i own a 1967 malibu ss and also a have a 3 year old daughter who likes to go cruising. my wife and i don't feel right about cruising with her in a booster seat only secured in by a lap belt. i bought a julianos three point seatbelt(lap/shoulder belt) and my dad and i can't come up with any type of solution on mounting it. we have tried mounting the retractor part of the belt under the seat but the it wont retract properly. can you give me any ideas on what if any seatbelt combo will work

I got a 3 yr. old daughter and Love her too much to even consider putting her in anything that was not 100 % correct for safety....I know she loves it, but let her wait until she's older, you'd never forgive yourselves if something happened...just something to think about my friend.

Mike

------------------

What kind of booster seat do you have for your daughter?

I have two daughters, a three-year old and a four-a-half year old. They each have booster seats that require only the lap belt. Seems to work very well. Also have a couple of car seats that require just the lap belt, but can work with the thre-point type of belt. However, the three-point belt doesn't provide any more safety, in my opinion, because of the way the car seats/booster seats are constructed.

I put a Julianos three-point seatbelt set up in my 70 wagon. It was easy to install because I have that big ol' post between the doors. Not sure how I would have installed it in in a coupe though. That's a tough one.

I also put retractable lap belts in the rear seat. They seem a bit safer than the original set up. However, I had to stick with the original set up for the center passenger in both the front and back seats. Something about the angle of the floorboard didn't agree with the retractable unit. It kept binding and would not pull out of the unit.

Robert

I have to agree with Robert...most car seats are designed to be held by a lap belt. If you use them with a shoulder belt, they usually have you put a little metal tab on it that basically turns it into a lap belt.

I fully understand your concerns about safety, I'm doing everything I can to make my 67 safe for my little girl (and soon to be little guy) to ride in!

------------------
Rick Sutter
Member #383
'67 Chevelle Super Sport
67SS.com (http://67SS.com)

We have a Fisher Price (looks like a Recaro type seat) booster seat, and it is not a cheapy. Hopefully this will help you help me..please?

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by rstoltz:
What kind of booster seat do you have for your daughter?

I have two daughters, a three-year old and a four-a-half year old. They each have booster seats that require only the lap belt. Seems to work very well. Also have a couple of car seats that require just the lap belt, but can work with the thre-point type of belt. However, the three-point belt doesn't provide any more safety, in my opinion, because of the way the car seats/booster seats are constructed.

I put a Julianos three-point seatbelt set up in my 70 wagon. It was easy to install because I have that big ol' post between the doors. Not sure how I would have installed it in in a coupe though. That's a tough one.

I also put retractable lap belts in the rear seat. They seem a bit safer than the original set up. However, I had to stick with the original set up for the center passenger in both the front and back seats. Something about the angle of the floorboard didn't agree with the retractable unit. It kept binding and would not pull out of the unit.

Robert<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

You might consider going to a 5 point simpson harness- Now in my 70 fisher body manual they show rear shoulder belt mounts near the top of the sail panel, dont know if this is for 4door 300 models or what. My 4 year old's seat just uses a lap belt, I think most do. But you could beef it up with a racing harness from Jegs, if you have the headliner out look at the holes around the rear window.

I am mounting non original shoulder belts for the front of my 67 at the factory location. I have yet to see an original car with them, but the mounting point is engineered into the car and they were an option.

As to the rear, there is another mounting point near where the trunk spring mounts on either side. These are illustrated in either the assembly manual or the SS restoration guide. This will result in shoulder belts at all 4 spots for my clone, so it can be done.

Good luck,

John Walker

What ever you decide upon, sport, it's not an easy solution. I wrestled with this problem for some time (adding 3-point belts to my '70 SS) and didn't come up with any satisfactory answers. Hope you have better luck!

------------------
Brian Willis Benton, LA
1970 Chevelle SS396, 1969 Superbee (clone), 1971 Nova
http://www.geocities.com/turbobee1969/

Sport. I am planning to put in 3 point belts in the rear a 1966 2 door HT. I have ordered retractable units from a 1991 Buick Park Avenue. The soulder belt is mounted just below the package tray near the sail panel. There is room for these units. I will have to construcct a mounting point though. I think this will work, because I know about the construction in the Buick. I hope there is enoough room underneath the bench seat. Perhaps this idea will help you along.

I have the same problem.

My Daughter is 3. We have a Century Booster seat. It has a five point harness on it. It's a good seat but there is a problem.

The seat should be held in with a lap belt, when the 5 pt. harness is used. OK I can do that, But if the child is over 40 lbs the instructions forbid use of the harness and say that you should use the seat with the vechicles OE lap/shoulder combo. (as a belt positioning seat)

The problem is, with a ragtop I can't retro-fit a shoulder belt. My daughter is 42 lbs and rising so I cant use the 5 pt harness either what to do???

The problem is not to uncommon, I'm sure anyone with a 80's car has the same problem when their child gets to around 3 y.o. There were few rear shoulder belts in the 80's, so there are probably millions of people with the same dilemma.

I'm going to call Century and see what they say. I'll post the answer.

------------------
67 Malibu Conv (always under construction)
mirabile95@earthlink.net

I'll tell you what(this is NOT my opinion,only an alternate point of view.DO NOT be offended)Geez,what did people do with their kids when these cars where brand new?!I mean safety was not a major concern back then,but if I ever got into an accident,I'd rather be in an old Chevelle(or any old car) then any of these new,little POS cars.Chevelle vs. a new Neon,et al.What's gonna survive here?!(including occupants) I can appreciate safety concerns for smaller children.Put the harness in.Nothing wrong with that.Just my "alternate" point of view,as theses"new" cars aren't as safe as people think they are.

------------------
1970 Chevelle SS396/L78/M21/4.10
1972 Olds 442 convertible(455,W25,M40)
1982 Oldsmobile Cutlass 350 Olds,TH350(daily driver)
1969 CHEVELLE SS396/TH400/FOR SALE!!
"Be aware of the possible ramifications of the potential outcome"

[This message has been edited by mr 4 speed (edited 06-20-2000).]

I can tell you what my dad did with me way back when.

As the story goes, I was maybe three or four, old enough to stand up in the back seat of the pontiac while my grandfather drove and my dad rode shotgun. Gramps had to stop quick and my dad caught me, over the shoulder football style as I sailed toward the windshield. I don't remember a thing, but he still gets a kick out of telling us all about it.

Red Label

I've been in an auto accident in both an old car and in a new car. In the new car, the vehicle absorbed the imapct and crumbled around me, and I was uninjured. In the old car, the I bounced around like a ping pong ball because I absorbed the impact along with the car. The car survived okay (a new car would have been totaled) but I sustained injuries. Both wrecks were of the same intensity. If I had to choose a vehicle for a car wreck, I'll take a new car over an old any day of the week. (My health is more important that any car's preservation!) For passenger protection, the new car designs are far superior in my opinion.

Sport - my kids' two car seats are made by "EvenFlo" and "Fisher Price." The EvenFlo seat is about two old, and the Fisher Price seat is about eight years old. Both use only a lap belt.

Click on the following link for a government-approved safe car seat alternative (that I occasionally employ when driving my Chevelle). Scroll to the bottom of the page:
Seatbelt Alternative (http://cornellgroup.com/Stoltz_File/Chevelles/ChevelleWagon.html)

Robert


---
Check out my former ride, a two-owner 1968 Chevelle Concours: 1968 Chevelle Concours (http://www.cornellgroup.com/Stoltz_File/Chevelles/68Chevelle.html)

See my current ride, a 1970 "SS" Chevelle Wagon: 1970 SS Wagon (http://cornellgroup.com/Stoltz_File/Chevelles/ChevelleWagon.html)


[This message has been edited by rstoltz (edited 10-14-2000).]

I called Centruy, they said if my child was over 40 lbs and I didn't have rear shoulder belts, that I could not use thier seats. They said I should have the dealer retrofit rear shoulder belts into my car or get this , buy a new car(yeah right).

I then called the US-DOT safety hotline and was told that fisher-price and only fisher-price made a booster seat that is held in place by only a lap belt, and has straps that will be safe up to 60 lbs.

I guess I'm Going shopping, the spending never stops!!!!

------------------
67 Malibu Conv (always under construction)
mirabile95@earthlink.net