-----Original Message-----
From: Joshua Hadler <jhadler@rmi.net>
>Rocky Entriken wrote:
>>
>> What I will never understand is why anyone would buy the Schroth system
>> described above for $219 -- which has a skinnier lap belt and an
>> illegal-for-anything-but-Solo-II Y-type shoulder strap -- when you can
get a
>> legal-for-anything complete system from Simpson for $89.95?
>
>Probably because they:
>
>A] look real cool.
>B] are easier to get into and out of than a conventional harness.
>C] are comfortable enough that you can use them in a daily driver.
>
> I fully agree with you though, that for competition only purposes, they
>are a waste of money. But if you're going to use them in a daily driver,
>they start to make a little more sense.
>
(other good points snipped)
I dunno, never thought it was that important to spend spend 3 times the $$$
just to look cool. :-)
But actually, Josh does raise a good point with B] and C] in that the stock
belts in most cars today are worthless junk. I think the only reason they
are legal for Solo II is the incredible problems it would create, and the
major effect it would have on attracting new drivers, if they were not. But
the fact is, they are total crap flopping loosely around you that mostly
serve no function whatsoever until AFTER the accident begins to happen. We
know the value of a harness sytem that holds you in place so you can
concentrate on driving the car (instead of concentrating on holding yourself
in place) so you can drive around the accident and avoid it entirely. Been
there, done that. Glad I had the belt on.
Last time I bought a new car (10 years ago) the one item that decided us on
buying a Ford -- a Mercury, actually -- was that it was the only marque sold
here that came with a lap belt that locked down positively. All the GM and
Chrysler products, as well as all the locally-sold imports (Salina is a
small town) had belts that sat loose until some impact made the latching
mechanism lock up. With all the other features different cars had, seatbelts
were our deciding factor.
And how stupid is it that the dealerships are forbidden by law to change
out the OEM belt for something that works better?
Back to Josh's points, a clunky full-race harness is probably overkill in a
daily driver that will never see a race track, and the Schroth may well be a
best alternative.
--Rocky
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