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Custom harness and storage area project started

17K views 74 replies 19 participants last post by  mpower1226 
#1 · (Edited)
Really excited about this dual mod because I designed it myself. And also because it adds two big items on my list of things I wish the car had and that I need.

Stopped by my tech shop today because I heard they started on my project. Perfect day for it because there has been a lot of snow here and I'm bored driving my Tundra. Yes even that modded truck with over 500 hp is boring compared to the 4C.

Anyway they are well into the project and I thought I would share some photos and explain what it's going to be.

I tried a vendors harness bar system but I didn't like it at all because the horizontal bar took up much-needed seat adjustment space inside the car. In fact all harness systems I looked at had the same problem, you will lose lots of seat adjustment space. I'm only 5' 8" and I keep my seat one click from all the way back. But I do have my seats tilted back as much as possible because I like that feeling of spreading your body's weight over the larger area so it's more comfortable.

When I tried the vendors harness bar I lost 3 seat clicks. On the driver side that was very uncomfortable and on the passenger side I thought it was absolutely horrid. I looked around and all other harness systems and they all had some similar bar so I decided to design my own where the support structure was in the engine compartment and did not take up any space inside the passenger compartment.

So I started looking inside the engine compartment and saw that we could design and manufacture some custom-made bars to attach to the existing frame bolts. We then could just screw harness strap brackets on the inside through the firewall. And because these small holes were sealed with silicone the passenger compartment remains sealed and no engine fumes can come through. We situated the upper harness strap brackets in the correct position which fit very nicely just above the tops of the seats and to the left and right of the headrests.

The lower harness strap connections will tie into the existing seatbelt to frame connections. We have not completed that yet.

When I want to use the harness straps I can either leave them in all the time and just hook the existing factory seatbelt behind the seat and out-of-the-way. Or I can quickly disconnect the entire harness strap system and store it in the boot then just use the factory seatbelts for daily driver use.

We ordered a special Schroth German harness system that is a four point connection but works as a six way connection with straps that go around and between your legs. I included a photo of a custom system they made for someone else with different less expensive harness straps but you can see how it works if you look. This is the only way you could get it to work with factory seats and fit safely and properly. Also allows the factory seats to still be adjustable.

I also wanted more storage space in the car. Especially having a Spider and having to store the roof in the trunk.

I saw that there was quite a bit of space in the engine compartment just behind the firewall. We came up with a custom-made box made out of aluminum that will hold three water bottles or cargo the equivalent of it. May not look like a huge glove box but it would be close to a normal size glove box. And if you want to look at percentages I just increased my glove box 500% ha ha.

From the pictures you can see where this glove box will mount above the factory glove box. It will have matching black leather but solid face that will clasp to lock. It will also have a metal plate that can attach to it that will have a tripod screw mount on it for a good solid surface to mount a camera to. And this lid to the box will be strong enough to stay closed in case of hard braking or an accident. The box will be sound deadened and also fireproofed.

And there will be a second much larger box also inside the engine compartment but in the corner that will hold my air compressor and all the funnels miscellaneous parts that come with that Alfa kit. I will also be room for some other things but this box will be something that you rarely access. I will be so strong that it will not have to be taken out during racing but I might take it out to save a few pounds.

So I won't have to carry the Alfa kit and air compressor in my trunk anymore which will give me quite a bit more trunk space.

Really psyched about this project when finished. My car has huge sway bars, very fat sticky tires coil overs and all kinds of other mods that make it extremely tight. Racing around the track in the factory seatbelt was getting really old.

While driving the car and chucking it into four wheel drift slides you could hang onto the steering wheel and kind of tolerate it. But in the passenger seat it was absolutely miserable. You had nothing to hang onto other than the underside of the seat and you felt like a slab of meat just being flopped around. And a few minutes into a session you would basically just give up and just let your weight go against the side of the door hoping it doesn't fly open!

So I'm really looking forward to next spring and using this harness system. I think it will really improve my driving by allowing me to just focus on driving not trying to keep my body from flying around.

I also had them install my duckbill spoiler. They ended up fabricating an aluminum bar along the underside of it and then drilling through the boot lid. I really wanted it strong considering the trunk will be slammed open and closed a lot. I know some of you may disagree with this but the owner and myself think that that duckbill spoiler will actually be quite helpful for aerodynamics. I feel the air will be going over the roof of my car and then coming down hard on that back lid right where the spoiler is. Nice thing about this spoiler is that I don't lose any rear window visibility.

This will help balance out my car as I have just a tiny bit too much oversteer now with my square 245 tire set up.

This spoiler will help out at any speeds above 60mph and we get up to close to 150mph on this track. I got up to 141mph last spring and that was before all my mods so I think my Alfa will be doing 145mph+ this Spring. Maybe even more when Chris at EC gets me that elusive extra 50 HP!

This race tech shop is really amazing. They do their own welding, fabricating and even have a 3-D modeler. They know what they're doing and they care about safety and that's huge with me.

I included a few photos of some of the cars that in the shop and the big semi they used to take their race cars to circuit races. That semi can store cars double decked! Also a pile of car frames out in the snow, looks like a gearhead statue!

 
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#3 ·
Great innovative work Tom! Also looking forward to seeing he final setup. :)
 
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#11 ·
Al, interesting approach to do the harness bar. I think I would unscrew the round eyes (are they threaded?) During non-track days to prevent head knocks without a helmet.

I should have mine mounted in a week or so. I have slowly brought my seat more forward (I'm 6ft), as it gives me slightly better position to brace and control the steering. I hope it will be enough for the sector111 bar. Plus, I am using the bar to mount my racing intercom box and GoPro too.

Sent from my Nexus 6 using Tapatalk
 
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#12 · (Edited)
Not sure if the round eyes can unscrew or not. And if they do I'm not thinking I want to take them out. Probably want them Loctited it in medium strength for safety.

That latch in the picture is not the actual harness latch although it should be similar. What I was shown by my tech was a quick disconnect so that I can quickly take the entire harness system out and put it in my racing bag. For daily driver use in the car we just use the regular seatbelt. Although I probably could leave have the harness system in and have it just flop around on the floorboard but it would make noise and the scuff it up.

I don't think those metal eyelets stick out far enough to hit my head as they are so close to the headrests themselves that stick out much further.

But but you have a good point and I may have to put some rubber bumpers over those for eyelets when I am not using the harness.

I had tried this Sector 111 harness bar original system, very good system but I lost too much seat adjustment. In racing position on the driver side it was close to working ok for me but the seat was rubbing on the harness bar. But in the passenger seat losing that seat adjustment was really bad for me. Made sitting there really uncomfortable. Since the harness bar stays in the car all the time that means even during daily driver use you are compromised. But if you could easily take the bar out that would be a good idea!

If my seats were not tilted back all the way it would help give you more seat adjustment room. But I really like the seats tilted back like that.

And when I race I do move my seat forward and tilt it less all of that helps in seat room adjustment. Also I like the idea of being able to to hang a jacket behind the seats. And with a harness bar there you lose that ability.

And I don't like the back of my seat actually touching the firewall or the harness bar as it causes squeaks.

With any system there's going to be good things and bad things about it. It may turn out a few bad things about my system too, will find out. But it's looking really promising.

Especially like having a six point system and still have seat adjustment. In our car it doesn't seem like you could submarine much but they tell me in a wreck at high speeds it will happen.
 
#13 ·
What is the material that is used in the rear bulkhead between the carbon fiber tube and the rear window. I figure it is some sort of ABS plastic with insulation attached. Hope it isn't carbon fiber.....did you consider using the roll bar as the attachment point for the shoulder belts...seems you could easily bridge it with a removable attachment bar. Also..did you drill into the carbon fiber shelf or were you able to use existing screws. If you are anchoring into that carbon fiber I doubt whether it would be a good idea...especially since I believe it is over the fuel tank. In any case though if this works out you may have found a good answer for those of us looking for the best way to attach a race harness. I like that you will also be able to retain the stock belts for normal DD use. Are you using custom belt lap attachments or are you using a third party solution?

By the way...insulating that box will be easy..there are several products that will keep it nice and cool. In fact some of it is used between the engine and the trunk now. Don't know if you ever stuck a thermometer in the trunk and drove around....it is actually not that hot in there.
 
#14 ·
What is the material that is used in the rear bulkhead between the carbon fiber tube and the rear window. I figure it is some sort of ABS plastic with insulation attached. Hope it isn't carbon fiber.....did you consider using the roll bar as the attachment point for the shoulder belts...seems you could easily bridge it with a removable attachment bar. Also..did you drill into the carbon fiber shelf or were you able to use existing screws. If you are anchoring into that carbon fiber I doubt whether it would be a good idea...especially since I believe it is over the fuel tank. In any case though if this works out you may have found a good answer for those of us looking for the best way to attach a race harness. I like that you will also be able to retain the stock belts for normal DD use. Are you using custom belt lap attachments or are you using a third party solution?



By the way...insulating that box will be easy..there are several products that will keep it nice and cool. In fact some of it is used between the engine and the trunk now. Don't know if you ever stuck a thermometer in the trunk and drove around....it is actually not that hot in there.

Yes it is a plastic fire wall material.

No we are not cutting into the carbon tub at all. I would never do that.

The rollbar is too high to use as an attachment. And I wanted to keep the passenger compartment airtight. I read about someone else who ran the straps through the firewall but they were open slits so it was not airtight.

If you look at the photo I provided you can see we just simply reused some existing strong frame connections that are connected to the carbon tub. This is the strongest way to do it with short strong metal connections. We are using the same connections are what the rollbar anchors onto so I know it's really strong. If you look at the photo you can see it is. Not sure what the fuel tank location has to do with anything we are not connecting to that at all.

My post lists the type of harness belt I'm using. It is not custom-made it's just a model they offer for applications like this when you want six point connection safety but only use four points.

The regular seatbelts will not be affected at all and will work just like they do now. I will simply run the belt behind the seat and click into place so the bell does not chime.

I hope you're right about the storage box not getting too hot other as people got me a bit worried. We are going to soundproof and fireproof it maybe will just use this extra soundproof material to insulate it. Or use specialty insulation material.

What I noticed is one side of my rear window in my spider gets extremely hot versus other side. I think it's the passenger side that gets real hot.

Not sure about how hot the engine compartment gets but that's good to know, thanks.
 
#15 ·
ONe inexpensive insulation material is available from hardware stores such as HD or Lowes. It is used to wrap hot air heating ducts in houses. It is quite effective for what you will use it for. HOt rod builders use it routinely to insulate the floors of cars to keep heat and noise at bay. There is also a similar material designed for exactly that purpose and sold specifically for use in cars but since it is "special" it costs a lot...that is why the smart builders use the duct insulation ;-) Learned this from one of the hot rod shows on TV.

If you are able to use the existing attachment points without drilling or modifying the carbon fiber tube is a huge advantage. If they have sufficient strength the company working on your car should consider making a kit for sale to other 4C owners. I will be watching this thread very closely to see how it progresses. For the time I am just using a CG Lock which is very effective and a cheap way to keep you glued to your seat using the stock 3 point harness. While it is very good....I still am looking for a way to install a restraint for the shoulder harness part of a race harness. By the way the attachment point for the harness looks like a good location as it allows use of the stock seat or later a race seat.
 
#16 · (Edited)
I am having the shop measure and keep track of what they're doing so I can possibly put together a kit either they can sell or maybe give it to a vendor to sell.

Good point to consider where the attachments should be for a racing seat. I'll talk to them about it. Ideally they are in the right position now that way you could use the stock seat and then later switch to a racing seat and not have a problem.

Yes I had the CG lock for the seatbelt to and it works quite well. One thing I learned is that it will wear and fray your seatbelt strap and make it look a little shabby.

But if you just simply slide off the metal piece at the top off which you can do without any tools then the seatbelt slides and works like it did before and there is no wear and it's easier to put on.

Of course you can't use the benefits of the CG lock when you take the part out but for daily driver use you are not wearing the strap of your seatbelt out. And then when you go to the track or when you want to use it you just simply slide the metal piece on.


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#17 ·
I really really like this solution. I haven't bought a harness bar yet for all the reasons you posted. I would not be comfortable loosing any seat adjustment except for maybe the last click with the seat reclined all the way back. I frequently alternate between the last three clicks depending on what shoes I am wearing.
 
#24 ·
Al, I can understand your issue with theseother bars and seat position. Just got the new Sector111 bar installed. It's not a bad seating position, but need some drive time to get it sorted. I probably have about 3 inches between the seat and the CF firewall, before I ram up against the bar.



Pardon the Cr*p cell phone pictures...



 
#25 · (Edited)
Stoped by the tech shop today to see how my custom harness and storage boxes project was coming.

Again another great surprise as they had the storage boxes pretty much complete on the bench.

First thing I said is wow! This three compartment unit will have the middle compartment is accessible through the passenger compartment and the two other boxes will be accessible through the engine compartment. This whole aluminum assembly weighs less than 2 pounds.

The 2 engine compartment boxes are really nice and bigger than I thought. One will hold the air compressor and a little bit more, The other compartment will hold my bag of the Alfa funnels and tools and quite a bit else. Each will have a hinged lid that locks in place. And all compartments are insulated and sound deadened and there will be fire block material placed in between the engine and the boxes. Really impressed with the shops work.

Also took some better photos showing the custom harness framework installed. Also from these photos you can see the nice rollbar that the Alfa has.

There was a Corvette in there that they were building a big roll bar behind the seats because apparently at least that model Corvette does not have a rollbar just some metal. It's nice that the Alfa has the rollbar.

Also I weighed the back engine cover. Soon as I picked it up I knew it was lightweight. It weights only 34 pounds. So not worth it to make it out of fiberglass or something else. Plus it's got so many curves in it it would be hard to duplicate.

Took a photo of that CRX for a forum member who liked them. Is a 1990 they're stripping down to make it into a race car. Apparently that year only weighed only about 2200 pounds.

And some other cool cars down there including an Opel GT, the first car I started racing.

And in my other friends shop a nice Nomad that I included some photos.

Lots of cool cars, lots of rollbars and roll cages being installed and restoration going on here.




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#27 ·
That harness bar design looks like it will definitely work and have a solid attachment point. Main advantage for me is that you don't loose the ability to put the seat all the way back if necessary which is what I would need as I usually have mine one or two clicks from all the way back. That race fab shop you are using looks like they really know their stuff. Will be interested in seeing photos of the drivers side harness setup and especially the attachment points.
 
#28 · (Edited)
Further progress on this harness and storage box project. Stopped by my race tech shop today and saw they had the storage box part almost complete.

Worked out really well looks kind of different seeing that empty space in front of the engine all filled up. But they have assured me that there's no service the engine would need that would need them to remove the storage boxes.

I don't think any of the storage boxes are going to get hot at all and the interior one is just fine for water. I did a good job with heat shielding and insulation.

They fit in there really well and you can access the boxes quite easily but we had to make and aluminum engine cover rod extension. You have to have the engine decklid up quite high to get into the boxes and this seemed easiest way other than have someone else hold it up for you. Lightweight extension rod will be stored in the engine compartment also.

The box that holds the air compressor has a strap underneath it so you can easily lift it out. And the other box holds a bag that holds all the funnels plus quite a bit of extra stuff works really well also. Both these boxes are designed not to be used often and they hinge and lock close with a nice latch. In the photos I didn't latch them all the way flat that's why they're kind of angled up but it does lock securely with everything nice and flat.

The compartment that is accessible from the passenger compartment worked out really nice too. It's designed to hold three water bottles or equivalent. Not sure all what I'm going to put in there but it's such a treat to have that option!!!

It's not quite yet complete yet we still need to put nice solid hinged lid that is held tight with magnets. We were thinking of leaving the brushed aluminum frame the way it is but the center solid lid would be wrinkle finish black.

And that part on top of the box frame that sticks out will be taken off. That's what he had made for a camera mount but I don't want anything sticking out at all. We're going to replace it with a tripod screw that sticks out horizontally so I can attach a camera mount easily that way.

All we need to do now is get the harness belts installed should be about another week this project should be done!



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#29 · (Edited)
Al, what are you going to use to keep stuff from flying out of the storage compartment (2nd photo) when you hit the brakes? I mean you corner at >1.5g so you probably brake at >2g. A small cargo net, hinged door, slide out tray or other idea? It's a really interesting project you have going there. It'll be nice to see your harness bar too when it's finished.
 
#30 ·
Must have skipped this bit in his post:

"It's not quite yet complete yet we still need to put nice solid hinged lid that is held tight with magnets. We were thinking of leaving the brushed aluminum frame the way it is but the center solid lid would be wrinkle finish black."
 
#34 · (Edited)
I have shared this with the shop and they are doing what they can to document and measure all the parts they're making. Apparently the best way to do mass fabrication is to make a jig but that's expensive.

I really think this is going to be a great harness/storage system and I do want to share it with everyone.

I think the shop has some concerns about sending out just parts because the parts being so custom-made and also of liability and safety factors etc. And it's not just a bolt in place system and there's holes to be drilled in the firewall, harness attachments at existing seatbelt locations and things like that.

And even if this was a kit of parts sold you'd still have to pay someone to do quite a bit of work to install it. I could not easily install these parts myself but in reading many of your posts I'm sure many of you are very capable of this kind of installation work.

They said they would rather have the car shipped to them and they do the install on each car. But no decision has been made. The whole project should be done in a couple weeks and I will know exactly then.

The shop is very reasonably priced and they're also doing other work on my car. Mods I haven't talked about yet, things I am keeping close to the chest for now.

So for the US and maybe Canadian forum members it might just be cheaper and a good thing to send the car up here to Spokane WA have a bunch great of things done that no one else is doing.

But again I'll know more shortly.
 
#36 · (Edited)
"They said they would rather have the car shipped to them and they do the install on each car."


Transcontinental shipping of the car IS NOT going to be an option ! If they cannot standardize it, it is a custom piece of fabrication and not a financially feasable option........for me anyhow.
 
#37 ·
"They said they would rather have the car shipped to them and they do the install on each car."


Transcontinental shipping of the car IS NOT going to be an option ! If they cannot standardize it, it is a custom piece of fabrication and not a financially feasable option.


Well sorry but you really need to think about this as it's kind of a complicated mod, you know with it being a safety issue and such. And as I said no decision has been made and there might be a parts kit available, please be patient.

Geez I know I'm not in a real populated area but "transcontinental" that's a stretch. Now I feel like I'm living at end of the civilized world.

And "IS NOT" ?! Yikes, Bringing you information that you consider is bad news is no fun! And my opinion is that in posts it's always nice to add some perspective or say a compliment rather than just bluntly ask for answers to your questions. And I have been kind enough to share photos of all I've been doing for anyone who wants to try to do it themselves as I know not everyone will be able to do this at our local shop with many members of being from all over the world.

FYI i've shipped cars insured before it's not that big a deal. From California to Washington state it's about $800 or less each way.
New York to Washington state about $1200 each way.

And financially feasible, well that's an individual call as safety issues can be expensive, just a real good safety helmet is about $500. Tracking any car can be expensive.

Nobody wants to think about wrecking but it happens and it doesn't even have to be your fault. But a good harness system can be a real lifesaver and also improve your driving.

In doing this project it was nice to see that beefy rollbar the 4C has as stock. Not all cars have that and they have to pay a lot of money to have one added and it also takes up the backseat.
 
#38 ·
I apologize for the tone of my response and as well noted that "no decision has been reached"
The fabrication you posted photos of look like is is a very sound design, and obviously am interested. As I am a very able do it yourselfer and has restored, maintained, and raced a number of far from wimpy cars. I value Safety First and trust and have trusted my ability in installation of numerous fabrications and modifications that have stood the test of time.

Although you feel that shipping is a minor financial concern ( from NY to Washington State IS transcontinental!), it needs to be incorporated in the total costs of the project, and I feel that I am fully capable of this "kind of complicated" mod.

I do not feel the additional costs of shipping to be necessicary.......although many would not be capable of undertaking this project themselves. Sorry again Al
 
#39 ·
No problem at all, ain't nothing but a thing.

It's interesting to note how several mods can be done without buying any vendor parts just by using your local tech and race shops or by forum members themselves if they're welders and fabricators.

For example my custom center exit exhaust is awesome and did not cost anything more than a vendor kit. I just had to find the right hot rod shop that makes lots of custom exhausts. They knew exactly what to do and built an amazing free flow exhaust that I don't think could be beat.

Sounds like this harness system you might be able to tackle yourself or with a welder. It's more than I can do myself.

I'll let you and everyone know how it goes ends up at the end with some nice photos and info.
 
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