Biggest safety problem with the 5 point is what happens when you land shiny
side down; lots of the racing orgs. now require a roll bar if you have 5
points as lots of folks were ending up with crushed spines from rollovers
(roof collapses).
Other thing to watch is the shoulder strap mounting points; they should be
in line with your shoulders when seated, otherwise again spinal compaction
results in an impact. What ever you do DON'T install a 5 point and bolt the
shoulder straps to the floor, or to the lap belt mounting locations of the
rear seats (for the cc folks). Either of these locations will give you a
dandy force multiplier effect, and crush your spine in an impact (or at
least break some bones).
Agree there is nothing like the snug fit feeling :-)
Craig
-----Original Message-----
From: James Harmon [mailto:jdharmon@earthlink.net]
Sent: Sunday, March 12, 2000 10:38 PM
To: Dakota Mailing List
Subject: DML: Safety Issue - new Belts
Just for those of you that like to run around on the street and blast
away from stop lights at WOT to show off you Dak's prowess.
I just installed the new 5 point safety harness system in the DACUDA.
It feels like you got glued to the seats at all times. Considering the
amount of driving I do on the street, they are no big deal, but when out
and about "playing" they definitely are a safety plus. The normal belts
will hold you back, but seems some crash tests showed the Dakota drivers
submarining and also hitting the door.
Fairly inexpensive modification ($200) for a set of two harnesses from
Deist Safety in Glendale, CA. yes, it does improve the safety of
driving your Dak, especially when showing off. The intimidation factor
is also there. How would you feel if that hot rod next to you had a
full on five point harness system to hold the driver and passenger in
the seats? maybe the engine they got can match that level of safety
gear??
For those that want to see the harnesses on the truck, be at the
SpeedZone event next Saturday. DACUDA will be on display.
Side note - Got the ported heads in Friday. Painted and cleaned them up
yesterday. Should do an install ina couple weeks. Definitely worth the
$$. Tony at Quick D did the porting work. I highly recommend it. That
and the fuel rails (pretty-pretty) plus the new 3.92 diff ring and
pinion gears will make this build up complete for now. When the NX
system comes in and gets installed, well that is another story!!! (HEE
HEE HEE HEE!!)
TTYL and Take Care
Jim Harmon
DTOA
DACUDA
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