Hi,

I am in the process of getting my Sadev installed after taking 2 seasons off of road racing and doing gokart racing instead.
One item I need to replace is my seat belt harness.

It used to be the rule that there was a manufacturing date on the belt and good for 5 years.
Now I read that belts per SFI16.1 expire as quick as 2 years and FIA belts after 3 years. Expiration dates are now shown on the belts rather than manufacturing dates.

I am a little surprised and disappointed by that new rule, or am I missing something here?
Of course money is what I am concerned with (Grass root racer) and also a little bit of wasting/ throwing away good components.
Is it just SSCA and the industry telling me that I should better keep racing gokarts ?

Thanks.

SFI16.1 belts do indeed expire after 2 years. FIA belts are good for 5 years.

Why the difference? Materials. FIA belts are polyester, SFI16.1 belts are nylon. Nylon breaks down quickly when exposed to UV light or water, losing up to 75% of its strength after just 30 months of UV exposure. Not everyone stores their cars under cover, so they have to set the limit to the low side to be safe.

A new set of belts is half the cost of a set of tires, and the Schroth Flexi 2x2s that we use are good for 5 years. I'm good paying a hundred or so bucks per year to make sure my life saving equipment will actually save my life...

-Jon