Rear seat belts
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Hi,
I have just purchased a Land Rover Dormobile (71827.74.626) and am keen to take the kids out on an adventure.
Unfortunately my local LR specialist tells me that they can’t fit rear seat belts because the rear seats are too wide.
I’m surprised because the carpet has space for the stalks to come through in the back and there is a square hole cut out in the trim where I would expect the shoulder mounting bracket to go (though some insulation may need cutting out).
What are your experiences? Is there a standard fit?
Otherwise I will have to make the trip to Stanmore to Quickfit SBS who came up trumps when I needed to get rear seat belts in my old Lotus +2 (sadly now gone). Unless you can recommend anyone else closer to East Sussex or with more experience.
Thanks for any help.
Cheers,
Gary.
Hi Gary
In the day there was no option to fit the rear seat belts, however I’m sure this can be done. I’m not sure handy your are but a set of belts from a scrapped car, or a look on eBay should provide you with the parts.
The challenge would be finding the fixing points. A poke around under the floor should ensure you find a suitable cross member for a fixing point.
The rear door pillar should be usable for the reel.
Maybe someone on here has done this.
Regards
JohnRegarding the fixing points, some can be found on VW webshops but it’s simply a plate with a nut welded to it.
Thanks for the help. I’m booked into http://quickfitsbs.com on Monday.
Best leave it to the experts I feel.
Gary.
Hi
I did this a few years ago to my series 3 Dormobile,i used Securon inertia seat belts the ones with that have a webbed stalk so you don’t trip over the thing when not in use, drill through the floor and catch the lip of one of the steel rear floor supports there is one which is located just in line with the seat back.The reel is fixed to the B post where it slopes up opposite the corner of the rear seat,to fit the top part you have to remove the metal trim panel where your shoulder would be and fit an L shaped or similar steel brace, (this is a Land Rover part) and drill two holes in the roof gutter for two bolts and slide a plate with two nuts tacked onto it inside the body side.
You then re fit the Dormobile trim panel obviously with a 7/16th size hole so you can fit the top anchor bolt.regards
MalcolmMalcolm,
I tried fitting the rear belts in this way to the side post because this is what I had seen on Defenders with standard rear seating. However I found it impossible to get a wrench onto the nut inside the post, to tighten the bolt. Did you use backplates with a nut welded on? If so, where did you get them? (Is it the VW source mentioned?). Were you required to have additional strenghteners or load-distributing plates under the mounting point in the floor? I know that Defenders have seatbelt mounts at this point that go all the way through the floor and down to the chassis.
Pictures of the two lower mounting points would be much appreciated (the shoulder point is a standard part, so it’s obvious to me how it fits).
Thanks,
JeremyHi Malcolm,
Thanks for your detailed response. I have hope that the operation on Monday may not be too involved (and therefore expensive).
I tried buying the rear seat belt mounting brackets in order to prevent them having to make an item to fit. Unfortunately despite an equivalent item apparently being made by exmoor trim, I fell flat on getting hold of one in time.
I will let you know how they eventually fit the belts.
Cheers,
Gary.
Hi
I was going to have a go at fitting integral rear seat belts into RU. Have rescued some seats from a minbus that had integral seat belts fitted and in the process of stripping these off and then working out a way of bolting them on to the restored/recovered dormobile seats.
I guess the issue is that neither the front or rear seats in a dormobile are mounted up to modern safety standards. so integral belts are not the ideal from a safety view but should be neat.
Our kids have grown up so we won’t have passengers in the back most of the time, so probably an acceptable compromise for us.
Kind regards
Paul
Hi Malcolm,
Curious how you managed to get inertia seat belts in the rear. I was looking at the space available with the guy looking to fit the belts this morning and there isn’t much there. The seats are right up against the side of the car and when they fold flat there is not enough space over the wheel to fit the reel.
Hopefully they will be able to put the reel under the trim in the side but otherwise it will have to be static belts in the back. This is turning out to be quite a bit of work so I will report the final results for all to share.
Gary.
Hi
Apologies for the confusion i should have looked at my seat belts before i wrote the reply the reel attaches to the capping at the rear of the seat, you have to use inertia belts that have the adjustable counterbalance as the reel works at an angle (it sits just behind the seat back) you tack the nut onto a steel plate and slide it in behind the capping.
To fix the bottom anchor drill through the B post near the top where it flares up opposite the corner of the seat you will need a flex head ratchet spanner to access inside the B post to catch the nut, tape the nut onto the flex head so it does not fall inside the B post until it locates the bolt.
Regards the anchor for the stalk this is attached through the floor to the pressed steel supports you could either dill through and catch the lip or use long 7/16ths bolts and go through the middle,these are heavy gauge formed steel so in my opinion i cannot see a problem in useing them as an anchor as long as they are not rotten. I removed mine and had them blasted and galvinized.
I did this about 5 years ago so again apologies for my original relpy,this modification still allows the seats to be folded away to the side and folded down in the bed position.l will try and take pics and post.
If anyone would like any help or advice on doing a Land Rover Dormobile give me a shout.I am currently overhauling a Bedford Dormobile and must admit the Land Rover was much easier.Regards
MalcolmMy final report from the Land Rover Dormobile with four inertia reel seat belts:
The front seats were pretty easy. Existing hardware was retained for the buckle to keep the period feel and the shoulder fixing replaced with a new shoulder loop using the existing bracket. The retractor was fixed at the back of the plinth that the seat sits on, at the bottom corner next to the retaining strap for the rear door. Unfortunately the retractor is within kicking distance of an adult but fortunately not our children (yet).
The rear seat belts were more tricky. Luckily there was enough space for the retractor behind the lower trim at the side of the rear seats and the webbing feeds through a rectangular hole in this trim. Standard brackets were fitted for the shoulder fixing (behind the top trim) with an appropriate hole for the bolt. Centre stalks had to be used due to modern safety requirements (apparently there is a cut-off at 1973 which means you can’t use period hardware). These fit quite neatly just behind the seats, using the existing holes in the carpet apparently designed for this purpose (I am presuming it has been replaced, because these can’t be original can they?).
All in an expensive operation (6 hours labour plus parts) but a very neat solution. I can’t report exactly where things ended up being bolted but I can look if it’s important for you.
Cheers,
Gary.Would it be possible to get photos of both front and rear belts with anchors?
The family will grow in a couple of days and I am trying to find a solution for carrying every(little)body safely and still getting the Dormatic system fully and easily operable.No problem – though I’ve a lot on at the moment (but not quite so much as you seem to) so it might take me a few weeks to get the photos posted.
Gary.
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