3-pt seat belts for 67

[67rcks]

I am looking for some better way to install 3 point seatbelts than mounting them near the door e.g. as shown at Front & Rear Shoulder Belts. I would hate to drill, mess with the side panel and reinforce the area for upper bracket. Also, 67 does not have factory mounting at the roof to place the upper bracket there instead. And making some would destroy the headliner. Not good.

I would place the belt assembly to the trunk, under the rear windshield, similarly as in 90s lx stangs, and route the belts from there, using two factory mounting points for remainning ends. Anybody tried this approach? Are there any catches that I am possibly overlooking?

 

[Calponycarsmike]

One thing you need to consider is the angle that the belt will be at. If you have the belt mounted to a point where the shoulder belt will be below the shoulder, when you are in an accident the force will not just hold you back, but can push you down causing major injuries to the spine and more.

 

[suki243]

There are two other options for the front belts.

One would be to get a roll bar. Mustangs plus sells them. But those are huge and stick out like a sore thumb What i was thing was maybe if i could get piece of steel tubing and and get it welded along the top of the roof and perhaps have it come down on the sides where the rear window and front window meet (that chrome piece) right behind it so it's somewhat hidden. Paint the tube the color of the headliner and then attach the seat belts to there. possibly even a 4 point.

The other would be to get a seat that has the belt built in. or maybe even attach the belt to a certain seat? it'd have to be a latching one though so it doesn't go forward in an accident.

Just some ideas i'm thinking of feel free to criticize.

The important thing to remember is that they need to be attached to a place higher than your shoulder, if its lower in the event of an accident your spine will be compressed.

 

[67rcks]

This is the first prototype (let's call it). Those belts come from mid 80s toyota. Length is OK, but it has some weird tensioner that I have to work on. There is a ball that needs to be perfectly seated otherwise the belt is locked. The structure seems to me pretty solid and ios almost invisible from the trunk.

 

[calpolymustang]

I installed seats from a 3 Series BMW Convertible (2003).
Yes, holes need to be drilled in the floor, but its a clean setup that has the shoulder harness built into the seat. The belt goes down inside the seat back.

Also check out Sebring Convertible seats.

 

[S-Car-Go]

Calpoymustang,
Did those BMW seats lift your thighs up any? I mean did you lose space between the steering wheel and your legs?

 

[67rcks]

nice looking, but I can't imagine having those in anything classic. even if, probably underseat floor would have to go and stronger floor would be needed too to hold the weight

 

[wicked93gs]

back when i had my '67 I used the stock mounting location above the headliner, I used a plastic...grommet i guess you would call it to route the bolt through the headlinder cleanly, it ended up looking pretty good...I used belts out of a Nissan Pulsar...which practically bolted right up once you bent the mounting bracket...it does modify your headliner, but not too bad...next time I plan on using a rollbar...but then I want the safety and chasis stiffening benefits of a rollbar too

 

[67rcks]

Maybe I am wrong but there ain't any factory mounting point on 67 under the headliner. I read somewhere that 68 year is the first with such point, as well as additional safety improvements e.g. collapsible steering wheel. In addition, belt assembly would be quite in the way for passengers enteirng to the back seat.

 

[calpolymustang]

S-Car-Go :

Yes, the seat bottoms are higher. So far, I have only installed the passenger side, and I am having an upholstery friend thin out the padding from the bottom cushion. That should allow me to have a helmet on an not touch the headliner. The seats weigh 70 lbs a piece, but they are full power. They were originally grey with leather in very good condition, but I'm dying them black, so people wont notice that I have BMW seats.

Previously, I had seats from an 89 RX-7, but they're torn up and were using the Mustang 2-point belts. These are 35lbs each. I still have the RX-7 seats on the drivers side for another week or so. I'm 6'7", so leg room and wheel clearance are important issues, even with an AOD (a clutch would be a nightmare for me). I bought a 14" Motolita wheel for my stock column, but will likely add a tilt column soon.

By the way, Ididit will be coming out with a tilt column that will be splined for the original wheels. Should be out in a month or two.

 

[SNAKEPILOT]

Maybe I am wrong but there ain't any factory mounting point on 67 under the headliner. I read somewhere that 68 year is the first with such point, as well as additional safety improvements e.g. collapsible steering wheel. In addition, belt assembly would be quite in the way for passengers enteirng to the back seat.

1967 Shelbys came with a rollbar that bolts to the roof. I added a Shelby rollbar to my '67 and yes there were captured nuts already there. Maybe its Fastbacks only thing.

Isn't having your belts going through the package shelf going to make it unihabitable for rear passengers?

Bad photo, but you get the idea..

 

[cupcake]

Some 67's have the upper seat belt/rollbar nut, some do not. But they ALL have a place for it. Its a 1/2 hole next to a square hole. Its for a clip type nut like the one holding the fenders etc on. I usually use a weld in type fastener. But the clip in one works fine