I am thinking about getting the schroth 4-points harnesses for my car. I will be doing approximately 4 schools a year. Do you think ithe harness is worth it? Does it make driving the car on the track that much better than the stock belt? Or should I spend my $$$ on something else?

I put Schroth 4-point harnesses in my 325is and I have
to say that is was worth every penny. I autocross my
car regularly and also did a BMW Driver School. I was
tired of having to wedge myself into the seat using my
left leg against the door to stay put. The harness
eliminates all that and lets me concentrate on driving.

For the track, being able to correctly downshift is
important, and doing it while full braking and trying to
remain planted in the seat can be too much to handle
(at least for me).

I would get just the driver's side to cut down on cost.
Your instructor might feel differently thought ;) .

Krit, the belts make a huge difference, especially if your going to Autocross with us this year. If you have a coupe the 4 points are the way to go..
See my friends at HMS..they have installed hundreds of sets in BMW's

http://www.hms-motorsport.com/

Hope this helped...

Steve

Get them. After I ran a panoz school at Road Atlanta and wearing a 5 point harness for a 5 days on the track, going back to a school in my car I felt like I was going to fly out of my seat around the track. You can drive allot better when you are firmly strapped in and not moving.

Once you start wearing a 4 point harness, it'll feel weird when you're in another car and don't have it on! It does make a huge difference since you don't have to concentrate on keeping yourself in your seat--you can concentrate on your driving. However, after I got the harness, i HAD to get a racing bucket, then I HAD to get a tc kline rollbar...it never ends...

Point of interest:

I personally would NEVER wear 4, 5, or 6 point harnesses without a rollbar on the track. Auto-x sure. Track NO.

Let's consider for a second the possibility of rolling your car. Have you ever seen a BMW roll? Now BMW's are fairly safe cars, but they are not meant to be rolled at 80+ mph. I have seen cars where the roof was literally touching the tops of the seats after a roll at the track.

Now, if you are locked in a straight up position thanks to your nifty four points, what is the roof going to hit? Your head! I don't think your neck can absorb the impact of a 3200# car hitting the ground.

On the other hand, 3 points at least allow the possibility of your body sliding down and to the side in order to prevent your head from becoming a rollbar.

Use 4-points at your own risk, on the street and at the track. Just leave the stock three points on the passenger side in case I'm ever instructing for you! :D

BMWRacerITS has a good point...that's why i got the rollbar...

A rollbar can be done very tastefully as well. I had custom bar done by a guy here in town who also built the cage in my race car. It was designed with a bolt in cross brace to attach my harnesses to and then powdercoated to match the grey interior.

The only "drawback" (sometimes this is a good thing) is not being able to have rear passengers...the physics of someone's head hitting a steel bar in a wreck are not appealing. I suppose I could allow rear seat passengers and make them wear helmets. :D

Here are a couple pics:

http://albums.photopoint.com/j/View?u=237665&a=11187483&p=39124844

I had an interior guy modify the rear side bolsters (see the next picture below) in order to complete the "factory" look. I have people, BMW enthusiasts and non-enthusiasts alike, ask me all the time if my rollbar was installed as some sort of factory option.

http://albums.photopoint.com/j/View?u=237665&a=11187483&p=39124851

I've got a roll bar also, and there is serious down side that hasn't been mentioned. You think its hard to bang a chick in the back seat in a regular BMW coupe??? Well its impossible with a roll bar, someone always bangs their head on it. Of if your one of those classy types who wouldn't do a thing like that, then its a great safety feature. Just make sure the dam thing is properly attacted or else it will come loose in an accident.

The Schroth Harness is great on the track and autox. They hold you in firm and create a much more secure driving position. Remember the BMWCCA has an equal restraint rule so if you plan on CCA schools you'll need two belts. The install isn't to bad with some excellent install instructions on the web. Watch the pyrotechnic seat tensioning device, its a beast. I gave up on it and took the battery out and didn't disconnect the tensioner.

FYI...the pyrotechnic tensioning device isn't electrical..so pulling the battery won't disable it...I had instructions on how to disable it on my webpage, but nbci sucks and it's been down :( oh well...

BMWRacerITS,
That looks like a very nicely installed cage. What does something of that caliber cost. It seems as if they cut the rear side seat backs to accomodate the rear arms of the cage.
What is the process involved in installing a cage like that?

Regards,

Greg:)

The rollbar in my car (I am hesitant to call anything a cage unless it also protects the A pillars that surround the windshield) cost about $750 in parts and labor from a local guy who custom built it for me.

I had to pay an interior guy about $75 to modify my rear seat bolsters. The good news is, this rollbar is bolt-in, and now that I have a dedicated race car, I may end up selling it to someone else with a grey interior coupe. It would be pretty easy just to swap out the rear seat bolsters between the two cars.