You mention removing the original steering wheel and going with an aftermarket. That right there will disable the entire SRS system. If one portion of the system detects an error code, it will disarm everything (the SRS light will be on).
If the car has fixed back racing seats, harnesses and a roll bar I see no need for the SRS system as an instructor.
theruleslawyer said:If you have harnesses and hans, I'd think interacting with a front passenger airbag would be minor at best. You're just not moving around like a 3pt. Without a hans, I can see your helmet maybe hitting it. I've heard concerns about the chin bar of full face helmets getting impacted by bag and torquing your head. The side bags I'd think would just get caught by the cage. Only reason I haven't taken my passenger bag out yet is that I like like the cosmetic cover on it. Plus I don't really want to take the dash apart right now.
I think this is a great point - if you have a helmet on and an airbag goes off (assuming it isn't hindered by a roll bar/cage, etc) if it hits your head, it's going to smash your helmet into your head.
I forgot that I've heard that before and it makes sense.
In reply to jfryjfry :
Not that a hot, abrasive airbag hitting your face is much better.
Thanks all for the insight. Based on moving to 6-point harnesses, I'm going to go ahead and disable the remaining passenger & side-curtain airbags as a transition to the new (roll bar, fixed back seat, harness) safety system.
Although I forgot to mention it, I will be getting a hybrid HANS device to protect my neck as well.
I'm planning to fire the BMW back up this weekend after 2 years of sitting. Assuming I haven't berkeleyed anything up too bad, I'll get the roll bar, harness & hans on order and continue with airbag removal.
Fupdiggity said:Thanks all for the insight. Based on moving to 6-point harnesses, I'm going to go ahead and disable the remaining passenger & side-curtain airbags as a transition to the new (roll bar, fixed back seat, harness) safety system.
Although I forgot to mention it, I will be getting a hybrid HANS device to protect my neck as well.
I'm planning to fire the BMW back up this weekend after 2 years of sitting. Assuming I haven't berkeleyed anything up too bad, I'll get the roll bar, harness & hans on order and continue with airbag removal.
I know you already have seats, but consider your next upgrade a halo/containment seat. A Sparco Ergo style removable one works as well.
Olemiss540 said:Fupdiggity said:Thanks all for the insight. Based on moving to 6-point harnesses, I'm going to go ahead and disable the remaining passenger & side-curtain airbags as a transition to the new (roll bar, fixed back seat, harness) safety system.
Although I forgot to mention it, I will be getting a hybrid HANS device to protect my neck as well.
I'm planning to fire the BMW back up this weekend after 2 years of sitting. Assuming I haven't berkeleyed anything up too bad, I'll get the roll bar, harness & hans on order and continue with airbag removal.
I know you already have seats, but consider your next upgrade a halo/containment seat. A Sparco Ergo style removable one works as well.
good advice. I'm hoping to get a few seasons out of this iteration. If time/money/desire allows a next version, it would likely either be a full cage (and containment seat) with an eye towards spec E46, or selling and buying a completed wheel-wheel car.
Don't just disable the bags. Remove them. The smallest electrical charge can set them off. From static discharge to 120 from the wall.
We used to run a hundred foot extension cord out to a bag at the dealership then set them off. Probably get 35-40 feet in the air.
In reply to vwcorvette (Forum Supporter) :
Oooga booga.
I'm okay with removing but I ain't skeered of them. There's a constant 60hz hum everywhere and airbags don't spontaneously deploy in peoples' garages.
Get good sliders. Recaro FIA approved are the only ones I trust.
Source: crushed testicles when a students passenger seat slider failed or wasn't fully locked in. Hurt like hell. Could've been way way worse in a wreck.
10/10 do not recommend.
For the folks who have a fixed back seat + roll bar + harness + HANS, but also drive your car to the track, what do you do? I know one option is to drive with the helmet + HANS, which seems like it would get unpleasant for longer drives. I also understand that I can keep the 3 point belt for the street drive. But I haven't figured out what to do about the airbags. I imagine a 3 point belt + aftermarket wheel with no airbag is a bad idea on the street?
ZiggMeister said:For the folks who have a fixed back seat + roll bar + harness + HANS, but also drive your car to the track, what do you do? I know one option is to drive with the helmet + HANS, which seems like it would get unpleasant for longer drives. I also understand that I can keep the 3 point belt for the street drive. But I haven't figured out what to do about the airbags. I imagine a 3 point belt + aftermarket wheel with no airbag is a bad idea on the street?
Don't get in an accident :-).
Just keep the 3 point and hope the crash isn't a bad head on one. Defensive driving is extremely important and has prevented a large number of accidents for me personally.
transformation to dedicated track car complete. roll-bar installed, sunroof removed, interior (partially) gutted, fixed back seats & 6-point harnesses installed, all airbags removed. Headed to summit point this weekend for some track time, we'll see how it performs.
Ironically, when I pulled off the factory steering wheel, the airbag wasn't connected (wiring harness was cut). The car has a rebuilt title and I know it was in a front end accident, but can't see a reason to cut the airbag harness. Oh well, it's ready to live its best life now.
You'll love that setup on track
kevinatfms said:codrus (Forum Supporter) said:Note that if you opt to pull the airbags and not get it done, the BMW recall team is very persistent, they will continue to send you letters, text, email, and even call you on the phone. It's been over 5 years since I told them my M3 is a fully gutted and caged race car with no airbags left in it, and they're still trying. If I still had a plate on the car I'd be inclined to make an appointment just to see the reaction when I show up. :)
Id pay money to see this done. Youtube?
It would be fun but I've looked into it and you basically can't make money on YouTube unless you already have the kind of YouTube channel that requires business-grade investment and labor to maintain. If some aliens landed in my front yard right now and gave me a tour of their flying saucer, I could not put video of that on my ordinary low-volume YouTube account and make money on it no matter how many billions of views it got. My best bet would be to sell it to someone who could, like an established monetizable YouTube channel.
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