Deluxe Seat Belts

[darb]

Sorry to ask so many questions, I should just get myself an owners manual, but this is my first GT/CS and I'm pretty uneducated as to as what all of this stuff is, but another question for the guru's:

I got my Marti Report, verified it as a California Special - says it came with Deluxe Belts, which I do have in the vehicle, it has the shoulder strap one up above the door, and the lapbelt.

My question:

Are you supposed to be able to use the lapbelt and the shoulder belt at the same time? Or is it simply one or another? The buckle I have right now only has (or so I'm thinking) one slot for the belt.

Do I have the wrong buckle? Or are all of your cars like this too?

Thanks,
Brad

 

[Russ]

Interestingly enough, the shoulder harness system is not considered part of the deluxe belt option. What identifies the deluxe option is the plastic chrome trim on the safety belt latch. I have the standard belts, including shoulder belts, in my GT/CS, and the belt latch is entirely black, indicating standard belts. My 1968 GT has the deluxe belts, with shoulder belt, and the belts have the chrome trim. I guess it's the "trim that counts"!

It is suggested in the operating manual that you wear BOTH belts when you operate the car, but the lap belt is the minimum for safe operation.

Hope this helps, Russ

 

[darb]

Really?

I have the trim then, so obviously deluxe - but there is no way I can wear BOTH belts while driving? That I suppose is my question, there's no way to hook them both into the buckle unless I'm missing something.

 

[rjw]

Darb,
You should have two belt "receivers" for each seat; one is to receive the lap belt and the other is to receive the shoulder belt. They are bolted in by the same bolt on the transmission tunnel side of the seat.
Richard

 

[darb]

Well, I went out and looked and low-and-behold I only have ONE connected to the transmission side right there behind the seat. I'm assuming I just need to purchase another strap and receiver and bolt it in for both the driver and the passenger.

Should I use the same type of belt, or is there a special one for the lap vs. the shoulder?

Any pictures?

Thanks a lot for your help,
Brad

 

[Russ]

The length of the shoulder belt is shorter than the lap belt. The receiver buckle is the same on both belts. The lap belt is 41" and the shoulder belt is 27" long. You could use a rear belt, as it is 26" long. Russ

 

[darb]

Thank you very much for sharing your knowledge.

It is once again very appreciated.

 

[C160223]

just a quick note. If a 68 Mustang was ordered with "deluxe seatbelt" option, the "belt " light on the dash will come on for a few seconds when the ignition is turned on. All 68 dash panels have the "belts" lens on them (right side, beside turn signal light), but only the cars ordered with this option recieved the light bulb and harness that plugs into the back on panel

 

[BrandonB]

sorry for spamming the boards things come to my mind in spurts =/. I also had 2 belts clip on one end buckle on the other. but my driver and passenger both have belts and so does my back seat. what are the belts for spares? shoulder straps? if they are shoulder straps I dont have a little notch or clip on ceiling in my interior to connect them too, again I say thanks for helping

 

[x-codegtcs]

They probably replaced your headliner and did not put the belts back in. It is my understanding that all '68 Mustangs were required by Fed law to have the shoulder straps - Anyone?

Bryce

 

[CalSpecialStang]

My GT/CS has only lapbelts and there is(to my knowledge) nowhere for a shoulder harness to go in my car? The funny thing is that the warnings on my seatbelts have instructions for proper shoulder harness use. ??? ??? Were all fords in '68 required to have shoulder harnesses?

 

[darb]

From my knowledge they used the same buckles for all vehicles, which means it could say wear shoulder belt while using lap belt - but your vehicle may not have beeen equipped with shoulder belts.

I do not think that they were required to have shoulder straps until a later time - I could be wrong, but I've seen a fair amount of mustangs without them.

-Brad

 

[Russ]

I have two 1968 Mustangs, both built in December, one from San Jose and one from New Jersey and neither have shoulder belts. I have a 1968 GT that was built February 20 in San Jose, and it has shoulder belts. FYI:

Russ

 

[bish]

I also think that it was a Federal regulation to have the shoulder belts in 68. I agree that the headliner must have been replaced.

 

[BrandonB]

So is it illegal now to not have a lap belt ???

 

[Sarge]

As of 1/1/1968, the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration added the following law to the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards and Regulations: Passenger Cars (Effective 1-1-68)
Lap or lap and shoulder seat belt assemblies for each designated seating position. Except in convertibles, lap and shoulder seat belt assemblies are required in each front outboard seating position.

So, convertibles were the only cars exempt at that time. If you have a '68 or newer vehicle, it is required to have both lap belt and shoulder belt.

Robert

 

[BrandonB]

So I'm breakign the law now? :-\

 

[admin]

[quote author=BrandonB link=board=1;threadid=368;start=0#msg2064 date=1054045293]
So is it illegal now to not have a lap belt ???
[/quote]

Yes, the car is required to have a lap belt. Even before 1968 the lap belt was required. Then in 1968 they added the shoulder belt requirement.

Remember, on our Mustang the shoulder belt and lap belt are two different belts; not a combination shoulder/lap belt like newer cars have.

BTW, both '68 Mustangs I've owned and my '67 Cougar XR-7 came with shoulder belts.

 

[CalSpecialStang]

admin or anyone else,

Can I see a picture of how the shoulder belt looks(since it is diff. from the cars today). My GT/CS only has a lap belt and I haven't ever really taken notice of shoulder belts on other classic Mustangs. I like to keep my GT/CS original so I guess I will be installing a shoulder belt sometime sooner or later.

 

[BrandonB]

yea I didnt mean lap I meant shoulder mine dosent have a latch or anything on the roof am I missing something?