Has anyone fitted rear belts to their Mk1?

[gs.davies]

if so, what belts did you fit and what modifications did you make to the shell to fit them. I'd be interested to see any pictures..
Cheers,
Gary

[dklawson]

I have added belts to the back of my '64. I am sorry but I have no pictures to share.

I asked a friend in the U.K. to send me pictures from the boot of his Mayfair. I fabricated pieces of angle iron to duplicate the anchor points shown in his pictures and welded those in the boot. There is a long piece straddling the middle of the car along the joint between the boot floor and seat back. There are also two smaller anchors in the "outer corners" where the seat back meets the boot floor. To each of those pieces I welded nuts for the seat belt anchor bolts (7/16 UNF? Grade-8).

The work I did was for 2-point static lap belts, not 3-point belts with a shoulder strap and not recoil belts. I used generic, aftermarket belts with a heavy metal buckle. The type I used was common in the 1960s on U.S. cars. They look similar to older airplane belts with the buckles made of chrome plated steel and black webbing instead of the aluminum alloy buckles used on an aircraft.

Over the years I picked up a used set of Kangol magnetic latch belts to use in the back so they would match my front belt. Installing those belts remains on my "to do" list.

[Chris64]

H Gary,

I'm pondering the same dilema (and have been for a few years!) I've got as far as ordering some securon 254s and thinking about the design of some spreader plates as dk has mentioned.

This was a thread I started a while back on the subject: viewtopic.php?f=3&t=3388

My son is now 15 months old so I need to get something sorted so I can take both him and his older sister in the car on occasion.

Cheers,

Chris

[timmy201]

I'm pretty sure my dad installed these in the 80's sometime. This style was sold for a few different brands here, mine are Ford branded, I think they were used in BMC cars at one stage

[Ollie78]

Hi Gary
I've given this some thought for my mk2 mini as well, I'm welding the shell at the moment and it would be nice to be able to take my kids out in it one day if they haven't all grown up by then... is it even legal to take kids in the back without seatbelts these days?
I think all the rover panels/brackets needed to install 3 point rear inertia belts are available in a kit form from sommerford mini but its not as simple as it first seems, more difficult for you as you have a mk1. As already mentioned the later Rover minis had captive brackets in the centre behind the back set and at each side next to the wheelarch housing and a strengthening/captive panel in the C post area. Its not possible to fit the outer seat base captive brackets in the position Rover intended as the back seat/bulkhead rib detail on mk1 and 2 minis extends right down in the corners to the boot floor making welding in the bracket a bit tricky. I wonder if it might be possible for me to fit the C post panel in my mk2 but it surely won't fit in your mk1 having a smaller rear screen than all other minis.
Ollie

[Tupers]

My MK3 has a pair of inertia reels bolted through the parcel shelf in a similar fashion to Timmy's static belts. I haven't really looked at how they're secured but I'll try and get some pictures.

The later Rover inertia reel system has some fairly hefty bracketry in and around the C-pillar and parcel shelf but I believe the mounts that Somerford sell are a little simpler.

[mab01uk]

If you want new but 'classic style' seat belts with chrome buckles, etc, try here:-

Seat Belts for Classic Cars - Pre 1972
All seat belts are manufactured under European standard R16 and under ISO9002 quality control procedures and are either tested to European standard R16 for Modern seat belts or to British standard BS3254 for period style seat belts for vehicles up to 1973.
Period Style Seat belts
All of our period style seat belts come with chrome aircraft style buckles and the choice of coloured webbing. A key point regarding period style buckle seat belts is that that under UK regulations period style buckles are not suitable for cars manufactured after December 1972, and are not recommended for children aged below 11 or 12 years of age.
http://www.quickfitsbs.com/classic_cars_seatbelts.php


Mounting Bracket Kit from Somerfords but they only sell modern belts:
Most 1980's Mini's have rear lap belt mountings already welded in the rear bulkhead, 1995 on also have the top mounts in rear C pillars..
Rear Seat Belt Mounting Kit
"In order to fit rear seat belts to pre-1995 Minis not already so equipped, mounting points will have to be fitted. Somerford Mini takes the strain out of working out what needs to be welded to the car's body with this money-saving kit including all required original factory mounting brackets (seat brace sides x 2, seat brace centre and C post x 2). Use of these brackets enables two rear seat belts to be fitted without the need to alter or change interior trim in the rear of your Mini
38 SBMK001 REAR SEAT BELT MOUNTING KIT 1 Includes all required original mountings ready to weld into car body.
More:
http://www.somerfordmini.co.uk/eshop/in ... s_id=14550

[Pandora]

worth mentioning that of course the late c-pillar mountings won't fit straight into a Mk1 as the rear window is smaller.

I had a set of late C pillars I was going to take the brackets off and modifying them so I could spot weld them into my shell, but I never got round to it. Seems to be a common result!

Al

[docka]

What about the estate variants, does anyone know if there is an off the shelf solution for these?

[Tim]

Estates never had rear seat belts, so to my knowledge there isn't an easy solution. The Australian factory built two ( I believe) prototype estates with rear seatbelts, but that's as close as they came.

Tim