General Seat belts

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General Seat belts

phoenix1

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Hi. This is a question for those of us in the UK really. I have a 72 500 L with just seat belts in the front. How do I stand about carrying rear seat passengers and no I would not carry any minor in the rear. If perhaps we have a traffic officer on here perhaps he could comment. I also have a Mini of the same year and set up and a Frogeye Sprite with no seat belts ( pre 1960 )
While I am on how do you make the heading on here in bold letters.

Thanks Bryan
 
Morning Bryan;
As far as I am aware, rear seat belts weren't compulsory until 1985, and the law was not applied retrospectively. Like you, I have no rear seat belts in my 1971 500, and therefore don't carry anybody in the rear. IF you do fit rear seat belts (and I believe it can be done--but quite fiddly) they HAVE to be used if any body is in the rear---AND ONCE FITTED, THEY CANNOT BE REMOVED (and the same for retrospective fitting of front belts). In all honesty, I cannot see how a 'boy in blue' can 'do' you as long as you have front belts (and they MUST be '3-point'), are being used, and you are complying with the (re. children) appropriate 'size of child' rules.
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I have fitted seatbelts in the rear to carry my small ones. They are the same retractable inertia type as I fitted to the front.
Once fitted they will of course be tested at the MOT.
It's my understanding that if you carry rear passengers in a car with no belts this is ok.
 
I checked this seatbelt rule out some time ago and it really is quite scary...
My N has no seatbelts.. children can be carried but must be in the rear...
You fit seatbelts.. with some bits of metal plate...
you are not insured for any injury sustained to those people and may be prosecuted... Not going to argue about this.. but seatbelt mounts have to be tested and approved by construction regulations... crazy as you can build a kit car from scratch and put your own seatbelt mounts.. ok.. go reregister your 500 and have it tested and get your Q plate, existing factory mounts may have belts retrospectively fitted
You can claim anything you want you may be the best welder in the world it matters not... yes there are kits you can buy and fit belts.. yes i have done it in the past...
but believe me that is the law. And I leave you to argue your automotive engineering design and test skills in a court of law.
 
I discovered the solution to carrying children by accident "back in the day". I found if you cram three of them in the back seat it stops them rolling about on the bends.:D:D:D Seriously though, back in the old days I didn't think about the safety implications.
The rules for a car without seatbelts are that they aren't allowed to be in it under the age of three and older than that they must be carried in the back. With the front seatbelts of a UK 500 I take it that normal rules about the age/height of children would apply.

I think it is unlikely even that the front seatbelts would be much help in a crash, especially if the original type seats are fitted which would simultaneously try to eject you through the windscreen.
The back seat is so weakly fitted to the car, with a thinner rubber strap for the backrest and two slots for the squab, this would also fight to push you forward, even if well secured belts were fitted.
I do take my small grandchildren in the car for a treat, mainly on the driveway where even the three year old has "driven" it a few metres standing on the seat and ejecting all the washer fluid whilst annoying the neighbourhood with the horn.
I have occasionally dropped them off at school and driven them to the beach (one and a half miles) a few times.
I think you just have to be very cautious with those precious objects inside your precious object. But I doubt that fitting seatbelts makes for much increased safety in a car designed in the fifties and made from a catering size, empty baked beans can.:D
 
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