Thread: Vic Seatbelt rules prior to 1967

I have no idea about Vic but I do know that in Qld most transport dpt and police have no clue what is legal or otherwise in series landrovers. I was pulled up twice in a month a few years ago. First was the transport dpt had me on the side of the road and the fellow informed me that in needed blue compliance plates to have my belts in otherwise i had to remove them(?).
So i did , then came the police officer who wanted to book me for not having seat belt on. I got out of that by informing him I had just removed em cause it was allegedly illegal to have them without a compliance plate in my engine bay. Oh and the seat belts were all fitted to original seat belt mounting points even. Go figure hey. my advice put em in anyway.

G'day Folks

In Qld, if a vehicle is not fitted originally with seatbelts there is no retrospective law that makes the fitting of them compulsory,but if the vehicle is fitted with them they must be worn,as for commercial chassis vehicles, which Series Landrovers come under,seatbelts were not mandatory until 1 January 1972,so, if the vehicle was not fitted with them it is not required for commercial chassised vehicles before that date,cars(I.E. passenger vehicles),they were mandatory in all seating as of 1 January 1968, prior to that only required in fronts seats as of 1 January 1966, they were new car optional fitting from 1962 (EJ Holden etc.) to 1966.

I am aware that Qld regulations were dated about 2 years after NSW & Vic.

It is quite possible that if seatbelts are fitted to pre 1972 Landrovers or pre 1968 cars then a Qld transport blue compliance plate would need to be fitted to show that they are engineering wise compliant, but, post 72 vehicles (series 3's) had to have lap or lap sash belts fitted,at the advent of ADR's in 1972.

There is currently a controversy re the carrying of children in historically registered vehicles, as the Qld transport minister has overuled the Aust National Road Rules,by banning all children under 16 from traveling in a Historic registered (Special Interest)vehicle without an engineered compliant seatbelt, this includes interstate vehicles visiting, I am led to believe.

cheers

Can't help with Vic, but NSW doesn't need then for pre 1965.

Don't need a windscreen either for pre 65, which the inspectors don't seem to know.

Regards
Max P

Originally Posted by omnibus

... Go figure hey. my advice put em in anyway.

The chance of death or serious injury in any crash is significantly greater for unrestrained occupants over restrained occupants.

AFAIK the 1967 date only applies to motor cars nationwide, for light commercial vehicles seat belts only became mandatory in 1971, although the OEM fittings available and used in 1967 were the same parts used right through SIII.

If you have the original fittings and you are asked again, just tell them that the vehicle is pre compliance plate and they are the fittings that were fitted by the manufacturer.

Originally Posted by Tusker

Can't help with Vic, but NSW doesn't need then for pre 1965.

Don't need a windscreen either for pre 65, which the inspectors don't seem to know.

Regards
Max P

The way some of the rules are written could be open for interpretation. I can not recal what year it is but if you can see around the windscreen you do not require wipers, could I argue that I have a fold down windscreen that I can fold it down during the rain hence no need for wipers?
Some years you only need wipers on drivers side.

With the seatbelts if I register it without seatbelts and later put seatbelts in would I have to get it engineered then?
I want to put in a 4 or 5 point harness (once a full cage is put in) but from my reading of the rules it says that the belts need to be retractable which a 4 or 5 point harness is not. I believe a proper 4 point would be safer than a lap belt that I would have to put in initially(or not at all - hence the question) - which would not require engineering

I think you are getting confused with newly fitted and existing seat restraints, (2 or 3 point).

If the vehicle had non-inertia reel restraints originally then they can not require them to be fitted now. However if you have inertia reel belts in a pre-1970 vehicle you will most definitely need them engineered as inertia reel didn't arrive before 1970 (or 1980 in Series Land Rover).

You will have to have a 4 or 5 point harness engineered, however that is not so much of a drama because seat belt ftting stations can usually sign them off themselves. In fact in a SII/SIIa 2 of the anchorage points in a 4 point harness* could be OEM leaving only the anchorage at the rear of the tub to be signed off.

* Remember the 4 or 5 points relate to the points on the human body, not the points of anchorage on the vehicle, e.g. in a 4 point harness the two shoulder points usually go back to a single anchorage at the rear of the passenger compartment or tub in the Land Rover.

Originally Posted by Lotz-A-Landies

I think you are getting confused with newly fitted and existing seat restraints, (2 or 3 point).

If the vehicle had non-inertia reel restraints originally then they can not require them to be fitted now. However if you have inertia reel belts in a pre-1970 vehicle you will most definitely need them engineered as inertia reel didn't arrive before 1970 (or 1980 in Series Land Rover).

You will have to have a 4 or 5 point harness engineered, however that is not so much of a drama because seat belt ftting stations can usually sign them off themselves. In fact in a SII/SIIa 2 of the anchorage points in a 4 point harness* could be OEM leaving only the anchorage at the rear of the tub to be signed off.

* Remember the 4 or 5 points relate to the points on the human body, not the points of anchorage on the vehicle, e.g. in a 4 point harness the two shoulder points usually go back to a single anchorage at the rear of the passenger compartment or tub in the Land Rover.

Lotza Landies, yes I was getting confused regarding the newly fitted / existing seat belts and inertia reel seat belts. If what you are saying is correct it changes my tactics with the build of this vehicle.
The thing is I would like to have some sort of documentation from a goverment source or VIc roads that confirms what we have been talking about to take with me when I take it to get a roadworthy and registration.
I want to spend more time researching and doing the build once and not having to undo or redo what I did due to a lack of knowledge or understanding.

Here ya go Crash.

http://www.vicroads.vic.gov.au/NR/rd...74/0/VSI21.pdf

I have a 1965 Mercedes. I does not require seat belts but, as the previous owner had them fitted, it has front lap/sash but no rear.