seat belts

Posts: 1 · Joined: 02 Sep 2008 Posts: 1 Pictures: 0

ok... I just got into the buggy business... my baja motorsports dune 150 seems to be a basically excellent starter buggy but I have already had 2 of 4 seat belts break! so does any one know where I can find good quality (i.e. safe) seat belts at a reasonable price?

Posts: 4286

I got mine from summit racing, 3 inch belts with a cam lock system. works great

Posts: 238

Hey BigE, how long have you had those camlock belts and have you had any problems? I'm also looking for a pair before spring, but I read on an off-road site that those cams tend to stick or seize when they get grit or dirt in them. And I just can't find a way to stay out of the dirt.. Confused

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about 6 months. benn thru mud and everything else. just keep um clean.

Posts: 1893

The Joyner 250/650 seat belts work well. They run about $80 from Glade Mason @ Edge Powersports. My Yerf is quite happy wearing a pair.

Posts: 242

I replaced the stocks on my Dune with just a normal 3" 4 point off road harness and they work great.

Also just something to think about, those seats dont help. They are flat and slick, so you slide around alot more and put additional strain on the belts. Not saying you have to buy a new set. There are tons of ways around it, but take in to consideration with your current issue.

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Guys, I am a brand new buggy owner. Just getting familiar with the mods that can get our 150 to have better performance. One thing I do know quite well is seat belts from auto racing experience. I noticed a couple things about the stock seat belt set up that should be changed and thought that with my first post I could offer some thoughts. I am sure all of my other upcoming posts will be questions for help as I am a newbie.

First off, the cam lock system is awesome. You will love it. I have not used it in muddy situations but with a quality cam lock I can't imagine that it would get stuck if you maintained it well. I actually put the same camlock Impact Racing 5 point belts that I have in my race car in the buggy. Definitely overkill but what the hell.

In amateur auto racing, I often see people spend money on great belts but then the installation is flawed and they are not really improving the safety of the car at all. With the buggy, the main things I noticed in the stock set up should be corrected if you do a seat belt mod so you don't do an upgrade but still not have a safe set up.

First, the attachment point on my buggy for the shoulder straps was about 6" or 8" below the holes in the seat for the belts to come through. This is not good or safe. You do not want the belt to come up, then through the seat, and then down again. In an impact downward pressure is put on the seat and can cause various issues. Although buggy speeds are not very high issues such as seat failure could still happen. The shoulder strap should be attached as close to the level of the seat hole as possible. I moved the attachment point up to the roll bar at shoulder level.

Second, I see that some people have done upgrades to better 4 point belts. Good idea but actually 4 point belt systems have major flaws. I would not recommend 4 point belts especially if anyone has their kids in the buggy. What happens is that the belt rides up and at impact the belt will likely be too high and can cause serious injuries to the rib cage and internal organs. I know this is not a race car but even at 30 MPH some definte rib damage can be done. When the shoulder belts are pulled tight, the lap belt will actually ride up above the waist immediately. This is not what you want. A 5 point belt with a sub belt solves this very easily. I cut a slit in the seat, threaded the sub belt through, and attached it to the frame below the seat. This sub belt comes up between the legs and keeps the lap belt where it is supposed to be. The set up is awesome and much safer than a 4 point system.

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welcome to buggynews richsd, thats some good info.

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Welcome to Buggynews.

I got my seat belts from Wesco. Great belts, about $90 for both.

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richsd,

That's a great writeup about the belts and the connection points. Is there any way that you can post some pictures with examples (good and bad)?