Beck Seatbelt Options

I put a simple 2-inch 2-point lap belt on my Spyder. The big "race" looking ones are cool but not as comfortable for most people. In my car's case, not likely much safer with no side impact protection or roll cage.

I say go skinny 2 or three point unless you're going racing, in which case go for a Simpson or Crow harness as sanctioning organizations require.

Thanks.
Definitely not racing. Just cruising.

I converted my Beck Speedster to lap belt because the originals were mounted so low that they were uncomfortable on a long drive and I was concerned that they could cause injury in an accident.  The lap belts were MUCH more comfortable.  Of course I was injured in an accident later because I only had lap belt, which allowed me to smack the steering wheel with my face.  The only way to prevent it is to add a roll bar and go with 4-point belts like I am in the Coupe.  Otherwise ya pays yer money and ya takes yer chances.

You can pick up a secure spot for the three point seat belt shoulder strap just behind the seat on outside wall.

@WOLFGANG posted:

You can pick up a secure spot for the three point seat belt shoulder strap just behind the seat on outside wall.

Secured to what, fiberglass?  Is there any steel in there?

I was thinking that, too, Rick.  Even if there is a steel plate of some sort behind the fiberglass, I’m not sure I would trust it to hold me upright in a head on crash.  

Installing a roll bar with the shoulder belt attach point up on the side of the bar is the way to go for a three-point hitch.  It also gives you the flexibility to go to a 4 or 5 point set-up, too, which is great for racing but a PITA for just cruising.

There is on a typical sub-frame like used on early IM/CMC/FF/VS.  A square steel bar that goes up vertically behind the door as seen in photo.  I added a piece of angle iron to raise that point up higher - I then added a flat steel bar to the back of the frame for support from butt sag.  I don't know what the tube  frame looks like on a Beck - as you can see on the CMC the front vertical steel provides a place to hang the door hinges (it's also tied to other side's door post)  and with the one behind door there these provide "some" side protection.

Lap belts keep you in the car. Three point and up keep you from being injured or killed.

It's all about risk assessment, at least for me. The chances of flipping over in an open car are very low. The chances of a side impact are moderate. The chances of the front of your car striking something and you slamming into the dash/steering wheel are very high. Honestly there is no way to predict what will happen or if you'll survive. I say prepare for the most likely event: a direct or glancing blow to the front or getting rear-ended. Shoulder belts combined with a lap belt will probably let you walk away, or maybe with only minor injuries.

I'm lucky to have walked away from a 60 mph smash into a guardrail wearing only a lap belt, in a Spyder. The only thing that saved me from smashing directly into the steering wheel was the spin that happened from hitting the guard rail. I have a permanent loud click in my neck from severe whiplash. It took me several months to recover from the back and neck injuries and return to work.

I now have 5-point Race Quip harnesses in my NEW Spyder. I put all five points on, every time I go for a ride. It is easy, and you get used to it quickly. They also have a twist quick-release. Each belt snaps into its own hole in the buckle/release.

The buckle/release is on the right lap belt. So you get in, snap in the crotch belt, then the left lap. The the two shoulder belts one at a time. It takes maybe 10 seconds.

The side benefit is they keep you planted in the seat, not wasting energy and attention on your position, which lets you focus on being a better driver.

@Gordon Nichols posted:

Installing a roll bar with the shoulder belt attach point up on the side of the bar is the way to go for a three-point hitch.  It also gives you the flexibility to go to a 4 or 5 point set-up, too, which is great for racing but a PITA for just cruising.

Look at the Boxster. The factory roll-bar is also the attachment point for the shoulder belt.

I don't agree about the "PITA for just cruising" unless you're talking about the old-school latch-and-link belts. They absolutely ARE a PITA.

Yea, that's what I meant.  Those old belts held you in place, but weren't the most comfortable thing in the world on a long ride.  the best thing about them was that they really worked.

I live in the LA.  (SoCal)  area and named my rollbar/seatbelt assembly the L.A. system after Lane Anderson. After I took one look at his face after his crash I realized that I'm just too pretty to have that done to mine !  Get the full set and enjoy life. This is one lesson you just don't want to learn the hard way. Seat belts don't have to look ugly. They can look "Racey" too !......................Bruce

Ok, I got a chuckle out of that, Bruce. 🤣

I do wish there was some 'kit" that was available to provide support for better belts on the Spyder. I have frame running the bottom side of the firewall.

In my head, it seems there would be an easy way to use it to add some type of metal support vertically to that for 3/4 point belts..

You could get a bar fabricated by a chassis builder/machine shop and have it welded in behind your firewall. Have them use 1.5" or 1.75" DOM steel, mandrel bent in a hoop. Weld the hoop in then add diagonal bracing from the top of the hoop rearward and down towards the main 3" frame rail. Or just buy a Vintage LOL!

Does anyone have better photos of a 3 point seat belt installation on a recent Beck 550? How is the top strap handled? Is there a retraction device behind the wall there? I want to have this as lap belt is not enough with precious cargo, and the four or five point is overkill for me. Where you snap the belt in between the seats is it really those things sticking up that way?

I have finally found a photo, grabbed from a video, of how the 3 point seat belt appears to work on a newish Beck Spyder. It seems it's just a loop attached behind the left shoulder of the driver (and in the photo behind the right shoulder of the passenger), and the belt tensioner is down near the floor somewhere.

I swear to God that when my car finally arrives I am going to make a significant number of lengthy videos for YouTube that show and explain in close-up, high-definition, and exhaustive detail every possible aspect of these cars.

I think I will start with a 15 minute video on just the dashboard and steering wheel and every control there, how each and every control works, how it moves, and how it sounds when it moves, will be first up.

Then another long one about what's under the dash, including the carpets, the floor, the pedals, the heater core and controls, the bluetooth stereo, the 12V or USB plug, and anything else down there.

Then another really long one about the seats, how they move and how far, the seat heaters and controls, every part of the seat belts, the parking brake, and the clamshell release control.

Then there's the frunk, and exactly what's there, how the horn sounds, how the gas tank cover actually moves in close-up.

And another one about what's under the clamshell, and the list there will be so long it may take more than a few videos to cover everything that I want to know about now.

Then one that shows in precise detail exactly how the top and side curtains work, and what it's like to get in/out and drive with it, and then also include the tonneau cover, including placing it, zipping it in half, and driving with it that way. But maybe the tonneau video needs to be it's own 15 minute long episode.

And when I am finished every person on the lengthy waiting list will be able to satisfy their almost unbearable curiosity by seeing every damn thing I'm almost always only able to guess at until the day I can actually see a late-model 550 somewhere or make the pilgrimage to Bremen, Indiana.

There are hundreds of these cars in the wild, and scores of people like me on the waiting list, but so much is still a mystery. But I promise that when my car finally arrives those that follow me will know far more than I did during the wait.

@Foleydb, Beck will have an owner’s manual showing a bunch of that in a few months.  If you get your car before then and take your pictures, please send them to Carey or me and they might go in the manual.

Great, I'll look forward to that, but, alas, my car likely won't arrive until 2023.

Just a reminder, I've created a 550 Cloud to help everyone with this. The Ordering Section is here, and I am updating it with everything I learn about the cars, including many photographs. For example, the text on water-cooled engines in the Engines sub-section is attached as a PDF below.

@Foleydb have you had a ride or driven a Spyder yet?

I drove about an hour from my house to see a Spyder and hear it as well as LOOK and get a ride in it.

@DannyP There is one in Charleston, South Carolina, about 2.5 hours away, that I am hoping to see in the coming months. I know of no others closer to Savannah, Georgia, where I am.

Thank you @Foleydb for sharing your iCloud link. There is a ton of useful information in there!

13 years ago I got my first ride in a Spyder at the Speedsters Meet Spyders event in Carlisle.

It was in @DannyP's crazy fast 550...and I was learning about the SEG...

One of these days I am going to have to get a ride in one of those rocket ships .

@Foleydb posted:

@DannyP There is one in Charleston, South Carolina, about 2.5 hours away, that I am hoping to see in the coming months. I know of no others closer to Savannah, Georgia, where I am.

You're in Savannah?  I'm up on the north side of Charleston.  We definitely need to get together when the Coupe comes.  Consider joining us in the mountains in September and you'll have a chance for a spirited ride in at least one Spyder.  Even if you're in your daily driver you'll have a good time.

@Lane Anderson posted:

Consider joining us in the mountains in September and you'll have a chance for a spirited ride in at least one Spyder.  Even if you're in your daily driver you'll have a good time.

Thanks Lane!