I'm putting in some seat belts in my 58 Caddy and I don't know where to fasten the belts on the center of the front seat. I can see the eye hook where the outer belts secured to the pan. One of them even has an old seat belt hooked to it. Am I missing something for the other half of the seat belt?
You can use them most anywhere but don't mount them to the frame,,in a accident you will want the floor to give,,also use big washers under the floor. HRP
Secure to the pan and use a 6" wide steel plate or big thick washer for extra reinforcement. If you inspect the pan from underneath you may see bolt locations stamped in the pan. Seat belt mountings became mandatory in 1963 but some cars had them earlier. While you are at it, be sure to reinforce the seat mounting bolts. On older cars the seat can tear loose and squash you against the belt in severe accidents.
Oh no! Don't ask THAT question! LOL! Go here: http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=759684
Check your seats before you drill holes in your floorpan. I'll explain. I recently purchased a 58 Biscayne with all original interior. I purchased the chrome latch type belts from Speedway. I had my holes all laid out and was getting ready to drill for the center anchors. I decided to check the seats. There's no way to snake the belts through the seat. I would have had to cut the seat bottom for a belt p***age. I decided not to do that. It's original material. Your Caddy seats may be constructed differently. Just saying it would be wise to check first. Sam
Actually,All cars built after January 1, 1968 were required to have seatbelts here in the States but your right most did have anchor points from 63 on. HRP
juliano's sells some nice plates for the purpose. They have a large radius rounded edge so the chance of them "cutting" through the floors is much less than using simple large flat washer. Proper bolts included don't scrimp on safety. http://www.julianos.com/anchor_plate.html