My front seat replacement Project

[AztecRol]

Just an FYI. Not sure you have figured this out yet, but ANYTHING with the
YELLOW tape or YELLOW connector is part of the SRS system.

[lizzurd]

Originally Posted by Audiophyle

I know exactly which one you are talking about, but it didnt seem that difficult to get to so I figured you could get it. Glad to hear you finally got it up & running, and hope you enjoy it for long time.



Are retractable buckles that popular? All Ive ever set off were steering wheel airbags, but this is the first time ever seeing these.

Yes they are. Honda has been using the for more than ten years.

[Island E]

Originally Posted by lizzurd

Yes they are. Honda has been using the for more than years.

What's longer than years? Millennia perhaps?

[Audiophyle]

Originally Posted by AztecRol

Just an FYI. Not sure you have figured this out yet, but ANYTHING with the
YELLOW tape or YELLOW connector is part of the SRS system.

Indeed I am aware, all car manufacturers have done so with SRS wiring.
I was just surprised to see an explosive warning label under my seat for a car without side airbags.


What years did Honda start putting retractable seat belt buckles in?
I guess Ive either been playing with OBD1 cars for way too long or just away from the modding game for longer than I thought. lol

[johnnylaw5799]

I was thinking about swapping my seats out.
My only concern is the side air bags in the stock element seats.
Right now am really at a cross roads about what to do with the seats.

Do i just get them reuphostered or swap them out for rsx or civic si seats?

[KoolBlue]

Originally Posted by Audiophyle

Indeed I am aware, all car manufacturers have done so with SRS wiring.
I was just surprised to see an explosive warning label under my seat for a car without side airbags.


What years did Honda start putting retractable seat belt buckles in?
I guess Ive either been playing with OBD1 cars for way too long or just away from the modding game for longer than I thought. lol

The 2001 Civic was the first if i recall correctly.

[Audiophyle]

Time for a little update.

The seat rails on the Tiburon & the Element are identical in spacing from side to side, however the mounting positions are farther forward on the E so I would loose rearward sliding travel if I kept the Tiburon seats mounted similarly.

As a result, I need the brackets to extend beyond the rear chassis mounting bolt.
The Tiburon seats are also much lower in profile which is great, because then I can raise the bracket height to get the extra rearward sliding room, it gives me almost another inch of under seat clearance for audio goodies, AND is still right at the same height as the OEMs in their lowest setting.

Ive also pitched the front of the seats up just a hair compared to the OEMs, because I want the new ones to have a nice semi-reclined seat position.

Here are the brackets as they sit now.

Still need to finish drilling the mounting holes, and weld in some bracing to really make these bomb proof. Then modify the Tiburon seat to accept the OEM seatbelt buckle (just needs a small bracket & a hole drilled) and I will finally be ready to install one of the seats.

[Vermonter]

Too bad this wouldnt work with the 2009-2011 Element. Seatbelts are mounted in the Seats.... you would have to swap everything out of an older Element. Great swap though.

[Audiophyle]

Shouldnt be too difficult, I really doubt Honda spent the money to reinvent the rear door framing just to remove the seatbelt, it remained a major structural piece of the E so it still required all of the internal bracing with or without a seatbelt inside. Im willing to bet all of the connection points and openings are still present. All you would need is the upper plastic portion of the rear door where the seatbelt comes out, the seatbelt itself from the door cavity, the little plastic slider piece that rests in the upper door panel, and some little odds & ends.




$16 for door panel
$30 for slider piece
$148 for seat belt
~$12 for all of the support hardware
---------------------
$206 total per door new from Majestic Honda.

Could easily do both sides together for under $100 at a junk yard.

[lizzurd]

Originally Posted by Audiophyle

Shouldnt be too difficult, I really doubt Honda spent the money to reinvent the rear door framing just to remove the seatbelt, it remained a major structural piece of the E so it still required all of the internal bracing with or without a seatbelt inside. Im willing to bet all of the connection points and openings are still present. All you would need is the upper plastic portion of the rear door where the seatbelt comes out, the seatbelt itself from the door cavity, the little plastic slider piece that rests in the upper door panel, and some little odds & ends.

$16 for door panel
$30 for slider piece
$148 for seat belt
~$12 for all of the support hardware
---------------------
$206 total per door new from Majestic Honda.

Could easily do both sides together for under $100 at a junk yard.

Honda changed the part numbers on the rear doors for 2007. With out having the two doors side by side to compare it would be easy to guess that the seatbelt attachment points were left off the 2007+ doors. No addition engineering would be required. No surprise they would do this. I have seen 4-5 different wire harnesses for one vehicle depending on the factory options they came with.