pull up or down belts?

[BILL]

Can anyone give me the definition of pull up & pull down belts, so I can order the right ones

[Matt93SE]

pull up belts are where the adjusters on the hips pull up to tighten. pull downs are the opposite. The adjuster is flipped in relation to the belt.
The benefit to the pull-up is that it's easier to tighten by yourself, especially in a seat that fits snug on the sides. I can barely cram my fat arse into the seat and have pull-down adjusters. I can't tighten them by myself, so I have to set them before I sit down, then stretch and pull to buckle it when I get in.
With the pull-up, I could just give them a good yank.

The issue I see is that the pull-up ones are 'only' SFI rated and expire in 3 years, while the pull-down ones are SFI+FIA and expire in 5 years. Same belt material, same adjuster, jsut a different direction. stoopid if you ask me.


This is a pull down belt:



This is a u-type drag racing belt, but the lap belts are a pull-up type. you can see the difference there at least..

[BILL]

Thanks that is a great answer, is it only the lap belts that are different?

[pitbull113]

Thanks that is a great answer, is it only the lap belts that are different?

yup

[JLawton]

Go with the pull down and get FIA rated. I don't think they're any more money (or very little)

[EV]

I use pull ups for the same reason Matt does... (fat arse) I don't get into my car, I put it on

[mc-integra111]

My first set of belts was pull-down. They were a little difficult to tighten, but not bad. For my second set of belts I decided to try the pull up style. I found these were actually harder to tighten due to the exact geometry of the setup. I am a little guy in a little seat. I will be going back to the pull-down style for my next set.

[jumbojimbo]

I have pull downs now and will be switching to pull ups when these expire. For me, there is not enough room between the hips and the seat holes to adjust the belts. It's always a pain to get the lap belts right. And sitting on grid with a 3 minute board up is not a time I like to have hassles.

So I'm switching to pull ups and I'll just pay the extra $ if they expire faster.

Edit: ha ha, maybe Jared and I should swap belts.

[Simon T.]

I have always had pull down belts.

[BILL]

Thank guys

[JLawton]

I too would prefer the pull up. But I just the lap belts tight (never loosen them) and really suck it in when I click them into the cam.

I also noticed when I had a cheap Kirkey, I could never get the belts tight enough. You're really just sitting in a metal box with some cloth covering. Not very "form fitting". When I moved to the Recaro, WHAT a difference