Are there any harness bars out there besides the Brey Kraus one? I have seen a rear strut bar which mounts to the rear seat back latch points. Does anyone know if this will be strong enough to hold a pair of shoulder straps? This would be for autocross only.

 

Get A Schroth 4-point harness. They're designed to click into the back seat seatbelt with very litle modification. No bar needed.

 

Hardbar is making them for the MINI now... I've seen a couple now, and they're gorgeous...

http://www.hardbar.net/

 

Very bad idea, the downward angle of that will cause severe spinal compression in a forward hit to the tune of over 1000 pounds. The harnesses should be very close to shoulder height like the stock attachments.

 

I don't understand. In a forward hit (or the dreaded "1 oclock" that killed Dale Earnhart) The vector of the body is forward into the belt. Where the belt goes when it's over and behind the seat should make no difference that I can see. Besides that they're DOT approved.

The big question is what are they going to be used for? For autocrossing they're more than adequate. For road racing you should really have a full cage and at least a five-point belt.

 

Are harness bars even legal in stock? Don't they stiffen up the chassis?

 

Harness bars are specifically allowed, but they can't serve any other purpose. And thats the rub, how can you have a strong harness bar that doesn't stiffen the chassis. The old rule said the bar had to be telescoping, thereby preventing it from stiffening.

 

You are correct unless the driver is tall enough that his/her shoulders protrude above the seatback.