Second row seat catches on a Station Wagon

vilguy said:

I will warn that it was an utter swine to get them in, its toit as a toiger

This is the temporary bodge up for mine, im going to make a custom set of brackets for the seats to bolt straight onto the existing mounting brackets - when i get around to it.

As it is though, the kids much prefer it, even I (6'4") am very comfortable in the back.

Theres only a lap belt at the minute for the middle one, but will be fitting a 3 point inertia belt setup.

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HECKFLOSSE said:

Thanks, they certainly look safer than the old cinema seats!

I had wondered about a Volvo 945 rear seat as they are 60/40 with three inertia belts on later ones- anyone tried this?
The Smart car ones look good but effectively block any rear vision. With smelly dogs in the back, that might be a good thing...

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Discokids said:

Sorry to throw a spanner in the works, but what do people tend to do regarding the mounting of the seat belts? If the belts are part of the seat, then the seat mount needs to be the approved anchor point. I've mocked up my rear scenic seats on the tub, and fitting seems easy, but I wouldn't want to be driving along, 3 kids in the back...... Well, I want to know it's right. And if I need to modify or add anything I want to do it while it's in bits (no rush though, the rebuild is taking forever!)[/QUOTE
Looking at the factory seat belt mounts, which are just an L shaped bit of steel, anything substantial bolted with a large spreader plate should be OK.
There are probably C&U/EU/DOT regs about modifying seatbelt mountings, so do anything at your own risk (disclaimer time!)
As a practical grown up, look at the original seats held in place with little more than a door catch. Anything bolted in properly, with load spread to the Chassis points rather than just a flimsy bit of floor, makes sense.
Scenic seats? the centre belt is roof mounted on those loathsome cars.
All ideas most welcome.
Making up a frame to mount belt mountings is a possibility.

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Discokids said:

Sorry to throw a spanner in the works, but what do people tend to do regarding the mounting of the seat belts? If the belts are part of the seat, then the seat mount needs to be the approved anchor point. I've mocked up my rear scenic seats on the tub, and fitting seems easy, but I wouldn't want to be driving along, 3 kids in the back...... Well, I want to know it's right. And if I need to modify or add anything I want to do it while it's in bits (no rush though, the rebuild is taking forever!)

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Discokids said:

Thanks, I know about the centre belt being roof mounted, But I wouldn't want to mount it to a defender roof so a bar would have to be fitted inside. Sounds like more hassle than it's worth. As for disclaimer time, that's what bothers me. I can see that a little bolt going through a bit of rusty tin behind a sheet of rotting aluminium can only be improved on, I too was thinking something like a discovery setup would be a good place to start (through the floor and into the actual chassis) but if the worst was to happen I don't want to end up in prison for neglect, as has happened to another 110 owner before. Tbh the middle seat will hardly be used anyway so I'll forget the idea of a 3 point belt there, and stick with the standard stuff on the 2 outer seats. Just got to remove the seat belt sockets from the scenic seats to stop anybody trying to plug the landy belt into them.

And loathsome? I've owned one for 4 1/2 years and it's been a great car, although some refuse to believe it!

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HECKFLOSSE said:

OK , no offence re the Renault! I worked on the blighters years ago..
If you were really concerned about the legal side, presumably an engineers report could be obtained.
Think of a kit car or modified vehicle- or even look at something used for competition. No one is going to trust a feeble seat belt mount.

My original post was for standard catches to lock county seats in place. All factory fitted, so that should by pass any jobsworth stuff.
The stock catches and mountings don't look bulletproof, so a well thought out modification can be an improvement.

Really, a commonsense MOT approach is best. Is it strong enough? does it work as intended? is it in serviceable condition? and would you feel safe using it if you had to stop or swerve?
Jim.

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vilguy said:

As the seatbelts are the restraint in an accident, all the energy is transmitted through the 3 mounting points of those (obvious 2 for the lapbelt)
The old style latches on the county seats merely have to restrain the seats from transmitting their energy into the unfortunate soul sitting in them in the event of a crash.

As I wouldnt particuarly want to be in a crash in a defender which has sufficient energy to start twisting chassis bits n bobs, I wouldnt worry about it too much. Changing the catches to a full wrap around style might be a little safer, but somewhat insignificant in the grand scheme of things.

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