Reply With QuoteThe oldest car I've seen them in was a 70. Don't know if they were required by law.
Car History Question
OK I ran across a person today with a large blue Tahoe with a light bar that didn't know the answer to the following Car History Question, let see if any of you kids know the answer!
What was the first year the government mandated shoulder belt as standard equipment in cars sold in the US!
The oldest car I've seen them in was a 70. Don't know if they were required by law.
They were mandated to be standard equipment on cars sold in the US., but what year?Originally Posted by Darron65
wasnt it in the mid 70's ?
"Racing makes heroin addiction look like a vague longing for something salty" - Peter Egan
Cars manufactured after 1967 and vans, pickup trucks and sport utility vehicles manufactured after 1971 are required by federal standards to have belts. I couldn't find anything on shoulder belts, but then again I didnt look all that hard and I have to go to work at 12:15
"Racing makes heroin addiction look like a vague longing for something salty" - Peter Egan
I vote for 1975. GM might have already had it in place in 1974.
1964. 3-pointers in 1968.
S.
Umm... I'll guess 1971, but I haven't got a clue.
I'm assuming you were in the 'lac? Did he give you a ticket?
Iain
"We don't stop playing because we grow old, we grow old because we stop playing." - George Bernard Shaw
Also sounds liek it was in NRH..
I know our 74 TR-6 had shoulder belts... I'm going to vote 72?
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1967.
Yeah, what he said...
We have a winner! Note the after 1967 part, my 'lac is a 1967.
Boy he really really wanted to give me a ticket! I was wearing the factory lap belt that came with the car, but he claimed that wasn’t sufficient! I made him verify his assumption of what the law was before I would sign anything. I was correct he was apologetic.
Note the stylish Lap belts!
Did a bit more googling, Found out that seat belts of any sort weren't required by law until the 1968 model year, but Cadillac being ahead of the curve made the lap belts standard equipment in 1967!
Found it!
"1973 -- Federal law requires three-point lap-shoulder belts with inertia reels"
I knew it was after 1969. The Dart Swinger I got for graduation only had lap belts.
Still can't get over not using them until they were mandatory and how quickly I became accustomed to them when the law went into effect.
Mark one for the small guy... literally!I was correct he was apologetic.
Lap belts continued on in back seats into the 80's... I was almost killed by a lap belt in a mid 80's Buick, everyone else in the car wasn't wearing a seat belt and they were fine. At some point, they must have declared back seats had to have shoulder belts too.....
My 1980 Jeep CJ5 had lap belts only....
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