The Web Page of Kristopher Linquist

Aug 18, 2004

http://www.cg-lock.com



As a driving enthusiast and avid autocrosser, I'm always looking for ways to improve my driving experience. Autocrossing will teach you that every little bit counts - sometimes it's less than a tenth of a second between you and a faster driver. I read about the CG-Lock (as well as seeing it on Tuner Transformation/SpeedTV) and I was lucky enough to be able to get my hands on one.

As described on their web site, the CG-Lock is engineered and proven to keep drivers and occupants firmly planted in their seat; virtually anyone, under a wide variety of driving situations, will benefit from adding the CG-Lock to their vehicle's factory-installed seat belts. Testing has proven that the CG-Lock can dramatically increase driver stability, control and comfort. Improved occupant comfort means reduced back fatigue in strenuous or prolonged driving.

My Vehicle
The installation vehicle was my 2003 BMW 330i Performance Package

Installation
I opened up the package and found four allen screws, one small allen wrench, a slide plate, and a bottom clip. The pictures and description that were included were a little hard to understand. That being said, I don't think that I could have described it any better. It's difficult to explain how to position this thing onto your seat belt. The directions did, however, point me to an installation video on their web site. After watching this video, I said to myself, "duh!" and had it installed within minutes. You only need two of the four screws- they include sets of two different lengths to accomodate for different sized seat belt buckle clips (you could use the longer screws on any belt buckle clip, but the screws would poke out, potentially catching on your clothes. Hence two different lengths).

Use
It's not hard to figure out. Your belt buckle clip is placed in-between the cg-lock device and the back clip and held tight with the two allen screws:
  
Once that is attached, you simply place the slide plate over the seat belt (above the buckle clip) onto the cg-lock. This essentially locks your lower lap belt in place, allowing you to tighten it as necessary but not loosen it.

Keep in mind this only locks the lap belt portion of your seat belt. You can still pull the shoulder belt loose as usual. The CG-Lock manual states that you should sit as far back in your seat as possible, re-adjust your seat as necessary, then pull up on your shoulder belt (from the cg-lock) to tighten your lap belt, locking you in place. If you wish to loosen the lap belt, tilt the spring-loaded lever (in the first picture above) with your thumb. The manual also states that if you need to loosen the lap belt for any reason (such as getting your wallet out of your back pocket), you should pull over/stop the car and then loosen as necessary. To disable the functionality of the CG-Lock, you must remove the top slide plate:
  


My Impressions
My first impression was that the CG-Lock definitely worked as advertised. Once I was sitting in the seat, I put the slide plate on the cg-lock and pulled the seat belt tight. My butt wasn't moving an inch! After trying it on the car for a full week, however, I've removed it from my seat belt. I did this for several reasons:

• Disabling the cg-lock wasn't very easy. Completely removing the slide plate was a hassle - I'd have to make sure I didn't lose it. The slide plate clips to the cg-lock very tightly and I couldn't remove it while driving. Granted, the manual states that 1) you should never attempt to adjust it while driving and 2) the slide plate's pressure against the cg-lock will loosen up over time allowing for easier removal.... but honestly, pulling over to make an adjustment is a pain :). I understand that the statement in the manual is mostly for legal reasons, but they should come up with a way to make it easier to disable. If the tongue on the cg-lock that the slide plate slides on was a little longer, perhaps I could just slide it over enough to disengage the unit without removing the slide plate.
• It's rather heavy. The manual states that you may have to "help" your seat belt retracting spring pull the seat belt back up to the door when you unlatch it. This is true. If you don't follow this, the seat belt could "come out of the car with you" and scratch your paint. I'm sure the seat belt has gotten stuck in your door when you've exited your vehicle at least once or twice in your life. Given my experience with seat belt return springs in older vehicles (they wear out), I don't want to put extra strain on mine. "Helping it up" as the manual suggests would, in theory, cause no extra strain to the spring, but in practice, you probably won't spend the time to help it all the way up every time.
• I simply don't need it in my car. My BMW comes with very nice thigh bolsters on the sport seats:
  
  My problem is that my upper body slides around (I'm 5'9 180lbs) because the back of the seat is too wide. My lower half stays perfectly planted. I haven't had the chance to try the CG-Lock while autocrossing, but I did take a very spirited drive up in the mountains (obeying all local laws, of course officer). I found no improvement. If you're not sliding at all to begin with, this device isn't worth your money.

Summary
If you race your vehicle and do not have "sport" seats that hold you in place, the CG-Lock is a very inexpensive ($39.99) solution to your problem. Much cheaper than a full harness or a new sparco seat. It does have its annoyances (all of which are described in the manual, as I have stated above), but it does work.