Williams will be testing new seatbelts during the Japanese Grand Prix this weekend, following Valtteri Bottas’ seatbelt issues during the Singapore Grand Prix. Although the team has not been able to find the cause of the issue, they will be changing their seatbelt supplier.
The team will no longer be purchasing seatbelts from Willans, a driver safety company founded in 1967. Instead, the team has ordered a sample from OMP, a FIA endorsed racewear supplier founded in 1973. The sample will be used during free practice in Japan to ensure that it meets the team’s requirement before they officially make the switch. If all goes well during the testing, Williams hopes to make the switch at the United States Grand Prix.
The supplier switch is as a result of Valtteri Bottas’ issues in Singapore. During the race, Bottas lost a ton of time when he was forced to get his seatbelts tightened in the pits after they had loosened just over 30 laps into the race. Although it didn’t impact his race performance too much because he retired with a mechanical failure later in the race, it was a safety issue that the team needed to address.
The team conducted some investigations after the race, but they were not able to find what caused the issue. By changing the supplier, the team is hoping that this issue will not occur in future races. There were no apparent issues with the seatbelts at the Malaysian Grand Prix.
