Automatic seat belts

[whistler]

I fitted ordinary lap and diagonal seat belts to my 1966 mk1 as that's what was originally fitted but after used them for a couple of weeks they are a real pain to use.
Has anyone a recommendation for automatic retracting seat belts that will fit a mk1 without any extra drilling?

Thanks.

[LarryLebel]

Just about any Mini retractable system will fit. Just attach both the end of the belt and retractor to the same mounting point on the inner sill.

[mab01uk]

When aftermarket inertia belts first appeared on Minis in the sixties they were often as said above mounted on the inner sill sharing the same mounting as the lap belt end. I think there were special brackets/spacers to allow the retractor reel to be solid mounted while allowing the belt end to pivot. Main drawback was the vertical belt and inertia reel slightly impeded entry into the rear seat.
Some inertia reels I remember were also mounted on the outside of the rear pockets or on the floor which slightly encroached on the rear footwells. Of course the best and neatest solution came with the Mk4 Mini where they were factory mounted out of the way inside the rear pockets but with the loss of the two ashtrays.

This diagram shows a floor mounting bracket but means drilling extra holes...


Mounting on side of rear pockets

[timmy201]

I installed some retractable belts in mine. As mentioned above I used the lower mount for the belt and retractor mounts. I got the additional covers for the mechanism so that they are a bit less likely to be damaged by people getting in the back seats

In Australia there are some minimum standards for seatbelt mounts and the tunnel uses the specific size bracket

Seat belt
https://minisport.com.au/products/mini- ... e222&_ss=r

Covers
https://minisport.com.au/products/seat- ... e222&_ss=r

Tunnel mount bracket
https://minisport.com.au/products/adr-s ... 9a3f&_ss=r

[whistler]

Thanks Timmy.

If the main body uses the existing threaded hole in the sill and the belt end is attached to a side extension plate, what stops the whole assembly trying to rotate under tension?

[whistler]

Thanks LarryLebel, I've made an enquiry about the Securon 500/30 belts which seem to attach as you mentioned.

[timmy201]

Thanks Timmy.

If the main body uses the existing threaded hole in the sill and the belt end is attached to a side extension plate, what stops the whole assembly trying to rotate under tension?

Under tension the belt from the retractor is going upwards (like at rest) and the lap belt end is pulled over the body in line with the metal plate so it won’t rotate

[Peter Laidler]

Is it me...... or are there others who look at the seat belt fitting outside and through the rear pocket (see Martin/Mab's first photo) with horror.

To the engineer in me says that in a front ender, at anything over 1mph, with a, say 10 stone bloke on the seat, that nut and seat belt assembly would simply tear through the thin steel - or pull the rear pocket out of the floor.

Clearly BL thought the same as the BL idea was through the more substantial floor. Or is it me......?

[whistler]

Thanks Timmy.

If the main body uses the existing threaded hole in the sill and the belt end is attached to a side extension plate, what stops the whole assembly trying to rotate under tension?

Under tension the belt from the retractor is going upwards (like at rest) and the lap belt end is pulled over the body in line with the metal plate so it won’t rotate

Thanks for that. Been in contact with Somerford Mini and they assure me that their Securon belts fit, as you mentioned, to a mk1 without any extra holes. Going to order some shortly.

[Polarsilver]

Fitting my recoil type Belts to a mk1.. i used just the one bolt to secure the recoil device & also the end of the seatbelt .. in other words just the one bolt secured all the re-coil device & the belts end at the inner sill .. this is achieved by what came with the set up a "strip of chrome plated steel with a hole at each end".. one hole for the bolt through into the inner sill the other hole has a bolt that the seatbelt tail end secures .. this steel strip lets the end of seat belt stand clear of the recoil device by about two inches.. also included was a round spacer tube that was used on the single into sill bolt to keep some clearance to that steel strip & helped a bit with carpet clearance .. yes the re-coil unit swivels just a small amount but when in use is not an issue & probably helps with driver comfort .

[mab01uk]

Is it me...... or are there others who look at the seat belt fitting outside and through the rear pocket (see Martin/Mab's first photo) with horror.

To the engineer in me says that in a front ender, at anything over 1mph, with a, say 10 stone bloke on the seat, that nut and seat belt assembly would simply tear through the thin steel - or pull the rear pocket out of the floor.

Clearly BL thought the same as the BL idea was through the more substantial floor. Or is it me......?

I agree Peter but back in the day Dealers often bolted them the side of the rear pocket with a large washer or thicker threaded plate behind which they considered a suitable mounting point. Later Minis appear to have a pattern of 3 holes in the side of the pockets for inertia reels sometimes with a thin reinforcing plate behind but also seen the holes present with no plate behind. Then the Mk4 Mini onward for factory fit automatic belts as shown in last 3 photos below.

[whistler]

Ordered some belts from Somerfords now after their assertion that they'll fit.

[RichB]

Please let us know (with pictures) how they fit. I'm facing the same question for my '66.

[whistler]

Please let us know (with pictures) how they fit. I'm facing the same question for my '66.

This is the reply from Somerfords.
"Many thanks for contacting us.

These will fit your car. The inertia reel is fairly small on Securon belts and will mount to the inner sill. you will not need to drill any more holes.

I hope this helps.

Kind regards

Pete"

I'm currently in Spain with the car and having the belts delivered here so I'll come back to you when they eventually arrive.

[jamiestevens94]

I had some Securon automatic seatbelts fitted in my mk1 when I purchased it. They fitted to the usual points of the sill and the top of the door pillar with no issues. I have since removed them after restoring the car. I've been looking for some original static ones if you are thinking of selling yours and looking at selling the automatic ones...

[whistler]

My current static belts are from Minispares which I will be swapping to the Securon when they arrive or if they arrive.
I do have the original static belts at home, Britax, but would need new webbing I think.
Have to wait until I get home in early March to check on their condition, if you're interested.

[whistler]

The Securon belts have arrived and have fitted the passenger side.
Problem, bottom of door bin is colliding with the top of the reel. Anyone had this problem?
I've removed the plastic reel shield as a temporary measure, just so I can close the door.

[richardACS]

My current static belts are from Minispares which I will be swapping to the Securon when they arrive or if they arrive.
I do have the original static belts at home, Britax, but would need new webbing I think.
Have to wait until I get home in early March to check on their condition, if you're interested.

How about? Excellent service and knowledge....

Hi Richard,

We are very familiar with the Britax belts. Yes we can refurbish these, example attached.

It looks as though these have the ‘laddered’ pattern webbing – sadly this is no longer available – it was originally manufactured by Arthur Hart, the company was bought out by Amsafe, who reviewed the efficiency / effectiveness of the looms and the loom that produced this was decommissioned a while ago now. The good news is that Britax also used a ‘pebble’ weave at that time and this is still available. Available in silver and dark grey as well as some other colours including beige, red, blue, green and yellow.

The retractors are of the old design and so you should be aware that they only lock ‘on motion’ and do not respond to the MOT snatch test – some stations have ‘erroneously’ failed these for this reason – attached is information on the retractors – taken from original Britax info. we have. Interesting Britax was only down the road from us in the next village and we used to carry out sub-contract work for them. One of our team also used to work for Britax!

Hope this is helpful.

Kindest Regards

Sue
For and on behalf of FDTS Limited
Susan Taylor
MBA, BA (hons) Law, DMS
Managing Director
Tel: 01932342043

[whistler]

IMG_20240118_110559.jpg

The principle of bolting the bottom strap behind the reel is fine. The problem I have is that the reel sits proud of the door seal to such an extent that the bottom of the door bin hits the plastic reel protector. The reel mount plate needs to drop lower but there's no way to do this that I can see. I've emailed Somerfords to ask if they have a solution.
I've removed the plastic reel protector meantime to allow the door to shut.
Hope the photos show the problem adequately.

[timmy201]

If you put the bottom strap behind the reel - will that move the reel away from the seal and door pocket enough to get the clearance you need?