2019 at 17:46

Awesome, thank you!

mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/ > Cash Rewards
04/22/2019 at 17:57

Glad to help!

AestheticsInMotion > mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/
04/22/2019 at 18:00

Maybe? I think mine is 45 lbs

AestheticsInMotion > Cash Rewards
04/22/2019 at 18:06

I believe so, but don’t quote me on it. All I know is that my NB GT3 bar (x-brace, meets ALL racing guidelines, fits all soft/hardtops ) was under $1k, including custom powder coat and shipping.

Shoot Moti at blackbird fabworx an email or check the FB page.

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/
04/22/2019 at 18:13

Nah, I was saying that the sub straps connected to the seat mount bolts like you had suggested as an idea. That would work in theory to securely mount them but the angles would be wrong for safety reasons. Straight up and down is good. I think being slightly behind the holes in the seat is ideal? But anywhere close to that is fine.

Maybe the NA is easier to fit in, I wouldnt be surprised. I havent tried anything other than a stock NA without roll bar. I couldnt tell much of a difference, it felt like the same car lol. But yeah that makes sense if you can get an extra inch just having an NA.

mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/ > AestheticsInMotion
04/22/2019 at 18:16

Well that’s maybe a little heavier than mine, but I have the smaller diameter bars. Either way, I’d probably get yours if I ever need to put a roll bar in Miata again.

Cash Rewards > AestheticsInMotion
04/22/2019 at 18:20

So I saw this and called, and process have risen. Over a grand each for a NB, plus tax and shipping

mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/ > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%)
04/22/2019 at 18:28

Oooh ok. Now I follow what you’re saying. I may just omit that suggestion from my post. It’s possible I miss understood the guy that told me people use the seat mount bolts for the sub straps. It didn’t seem feasible to me, but I wasn’t going to argue with a veteran Spec Miata racer lol.

And they do look pretty similar inside. It could only be the width of space is smaller in the NB. I know that much has got to be true, cause the NB doesn’t have removable arm rests.

Cash Rewards > mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/
04/22/2019 at 18:35

Fab9 has it for 340 or so. Buying this week .ost likely

Nick Has an Exocet > mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/
04/22/2019 at 18:56

Haha. I always say that I “removed a 27 year old explosive device from in front of my face”. Ah yeah, the rollbar is helpful.

I have 4 pt in the exocet for passengers. It just adds to the racecar experience!

mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/ > Cash Rewards
04/22/2019 at 19:08

I got my mount from fab 9, If I recall. What’s 340?

mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/ > Nick Has an Exocet
04/22/2019 at 19:15

Most people don’t really care for the race car experience tho haha. Part of why I try to keep it stock on the passenger side is so my girlfriend and other people will still ride in it. I will prob do the 4 point tho at some point.

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/
04/22/2019 at 19:18

Oh people definitely do it. Plenty of the people in the “it works” crowd who ignore the engineering behind safety features like that... I imagine it would hold you in, its just going against the way its designed to work best.

And yeah I know for sure the interior width is different. Mostly due to the door card pockets on the NB but I believe the trans tunnel and center console are different as well, causing it to be harder to fit that way. Idk if height from floor to roof is any different but that would be what matters for this. I know that modifying the floor is the only surefire way to get any lower than I am now. But I think I have found the right spot since I do pass a broomstick test.

mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/ > Cash Rewards
04/22/2019 at 19:23

Also read my post on initial install if you are considering the Sparco seat/ pci mount:

https://oppositelock.kinja.com/sparco-sprint-pci-race-mount-install-and-review-1825669960

mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/ > Wrong Wheel Drive (41%)
04/22/2019 at 19:50

What seat do you use? Was wondering if that was hindering you from being lower, but w asn’t it a bride knock off? Without the padding those get about as low as you can get I guess. If you pass the broomstick test then no reason to do any different.

Cash Rewards > mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/
04/22/2019 at 20:33

The Sprint seat itself

AestheticsInMotion > Cash Rewards
04/22/2019 at 20:46

That’s unfortunate :/

They must be selling like crazy for that to happen considering no new products have been released for quite a while...

AestheticsInMotion > mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/
04/22/2019 at 20:50

Honestly my next Miata will probably be without a rollbar and race seat, because I kind of miss the completely unobstructed view and “openness”

mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/ > Cash Rewards
04/22/2019 at 21:43

Got ya. I can’t remember what I paid, but that sounds about right

mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/ > AestheticsInMotion
04/22/2019 at 21:47

I know what you mean. I only got the racing seat and such because of the roll bar. I mainly just wanted the increased rigidity anyways.

Wrong Wheel Drive (41%) > mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/
04/22/2019 at 23:26

Yeah its a bride knockoff that while it's not the most comfortable nor is the cloth very durable, but it's definitely the lowest any seat can get without serious modifications to the car structure. I'm thinking of just doing a foamectomy on the stock seat for daily driving purposes, but I'm concerned about being too tall even without a helmet. With the bride knockoff and the padding in the seat, I still clear the roll bar without a helmet. And it's bearable but certainly not fun to daily drive like that. Like you said though, it works so I might as well stick with it!

Nick Has an Exocet > mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/
04/23/2019 at 02:04

Hah, I guess it’s different with the exocet. If they’ll get into an exposed tube frame roll cage car, they’ll wear the harness. lol

mXxxxXm24 /O/ /O/ > Nick Has an Exocet
04/23/2019 at 09:58

Yeah maybe they know what to expect with your Exocet is the difference. My car still looks somewhat unassuming lol