Do any of you guys put seatbelts in your '30s Fords?

[cjshaker]

Originally Posted by SoCalCoupe

Not exactly what you asked but I put seat belts into my 1941 Ford. I planned to as soon as I got it, but I dragged my feet a little. One day after working on my car for a bit, I took it for a short test drive and as I pulled out of my alley and turned left the passenger side door popped open. I hadn't shut it properly. The door latches on these cars are crap compared to a modern bear claw latch. Not complaining, that's just a fact. Things have improved a lot in the past 82 years.


No damage to the car. My 50 year-old screw driver rolled out and got some new scratches. Obviously no big deal. Of course, there are so many ways it could have been serious rather than just embarrassing.


I quickly ordered some color samples from Juliano's and ordered set of shoulder belts with lift-latch buckles. To my mind, they're barely noticeable, blend right in, and don't look out of place in my '41 but I feel an order of magnitude safer.


By the way, for maximum safety, you want the third point as high as possible on the b-pillar. I won't go into it here but ask me if you're interested why.

I had seatbelts save me, my wife and daughter once. My daughter was in the back seat and had taken the shoulder belt off, and after a guy blew a stop sigh directly in front of me, I hit him doing 55mph. My daughter had severe lower intestine damage from the lap belt and lost 4' of her lower bowel. She had to be Life Flighted to the hospital to save her life. Their importance is certainly not lost on me.

The door latches were my biggest concern. I know they can pop open very easily in any accident, and remaining inside the car was my main goal with the belt. I don't want to modify the car for claw type latches.

And yes, angles can play a big role in shoulder belts. Your set-up doesn't look bad, that's for sure.