rear seat belts

[Phil in BC]

The bench seat in the back of my 89 bj74 does not have any seat belts and I would like to install them hopefully before September. I know I shouldnt do this, but I assume that these trucks must havecome from the factory with the mounting plates for seat belts under the carpet? Do the Aussie 74's have seat belts in the back? And if so, how can I get some shipped to canada? I checked with the local toyota dearlership in town and they are just about as helpful as my a#$. I need to be able to carry a third passenger on a fishing trip later this summer. Any info would be great.

Thanks
Phil

[crushers]

curious, why 'shouldn't' you do this?

easy enough,
find a set of rear lap belts, bolt to inner fender using a large mounting plate below the inner fender. the inside ones you mount to the upper floor mount on the seat.
done

[crushers]

BTW, most Toyota stealerships do not want anything to do with the JDM... i guess they do not liek the color of our money...

[Phil in BC]

You call them right at "stealerships" wayne. They certainly do not want my business! Shouldnt seat belts for most toyata's be kinda universal?

And I was saying I shouldnt assume anything, that usually backfires, and costs me more.

[crushers]

go to your local wecker yard, i usually get mine from the supra (center rear seat)

[lshobie]

I have a guy do the install here, it isn't rocket science but he is a cage builder and has all the hardware and knowledge to do it right - and it only costs me 40 bucks . Use the backing plates like wayne says, make sure to use strengthened bolts and hardware. Don't use the seat mount for the lap belt, come up through the floor with your own hardware as there is a reinforced member there - I guess for the trucks that they install the belts in. Using the seat mounts wouldnt be as good in my opinion - and the guy who installs cages for a living.

Have fun!

[roscoFJ73]

Originally Posted by Phil in BC

The bench seat in the back of my 89 bj74 does not have any seat belts and I would like to install them hopefully before September. I know I shouldnt do this, but I assume that these trucks must havecome from the factory with the mounting plates for seat belts under the carpet? Do the Aussie 74's have seat belts in the back? And if so, how can I get some shipped to canada? I checked with the local toyota dearlership in town and they are just about as helpful as my a#$. I need to be able to carry a third passenger on a fishing trip later this summer. Any info would be great.

Thanks
Phil

The aussie and european 73/74 series have a different rear seat with 2 x brackets that attach to the floor and they have the rollcage for attaching the inertia reel.
A pic is worth a 1000 words

[crushers]

now that is interesting since the factory belt attaches to the cross bar which should be the weakest link. that bar looks no stronger than the one with the single latch down...

since the force of the impact on the shoulder belt is upper body restraint the single latch down and lap belt shoudl work the same...not that i ever would want to find out...

[lshobie]

My main concern was the bolt that was being used to hold the lap belt down, those little 12mm bolts are only for holding the seat in place - not for holding 100-200 pounds in an accident. I tried bolting a set in and it just didnt sit right with me. My fabricator guy used proper restraint hardware - without a doubt a body would be cut in two before the mounts broke. Oh, and I was mounting 2 car seats in the back - so I don't mess with my kids.

It's one of those things that I don't mind overkilling.

[lumpy70]

Good call on upping the hardware.

At 40 kph the force of a sudden stop is 20x that of the weight the individual.

Sooo, 200 lb guy x 20 = 4000 lbs...at 40 kph!

For the record, a Grade 5, 3/8" bolt and nut with washer has a shear strength of 8280 lbs, and a tension strength of 9888 lbs. Grade 8 is about 10,000 lbs and 12,000 lbs respectively.

I'm not sure what a 1/2" one can do, but it's a lot.

Craig.

[Phil in BC]

I got my seat belts installed last weekend and I thought I'd send some pics along. I picked up the belts from the wreckers for $30 for the pair. They are the centre belts from a couple of 4 runners. I mounted them though the floor and attached to the cross member with hardened bolts and large washers. I put the lap belts through the middle and the buckles on the outside. Thats the last of my projects to do before heading to the Yukon in September. Thanks for all the info guys. Your always a great help and much appreciated.

Phil

[lumpy70]

Can you post up a picture of underneath, what the mounting points look like?

Craig.

[hoser]

Looks stock! Also, what year(s) 4Runner are they from?

[_Walker_]

just an FYI, although I totally agree installing belts is a VERY good idea, you can't get a ticket for having people in the back not belted in. Because these trucks were built without rear belts there's no legal requirement, basically like an OLD domestic, they are grandfathered in. Furthermore because there aren't already belts there there is no legal maximum to the number of people you can put back there (its just a question of what you have room for. Im usually rocking around with 3 people in the back on camping trips (that being said they are of the 110 lbs female variety )