Lists have simultaneously had threads on installing seat belts for older
vehicles; somebody suggested that we each check our states for the law as each
state is different. I talked to our state dept and found the following:
1--They are going from seat belt usage as a secondary law to that of a primary
law...ie, before in TN they could not stop you for seat belt use alone; now
they can. It sounds like most states are moving in this direction.
2--Regardless, in TN seat belt retrofits are not required for vehicles that
never had them...ie, the seat belt law does not apply.
3--One item that caught me off guard initially was that they do not at all like
the idea of owners retrofitting their own vehicles with seat belts or upgrading
from lap to shoulder belts...a moment's thought makes it clear as to why
though...no controls over engineering solution and quality of implementation.
The suggestion was that the dealer should do any modifications...I wonder when
the last time was that a Chevy dealer actually worked on a 61 Corvair Lakewood
or 66 Monza (the 66 has lap belts but not shoulder) or a 58 Chevy Suburban? Of
course, this is not workable; however, t's not fair to pick on the guy as he
was minimizing his and the state's liability and just stating the preference.
He was exceptionally polite, helpful, and clear in stating the state's policy
which is all I was after to begin with.
This doesn't help as to retrofitting seat belts to old vehicles but does help
to understand the mindset of the enforcement...in TN at least. I have quite a
while before I have to worry about the Suburban's launch on the road, but this
is one issue that I'll have to address before it does...with proper engineering
of course.
Summary point--it's not at all hard to track down your state dept to discuss
this and they were easy to talk to, at least in my case.
Mark Noakes
New Section: parts for sale (note: location = Knoxville, TN)
Personal, hobby, enthusiast vehicles, work/school, nature/travel/art
photography located at:
http://blog.mark.noakes.com/
"In theory there is no difference between theory and practice, but in practice
there is usually a difference."
oletrucks is devoted to Chevy and GM trucks built between 1941 and 1959
|