Bucket seats with OEM seatbelt & pretensioner (R26/225)

I couldn't find anything specific on how to do this. I spoke to GSM performance about it and they were hopeless. They couldn't even test a solution I suggested because "they didn't have the stock".

So I took a chance and ordered what I thought might work and got lucky. This is guaranteed to work with any seat that fits the Sparco sidemounts (I have a Sparco Circuit QRF).

What you need:

A KTR mk2 subframe http://www.k-tecracing.com/show_product.asp?id=4019
A Sparco runner set (this is optional) https://bit.ly/2srjrK2
A Sparco sidemounts https://www.demon-tweeks.com/uk/sparco-steel-side-mounts-s-s004902/
An Endurance Motorsport seat belt bracket https://bit.ly/2qUNJEF
A seat that fits the Sparco sidemounts
A 7/16ths UNF bolt for the pretensioner (1 inch long)

The runner set makes it a lot easier to fit everything and also to get in and out of the car. It adds almost no weight, but it's not FIA approved.

Why keep the seatbelt?

If it's a track-only car and you have a roll cage then you don't need it. But

1. A harness is an absolute pest when driving on the road. You can't lean forward to see stuff
2. The OEM seatbelt and pretensioner are MOT compliant. Whether a harness passes seems to depend on the particular tester's interpretation of the rules for competition modified cars
3. If you don't have a rollcage the seatbelt may be safer if you turn the car over. It allows more movement in the even the roof collapses

 

A quick addendum to this - I've discovered that without the runners the seatbelt bracket doesn't fit. The runners give the bracket a bit more height which lifts it clear of the centre tunnel.

 

Ktec do a subframe for the mk3 and the seatbelt bracket will fit with the runners and sparco sidemounts. Whether it will physically fit in the car with the OEM pretensioner attached I don't know. I have some mk3 owning friends with bucket seats, I'll have a good look next time we're on track together.

 

You might find the lights do not come on. Contrary to popular belief there is no weight sensor in the R26 so if you leave the pretensioner in place you don't have to do anything. I've no idea about the mk3.

 

When you say 'direct fitment' do you mean they fit onto the existing subframe? If so then can't you can just leave the pretensioner where it is?

 

I'd love to see a picture of that setup.

I actually find the Sparco Circuit more comfortable than the Recaros which hurt my back. Getting in and out is tricker but otherwise I love them.

+1 on GSM being awful. You can't place an order without supplying a phone number and then they text you night and day continuously for two weeks no matter how many times you tell them to stop.

 

Just how the pretensioner (or whatever you now plug the seatbelt into) is fixed to the subframe (or whatever it's fixed to).

 

The seat belt clicks into something. That something will be mounted on the left of the seat somehow - not necessarily attached to the seat or subframe, but attached somehow. That's what I'm curious to see.

The OEM subframe has a nut welded to the inside of a hole in the subframe side and a bolt through that hole holds the pretensioner and seatbelt socket in place. Once you replace the OEM subframe to fit bucket seats you lose that mounting point. This thread is about find a solution to that. My solution was the brackets that fit between the subframe and the mounting plates. I dare say AW has a better solution. I'd be interested to know what it is.

 

The one plus point about GSM is that you can go in and try 30+ different seats to see what you like. I did exactly that and the seat I chose as a result is a great fit for me.

 

Ah. That actually sounds like quite a good idea, you save some weight (and money).

Not sure how to keep the seatbelt tho.