Seat belts?

[Andy-M]

Hi all,

Just a quicky, does anyone know when seatbelts were introduced into the series 2A, and where were they located.

Any pics would be good, and finaly does anyone know what year compulsory seatbelts in vehicles was brought in?

Thanks Andy.

[Phoenix]

I believe it's post 67 that must have seatbelts.

[isuzurover]

I believe it's post 67 that must have seatbelts.

As I posted in another thread:

EDIT - ADR 4 is the relevant one - Seatbelts became mandatory for FRONT seats from 1 January 1969.
http://www.monash.edu.au/muarc/reports/muarc248.pdf

But I believe LR started fitting them in about 1964. My 1968 x-military IIA did not have belts or brackets when I bought it. I bought brackets from a SIII from a wreckers.

[JDNSW]

Seat belts have been fitted to Landrovers from the mid fifties, if not earlier. They became a factory option with the 2a, although dealers were fitting them on request back in Series 1 time. See the 2a and 3 Optional Equipment parts catalogue for details of the various brackets and mounts fitted.

John

[Fusion]

My 64' model didn't have belts but i have put them in . Got all my seat belt stuff out of my donor 70' model .:)

[Andy-M]

Thanks all.

I will have to start looking for belts and anchors. The new Landy has not had them fitted berore (68 series 2A, lights in guards).

I think I will call her "Mongrel", seems a fitting name for a bitza.

Cheers Andy.

[Sideroad]

I can have a look, i think my '68 109 has the same as the S3 and I may have some S3 spare mounts.
Let me know if you still need them.
0412055388
Nathan

[Lotz-A-Landies]

Thanks all.

I will have to start looking for belts and anchors. The new Landy has not had them fitted berore (68 series 2A, lights in guards).

I think I will call her "Mongrel", seems a fitting name for a bitza.

Cheers Andy.
Andy

1968 is a bit early for a lights in mudguards (Suffix g) this was only used between April 1969 to April 1971, so if the original spec, your vehicle is at least a 1969 model.

Addit: Just did some checking - the seat belt anchorages became standard fittings on UK spec vehicles from "Suffix D" June 1967 and were optional equipment for other markets from that date. To hazard a guess Australia would have followed suit not much later as the seat belts were mandatory in Australian cars also in 1967.

Diana

[isuzurover]

To hazard a guess Australia would have followed suit not much later as the seat belts were mandatory in Australian cars also in 1967.[/COLOR][/I]


Not quite - 1 Jan 1969 - see my post.

[Lotz-A-Landies]

Not quite - 1 Jan 1969 - see my post.
ADR 4 may have been gazetted on 1 Jan 1969 - but Australian manufactured cars all had seatbelts from 1967, the HR Holden, Ford Falcon XR, BMC cars (mini and 1100) and Chrysler VE (a mandatory $10 option??? - Hows that an option).

[isuzurover]

ADR 4 may have been gazetted on 1 Jan 1969 - but Australian manufactured cars all had seatbelts from 1967, the HR Holden, Ford Falcon XR, BMC cars (mini and 1100) and Chrysler VE (a mandatory $10 option??? - Hows that an option).

That's as maybe - the fact remains that you can legally register a vehicle made before 1 Jan 1969 without seatbelts.

I have personally registered 2x 1968 landies without belts.

[Lotz-A-Landies]

That's as maybe - the fact remains that you can legally register a vehicle made before 1 Jan 1969 without seatbelts.

I have personally registered 2x 1968 landies without belts.
Ben

Don't get me wrong on this, I think we are agreeing of sorts. Yes ADR 4 was gazetted on 1 Jan 1969, however I believe that there were various state based legislation/regulation which required seatbelts to be fitted to cars before 1969. e.g. S.A. requires seatbelts (meeting a particular AS) be fitted to all vehicles built after 1966 and belts meeting ADR 4 after 31 Dec 1968.http://www.ezyreg.sa.gov.au -Automotive Instruction 70 (http://www.ezyreg.sa.gov.au/pdfs/personal_transport/light_vehicles_pdfs/AutomotiveInstruction70.pdf) It seems that the 1967-1968 gap will depend on which State you live.

However having been around during the advent of mandatory seat-belts in Aussie cars (I can even sing you the 1966 decimal currency song) I seem to remember that until the late 1970's most Land Rovers were registered as light commercial vehicles and as such were not required to have seat belts till quite a lot later than cars, although I can not give you a date.

I would be interested to find the particular dates between cars and light commercial vehicles?

Diana

[Bigbjorn]

Holdens had front lap/sash belts fitted as standard from Jan. 1969. Before that they were optional. The seat belts were added to the bottom of the manufacturing invoice as the belts were exempt sales tax.

[Lotz-A-Landies]

Holdens had front lap/sash belts fitted as standard from Jan. 1969. Before that they were optional. The seat belts were added to the bottom of the manufacturing invoice as the belts were exempt sales tax.
Brian

I don't want to dispute your recollection, however our 1967 HR Holden station wagon (NSW, Pagewood build) was a base model and had seat belts. The fact they were fitted really annoyed my father as he didn't want to wear the belts and went out of the way to pretend. He would have never ordered a car that was optioned up with the belts.

Just my recollection as a teenager.

Diana

[Bigbjorn]

Diana, I was there. Recall it clearly as the seat belts had to be retro-fitted to plant stock for sale in 1970 (before compliance plates) and the preprinted invoices altered by hand. yours could have been a dealer order with belts, or could have been fitted by the dealer.

[Lotz-A-Landies]

Diana, I was there. Recall it clearly
Brian

I will have to defer to your knowledge and suggested options.

Could there have been different specifications for each state? Particularly as back in those days there were NSW assembly plants as well as the larger plants in Melbourne and Adelaide etc.

Diana

[isuzurover]

My father's 1967 Holden HR special had belts for all 5 seats.

However - as mentioned above - I registered 2x 1968 landies with no belts at all in QLD. One in 1996 and one in 1998. It was no problem either time - I simply told them that the vehicle was never fitted with seat belts (which was true), and no further questions were asked.

I have never heard of anyone having problems (re)registering a pre-1969 vehicle without belts. Have you????

[Bigbjorn]

Brian

I will have to defer to your knowledge and suggested options.

Could there have been different specifications for each state? Particularly as back in those days there were NSW assembly plants as well as the larger plants in Melbourne and Adelaide etc.

Diana

The only state to state difference I can recall was between NSW and Qld. as to Qld. requiring fitting of a left hand external mirror but this was about 1972. Pagewood was building Statesman, coupes, and anything with a 350 engine other than a One Tonner for Qld. zone. Acacia Ridge was building Toranas and panel vans (other than those with a 350) for NSW zone. Vans with a special vehicle order for a 350 came from Dandenong, and 350 One Tonners from Elizabeth. A matter of which plant had the appropriate framing and drilling jigs & fixtures.

Seat belts were a factory option before compulsory fitment and were not popular. Popularity was increasing towards 69-70 and some plant stock were built with belts. Mostly belts were fitted to dealer orders which were presold, although I suppose some dealer stock may have been ordered that way. Country dealers rarely, if ever, ordered belts, certainly not for stock, claiming nobody in the bush wanted them.

Late 1970 not long beforeChristmas shutdown, we built a run of cars (HG's) with full tint armour glass windscreens to run out the stock of this item. The ADR's were about to regulate windscreen tint and full tint would not be permitted after 31/12/70. Dealers squealed when they found this item on their invoices when they had not ordered it. With typical GM aplomb nothing was done, offered, or credited. Probably would have cost more to process a credit as this was a quite low cost option. Later, the optional Salisbury diff. was run out by fitting every car down the line with one until stock was exhausted. Dealers did really squeal at this as a Salisbury was a relatively expensive and thus unpopular option. A credit was given if the car was a presold dealer order, but not for a stock vehicle.

[Newbs-IIA]

So if my landy has "ADR4" on the compliance plate, then it should have seatbelts and if not i will have to fit them for roadworthy??? is this right?

I'm in QLD by the way and the previous owner redgestered my 11/1970 IIA in 1995 without seatbelts - no problems, just said as someone else said before "this car didn't come with seatbelts"

[JDNSW]

So if my landy has "ADR4" on the compliance plate, then it should have seatbelts and if not i will have to fit them for roadworthy??? is this right?...

As mentioned above, most Landrovers were not registered as cars but as commercial vehicles, and presumably would be if registered now, and that ADR does not apply to commercial vehicles.

I am not sure when compliance plates started to be fitted to commercial vehicles - my 1970 Landrover does not have one.

The above discussion is the legal aspects of seat belts - if the vehicle is used, it would be sensible to fit seat belts as these were the biggest single step ever in road safety, and since Landrovers were in some cases fitted with seat belts from the early fifties (and are a bolt-on job for Series 2 on) there is no real grounds, even on historical grounds for not fitting them.

John

[mecc]

From information that I have seen from the N.S.W. RTA , seat belts are mandatory on all vehicles 1965 and onwards .
David.

[JDNSW]

From information that I have seen from the N.S.W. RTA , seat belts are mandatory on all vehicles 1965 and onwards .
David.

If that is the case it will be one for retrofitting - until quite recently (last ten years) I had not seen a heavy vehicle with seat belts, and even for other vehicles - the field crew I was working on had a fleet of new vehicles in 1965 - and none of them had even seat belt anchorages, although none were cars (AB 120 International utes and Landcruisers).

If NSW was requiring seat belts on all vehicles from 1965 I would have expected to have heard of the retrospective aspects, since that is where I live.

Can you give a reference?

John

[Blknight.aus]

Thanks all.

I will have to start looking for belts and anchors. The new Landy has not had them fitted berore (68 series 2A, lights in guards).

I think I will call her "Mongrel", seems a fitting name for a bitza.

Cheers Andy.



Ive got a set somewhere. your welcom to them and if they are no good Ive had to replace the seat box re-enforcers in kermit with the ones with the seat belt holes in them so If you want them and your not in a hurry I can get those out for ya.

[sclarke]

Throw a spanner in the works......

Volvo fitted then Std since 1956....... and yes they were ugly back then...

Seatbelts were designed for cars in the 30's and in 1955 a SAE commitee was formed to have them introduced.
1955 Volvo, Ford and Chrysler marketed them as an option.
1956 Volvo fitted them as Std.
1964 US started fitting them as STD
1965 Compulsory as fitment in all cars in Europe
1967 UK fits Belts as Std and Australia introduces law to have them fitted as std
1969 Aust law makes all cars post 65 have 3 point seatbelts fitted to front seats
1970 Victoria, Aust requires 3-point belts, front and rear and mandates use, front and rear
1971 New South Wales requires use of seat belts
1972 Last Australian state law requiring belt use, front and rear, goes into effect 1/1

http://www.atsb.gov.au/publications/1985/pdf/Belt_Analysis_4.pdf

Mmmmmmm
Volvo.. id kill to have one of these.....

http://www.oldtimergala.de/content/produktfotos/1185378406VolvoPV56_DelkKL_preview.jpg


Clarkie

[Blknight.aus]

Im showing the ADR's as being

seatbelts required for the front seat after 68

seatbelts mandatory on all seats in either 71,72,74 or 75 depending on which particular ADR I decide to read on the day.....

but heres the twister they are only showing up as a passanger vehicle...

soooo..

IMHO it would depend on which way your rover was registers for what year but if you had a pre68 rover then you dont have to have seatbelts BUT I also remember reading somewhere that if your vehicle had seatbelts as an option during the twilight period (call it 68-75 for the sake of argument) then they must now be fitted.

This is part of the reason I searched so long for a well chassied 66 IIa.

[Andy-M]

Hi Dave.

Thanks for your kind offer, I have another 4 Door 2A wagon I am thinking of purchasing soon, I intend to have a look at it this Friday with a bit of luck. I am hoping it may have belts fitted.

I am trying to grab a couple of vehicles to build up some spair parts, Mongrel has a great Galvo chasis with a good 2 1/4 deisel. so it will form the base of the build up. Because I have a couple of kids and Mongrel is going to be used for camping, I am sticking with the 4 door wagon set up.

A mate informed me of this crowd </TITLE> <META NAME="DESCRIPTION" CONTENT=""> <META NAME="KEYWORDS" CONTENT=""> <META name="robots" content="all"> <META name="title" content="Hemco Industries Australia"> <META name="description" content="Hemco Australia designs and manufactures int (http://www.hemco.com.au/seatbelts.html)
The prices seem o/k so they may be another option.

Thanks for your help Andy.

[LRO jr]

hi

where are the seatbelt mounting points in a series 2a.

lro jr

[JDNSW]

Seat belts were not standard on the 2a, but a variety of anchorages were used and are interchangeable up to the end of Series 3 production.

Outer lower anchorage is a bracket that bolts to the edge of the seat box and door frame at the bottom rear of the door.

Inner anchorage (usually shared between outer and centre belts) is bolted through the ledge at the front of the tray, behind the seat box. It has a variety of reinforcing methods, the latest (S3) using a strap back to the chassis bracket that supports the tray.

The upper outer anchorage is where there was most variation, depending on body type and date. If there is a canvas top, late models had a threaded anchorage incorporated in the top rail of the front of the tub. Where a hard top or cab is fitted, the anchorage was to this. In early 2a vehicles this woould have been a hole in the skin reinforced with a steel plate outside. A better solution is the reinforcing bracket fitted inside the hardtop/cab and attached top and bottom and front from late S3.

No S2a originally had inetia reel belts, but you can fit the same setup as the late S3, where the reel was behind the seat back, bolted to the front panel of the tub, which was reinforced by a doubler.

I think this has been gone through in another thread recently.

John

[Lotz-A-Landies]

Please do a search before you ask a question that has been asked and answered before.

Diana
Moderator