How many people here have seat belts?

[eric wissing]

I know Blue Skies has done a real nice job of updating his but do most people here have seat belts installed in their cars? I was looking through Kanter and they seem real spendy. A junk yard would seem to be a good source. I am guessing that all it takes is drilling a few holes and using some large washers. Lap belts would be better than nothing. Eric

[PatS....]

My '49 Chrysler will have lap/shoulder belts in front and I think just lap belts in back but might do both. I'll just adapt some wrecking yard items maybe from a late model Chevy or Dodge truck.

[TodFitch]

I installed lap belts for the front seats.

If/when I pull the gas tank for some other reason I'll probably install lab belts in the back too. Since the rear seat seldom gets passengers I figured I could be lazy about that. You guys with "modern" cars probably have the rear seat forward of the gas tank so you don't have my excuse for the back seat.

Ordered a generic brown color from Andover Automotive and got lucky on the color match with my upholstery.

[Normspeed]

I have lap belts in front, bought new at an automotive swap meet. Pretty nice quality, inexpensive, with aircraft type latches. Bought mainly to add a feeling of lateral stability to that big flat bench seat. No belts for the foldaway rear seat though. It's usually put away. Lap belt install depends a lot on the condition of your floor pans.

[Plymouthy Adams]

In my business coupe I have three point shoulder harness installed, retractable ones with nice covers over the retractor.. the covers will be painted to match the interior and the chrysler emblem is being replaced with Dodge coat of arms.

[blueskies]

I bought my belts from GEM Street Rod products, you can find them on the web. They aren't all that expensive, and are cheap insurance, if you ask me.

I felt that shoulder belts in the front were mandatory, considering the jousting stick that holds the steering wheel in front of my chest cavity... Lab belts will only keep your carcass from getting run over by the car after you've planted your forehead into some heavy steel, and give the cleanup crew a way to find your wallet.

The shoulder belts in my '50 were actually easier to intall in the rear of the car, can't imagine why you wouldn't just put them in everywhere.

Works for me... my cargo is too precious to risk no belts.

First thing that happens to a 50's era car in a crash, is that all the doors pop open and everything inside goes out...

For a very good read on why you should wear a belt, click here. Absolutely worth the time. You can't argue with physics.

Pete

[Plymouthy Adams]

be sure to get belts that are long enough....Actually I forgot to mention mine are from a 1991 Plymouth Acclaim and match the interior of the car very nicely.

[eric wissing]

I respect her authority.

[Norm's Coupe]

I bought a set of the lap/shoulder retractable belts from JC Whitney for the front seat of my coupe in a color to match my interior. Think they were about $80 each then, price is up now though. That was about 1999 and still haven't put them in the car. Not sure I want to. If it has no belts they can't ticket you for not wearing them because the car didn't come with them. Once the belts are in they can ticket you. So........since I don't wear them in my modern cars, I doubt that these will ever see the inside of my car. Bought them because the wife said she wouldn't ride in the P15 unless she had belts. Well.........she's been riding in it ever since I got it running in 99, so............

[martybose]

I put a set of three lap belts in my Bizzy. If you are adding belts, I strongly recommend the special seatbelt anchors that Juliano sells; they have radiused bottom edges so that they can't slice through the floor during impact situations.

Marty

[Dennis Hemingway]

I put lap belts in both front and back seats in the 48 P15 and the 56 Chevy. Our grandkids ride with us some times and I will not have them in a vehicle without seat belts.

Dennis

[PatS....]

First thing that happens to a 50's era car in a crash, is that all the doors pop open and everything inside goes out...

For a very good read on why you should wear a belt, click here. Absolutely worth the time. You can't argue with physics.

Pete

This is what happens in a rollover, as you say, the doors come open. No-one surved this one, of course no belts back then:(

[Jim Yergin]

Just ask the governor of New Jersey about wearing seatbelts.

Jim Yergin

[Norm's Coupe]

Well guys, physics or no physics I still don't wear the belts. I've also been in a bad accident with no belts on back in February 1965. Was on a 4 lane divided highway just north of Fort Knox, KY On Hwy 31 (Dixie Hwy) if you're familiar with the area. Was northbound heading toward Louisville doing the speed limit (about 50 or 55 MPH) on a misty rainy day. At the bottom of the hill in the southbound lanes was an old army tank that sat on the side of the road. Some idiot decided to stop real fast there and make a U-Turn. Car in front of me slammed on his brakes to keep from hitting that car. I in turn hit the brakes hard to keep from hitting that car (59 Buick tank!). I barely made the stop myself and as I was breathing a breath of relief I looked in my rearview mirror and watched the pickup truck behind me slam into me doing about 50 MPH at impact! OUCH!! When he hit me going that fast he pushed me into the 59 Buick that was in front of me. Turned my 7 month old 64 Chevelle coupe into an accordion beyond repair. I broke the steering wheel when I busted my lip on it and knocked me out for a second or two. My first wife ended up sitting on the dash with her butt out the windshield. Car was a mess, front and rear smashed real good, top was bowed too. Could not even open the drivers door. I had to roll down the window and crawl out. Was afraid to move my first wife at the time, didn't know her injuries so left her sitting on the dash. The right hand door was open a little and you could not shut it all the way. My injuries consisted of bruises and small scratches on both hands from them hitting the windshied and a sore knee. Must have hit the steering column with it, don't know. My first wifes injuries consisted of three fractured ribs, a cut to her knee and one on her foot. That was all we got out of that accident. A friend of my grandmothers who worked at the same hospital she did told my grandmother about the accident (not knowing it was her grandson), and said the people in our car had to have been killed. Then my grandmother told her it was her grandson and we weren't hurt that bad. The woman couldn't believe it.

As a point of interest, there were four people in the 59 Buick, two adults and two children. None had belts on either, and none of those people had any injuries.

Now, that car came with lap belts new. However neither of us ever wore them. So, I've been in a serious accident without the belts on and defied the laws of physics I guess. (I knew there was a reason I didn't like that subject when I was kid in school!)

Since that accident, had a woman hit me in the rear at a stop light once. Just a bumper bender. Another one in a construction zone down in Illinois. Guy ran into the back of me there too. Just another slight bumper bender though. That's about it since I started driving about 1960.

Now, if I were to be hauling little kids around like some of you it might be a different story. However, only have one grandchild and she's going to start driving herself this fall. Don't have any other little wee ones in the family.

I just don't like being tied into the car.

[Plymouthy Adams]

Norm..some push the envelope..some push their luck....I try not to push my luck so as to not be carried home in a big black envelope. Then there are those that say when your number is up..nothing is going to prevent you going.

[Norm's Coupe]

Norm..some push the envelope..some push their luck....I try not to push my luck so as to not be carried home in a big black envelope. Then there are those that say when your number is up..nothing is going to prevent you going.

Tim,

I'm one that believes you should not worry about it so much. The worry alone could kill you, or at the very least give you an ulcer. So, I guess you could say I live on the edge. I am also one of those that strongly believes no matter what you do, when it's your time to go, you're going to go even if it's in your sleep. So you may as well enjoy life while you can and do what you want, as long as it's legal.

[TodFitch]

I would probably have added shoulder belts if I could have figured out how to make the geometry work and still allow access to the rear seat. As it is I figure lab belts are better than nothing.

For your viewing pleasure here are some flicks:

http://www.archive.org/details/safety_through_seat_belts

http://www.archive.org/details/Signal301959

http://www.archive.org/details/Signal301959_2

[James_Douglas]

I will be installing new belts, of the mid-1960's chrysler chrome big buckle type, in my Desoto soon.

I talked with the folks at www.ssnake-oyl.com and although they don't have it in their catalog, they have the 1950's-1960's British sports car type eye-bolt seat belt anchors.

With these I can "snap" the belts in and out. For a car show, I can take the belts out in 2 minutes. With the bench seats, I can also carry and extra set to snap in in the event that I put 3 to a seat.

Best, James

[Norm's Coupe]

What I find interesting is the fact that the government says we have to wear belts now, and they have to be in all new cars. Also air bags, etc. because they save so many lives. Also make it illegal to carry children in a car without the use of a car seat or safety belt.

Now, take a look at city buses, even a lot of school buses. They don't have belts or airbags and in many states are not required to. Yet 50 to 100 people or more can fit on one bus. Now, if belts and air bags save so many lives why aren't the required on all school buses and city buses. Small children and the elderly ride those buses all the time. There have been many accidents on school buses with kids injured and even killed. Yet they still don't require either on them. It's a double standard as far as I'm concerned.

You also see lots of people at bus stops carrying an infant. They get on the bus and ride it without a car seat for the baby. So...........why is that permitted if you can't do it in a car?

Also, many states do not require adults to wear helmets or glasses to protect the eyes when riding motorcycles. Yet you have no protection at all on a bike like you do with the steel around you in a car. And if you do get in an accident on a bike, you will be thrown off it.

[FMSPEED49]

nope, no seat belts, no outside mirrors, and no turn signals, don't wear a helmet when i ride either, hmm, oh well with the life insurance , i am worth more dead than alive.

[Norm's Coupe]

nope, no seat belts, no outside mirrors, and no turn signals, don't wear a helmet when i ride either, hmm, oh well with the life insurance , i am worth more dead than alive.

Now even I will admit when I use to ride a motorcycle, I did wear a helmet and a full face shield. I did try it once without a helmet and didn't like all the air hitting me in the face at 50 or 60 MPH, not to count eating all those bugs.

[BobT-47P15]

I put lap belts in the front only. Bought them at a swap meet from a Mustang restoration place. They match the seats.

[John Mulders]

No belts in my P15.

Perhaps I should but...

local rules state you have to wear belts (unless you don't have them because the car is too old). Most people don't wear them and police is not stopping them for it (also not for driving through red lights, dui and other things you should not do).

Local politician said that he was against as he heared of someone who broke his colarbone wearing a belt (ok, so how would that person enjoyed the contact with the windshield if he did not wear the belt...).

And another one had the excuse not to wear as he knew of an accident where someone was thrown out of the car, he survived but would not have done that while in the car as that one was flat as a cookie..)

I drive on normally with my belts in all my cars, when I drive the P15 I don't.

Not sure....

Don't think that lapbelts do any good in the P15. The steeringwheel would be a hard contact and not bending.

BTW, when newer safety features are installed it seems that people drive more recklessly..

ABS - you can tailgate even closer

So what would happen with people driving with a metal stick pointing at their chest ? I think I would drive slower.....

Just a thought

John

[james curl]

Lap belts in front of 4 door, belts from local auto parts house. After pulling the lower cushion had to cut oblong holes in the seat pan to get a better line of pull for the belts. The bolts not only go through the floor but through a hat section body brace that runs full width of the body.

[steveplym]

Here's a good site for seat belts. Juliano's was mentioned earlier on this thread. I have bought two sets of seat belts from them before and have been very pleased. Most lap belts are reasonably priced at $19.95. Cheap insurance.

http://www.julianos.com/catalog.html