TwinPlenum3500S said:
Point taken ... I passed my test at 17 in 1991 and it was not law then. I have never bothered. Pilkie. My car is a 1972. No matter how hard I tug the belts, they do not lock up like more modren belts. Could mine be the earlier type. Also when fitting a baby seat, these types make it awkward to get tight.
The early type have a steel ball that moves on braking or cornering and activate the locking mechanism! one way I check them is to have a mate pull on the belt while you give the casing a little thump with a fist or light soft hammer, this normally jolts the ball and locks the belt!
Some have a weight on a small pendulum that does the same as the ball!
When fitting a front child seat,you cannot get them tight,they will only go tight in an incident,Far safer to put the kids in the back with fixed belts to secure the seat.
I passed my test in 1977,and have always worn a seatbelt!! When I severely rolled my mini on ice in the 80's,I hit a drystone wall and bent all 4 corners of the car and the roof! it saved me and my mates life!
The only "minor" injury we had was when we undid the belts we fell on our heads as we forgot we were upside down!!
Way better than being thrown out and killed!!
Wasnt it law in the mid 80's???
I occasionally go out for a drive with a mate who's 1960's car wasnt fitted with belts and I dont feel safe at all!! Thankfully he does drive it slow,but its the other drivers on the road that worry me!!