Seatbelts in 1968
- Thread starter dishdude
- Start date
Yes, I remember these seatbelts.
4wd
$50 site donor 2026
Two steps like international business class !
So, can I just do it for take off and landing
So, can I just do it for take off and landing
4wd
$50 site donor 2026
I know - the position of them is goofy at times …
4wd
$50 site donor 2026
Yep, I have tried to avoid them but others do as well …
Also try to book early - but plans change …
most cars did not even have seatbelts at that time
No, in the 1950s they were introduced, and by 1968, they were required under Federal law, starting on January 1 of that year.most cars did not even have seatbelts at that time
Seat belts were required for all seating positions in 1968 and the shoulder belts were an extra measure.
i mean the rest of the world. not only usa
Ah, I see, so, in a thread on an American car, on an American site, you meant the rest of the world…without explicitly saying so.
Across the world, though, Mercedes introduced seatbelts in 1957 on the 300 SL Gullwing, making them standard across the line in the 1960s. Volvo introduced seatbelts in their cars in 1950s and by 1959, had made 3 point seatbelts standard equipment in the PV544.
Interestingly, they shared their 3 point seatbelt design patent with everyone, believing that safety technology should be shared.
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Lots of people are up in arms today if there is a crash and people were found not to have been buckled in. Especially a crash involving kids. I recall as a kid we never put our seatbelts on. No matter where we went. None of my friends' parents asked us to buckle up either. We rode in the back of the station wagon, in the back of pickup trucks, in the center of the front bench seat, no one gave it a second thought. We inhaled and looked through clouds of second hand cigarette smoke. No one had working air conditioning either. Its a wonder we made it this far.
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On family road trips in the early 70's, my 2 - older sisters had the back seat to themselves. I was forced to lay on the rear window deck, or the floor between them. Not easy getting comfortable over the driveshaft hump in the carpet. Nobody was wearing seatbelts. Still remember the car. It was a 1968 Mercury Monterey. There was plenty of space available for me in that back seat. They just didn't want me invading their territory. Oh well, I survived, as my father was chugging 6-packs of beer while driving.
This is totally bonkers. I had no Idea that a shoulder belt was like that. They were required by law on Jan 1 1968. I thought most cars still had lap belts. Fun fact. Nash motors was the first car company to have seat belts but dealerships removed them in many cases.
How'bout the automatic seatbelts of the 1990s?
When you got in the vehicle and started the ignition, the belt would practically slap you in the face.
When you got in the vehicle and started the ignition, the belt would practically slap you in the face.
There were additional rules that all major controls had to be reachable while your non-retractable shoulder belt was fastened. That brought us "wraparound" or "cockpit" styled dashes like this 69 Grand Prix:
By the mid 1970's the "Volvo style" 3-point belts were required with retractors and a lot of companies just had them in on the roof, not at the base of the B-pillar like we're now accustomed. The '77 Pontiac driven by Buford T. Justice is a great example, at least in the first half of the movie before he shears the roof off. (Also there were still hard-top style "pillarless" sedans made though they were on their way out, probably due to safety regs.)
By the mid 1970's the "Volvo style" 3-point belts were required with retractors and a lot of companies just had them in on the roof, not at the base of the B-pillar like we're now accustomed. The '77 Pontiac driven by Buford T. Justice is a great example, at least in the first half of the movie before he shears the roof off.
(Also there were still hard-top style "pillarless" sedans made though they were on their way out, probably due to safety regs.)
