In the early 60s, were lap belts in the front seats of GM cars standard or optional?

I know you had to have seat belts and separate shoulder belts starting sometime during the 1966 model year.

But what about before that?

I was talking to someone who was selling a 62 Buick Skylark, and it did not have seat belts in the car at all, even in the front seat. This surprised me, since my parents owned a 62 Skylark years ago and it did have seat belts (lap belts only) in the front- i.e. the style you find on airplanes were you lift up on the buckle.

This started a discussion as to whether lap belts in the front seat would have been standard, optional, or not available- i.e. you had to have them put in separately later, possibly by the dealer.

My 65 F-85 has lap belts in the front seat, with the picture of the carriage representing Fisher Body on them. I had long assumed they were standard equipment when new.

 

I guess you weren't alive in the 1960s to see the progression.

Seat belts were optional until the Feds mandated them. Ford offered the first optional belts in 1955. Front lap belts were mandated first - 1965 was the first year they were federally required, though most cars had them by 1964. Rear lap belts were required after March 1967. Front shoulder belts were not federally required until Jan 1968, but were optionally available before that. A friend of mine has a 1967 GTO with the uber-rare front AND rear shoulder belts.

 

Not until '56. They were part of a "safety package" that was not popular with buyers. It was discontinued in '57.

Still not popular with many buyers, but they had no choice. Many drivers, and passengers, still did not use them.

Norm

 

True, and if you dont' you're not very bright. Read Lee Iaocca's book.

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seat_belt

Not that I believe everything I read in Wikipedia.

 

No, I don't remember... I'm younger than my 65 Olds!
I remember the 70s cars most clearly.
However my folks had a 62 Buick that had front lap belts- I assumed they were standard but apparently they were not.

 

I have the utmost trust in wikipedia.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seat_belt#History

http://auto.howstuffworks.com/1955-1...-victoria4.htm

http://auto.howstuffworks.com/1955-1...-victoria4.htm

It's the source, I don't trust.

Norm

 

Actually they did have a choice in '65. Option A62 was a delete (and credit) for the standard front belts. With Oldsmobile, rear belts were still an option in '65 and became standard in '66. The seat belt delete option A62 was not available in '66.

Too many people still don't use them even today.

 

Madness.

 

they must have thrown a lot of them away. I haven't yet found a pair of seat belts for my car, probably just bye some after markets

 

Evolution in action, actually.

 

My old man refused to wear a seat belt until he was 53 years old. Ironicly, he started wearing it in 98' when he bought his "Cheby Prizm" I think that little rattle trap spooked him somewhere deep inside.

 

I wear mine in a freekin Kenworth! People scare me.

 

Pro race car drivers always say the scariest place to drive is on the streets. I bet Mario always buckles up too.

I had a '56 Vicky with a padded dash. They and other cars back then needed a pad on the "knee knocker" projection in the door opening below the end of the wrap around windshield. I had a few 50's furds and a '57 chebby and my knees still hurt thinking about it.

In '64 Chuck Berry had a car with seat belts. In "No Particular Place To Go" he couldn't unfasten her safety belt to go for a stroll on the Kokomo.

 

I'm scared of all the summer truckers
They go across Wyoming 90mph in a 60 mph wind


NOTE I SAID SUMMER TRUCKERS
Didn't want to start a riot

 

Daves62 would you be refering to Motorhome drivers

 

no but those are scary too

The big trucking companies hire a lot of collage students to drive there trucks in the summers. the send them to the crap schools you hear on he radio all the time "you to can drive the big Riggs" then turn them loose on the public. you usually see them on there sides in the ditch

 

My 66 has front and rear belts.

 

So does mine, but they were optional that year. Rear belts were not federally mandated until 1967, which is what the post said.

 

That is why my insurance company will not accept anyone without at least two years experience OTR. That will usually cull out the cowboys and hot heads...still not sure how I lasted so long. Out in wyoming I have gotten up a good head of steam comming off the hills, but rarely run any faster than 72, now a days 67 is enough to get the job done...untill that hot head comes int play........again. Some of those hills can get long, going up or down, and holding back 40 tons of iron can be hard on the brakes, I would just let them by. Not that I'm saying its right, but you know about mass and inertia right

 

I was a driver for Union Pacific for a while.
Decided I didn't like talking to myself that much.
now im a glorified track inspector.

 

If my memory serves me, by U.S. Federal law, all vehicles built after the 1965 model year required front lap seat belts. Front shoulder belts were not mandatory until January 1968, and rear lap seat belts were not required until January 1967.

Note: Front lap seat belts may have been required as of January 1965, which may be why some 1965 cars have them, other than an option, which may be adding to the confusion as to when the front lap seat belt requirement started. This would not be unlike the January 1972 requirement for interlocking front lap and shoulder belts, and the then dreaded seat belt buzzers and dash light indicators. The early built 1972 cars, prior to 1/Jan/1972, did not have them, but with the later, post 31/Dec/1971, built cars with them.

These dates should not confused with the Federally mandated installation of seat belt mounting anchors, for the front and later rear seats, which predated the Federal mandates for the installation of the actual seat belts by 2-3 years.

 

My 63 Riviera has front lap belts in it. From what I understand, that was the first year Buick made them an option in their cars. And it cost $19.03!

 

Did you notice that after doing this for a while it gets hard to talk to people outside the industry. May be it's just me but sometimes it's almost painful trying to hold a conversation, and making friends...forget it. I'm either ranting about politics, or talking about work...what else is there? any how I feel your former pain Driving big rig really changes the way you relate to the world, probably not in a good way, but I tell you what with xm radio I have learned so much about money, economics, and how the world works its scary. Are you local now? or running the trains? I do predominately great lakes regional, and short haul in the summer months.

 

I just noticed the track inspector bit, how do you like that?

 

How long were convertibles exempt from the front shoulder belt requirements??

 

I wondered about when they mandated shoulder straps in convertibles? mine does not have them and it is a 69.