Rear seat belts

[MikeR]

Hello
I'm considering buying a Vitesse convertible.  Anyone have any experience of 2 or 3 rear seat belts?  Maybe 2x3-point and 1 lap belt?  Also of 2 child seats / boosters in the rear?  Or in a Herald - I'm assuming they're the same size in the rear?
What are my options please?
Thanks for any help.

[heraldcoupe]

Firstly, you won't get three kids in the back of a Herald or Vitesse Convertible, the seat is a lot narrower than a Saloon (where it would still be a squeeze!)

Secondly, unless you're intending to be inventive with some fabrication work, you can only fit lap belts safely. There's no substantial structure to which a shoulder belt can be mounted, the top frame around the rear seat is remarkably flimsy. It will collapse under the kind of stresses exerted by a restrained child in an impact situation.

A pair of lap belts can be easily and safely installed by adding mounting plates into the floor and wheelarch areas, provided these areas are thoroughly checked for rust. It's a few years since I've fitted a child seat and I know the designs (and regulations) have changed. It was always possible though to safely mount most child seats with a static lap belt, but don't expect the sales staff selling you the child seat to have the faintest idea how to work with the old technology!
Whether you're happy retaining children with only a lap belt is something you will have to decide for yourself.

Cheers,
Bill.

[Clive]

As Bill says, 2 lapbelts is the obvious route. Used that in our vitesse for several years, inititially with childseats, later booster seats. Saying that, the actual seat base was removed and a couple of layers of rubber underlay used with black carpet on top. Got the kids down a bit lower as it is very blowy in them (especially on long fast journeys, regularly at motorway+ speeds.

There have been frames built to give strength across the top of the rear seats, but not sure about them really. I considered rebuilding th erear seat frame in 1" box with diagonal braces at the sides behind the trim panels, but it never actually happened.

[MikeR]

Many thanks Bill.  Your first para has likely put an end to my plan... :(

I sat OK with 2 kids in the back of a Stag the other day, and so I figured I could squeeze 3 in a Vitesse (there was one up on a ramp so we couldn't give it a go!) - and if so it would only leave the safety dilemma to wrestle with.  We'd only cosnidered occasional local runs, and have looked at much older cars also eg 1940's Daimler drophead.

Thanks again
Mike

[MikeR]

Thanks also Clive

[Elma fud]

I'm currently fitting 3 point seat belt front and rear to my Herald convertible and like Clive said l added braces along the sides and brackets for the retractors, i'm usinf escort mk5 front seat belts for front and rear, this is the front belt top mounting, i've added stell to close the C section rail and triangle of steel underneath.

This is a pictue of the rear retractor bracket and upper fixing point the upper will not have a pillar loop the belt will just exit the top of the seat through a chrome bezel and the seat belt run from the retractor to the poit where it exits the seat will be protected from the folded hood buy a plastic shield.

This is the rear centre fixing.

In this picture you can see the lower front seat belt retractor mounting bracket and the final belt fixing point just forward of the bottom of the B pillar.

The bracket's l used were avaliable in DIY shops in germany, and made like a lot simiper, but l haven't seen them in B&Q but you may be able to get them in a proper ironmongers they are fench post brackets.


Ofcourse my problem is l can only make it a stong as l can, l can't do a R14 test or crash it into a wall at 40miles an hour to see if they work :-/

[Clive]

I was thinking of the entire rear seat support in 1" box, the existing u channel is pretty flimsy.
Plus where the tubes are use box section, the vertical uprights in 2x1 box and with bracing legs added.

All moot now, it never happened. Wouldn't have been easy either, clearance very tight.

[ahebron]

Do anything like that here in New Zealand and the car has to get an engineers report. If they fail your car at WoF time (MoT) because it has this modification you have to get an engineers report after you have removed it. Bit of a catch 22.

Adrian

[Freebird]

Mike

I have a 1" box section frame around my rear seat bolted to the floor and well braced. It's got static 3 point belts mounted to it. There are some pics in this thread, but restriced access made it tough to get a good view.

Sorry , link no longer available

glen.