Shoulder to lap belt only conversion

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TimothyOnTop

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Feb 23, 2019
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Has anyone switched it the shoulder belts for a lap only seatbelt? And how did you do it? Anyone used the retractors from the back seat up front?
 

ck80

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Has anyone switched it the shoulder belts for a lap only seatbelt? And how did you do it? Anyone used the retractors from the back seat up front?
That's illegal and will get you a ticket... well, everywhere, every time.

The only vehicles and seats eligible to have a lap belt are the places in a vehicle originally equipped as such at the factory. Safety standards evolved requiring the changeover. The last production model anything i can think of wouldve been the 1976-1977 change in light duty trucks, although it's possible some other model somewhere had a different grace period. In no state can you avoid a ticket by just having a lap belt buckled if pulled over and the cop wants to write one and you originally should've had a shoulder belt for that seat.
 
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69hurstolds

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As far as seat belts, 1967 and up cars (anything built after July 1966) must meet the applicable Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS) for their classification, and those cars build prior to that are usually exempt from most state's seat belt laws. Front outboard occupants require at a minimum either type 1 (shoulder/lap single belt) or type 2 (lap with separate shoulder belt) passive belt system that requires no action by the wearer to be effective and has a warning system if those belts are not clicked when front outboard occupants are in the vehicle. That's what covers 99% of our G-bodies. Like a seatbelt light and/or buzzer/chime that works.

There's so many exceptions and changes to these standards it will make your head spin. I haven't looked up the changes from standard to standard, but they supposedly kept getting "safer" as it went. The FMVSS is for manufacturers to install belts that meet the standards. There's even blurbs in there that say if the manufacturer can provide evidence they weren't aware of all the constant changes all the time, there isn't any foul. WTF?

As to what you can do AFTER the fact? I.E., modify the current belt setup? I can't think of an instance you'd be able to get away with it. Lap belts alone are risky anyway, especially in a car without air bags. It's like those old fall protection single wrap leather belts designed to break your back if you fell. Besides, eating a steering wheel or dashboard would suck.

Best thing to do is check your state laws on what is allowed and what isn't. THAT'S the key for ensuring you stay within the laws. For example, SC state law doesn't explicitly specify whether you have to have a shoulder belt or not. Just says "The driver and every occupant of a motor vehicle, when it is being operated on the public streets and highways of this State, must wear a fastened safety belt which complies with all provisions of federal law for its use." But it also defines "motor vehicle" as "a passenger car, truck, van, or recreational vehicle required to be equipped with safety belts by Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 208 (49 CFR 571.208) , manufactured after July, 1966."

There are exceptions, such as a bona-fide medical condition, mail carriers, shcool/day care buses, public transportation (except taxis), parades, emergency vehicles doing emergency operations, etc. So do your homework.
 
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pagrunt

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As far as seat belts, 1967 and up cars (anything built after July 1966) must meet the applicable Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS) for their classification, and those cars build prior to that are usually exempt from most state's seat belt laws. Front outboard occupants require at a minimum either type 1 (shoulder/lap single belt) or type 2 (lap with separate shoulder belt) passive belt system that requires no action by the wearer to be effective and has a warning system if those belts are not clicked when front outboard occupants are in the vehicle. That's what covers 99% of our G-bodies. Like a seatbelt light and/or buzzer/chime that works.
Per my experice from my old '72 Monte, GM changed they type/style of the shoulder belt in Jan '72. Went from having basicly two sets of belts for waist & shoulder to one set with three belts that the waist male buckle has a key hole for the detachable shoulder belt with everyone's favorite buzzer/warning light set up.
 

ck80

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Per my experice from my old '72 Monte, GM changed they type/style of the shoulder belt in Jan '72. Went from having basicly two sets of belts for waist & shoulder to one set with three belts that the waist male buckle has a key hole for the detachable shoulder belt with everyone's favorite buzzer/warning light set up.
In the 1976-77 pickup changeover they also did some oddness. They adapted something similar to the original lap belt retractor unit from 1976-down on the floor, while adding a second unit for the shoulder portion mounted about waist/lower rib high on the side of the cab, but only one buckle. In 1978 they shifted to the single self contained unit that floor mounted only.

I think they were trying to make a design that worked for them, as, starting sometime in 1976 production run, the threaded holes and reinforcements were present in the cabs at head height for a shoulder belt, but, they were either just painted or they had a plastic trim panel covering it up with no hole in it. Either way did not install the shoulder belts from the factory in '76 in the c/k
 

pagrunt

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I think they were trying to make a design that worked for them, as, starting sometime in 1976 production run, the threaded holes and reinforcements were present in the cabs at head height for a shoulder belt, but, they were either just painted or they had a plastic trim panel covering it up with no hole in it. Either way did not install the shoulder belts from the factory in '76 in the c/k
That reminds me that the rear outboardseats had the key hole & mounting positions for simular shoulder belts in my '72. Saw them replacing the rear shelf trim.
 

ck80

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That reminds me that the rear outboardseats had the key hole & mounting positions for simular shoulder belts in my '72. Saw them replacing the rear shelf trim.
I'm *probably* going to wind up converting over to the newer style, assuming the floor mounted portion allows, in my '77.

The belts work, but tend to lock occasionally and are pretty faded. I've looked into the places that will take your old hardware and buckles and install new belts, but, I'm not sure what's inside those retractors or if they'd have comparable parts for a '77.

So, in the meantime, it's a project that sits as it's unnecessary.
 

abbey castro

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Why would you want to do this that makes any common sense. Face in the steering wheel would give you a definite scar. If you don't believe in been safe just don't wear a belt at all.
 
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