Aug. 11, 2025
Security & Protection
The #1 rule of harnesses is: "all the way tight, all the time". This applies to all activity - even when using a harness on the street. A loose harness will do nothing to protect you.
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If that is rule #1, then #2 must be to understand how a harness functions properly and how to install one the right way. Installing a harness the wrong way can cause injury instead of prevent it. Schroth has some very innovative and in-depth installation setups but if you don't know what you're doing, you could be putting others at risk (as well as yourself).
Some other things to note:
Most clubs and track days have an equal restraint rule. The same level of safety must be used for the passenger as for the driver. Yes it adds additional cost but your passenger's safety is your responsibility. There's also respect to consider - with several instructors on staff, we can tell you that seeing minimal consideration for our safety sends the wrong message about how you drive!
We hope you're using a HANS or similar FHR (Frontal Head Restraint) safety device. These currently offer the highest protections against injury. Your safety harness must be compatible with the head restraint! This usually means 2" shoulder straps instead of the traditional 3" size. The 3" straps do not fit correctly over most FHR yokes and are usually uncomfortable. A 2" Schroth harness can also be used without a head restraint which makes them more versatile - and no less safe! - than the old 3" designs. You can still use a 3" shoulder belt if you don't plan on using HANS/FHR.
All Schroth Competition harnesses meet FIA standards, which were revised in . Schroth has new harness designs that meet the FIA - regulations and these are marked accordingly on our website. There may still be previous designs on our site which are still valid for five years from the date of manufacture and still offer excellent levels of protection. But if your sanctioning body requires the new standard make sure you shop accordingly.
Harnesses must rest squarely over the top of the seat back and onto your shoulders. According to Schroth the shoulder belts must ride over your collar bone as close to the neck as possible. If a seatback has a slope at shoulder height, you must not install harnesses. The angle of the shoulder section will allow the harness to slip off each shoulder or be angled incorrectly on your chest (especially with HANS). Sternum straps across your chest are not recommended. The best example we have for you is the stock seats in the F8X M3/M4. These seats have a one-piece headrest and aggressive bolstering that forces the harness around the driver instead of over him/her. The only assured solution to this is to remove the stock seats and install racing seats. BMW changed the F82 seats to traditional racing shells for the M4 GTS and MotoGP Safety Car.
BMW F8X M3/M4 Seats:
Roll Bars offer huge protection in a roll-over accident. And have the added benefit of another harness installation point and even as a harness guide. But not all combinations of roll-bar, harness, and seat are acceptable or safe. If you are using a roll-bar, the safest setup is to have a race seat and a 4 or 6-point harness. If you do not have a roll-bar, a 4-point ASM harness is acceptable but a 4/6-point non-ASM Competition harness is not. Read on for more detail.
The largest issue with a roll-bar is the position and behavior of your body in a roll-over. Stock reclining seats are designed to fold backwards and stock 3-point belts allow your body to rotate and move during an incident. Schroth Street and ASM harnesses will as well. This minimizes your contact with the roof and other structure. However, Race/Competition harnesses do not have ASM and are designed to keep your body upright in the seat, which can be extremely harmful or fatal in a roll-over without a roll-bar. Competition harnesses must only be used with a roll-bar or roll-cage.
Race seats without a roll-bar are common and can be used at any time and with a 4 or 6-point harness. However, a stock 3-point seatbelt must not be used with a race seat because the lap belt runs over the top of the side bolsters instead of along your pelvis. If you plan to use race seats on a street car you MUST install at least a 4-point harness.
There is disagreement if a reclining seat should be used with a roll-bar. A reclining seat is designed to collapse in an accident which will cause your body to contact the roll-bar. Also, in a rear impact the reclining seat will fold forward and may pin you under the roll-bar. Some organizations and safety experts approve this setup but some do not. Consult with your club if you plan on keeping a street/reclining seat with a roll-bar. The roll-bar and race seat combination is going to offer the best protection anyway so you should plan to only use one with the other.
We urge you to take 11 minutes out of your day and watch this video. It's not a sales pitch. This is a review of the safety gear on our (former) E36 325is ChampCar endurance racer. Our driver Phil found himself rolling 6.5 times at VIR. Here he, and BimmerWorld owner James, go over the car after the crash and discuss the status of safety equipment like seats and harnesses.
So which harness should you use in your BMW? Harness usage can be narrowed down to two categories: Track/Racing or Street/School.
Track/Race: a former street car that has been heavily modified for only track use. The interior has been stripped, racing seats are used with a roll-cage or roll-bar, and other safety gear is present (window and side nets, fire system, etc). These installations are permanent.
Street/School: a street car with mild-moderate modifications, factory seats, no roll-cage or roll-bar, and will be driven mostly on the street but with occasional track events. Harness installations are usually temporary and the mounting gear may be hidden.
Schroth ASM stands for "Anti Sub-Marining" - a feature built into street harnesses that prevents the occupant from sliding under the lap belt in a crash (submarining). In a race car this is achieved by using a sub-strap (crotch belt) that mounts to the floor and is routed through the racing seat to the buckle. That's not possible or safe to do on a factory street seat. Schroth's solution is ingeniously simple and has proven effective in testing and the real world: ASM is an extra few inches of belt that is folded along the inside shoulder belt and hidden under a plastic cover. In a frontal accident the extra belt length is released and allows one side of your body to fall further forward than the other side. This causes your torso to twist, which prevents you from sliding under the lap belt. The ASM is on the right shoulder for a driver and the left shoulder for a passenger (in a LHD vehicle). This also has the benefit of forcing each occupant away from each other. ASM is a standard feature in all Rallye 3/4 and Quick Fit harnesses, as well as on the special Profi II ASM belt. The system is redundant in a Competition harness since those are designed with a sub-strap.
All Schroth Tuning belts (Rallye, Quick Fit) will include mounting hardware to take the guesswork out of the installation. Competition belts have a lot more mounting options - snap-in, bolt-in, or wrap-around.
Snap-In: easiest for fast installation and removal. The snap-in bracket requires an eye-bolt at the anchor point or through the floor or panel with a reinforcing backing plate. The snap-in is the preferred install method because it allows the belt to move freely at almost any angle. It will accept a 2" or 3" belt.
Bolt-In: a more permanent install with a high-grade hex bolt used to an existing anchor point or through the floor or panel with a reinforcing backing plate. Bolt-in brackets typically require more planning to route the belt in the correct orientation. The best install will allow the bracket to pivot on the installation bolt so the belt can move freely. It will accept a 2" or 3" belt.
Wrap-Around: the ends of the belt are wrapped around a harness bar, roll bar, or roll cage tubing. The proper angles from the driver to the harness bar must be followed (from 0° to 20° downward angle from the driver's shoulders). That makes the wrap-around difficult for many applications where the harness bar may be too high or too low (a snap-in install to the rear seat area works better). Wrapping the belt must be done in the proper way as well and Schroth has many detailed diagrams for it.
Most Competition belts come with a combination of the above. Usually it's a snap-in lap belt and a snap-in sub-strap with wrap-around shoulder belts. If you plan to use eye-bolts for the shoulder straps you must order the snap-in brackets separately (unless the belt comes with them).
If you are not mounting to an existing seatbelt anchor position (the factory 3-point belt locations) you must use a reinforcing backing plate. In a typical installation the eye-bolt would mount through the floor with the backing plate on the underside of the floor (pointing to the ground). Never use a washer as the reinforcing plate. Seal around the backing plate with epoxy or sealant to keep moisture and fumes out.
The world of racing harnesses is a complicated one: Harness prices begin below $100 then climb to and over $700. There are multiple ratings, belt widths, latch mechanisms, attachment methods, and on and on. And that’s all within one brand! Some of these options have simple choices, others are a bit more dependent on your application and personal preferences.
This post is designed as a simple guide to help you navigate the incredibly complicated field of race harnesses to get you in a safe, comfortable harness without blowing your season’s budget.
Question 1: Do I NEED a harness?
This post (And this entire site) Is about Track Days and Racing. If you are participating in a track day (HPDE), in a street car… you do not need a Harness. However, if you want one (whether for added safety or the extra stability they provide when driving) Know that harnesses are part of an entire system, you cannot simply add harnesses to a street car’s factory seat. In short: You also need a Race Seat, Roll Bar with Harness Bar, and HANS device. If that’s too much, carry on with your factory 3-point belts.
If you are participating in any form of Wheel-To-Wheel racing and some forms of Time Trial, a harness is among the multitude of required safety items.
All SFI and FIA rated auto racing harnesses go through a strenuous certification process to ensure that they will perform in scenarios that greatly exceed any job they may need to perform in the real world. Most of the differences with harnesses basically fall into two categories: Application differences, and Comfort/Preference differences. Since race harness designs are a generic solution for countless applications (different cars, seats, positions, drivers, etc) there are several different styles to better meet each application. Beyond that, there are options for comfort/preference that don’t affect safety but typically affect things like ease of adjustment and even color. All racing harnesses are designed to meet safety safety minimums and should offer more than adequate protection in any event, whether they cost $100 or $800. Some people love to argue that “minimum” is a dirty word in motorsports and you should always buy the most expensive gear. They perceive that premium stuff is designed to exceed the minimum more than a budget brand (Which isn’t necessarily true), even if it was, the minimum is chosen carefully to exceed what a harness may be asked to do in the most extreme situations.
Just make sure you are getting genuine products from reputable sellers.
SFI vs FIA – Does it Matter?
To get on track with a harness, all organizations require that the harness carries either a SFI or FIA certification. Harnesses are another piece of safety gear that carries an expiration date. Current harnesses are required basically anywhere that a car will be driven in competition. Most HPDE clubs and tracks do not yet require “in-date” harnesses at general track days, allowing expired belts as long as they do not show any signs of wear. This has traditionally been a fantastic way for HPDE drivers to save a lot of money by purchasing “retired” racing belts from racers for pennies on the dollar (My first harness was free, and the second cost me a 6pack of Miller High Life). However, more clubs and tracks are beginning to require currently dated belts, even for HPDE, so this avenue is drying up quickly.
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While there may be material differences in construction and standards between the two ratings, for the standard consumer, the most notable functional difference between SFI and FIA rated belts is their lifetime. SFI belts are rated for TWO years from the date of manufacture, whereas the FIA ratings are good for FIVE years. FIA belts have 2.5x the usable lifetime as SFI. FIA belts are typically a few dollars pricier than similar SFI counterparts, but they do not cost 2.5 times as much.
This is an easy recommendation for me to make: If you are participating in any form of track driving or road racing, Buying FIA rated belts is clearly the best option. The longer life is well worth the extra few dollars you’ll pay upfront.
If it is such a simple argument, WHY are there still so many SFI rated belts around?
SFI ratings are required in most other auto racing in the US (Think Circle Track and Drag Racing) as those orgs don’t recognize the European FIA ratings. In road racing, we’re lucky enough to be able to use the FIA and their 5 year ratings.
What about Rewebbing?
“Rewebbing” has been a popular way to “rejuvenate” old belts. The process essentially means that you send your belts back to the manufacturer, they then reuse your buckles and hardware and install them on fresh belts. The new belts will carry fresh tags and a new expiration date. Rewebbing is not simply inspecting the belts and replacing the tag.
However, Rewebbing is only an option for SFI rated harnesses (as FIA does not allow the practice). Rewebbing is not extraordinarily cost effective for manufacturers. With most budget harnesses, the work (And shipping on both ends) would make the service costlier than simply buying new belts. Few manufacturers still provide this service so don’t count on rewebbing to get better value from SFI belts.
“But SCCA allows belts from 5 years of manufacture, so SFI get 5 years also” -Not Anymore.
Sorry, this is old news, and no longer relevant. SCCA DOES allow belts to be used for 5 years from date of manufacture. However, SFI was not happy about this, so in they began printing 2 year “expiration” dates on harnesses rather than “born on” dates. This expiration date supersedes the SCCA “5 year” rule, so you’re back to making SFI happy by purchasing belts every two years. (GCR 9.3.18.E.1: “SFI labels, with expiration dates, expire on December 31st of the labeled expiration date“)
FIA does not allow “latch-link” belts, so any harness with Latch-Link will not carry the FIA certification. You can rule them out.
The Amount of belts: 5-point has a single sub (bottom) belt, 6-point has two. FIA does not allow 5pt (as of ) so any 5pt harness will not carry the FIA certification. You can rule them out.
One of my beliefs is that a driver wearing a harness must wear a HANS device on track. While all racing requires HANS devices, they remain optional at most HPDE’s for drivers with Harnesses. Don’t want or can’t afford a HANS for HPDE? Then you may continue with factory 3-point belts, as an unrestrained head with harnesses can cause big issues.
The reason I say this: 2 inch shoulder belts are designed to fit much better with HANS devices. I much prefer 2-inch shoulder belts for that reason. Some shoulder belts are now 2″ thick the whole way, others begin with 3″ on the chest and adjusters, then shrink down to 2″ for the shoulders. As long as the shoulders are 2″ I’m okay with it.
Two Inch lap belts are another “newer” design option. Craig from GForce Racing Gear explained that 3” wide belts had been the standard for so long that when 2” were released, they initially were very unpopular. Not because they were any less safe (they still exceed the rating, and actually fit better and can be safer), but because people just weren’t comfortable with the change. As racers have become more familiar with the idea, their popularity has increased. I personally find them more comfortable and easy to manage, 2-inch lap belts for me.
Lap belt adjusters are the next thing I look for. A 1-driver car typically won’t have much adjusting happening with the lap belts, but cars driven by multiple drivers (especially in endurance racing scenarios) likely see constant adjustment. Even as a lone driver, the ability to adjust lap belts at-will is nice. Standard lap belts are typically very tough to adjust, ESPECIALLY in a very small car like a Miata. The tight spaces mean you’re usually stuck up against the seat or in an otherwise precarious spot that makes working the adjusting mechanisms tough. The #1 feature of premium harnesses that catches my attention are “enduro” style lap belt adjusters. These adjusters are part of the link that goes directly into the camlock, meaning you will pull outwards to tighten, but since the adjuster is directly in the center of the harness, you have no space issues. This is a significant improvement over an adjuster further down the harness that can get caught up against the seat.
If you look around the Spec Miata paddock, the vast majority of cars (especially the big dollar efforts) have either the Schroth Enduro or Safecraft harnesses. I got talked into buying the Safecraft harness when I started racing. While very expensive, I love the comfort and convenience it provides… but I have been dreading it’s expiration (Coming at the end of the season). Lucky for me, over the past 5 years, there seems to have been a few budget brands putting out harnesses with all the features.
There are 3 primary ways to install a harness: Wrap, Bolt-In and Clip-In.
These are a bit of a preference call based on your own application. In nearly all applications, your shoulder belts will attach to your harness bar by wrapping. The Lap and Sub belts are installed either via “clip-in” or “bolt in”. Clip-in is preferred as the installed belt is still able to move to an optimal angle vs a bolt-in which tightens and now operates at a fixed angle. Bolt-in ends are much easier to use in tight situations and are still popular in many applications for sub belts. The lap and sub belt mounting points are usually installed by wrapping over these ends, so you can switch between Clip or Bolt-in as-needed.
There you have it, My guide: Which is essentially my own personal criteria for shopping for a harness. Essentially, I created a Wishlist and started shopping for a harness that can give me the features/options I wanted at a price I could stomach. Here’ what I was looking for:
G-Force racing gear’s 3+2 endurance harness has stepped in to provide premium harness features at a reasonable price, and I have already recommended it to many. Priced at or near $300, they’re still one of the cheaper FIA harnesses you can buy. Racequip () also has an option that seems to have the same features as well. Compared to the competition at Schroth and Safecraft over $600: You’re getting the same features for LESS than half the price.
I just ordered a fresh harness for the season from OG Racing. They have a solid selection of harnesses on their site (and great service to help you choose) but for me, the decision was a no-brainer.
Remember: While injuries are rare, Motorsports is an inherently risky activity. Proceed at your own risk. Read installation and care instructions carefully, and definitely don’t take my advice here over the advice of Harness Producers or other qualified professionals.
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