One of the first things I really wanted to add to the Elise were safety harnesses.
So, off to the Elise Shop and asked for an original six point Lotus harness. (seemed to be affordable)
When talking to the guys outthere, I heared what is really needed to fit such a six point harness... an addition to the safety bar, a motorsport seat, the harness itself etc. It added up to some 4000DM! pfew.. way too expensive..

Kept an eye open and found a complete kit, containing a harness bar, two Willans four point harnesses and fitting material at TuningConcept for ¥ 710,=  (incl. VAT)

Now this is what the whole kit looks like:

The first thougt was "I can't fit this, the Elise needs to be modified etc. etc.". Well... actually, fitting the kit is pretty easy and NOTHING needs to be modified to the Elise, it actually is a pretty easy bolt-on solution!

So where to start?
Well, first remove both seats. You will need a Allen Key (6mm for passenger) and (5mm for driver) key to remove them.
Don't forget that you'll have to remove one end of the standard safety belt to be able to remove the seat. Also don't forget to disconnect the electrical connector at the drivers latch mechanism..

Once the seats are out, you'll have to open up the space to put the harness bar in and remove the speaker consoles. To do this, you will need to remove the complete standard safety belt (yellow arrows in below picture) and you need to remove the screws that hold the actual console (red arrows).

Now you'd think you can remove the speakers? Nope... the left speaker console will be blocked by the Fuel Pump Access Panel (LHD). You've got to remove this access panel as well.
Now watch out!!! Keep the screws at a safe place and don't put any of them near the access panel hole... you will not find any of them when they fall in!

The edges of the speaker panels are covered with velcro. You will have to pull and wiggle to get them out. Be sure not to pull to hard and deform the panels (that would probably stay visible forever!)

As soon as you have the speaker panels out, you can fit the Harness Bar.. Take the two bolts, put the rings under them, dont' forget to put some thread filling liquid (like Loctite or Permabond) on the thread of the bolts to prevent them from running loose!!

In the above pictures you'll find the hole for the fuel pump and the installed bar.

When the bar is in it's place and the bolts are tightened, you can put the speakers back again. There is no need to cut out pieces from the speaker panels, you can just put them back again! The trick? Hold the panel horizontal, put the upper part just below the harness bar and push the lower side of the panel to the rear of the car (thus getting the panel vertical again..). It will pop in it's place again...

Now you can put both screws in the speaker panels and, if needed, you can install the old safety belt mechanism again. (remember to also put some Permabond or Loctite on the threads of these parts!!)

Time to install the first part of the harness! (the upper part). Use some Permabond or Loctite on the threads again and attach the upper part of the harnes to the harness bar. Try to keep the metal parts at the end of the belt as straight as possible while tightening the bolts!!

Time to attach the belt straps to the seats!
As mentioned before, there are two possible options, either you let the original safety belt in place or you remove it and use the four point harness only. The published pictures on this site describe a 'four point harness only' configuration... However, don't worry if you want to use the original safety belt; there is a description in the harness kit on how to fit the belt straps to the seats!

It's pretty hard to take a picture of the construction which is used to attach the belt strap, so I took one picture and one illustration to give an impression on how to fit the belts. Remember to use Locktite or Permabond on the threads again (!!) and take your time to attach the materials to the seats!!
As the seats are somewhat sensitive for abuse (too much pressure put on the bolts) you can better take your time to fix the parts and not overtighten then trying to get the belts in the car as soon as possible...

This only illustrates the use of the harness without the original seatbelt. If you want the originals to leave intact as well, the configuration has to be altered. (As soon as I'm able to, I'll publish pictures or another illustration on that possibility....

When fixing the harness to the seats, don't forget to check the LH and RH sets at the right place (or you'll have a buckle falling down at you chassis everytime you snap out of your harness! :)

Ready? Get the seats back in then!

Refitting the seats is pretty straight forward; just don't forget the Locktite or Permapond glue as these bolts are also subject to work loose..

As soon as everything is in place, you can sit down and feel like a king, glued to your chassis :)

 

Some tips on strapping yourself in....

The lower part of the 4 point harness doesn't contain a crutch strap. It's very important really to strap yourself in without the crutch strap (to prevent submarining as good as you can). Basically, close the lower part of the harness, sit straight up and push down the adjuster strap as hard as you can!
First move your seat into the right position after strapping up the lower part. Then close the upper straps and pull them (again, as thight as you can and as tight as you'd feel comfy..)

Have fun!