Safer seats (before I die)?

[66Belv]

Hi,

My current splitbench front seat (that needs alot of fixing) only has a lapbelt. I'd like to replace it -- while I'm at it, replace it with something that will give me added safety.

The car is a 66 Belvdedere. Does anyone know where I can get seats for this car and then how I could add a shoulder harness ?

Thank you,

Eric/66 Belv

[sbuc72]

what i would do, is find a late model LHS or Cadilac or Lincoln (some big car with a bench, assuming you wanna keep it as a bench), buy the interior, make some floor brackets. drop the seats in, and weld in a roof bar, and throw in a 4 point harness ('x' across the chest).
but if you wanna ditch the bench, and pickup 2 buckets, just find a 'B' Body interior (i think they'll match your floor mounts with very little modding) and drop them in, and put in the roof bar/cage and do the 4 point.

Thats just what i'd do
.sbuc72

[66Belv]

Thanks sbuc72,

with that LHS or Cadilac or Lincoln, I'd look like a

"...make some floor brackets. drop the seats in, and weld in a roof bar, and throw in a 4 point harness ('x' across the chest).
but if you wanna ditch the bench, and pickup 2 buckets, just find a 'B' Body interior (i think they'll match your floor mounts with very little modding) and drop them in, and put in the roof bar/cage and do the 4 point."

but what if I've got no tools, workspace and am a little lazy?

What does it take to put in a roof bar/cage and do the 4 point? Where can I find parts, supplies?

My face will look like this with those lapbelts. Can you believe those ^**#!! airlines still use only lapbelts for safety?

Thanks again

[GaryS]

You can do like I did in my '64 Valiant convertible. I used bucket seats from a late Sebring convertible. They have the shoulder belt integrated into the seat and you can use the stock anchor locations.

You will have to drill new holes for the seat mounts and the holes will have to be reinforced since the seat takes much of the impact in a collision.

The brackets to mount the seat are easily made with a hack saw, a drill and steel angle stock that you can get at Lowes.

There are electrical connections for the belts and they require some mods, but are not that difficult if you use only the basic functions of the seat belt control module.

[66Belv]

Thanks GaryS,

So who wants to go into the aftermarket Mopar seat business with me? There aren't any vendors for this? I can practically get 24k gold, monogrammed valve stem covers and a 6sp OD trans for my B body, but not "bolt in" aftermarket seats? Aren't there any sources for 3 or 4 point safety harness seats that will work with a B body?

OK, you're idea sounds good, although I'm not too keen on the look of late model seats. I'll HAVE to get a service manual for my car and find out where the seat belt module is and how it works. And maybe talk to some racers, who've welded a roll bar or two.

Thanks

[sbuc72]

66Belv, Trust me. If you could start doing Mopar Seats for classics, i would prolly buy a set. As i had a 72 Charger (with lapbelts) and i accidently drove it into a telephone pole (not my fault) but long story short, it look a bunch of surguries to put my humpty dumpty face back together (after a buttload of cash, im back to normal). but yeah. lapbelts are a joke when it come to head on impacts.
For my Challenger, i'm already looking at a set of Ricaro Racing seats with 4pt racing harnesses since the original buckets/belts are junk if you get into a situation that you can't get out of.

.sbuc72

[66Belv]

sbuc72,

Glad to hear that you're OK. I was in an accident with an ex-girlfriend about 11 years ago. She was more hurt than me and I felt horrible about it (even though it wasn't my fault). Since then, wearing my belts --- and making my passengers do the same has become a priority (but for some reason, I won't wear a motorcycle helmet --- yes, I'm stupid). Those lapbelts are a liability.

Ricaro's are usually pretty expensive? I'll do a websearch and find some sites selling them to see how they look.

Again, it's good to see you're SAFELY back o the road.

How does this "Moparseats.com" sound?

66Belv

[68Dodgecharger]

If your going to do some racing with it and thats what your wanting it for. Try Summit Racing and they have seats for racing and shoulder belts.

[GaryS]

The seat belt module is from the Sebring convertible, not the Plymouth.

I'm not especially fond of late model seats either, but they are far more comfortable than the original Mopar buckets. I have them in my '66 Coronet, and besides the lack of a shoulder belt, they are not comfortable for anything more than a short drive.

When upholstered to match the original interior material and color, the new seats don't look out of place.

[sbuc72]

GaryS, You got any pics? I'd love to see what your interior looks like.
.sbuc72

[GaryS]

This isn't a good view of the seats, but you can see part of them.

[GaryS]

It doesn't want to attach, so will try and put it on a web page and link.

[gahi]

i saw a 67 camaro with the stock low back seats and it had a five point belt in it that bolted to the floor in back of the seats and was held in place by brackets near the top of the seats. it looked like it worked pretty well i think the belts were made by simpson. maybe this is a common setup for camaros, I dont know. hope this helps good luck

[1972roadrunner]

how the hell do you shift a car like that? whats with the little lever next to the buttons?? i've never seen anything like that... (except on the show "3000 to graceland" )

weird...what kind of tranny does sumthin like that have? nice interior though...

[ehostler]

That's a push button automatic. Look to the left of the speedo and you will see the push buttons and the parking brake lever.

Gary - I really like those seats. They almost look as if they belong. Where did you get the upholstry, to do that?

[66Belv]

68Dodgecharger -- thanks for pointing me to Summit Racing!!


GaryS -- OK, will have to find a late seat belt module -- thanks for clearing that up! Also, I'm envious of your front seat setup --- looks GREAT, whether the seats are semi-original or not....

Gahi -- thanks for the Simpson advice, will check them out too.

I'm in the New England area, so feel free to let me know of any Mopar gatherings.

66belv

[GaryS]

I worked with a small upholstery shop here in Denton, TX. The aqua material is not quite a perfect match for the paint, but it's very close.

They did the seats and sunvisors, and I did the rest. As you can tell, it's not the factory pattern either, but I tried to keep it looking period correct. The console is home made and I'm going to make some changes to give it a more stock appearance.

I'll try to attach a photo of the back seat.

[3bolt main]

if you are planning to race this car at any NHRA sanctioned track read the rule book on after market seats and if you put in a roll bar make sure that it is up to standards also but if that is not your plan forget i spoke

[icycleboy]

That's a big thumbs up on your interior work. I used buckets out of a Toyota Celica in an A-convert, and the big difference was in lateral support while turning hard. How about those Sebring seats, do they keep you planted during hard cornering.

My '69 wagon currently has a completely gutted dash, a torn old bench seat and a disintegrating carpet, so you better believe that your picture was an inspiration. Very cool.