Aftermarket shoulder belts for 68 barracuda convertible

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Stihl011

Stihl011

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Anyone out there have a good solution to get shoulder harnesses in a 68 barracuda convertible? Had a close call a while back when someone pulled out in front of me. It’s got me jumpy.
 
Shoulder belts were optional, even on convertibles as early as 1966. With that said, I wouldn't bother, especially in a convertible.
 
If your not into OEM seats. I know some with early "A" bodies have used (I think late '90's) Sebring convertible seats. The seat has the shoulder belt as part of the seat. There is also a control box that is in the console. I bought a set of these several years ago, but never got around to installing them.
www.forabodiesonly.com

'64 Valiant Convertible, Chrysler Sebring seat install

The bench seat in my Valiant was pretty much trashed, you had to close the door to keep from falling out! Chrysler Sebring buckets are the right width and have integral shoulder harness'. Found a set at the local wrecker from different years (based on the plactic trim) but with the same tan...
www.forabodiesonly.com www.forabodiesonly.com
 
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Stihl011 said:
Anyone out there have a good solution to get shoulder harnesses in a 68 barracuda convertible? Had a close call a while back when someone pulled out in front of me. It’s got me jumpy.
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Call Gary from Winkle he has a 68 Cuda ragtop in his yard. 601-721-6654. Please tell him Al from NY referred you.
 
Here is the Cuda.

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Jim Lusk said:
Shoulder belts were optional, even on convertibles as early as 1966. With that said, I wouldn't bother, especially in a convertible.
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Hey Jim, why wouldn’t you bother?
 
Stihl011 said:
Hey Jim, why wouldn’t you bother?
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From a safety standpoint in an accident these old cars are terrible compared to new cars with crumple zones, etc. Add to that the fact that it's a convertible with no roof protection. In my opinion, shoulder belts without a roll cage in an old convertible is like a band aid on a broken arm.
 
Crumple zones or not I think that although not perfect I would install and use shoulder belts. That being said, I saw a neat trick that one of the guys at a car show had done to his convertible to have shoulder harnesses. He secured a chain using his rear seat belt bolts ( probably had to bolt a plate in under there between the upper and lower cushion ) and attach a chain to that. He then attached a seat belt to it and had a receiver at the front to click into. When he would get to a show he just uncouple the belt from the chain and hide the chain between the cushions. You could I suppose use a cable instead of a chain. Trust me, shoulder harnesses will add protection to a huge degree rather than not. If anyone questions that they are free to do what they feel is right for them, but me it's gonna be put them in. There is no downside. Watch the video of the 1300 HP Mercury crashing at 45 mph on YouTube. The were prepared for impact and still flew forward like ragdolls. To anyone with an old classic I would recommend installing and using shoulder harnesses no matter what you drive. There is no downside.
 
I agree shoulder belts are a good feature BUT engineered incorrectly COULD cause more harm than benefit.

As to a chain...

Make a seat belt with a female clasp at both ends

Plug the rear end into the short male part for the rear seat.

Add another short male section to the stock location of the front seat

Plug the front end of this new belt into it.

Seat belt that can be removed!
 
I think that is also another way to make it work. I think his thinking was that a longer belt will stretch further than a shorter belt, thus more forward motion in the event of an accident.Did you watch the video? Eye opener!
 
I have seen the video several times.

Very eye opening.

What always disappointed me was the speaker just barely mentioning the car/s they hit or the people
 
I agree. I cannot believe that both the owner and the presenter let it get to the point of endangering the public with THERE decision to continue on. If there are shoulder harnesses available I wear them no matter what. When I was younger I looked inside a car ( 67 Fury) that had hit a pole to where the headlights were actually "looking" at each other. There were teeth broken off in the steering wheel. That told me that the driver was most likely belted with no shoulder harness and his upper body pivoted forward. I assume he probably was killed even though the damage to the car looked like a survivable crash. From that point on I realized that seat belts alone offer only very limited protection and even though our classics are no match for what modern vehicles offer, shoulder belts add an exponential degree of added safety. Just my 2 cents.
 
Have you ever driven a car with vintage shoulder belts (pre retractor)?
You are pinned to your seat and can't even adjust the radio.

Alan
 
fueliedart said:
There were teeth broken off in the steering wheel.
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My mom pass out while driving her 65 mustang. She had started up from a stop light and the car went through the intersection and hit a parked car. The drivers side of the windshield was smashed outward right inline with the steering wheel. The injury to her head was to the back of her head, so she must have pivoted over the steering wheel and broken out the windshield with the back of her head. My guess is she was not wearing a seatbelt. she was 5 foot on a good day. the car did not suffer too much damage. The right front fender, hood, grill, bumper etc were replaced. The core support was straightened. I don't know about the inner fender / frame rail, it might have been replaced?

I assume the hit was in the 15 mph range, but that is just speculation on my part due to the relatively small level of damage to the car and the report that she had started up from a stop at the intersection.

She has little to no memory of the crash.
 
Jim Lusk said:
From a safety standpoint in an accident these old cars are terrible compared to new cars with crumple zones, etc. Add to that the fact that it's a convertible with no roof protection. In my opinion, shoulder belts without a roll cage in an old convertible is like a band aid on a broken arm.
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Yah!

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