I'm planning to finally put buckets in my 06. I've searched and found a lot of questions and not nearly as many answers. Seems Ballade is the only game in town for having the OEM passenger airbag setup working. I'm open to any other options and would prefer to use the PCI rail if possible.

• If left unplugged completely, is it the SRS light on the dash or just the Pass. airbag that is lit?
• Do we know what happens in the event of an accident if left unplugged? Is the airbag always on or always off? Any other impacts to the SRS overall?

I'd like to configure the OEM 3 points properly for now until I get a rollbar and proper harnesses. Seems 4Extender is no longer selling and Ballade is the only game in town there too.

• Are most people just buying the extender and bolting the male side of the extender to the rails? I've seen that option and would really prefer to have all components/attachment points be done properly with purpose designed and tested stuff.
• I searched a bunch and found Andrew Hake's thread with the pic below of using a Schroth side belt extender (Pic #1) to build a receptacle with a properly designed anchor point. I'd like to do this and also have a male connector latched to the OEM receptacle under the seat to turn off the light/beeper.
• Does anyone have a source to just buy the Male and Female receptacles for an 06+ or know what other vehicle's hardware would fit? I'd also prefer the clean look of the webbing going right into the receptacle, like pic #2, instead of having a metal attachment like pic #3.
  • If I have to go aftermarket supplied extender and use the receptacles, I'm fine with that. I'd like to know if there is any safety standard they are held to or if there's any way to verify quality. I'd really prefer not to find out the hard way.

 

The seats were removed when I had my '06 roof replaced a couple of years ago and a connection underneath was not re-connected (or was loose). Got a mile down the road and noticed either the passenger air bag light or the main airbag light on the dashboard was on (maybe both, been a couple years). Didn't drive into a wall so I don't know if any of the airbags would have worked... Quick click and the connection(s) were back together and all the warnings extinguished.

The seatbelt sensors may figure into this as well.

-- Chuck

 

Yeah, if you leave it unplugged the main airbag light will stay on. Likewise haven't crashed, so not certain what happens if you do. I read somewhere though that the driver's airbag will still operate but the passenger's will not.

 

Thanks for the info. I've decided to pay up for the Ballade rails. I'm glad someone makes the product/solution but it is a shame how expensive they are. Given the price of the Honda parts, I guess it is what it is. It would be really nice to be able to wire in a switch to turn the bag on/off based on the need. I do wonder if someone was able to get ahold of the Honda software to sync rails if they'd be able to figure it out. I'm not skilled with electronics and it's not worth the headache for me to try to figure out. I'm sticking with 3 point harnesses for now and still street drive the car + may have an instructor at times on track. I'd rather have the peace of mind that they are as protected as reasonably possible. I've accidentally tested my airbag out in a different car before and am happy it worked. If the worst were to happen with a passenger in the car, I wouldn't be able to stomach cheaping out on their protection.

I did find an answer to my seat belt extender question. GM Part #89024730 is an extender for a Chevy HHR that fits and has the aesthetic I was looking for. They used to be free at dealers but have been discontinued and only available via resellers on Ebay. I'm still waiting on the rails and seats to come in. Seats may not be until November. Also, the items from Schroth that I need to complete my receptacle setup are on back-order. I'll try to post what I'm using and the end result should be the picture in my first post.

 

I got a seat belt extender from Ford for free for my 07 a few years ago. I think you need to ask them for an 05 Mustang seat belt extender

 

Wow you weren't kidding that the passenger rail is pricey. $1k+ just for the rails/brackets. I thought I remember a thread about Chris Lum modifying the oem rails to handle a recaro, but not sure what else is required to get the weight sensor to work. Ultimately I can't blame them though as like you said the parts are probably not cheap to begin with and they're not running a charity.. Other option is just run one driver's seat..?

 

I couldn't find any complete information on modifying the OEM rails. Seemed a few people started and either never finished or never followed back up on here. Ballade mentions needing to get a Honda dealer to sync the rail to the SRS system and notes that each rail is serialized. I'm just hypothesizing but that's my guess as to why you can't just put a resistor in it. You'd need to give the system the proper signal AND have the Honda computer to make it happy. Obviously, a Honda dealer isn't going to just go along with you and let you trick the system unless you have connections. Either way, I don't weld and don't want to have cobbled together rails. I'll complain about the price of the rails but again, I'm happy someone made them and they've gotta put food on the table somehow.

The other options are DIY, driver's bucket only, or run without an airbag. I'd much rather run a PCI rail on the pass. side with Sub-harness mounts built in. I could even save some money/weight and go with fixed rails. That stupid airbag sensor though...

Azn_akira - Happen to know the Part number for info's sake and a visual? I was being picky but since I was paying for a receptacle anyways, I wanted the one without the separate metal bracket attached. The GM Part # I posted is what I was looking for. Already bought them, unfortunately.

 

Sorry I don't have the part #. I just called my local Ford dealer and asked for one, they didn't have it in stock but they were able to get one in about two days.

Sorry crappy pic but the end of it has the metal connector like pic#3 in your original post.

 

So I've installed both Pole Positions and am very happy with how it turned out. There were a few little hang-ups with both the PCI Driver rail and Ballade Passenger rail but the final install came out great. I'll try to post up some pics and a more complete parts list/description. I do have the airbag light on and am working to figure everything out. The Ballade rail requires that you pull the center piece from your factory rail underneath the seat. That center piece has the electronic box that the two seat rail weight sensors connect to and a third connection to go back to the SRS Computer. I believe that box is referred to as the Honda Occupant Detection System (ODS). The new seat rails have new Seat Weight Sensors (SWS). I capitalize and write out the acronyms for those terms because I'm researching how to make this all work and get the airbag light off. I finally managed to google the correct string of words to stumble upon the video below. Pertinent info starts around 15 mins. The example vehicle/system is the 04 Acura MDX. Seems the weight sensor setup is the same as our S but the MDX has an additional sensor in the back of the seat to register how tall an occupant is.

Regardless, the training states that replacement of Seat Weight Sensor (SWS) requires SWS Initialization. That leads me to believe that if I can get ahold of an OBD-II tool that has the factory SRS integration, I'll be able to complete the initialization process and get it working just like the factory. I'm trying to find out if I know anyone with a proper tool or how I can do it without going to the dealer.

You Tube

Perhaps of use to others, the trainer does mention that the system uses LIN communication to provide info to the SRS computer. I have no idea what that means and if it provides any value. I just figured I'd leave that breadcrumb in case someone reads this, is familiar with the protocol, and has an idea to make a weight sensor simulator of some sort.

 

Since I started a thread on it, I'll add some pics of my install and add a consolidated parts list of everything I used since it wasn't completely straight forward. I basically copied Andrew Hake's setup but I did have to poke around quite a bit to find all the info.

Pole Positions really are the perfect seat for these cars. Perfect door panel clearance, comfortable, and still have good bolstering. I have gotten my lap belt receptacle a little bit lower than pictured and it rides the proper place for my hips. PCI's driver side belt mounts are in a very good location too. Aside from adjusting height to my preference, I did not really have to adjust the seat much. Side to side play was perfect from first install. I think PCI's Sub-Harness bar will be in the right place for me too in the future. Based on my rail having a different sub mount than older pictures I've seen, I think they may have revised it.

For anyone interested, base black Pole Positions have recently increased price to $1475 MSRP. I found them for sale in Germany for < $1,000. Though I was skeptical, it all went smoothly and I was able to verify authenticity by sending pics to Recaro. I also like that my seats don't have RECARO stitched on the back of the head. They also don't come with the Recaro side mounts or hardware which I did not need. Seems a subtle difference between markets. (https://maar-shop.com/products/recar...41170101665982)

Driver:

• PCI Rail for Pole Positions: Part #SM-AP1-L-S1
  • PCI Rail came with assembly hardware and plastic spacers/washers between seat and rails. They did not come with bolts to side-mount the seats.
• Bolts to side mount seats to rails - Downstar Inc. - Dress Up Hex Bolt M8 - M8x1.25 is the threading - Want 10.9 class or better - 4x per seat
  • I bought 20mm and 30mm - 20mm was too short to get good thread engagement. 30mm is fine but I can feel them in the side bolsters if I push in. I don't feel them while sitting at all. 25mm may be perfect but 30mm is fine.
• Schroth Side Belt Rallye Extension - Preferred "Side Belt Rallye Replacement" but the Replacement was backordered. Extension is same part, just 6 inches longer. Only difference is the extra material.
• Schroth 3 Bar Slide (LV10) - This is used to wrap the seat belt receptacle
• Schroth Sleeves for Bolt In Brackets - 7/16" bolt - allows Rallye extension to mount properly and allow free rotation
• Bolt to attach belt to rail - Grade 8 - 7/16" - 20 thread - 1 inch long + 7/16 washers - 1 Inch was the right length. Without the Lap belt Anchors, a smaller bolt may work (3/4). 1 inch was the most you could get with the PCI mounts for sure.
• Ballade Lap Belt Anchor harness - Want to clip harnesses to in future
• GM Part #89024730 is an extender for a Chevy HHR - Aside from aesthetic preferences mentioned earlier in the thread, I think this helps get the belts lower on the hips than a receptacle with the metal extender at the bottom.

Installation was very straight forward except for one thing. The OEM front seat bolts to mount the rails to the chassis stuck up too far that the slider would not go very far forwards. The OEM bolts have a flat washer and a split washer. I was not prepared for this and had to hold the flat washer with vice grips and unthread the washer from the bolt. Then I removed the split washer and re-installed the flat washer. OEM bolt + flat washer was enough to clear the sliders smoothly. I did booger up the threads on the bolt a bit doing this and would have preferred to use a die to tidy them up. It threaded in but I will get a die and tap to clean things up next time I remove the seats









For the Pass. airbag - I found HDS software for sale on Ebay with an OBD connector. I just got the connector in and am waiting on my software. Hopefully this path provides what I need to get it done.