AUSTIN VERT SOLVES A SEAT BELT PROBLEM

[Austin Vert]

Hi Folks,

I don't think this topic has been dealt with before, but if so sorry. I'll jump right in anyway.

When it comes to seat belt discussions regarding our '71's, '72's and '73's, it kind of opens up a can of worms as to a mixture of what brands, styles, types, colors are out there in a World market today. As well as what type or style of seat belts are considered safe and legal or illegal around the World in various Countries, States, and Cities. It's a real mixed bag in that sense.

However, my topic today concerns or is focused on any Mustang driver, that has found that their three point seat belts do not have enough length in them, so when the person pulls the belt out, locks it in, and then finds that they have difficulty leaning forward at all to reach forward and make any necessary adjustments around the general dash area, high or low. This exact problem has happened to me in my '73 Convertible, but i have found a cheap and good solution to solve this issue.

I'm pretty sure that the original factory belts were lap style only back in the day, (please correct me if i'm wrong there). and when buckled up, allowed the person to lean forward to reach out to the dash area without much trouble. Since the early Seventies, laws have been upgraded in some World Countries and States that have banned lap belt style belts to be used. My State decided that any classic car from 1973 on wards, had to have three point belts installed to make the car legally safe to drive. So when i bought my Vert back in 2011, the first thing i had to do was get rid of all the factory lap seat belts and upgrade to lap and sash style. This was not an easy process. It also left me with a problem of not having enough length when the new belts were fully pulled out and buckled in. I can't lean forward at all properly to reach the dash area.

The good news is that after looking around recently, i discovered you can buy seat belt extenders. They are safe, practical and inexpensive to buy. I bought mine off the net, and decided to try 2 different styles. One style is where you attached the extender to your shoulder male buckle, and the other style extender gets attached to the female floor buckle mount. I have tried both styles, and both work very well. I chose to use the style that attaches to the floor mount. They look great and tuck away neatly, not getting in the way. I can now lean fully forward and reach any area of my dash with ease. Problem solved! They can be easily attached and detached if needed for any reason. The only potential problem i can see, is please check with your Local or State Governments to make sure they consider using extenders road legal. In my State, they are completely legal. Your's may not.

Please see photos attached showing my newly installed lap and sash belts back in 2011, and the new extenders i have just purchased.

Many thanks,

Greg.

 

[Stanglover]

As we know, fitting 3 point belts in a vert is not as easy as in a coupe or fastback.
In a coupe or fastback, a drop sash in effect extends the length of the belt. In my installation, I have no problem leaning forward, but then again, I'm a smaller person, so length of the belt is not so much a problem anyway. Actually, with the belt set I bought, I found that the belt material when fully retracted, was too much for the space provided in the retractor case, meaning that the belt would not fully retract especially when using a drop sash. To remedy that, the belt would need to be shortened and that would require professional restitching the the retainer pin goes in the retractor.
Your use of an extender is a good idea for many I'm sure. It appears that you, like me, chose to use a fixed wire type buckle and that alone makes buckling up much easier....... unless the purist out there want to stay with the original belts. My choice is for safety over originality.

 

[Austin Vert]

As we know, fitting 3 point belts in a vert is not as easy as in a coupe or fastback.
In a coupe or fastback, a drop sash in effect extends the length of the belt. In my installation, I have no problem leaning forward, but then again, I'm a smaller person, so length of the belt is not so much a problem anyway. Actually, with the belt set I bought, I found that the belt material when fully retracted, was too much for the space provided in the retractor case, meaning that the belt would not fully retract especially when using a drop sash. To remedy that, the belt would need to be shortened and that would require professional restitching the the retainer pin goes in the retractor.
Your use of an extender is a good idea for many I'm sure. It appears that you, like me, chose to use a fixed wire type buckle and that alone makes buckling up much easier....... unless the purist out there want to stay with the original belts. My choice is for safety over originality.

Hi Geoff,

Thanks for your reply.

Yes, i should have mentioned that my short length belt problem is more related to those, like myself who own a Convertible and had to go through the process of converting over to a 3 point, lap and sash style setup. As you say, seat belts that have a problem of not retracting properly can be a right pain in the butt as well. Also, check to see whether cutting and re stitching your belt to shorten it, is legally allowed in your State or area. Could be illegal. And yes, now with the semi rigid extender, buckling up is now a breeze. It drops and tucks away between the side of the seat and the center console if needed. Works just great!

Cheers mate!

 

[Stanglover]

Hi Geoff,

Thanks for your reply.

Yes, i should have mentioned that my short length belt problem is more related to those, like myself who own a Convertible and had to go through the process of converting over to a 3 point, lap and sash style setup. As you say, seat belts that have a problem of not retracting properly can be a right pain in the butt as well. Also, check to see whether cutting and re stitching your belt to shorten it, is legally allowed in your State or area. Could be illegal. And yes, now with the semi rigid extender, buckling up is now a breeze. It drops and tucks away between the side of the seat and the center console if needed. Works just great!

Cheers mate!

Thanks for your response.
Personally, I wasn't worried about legal or not, but I do get the point. When I was rebuilding my belts, I'm sure you've read my posts on that, I found that the anchor point for the belt within the real, was only a 1/4" plastic pin slipped into a loop on the belt. Now, I agree this might be an issue if the entire belt was needed to go around a larger driver or passenger and the anchor point was therefore stressed. In my case, that will never be an issue, being a short-***! As for the wife, well .........
If one was to shorten the webbing, someone like a shoe repairer with access to an industrial machine and high strength thread, could do a safe job. That said of course, should the worst ever happen and the belt break at that point, it could lead to legal action.
See post #26 P 2 for the pics > can't find them on the computer for some reason

https://7173mustangs.com/threads/i-...her-set-of-front-seat-belts.43478/post-441267

 

[roboconklin]

Hi Folks,

I don't think this topic has been dealt with before, but if so sorry. I'll jump right in anyway.

When it comes to seat belt discussions regarding our '71's, '72's and '73's, it kind of opens up a can of worms as to a mixture of what brands, styles, types, colors are out there in a World market today. As well as what type or style of seat belts are considered safe and legal or illegal around the World in various Countries, States, and Cities. It's a real mixed bag in that sense.

However, my topic today concerns or is focused on any Mustang driver, that has found that their three point seat belts do not have enough length in them, so when the person pulls the belt out, locks it in, and then finds that they have difficulty leaning forward at all to reach forward and make any necessary adjustments around the general dash area, high or low. This exact problem has happened to me in my '73 Convertible, but i have found a cheap and good solution to solve this issue.

I'm pretty sure that the original factory belts were lap style only back in the day, (please correct me if i'm wrong there). and when buckled up, allowed the person to lean forward to reach out to the dash area without much trouble. Since the early Seventies, laws have been upgraded in some World Countries and States that have banned lap belt style belts to be used. My State decided that any classic car from 1973 on wards, had to have three point belts installed to make the car legally safe to drive. So when i bought my Vert back in 2011, the first thing i had to do was get rid of all the factory lap seat belts and upgrade to lap and sash style. This was not an easy process. It also left me with a problem of not having enough length when the new belts were fully pulled out and buckled in. I can't lean forward at all properly to reach the dash area.

The good news is that after looking around recently, i discovered you can buy seat belt extenders. They are safe, practical and inexpensive to buy. I bought mine off the net, and decided to try 2 different styles. One style is where you attached the extender to your shoulder male buckle, and the other style extender gets attached to the female floor buckle mount. I have tried both styles, and both work very well. I chose to use the style that attaches to the floor mount. They look great and tuck away neatly, not getting in the way. I can now lean fully forward and reach any area of my dash with ease. Problem solved! They can be easily attached and detached if needed for any reason. The only potential problem i can see, is please check with your Local or State Governments to make sure they consider using extenders road legal. In my State, they are completely legal. Your's may not.

Please see photos attached showing my newly installed lap and sash belts back in 2011, and the new extenders i have just purchased.

Many thanks,

Greg.

I have a 71 Fastback. It had the same problem. I solved it by buying a lap belt just for the buckle end . It was longer than the original one. It has an adjustable length . It was not cheap, but it was the way I chose to solve the same issue that you had. My 3 point is an aircraft release style.