If You Buy A Counterfeit Racing Harness You’re Gonna Have A Bad Time
By Paulo Acoba
The brave men and women of Carmarthenshire uncovered a counterfeit racing harness operation.
Thanks to a free-market economy and internet commerce, counterfeiting is not only profitable, it’s oftentimes preferred over the real deal thanks to a very attractive price. Earlier yesterday (Oct. 21, 2015) Carmenthenshire ( county in Wales, UK) City Council released a press release stating how they found possibly deadly counterfeit motor racing harnesses being made within their immediate vicinity. After discovering the potentially dangerous belts, they subjected them to a series of tests and released a video of their findings. The results are shocking to say the least. Check out the video of a dummy being involved in a collision below.
Not only do the belts fail to secure the occupant, they also dangerously snap the neck of the test dummy strapped into the harness. Manufactuerers copied include Sabelt, Sparco and Takata, three manufacturers that any gearhead should know off the top of their head as the go-to-guys when it comes to racing harnesses. And although the city council isn’t releasing the name of the manufacturer behind all these lucrative eBay sales, they are mounting a nationwide campaign in the UK to warn against the dangers of counterfeit racing products and have advised any customers who bought the belts to remove them from their vehicles.
Takata, one of the more popular brands, already caught onto this trend of counterfeit products long before their popularity hit it big. They even have a statement acknowledging their existence.
"Recently there have been a number of fake/counterfeit or “replica” TAKATA Racing harnesses sold worldwide.Takata has purchased some of these illegal belts and tested them against industry standards. These products are unsafe and do not meet the FIA strength or crash testing requirements and should not be purchased or re-sold…Please contact TAKATA directly by sending an email to fakebelts@takata.com if you have any questions or want to report any counterfeit activities."
When it comes to modifying your car, the first rule is always safety. Choosing reputable brands when modifying your engine, suspension and safety devices is not only smart thinking, its basic common sense. There are large forces at play even in everyday driving and although the best lessons learned are from experience, it would behoove you to take heed from those that have been in accidents where counterfeit products failed and provided very little protection.
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