Retracting seat belts for bay window

lostorbit · Post by **lostorbit** » Sat May 03, 2003 7:26 am

I have been searching for a way to retrofit a pair of retractables in my '78 Westy. I'd like to keep it VW/Audi as possible, rather than some aftermarket brand of belts, and I was looking at the Vanagons. It looks like the seatbelts from a Vanagon would bolt right up in my bus, the only challenge would be the part that rolls up.

Anyone tried this?

Russ

germansupplyscott · Post by **germansupplyscott** » Sat May 03, 2003 7:18 pm

the vanagon belts will work, but you have to make a bracket for the reel to bolt to the body. the receivers are also a bit too short for a bus, the vanagon pedestals are shorter than a baywindow.

http://www.gowesty.com/Merchant2/mercha ... ry_Code=vp

they have retractable belts that are european VW i think. very expensive, but they do fit perfectly and are made by the same company as the originals (repa). i have seen them installed and they look perfect. i am trying to figure out how to get belts that look and fit that well for a lot less money, but i haven't hit it yet.

scott lyons

lostorbit · Post by **lostorbit** » Sat May 03, 2003 11:48 pm

$109 *each* is a bit steep for belts, but this bus is my daily cruiser and I'm halfway tempted. I haven't actually found Vanagon belts for sale anywhere, and no one I've talked to is willing to part out what they've got. Buying a whole bus just for seatbelts is a bit much.

BTW, for anyone looking for old belts...don't pull any from a wrecked vehicle. Safety belts aren't designed to withstand more than one major crash, and they may be weakened too much to be useful for a second time.

GoKayaking · Post by **GoKayaking** » Sun May 04, 2003 8:49 am

I have Vanagon retractables in my 76 Westy and they fit very well. I drilled holes and installed the reel flat against the wall behind the driver's seat with the bolts and very large washers going into the spare tire compartment. On the passenger side I installed the reel just below the small triangular brace that goes from the pillar to the seat pedestal. I had to drill the lower hole through the pedestal and into my wheel well and the upper hole through the triangular brace. I installed very large washers with a rubber grommet in the wheel well to keep it from leaking. Both seatbelt hangers at the very top need a longer bolt and a spacer to clear the extended welded body seam that should be covered now by a piece of white vinyl trim. The driver's side of my 76 Westy works perfectly, but the passenger's side is a little short because I had to install the reel lower than the drivers side. This could be fixed by installing the female portion higher on the pedestal. I just installed them where the originals were installed, but as Scott mentioned this makes them a little too short. I also installed new pedestal covers with pre-cut holes so I don't want to move mine, but the passenger side would work better if I did. I had a 77 Westy previously and I installed retractables from a late 80's Dodge Ram 50 into that bus. The Dodge was the same as a Mitsubuishi Mighty Max pickup of similar years. These belts looked fine and actually worked better than the Vanagon belts because the female ends were longer. Safety is more important to me than looks, but I really like both with the Vanagon belts. I'm sure there are other cars, trucks, or vans out there that would work. All you need is a self contained reel that isn't built into the vehicle and webbing that is long enough for the bus. On the 77 Westy I just went to a salvage yard and started looking through vehicles until I found what I needed in the Dodge. Good luck.

Wombat · Post by **Wombat** » Tue May 13, 2003 9:21 pm

I don't know what the laws are where you live, but in Australia if you change the seatbelts (especially if you drill new holes) you have to get them checked by an engineer and get a certificate to make your bus legal.

Alaska Westy · Post by **Alaska Westy** » Sat May 17, 2003 11:50 am

I got these from CIP1 and they work great in our '78.

http://store.cip1.com/Merchant2/merchan ... e=02-14-04

Actually made in England, so they are not German, but my goal was safety and not going original. Price was around $80 and installation was a snap. All hardware included to go right into the predrilled holes in your bus.

I would be weary about drilling my own holes to make the Vanagon belts work. You could always buy a Wolfsburg sticker and it on them!

Good luck.

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Mon May 19, 2003 7:14 am

thanks for that great tip/source!