Stuff Near Driver Side Seat Belt

[hazerb30]

I had a problem with my seat belt it wouldnt retract so i pulled the trim off and had a look. Found some interesting things (well to me at least)

First of all. What is the electronic unit near the driver side seat belt. I took it out and took photo... Whats its purpose ??? (edit:the fourth picture)

I was also interested in how the seat belt worked. There is a ball bearing that needs to sit in the correct place otherwise the seat belt will not retract. There was also a cable that was not connected, it was for the solenoid on the seat belt (edit: picture 1). It looks like the solenoid when activated (by 12v?) allows the belt to retract. What turns this solenoid on?? My cable wasnt even connected when i pulled it apart but i have now plugged it in.

I also took a photo of the 3 new guages i put in. AutoGuage's and i replaced the stock guages in the factory location.

I hope this all makes sense cos i got a bit drunk

[Gts-t]

interesting, my seatbelt is kented, wont work unelss the car is on very level ground.

might have a look in there cheers

[ssshonky]

good quality photos there. the ball bearing is interesting though ..how was the ball bearing oriented? that might be able to give you a clue! looks like maybe the ball bearing causes a switch to activate if its in the right orientation? maybe it releases ( loosens ) the seatbelt if the car is in a roll over.. but thats a bit of a wild guess as you can tell

[hazerb30]

Yeh the ball bearing has a cup over the top of it. In order for the seat belt to be retracted the ball bearing must be sitting in the depression below it so that the cup on top can move down fully. Its an interesting arrangement and probably the reason why it matters what angle the car is on.

The solenoid is on the other side (its in picture 1) . The solenoid does not play a function in the general use of the seatbelt ( I know because mine wasnt even connected and seatbelt was working fine). But if the solenoid was turned on it would push out and allow the seatbelt to retract no matter what. Its like some sort of overide is the belt locks up. Now... why the hell is this here? What activates it ? There are 2 wires that join up to the main wiring harness and go god knows where. It would be good to know that if the belt locks up again that i could just release it with a switch or something.

I also still want to find out what that comnputer looking unit is/does.

[ssshonky]

hmm I am just wondering if the solenoid activates if the airbags etc deploy? to stop you being caught in a burning wreck perhaps? very interesting all the same

[SLIPPERY]

i wanted to say nice work with the gauges!

Are the GTR cluster gauges electrical or mechanical?

Are they the smoke faced gauges that Autogauge do, 52 or 60mm?

Did they pretty much bolt-in replace the old ones?

What wire did you tap into to get power to the gauges?

Sorry about all the questions, its just something im interested in doing to replace the old boring ones in there atm

cheers

Edited August 20, 2007 by SLIPPERY

[hazerb30]

Hi Slippery. No worries i like answering q's .. just wish someone knew the answer to mine

yep stock guages are electrical.

yep mine are 52mm Auto Meter guages. I like the 'stock' look so i used the old facia after and after a little bit of modifying the plastic they fit nicely. I just used sikaflex to keep them in place

No they do not just bolt in and replace the old ones.. i wish. Because the guages came with their own sensors i thought it best to use them. I doubt the sensors for temperature/boost/pressure would be compatible with the guages so i had to install them all. Be prepared to spend a few hours if you do it yourself. Once you get the guages mounted in there you need to give them ground and 12v, thats easy just use a multimeter and check the wiring that used to go to the stock guages for 12v Accessories. For each guage there is a green sensor wire for each that needs to go to the engine bay so you have to run the cables through the firewall to where it needs to go.

Boost Guage - They provide a new sensor and i tapped its hose into where the original boost sensor is. I kept the original boost sensor in there as well even though it would have been easier to remove it. I was worried the ECU might need to get a signal from the stock one. If anyone can confirm id be interested to know

Oil Temp and Oil Pressure guages - Both are very important to have. The Stock R32 GTR pressure guage sucks total balls so thats why i put one here (sacrificing the original voltmeter). Now you will need a 'sandwich plate' to install the sensors for oil temp/pressure. You have to buy this seperately

This one is $30 from justjap.com

Both of the sensors go into the sandwich plate and it jams between the oil filter and the engine.

Its not that hard. The main issue is trying to keep all the cabling neat and the other problem is the oil filter. Im sure anyone who has changed oil in a gtr knows the pain of working in that space.. it sucks. You really should consider looking at oil filter re-location kit.. they usually cancel out the need to have a sandwich plate and make changine oil a breeze. I am just a sucker for punishment.

well worth it. Get rid of that annoying mmhg boost guage. Get a proper oil pressure that doesnt randomly sit on 0. and looks pretty. Ohhh.. one thing that kinda annoys me about these particular guages is they go BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEP when you turn on the ignition. Its part of some start up test procedure.. some think its kool but i thought its a bit annoying. double check b4 buy cos not all of them do it

[SLIPPERY]

wow

thanks for the detailed reply!

appreciate it mate

[Samon]

What activates it ? There are 2 wires that join up to the main wiring harness and go god knows where. It would be good to know that if the belt locks up again that i could just release it with a switch or something.

Hey hazerb30,

In my 33, there are cables under the two front seats that I assume are supposed to be connected to the seatbelt 'socket' thing. I assume they must have been changed over for compliance??? Anyway, if you take a paper clip and short out the two pins on the cable (passenger-side is easiest, there's only 2 wires, not going to get the wrong ones), there is a clunk in the seatbelt mech. I understand that it's so it moves freely until you plug the seatbelt in, when it tightens. Could be wrong on that, but that's where they get connected to.

A little more about this here:

http://www.skylinesaustralia.com/forums/in...t&p=1924978

[hazerb30]

Excellent thank you. Very interesting.. I wonder if my seat belt locks up again if i short out those 2 pins it may release without pulling the side trim off again.

I did notice that my seat belt plug under the seat was disconnected but ive now plugged that back in as well.

Thanks mate. Michael

PS: still wanting to find out the purpose of that computer if anyone knows...

[noone]

Had a similar idea with the gauges myself would love to know if the stock boost sensor is still required also.