I just recently bought my 65 Skylark and it doesnt have seatbelts in the rear. Has anyone modified there car to include rear seatbelts? I am assumining I can just add some metal plates and bolt them in. On another note, I would also like to add shoulder belts to the front seats. Can anyone point me in the direction of cars that had the shoulder belts mounted to the seats. I believe the Chrysler Sebring is one.
Good question! I'm interested in doing this too so any tips would be appreciated. Gotta keep the little ones safe while cruizin'! :3gears:
retro 3-point belts I have installed 3-point belts in the rear of my '65 GS, and have the parts but not the time to do the front. Sadly, I do not have any pics at this time, due to misplacing the memory card for our digital camera. I mounted the retractor assembly under the package tray and cut a small slot out of the sheet metal between the seatback and the inside part of the C pillar. The other (fixed) end of the retractable belt was mounted on the fender well, just above the floor. The other short belts and buckles I mounted into the body, just above the frame tunnel. I only needed one bolt and mount for the two belts as they are the ones that are in between the rear passengers and come out between the top and bottom of the rear seat. My favorite part of the install was to swap out the cheesy plastic buckle assemblies for a set of the chrome buckle assemblies used on the front seats. That gives it the original look with modern safety. I'll try to get some pics with my kids' digital camera over the weekend and post them to this thread. If you do a google search for "three point belts" you will find examples of installations and product sites to get you on your way.
thanks for the reply's. i forgot about this one and havent been to the forums in a while. thanks for the heads up on the 3-point. I was also thinking of calling Year One since they are about 45min from me. this was my post a bit ago.. http://www.v8buick.com/showthread.php?t=80374
Andover Restraints, previously mentioned on this board, sells some neat kits. Here's a three point deck-mount rear kit for $170 (2 seatbelts): http://www.andoauto.com/deck.htm Here's the aviator style lap belt showing the metal plate they recommend: http://www.andoauto.com/aviator.htm Anyway, I've seen plenty of people add rear seat belts. The big deal is to use a decent sized piece of metal for EACH bolt to go through, to spread out the force of a tug on the belt. We are not talking a bunch of washers, we are talking steel coupon. The last thing you need is the seatbelt pulling out of the floor. ou:
Here's the Andover installation instructions about adding rear seatbelts. Real good read with the proper cautions laid out: http://www.andoauto.com/instruction2.htm. I don't work for Andover, I just think they explain it better than I can :laugh:
