Astrovan seatbelt question

[supton]

Does anyone know when Astro/Safari vans got 3pt rear belts?

I'm keeping my VW for at least another year or two, it's a known entity. At 25kmiles/year and 45mpg it's kinda foolish to get rid of it. I still want another vehicle, a backup one; and while I'd prefer a pickup truck, it really doesn't make sense, what with kids and all. My parents had an '87 Astro, and it did its job well enough. So I'm wondering if an early 90's model would do me good. Pre-96/pre-OBDII, easy TBI motor to work on, 3,500lb towing capacity (towing package was 5k I think but I think that's too much). Pull out the third row (I only have two kids) and piles of space for camping cargo; or leave the rear seat in for the occasions where I need to move two extra people.

But if it doesn't have 3pt rear belts then I can't see myself putting the kids into the back. Late model (post-OBDII) seem to have AWD, which doesn't seem to have many complaints but I'm not sure how many were sold, nor just what the issues could be. [RWD is dirt simple, even I could repair some of the front end issues on those.]

Otherwise I'm tempted to get a dirt simple 4.3/auto/C1500 shortbed, early 90's, for no good reason other than I like the looks.

 

[Jarlaxle]

Astros got the Vortec in, I think, 1993.

 

[01rangerxl]

I have a 1989 full line Chevy trucks brochure and it shows all Astros with rear seats having three point belts on the outboard seats. The brochure also says the 150 HP 4.3L Vortec was the only engine option that year.

Look for an RS/Sport model if you want a more unique Astro...

Despite the partial cargo van appearance, the RS was loaded with four bucket seats and could be optioned with AWD.

 

[supton]

1989 or so? Ok, that decent to me. Maybe I'll spend a bit more time looking then.

Speaking of 4.3 variations over the years, I found this: http://www.s10forum.com/forum/f107/the-holy-grail-of-4-3-info-131868/ Wow! I thought only Ford had that sort of tinkering going on.

 

[The_Jeff]

even if a car doesn't have rear shoulder belts, if it was made after 1973, it has mounts for them per NHTSA and your dealer has to carry a kit to put them in.

Not sure if it applies to SUVs though.

 

[supton]

Oh? That is news to me. I thought the retrofit kit was for just front belts, not rear. Would not surprise me, after all how long were rear 3pt optional yet front 3pt required--and center front seat allowed to be 2pt?

Hardly off-topic. While I don't mind (much) driving around a vehicle sans airbags etc I can't stomach non-3pt belts--and am not going to put the kids into a 2pt. Risks are low, but I'd rather not.

Will look into further, but if by '89 outboard seats had 3pt on most vehicles then it shouldn't be an issue for me.

Thanks.

 

[moklock]

It may have been part way through '89. My parents had an '89 CL for years and it had the same seats as above but the sliding door side seat and center 3rd row spot had a lap belt only.

 

[Coprolite]

If the interior needs refreshing, I bet an aftermarket rear seat would have 3 point seatbelts....

 

[artificialist]

See what it takes to get a rebuilt steering column for this van before you buy it. It seems almost all Astro Van steering columns get sloppy or have electrical problems after 10-15 years.