Questions on explosive seatbelt retractor

[het976]

I have 2001 BMW Z3 seats in my Z. They are leather, have heat/power and fit great. They also have explosive seat belt retractors built into the seat.

 

Since the seat belt receiver attaches to the seat, I was planning to use the Z3 seat belts (they anchor in the Z3 around where the strut towers are in the Z) and have a clean, integrated system.

 

I know the purpose of the retractors is to pull you back into the seat and further restrain the body. I also know the early Z's did not have anything remotely close to this.

 

My questions:

 

Will the seat belts work correctly and be safe with out the explosive retractors hooked up? I don't think they would be any worse than the stock 71 harness system, but I am not sure how all the parts interact.

 

Are the seats safe with the explosive device attached, but not connected. Is there a significant chance of them going off?

 

BMW has used this system for years, so I can find an older set that do not use the explosive device. Should I look for an older set (but new parts) of belts that were designed before the use explosive tensioners?

 

Thanks for the help.