Integrated Shoulder Belts, front and back?

Has anyone here ever tried using the seats out of a Chrysler 200 convertible as replacements in their A-bodies?

I have seen the Sebring swap a few times, but am not a fan of how high the shoulder belt pillar is where it is as tall as the head rest. The 200 Seats have a much more understated setup that I much prefer in terms of looks, but I am wondering about fitment.

Also - I haven't really seen much about back-seat updates using modern setups to give rear-seat occupants (read kids) shoulder belts and head-rests. Given that the A-body back seats are pretty narrow (it looks downright tiny in my Barracuda), I'm wondering if anyone has come up with a swap-in solution for head-rests and integrated belts in the rear?

Steve69Fish said:

Has anyone here ever tried using the seats out of a Chrysler 200 convertible as replacements in their A-bodies?

I have seen the Sebring swap a few times, but am not a fan of how high the shoulder belt pillar is where it is as tall as the head rest. The 200 Seats have a much more understated setup that I much prefer in terms of looks, but I am wondering about fitment.

Also - I haven't really seen much about back-seat updates using modern setups to give rear-seat occupants (read kids) shoulder belts and head-rests. Given that the A-body back seats are pretty narrow (it looks downright tiny in my Barracuda), I'm wondering if anyone has come up with a swap-in solution for head-rests and integrated belts in the rear?

Click to expand...

My rear seat doesn't have integrated seat belts but my solution solved the "kids problem", head rest and all!!
I bend a piece of 1/8" X 1 1/2" flat stock to follow the shape of the back seat and used the flat stock to mount my shoulder harness seat belts and also to install a head rest. It also gave me a place to mount some 1/2" plywood for my 12" speakers and 500 watt amps. Everything is nicely hidden behind the rear seat while keeping the stock rear seat look.

I did try mounting Sebring front bucket seats in my daughter's '59 Studebaker Silver Hawk and ran into many problems. Some years of Sebring seats have an integrated "impact module" that locks the seat belts during a crash. The module is hidden inside the Sebring console. The seats have multiple locking features that are difficult to defeat even with the wiring diagram. The inside belt receiver also has an explosive device which is ignited during an accident causing the seat belt to tighten (it's a one time use type of device). I'm sure someone has used these seat belt mechanisms before it but it was hardly worth the trouble and I didn't want to risk my daughter's well being on a seat belt mechanism that wasn't as the factory intended.
treblig

Treblig said:

My rear seat doesn't have integrated seat belts but my solution solved the "kids problem", head rest and all!!

Click to expand...

I saw your original post about your rear seat. That is some beautiful work there.

I don't have the tools or metalwork practice to bend the bar uniformly and weld in the tabs for the shoulder belt guides, unfortunately. So my thought was to see if I could come up with a modern rear seat that could be swapped in that had the integrated belts, and removable headrests.

If I don't come up with something, though, well - your work sure is inspiring!

I have just purchased a 67 Dart and have the same problem to solve. I am thinking about a mini roll bar in the trunk to mount all three seat belt retractors on the underside of, routing through the parcel shelf.

The headrests is a bridge that I have not crossed.

I will let you know how I get on.

The 96-2000 Sebring seats use an inertia module similar to an electric brake for a trailer that is under the console to lock the belts. There is a wiring diagram on corvairkid.com that shows how to wire it. 01-06 uses a cam that locks it in minor incidents and the gas charged tensioner hooked to to air bag system to pull tight in a major crash. I haven't looked into the 08 and op convertibles to see how they are done but would assume it is similar to the 01-06 setup.

Thee are the seats in a durogo limited I picked up for a 5.9 FI swap and the front seats will fit, I am thinking the rear seats can be made to work and have small head rests and belts. there is also an even smaller Jump seat in back. I will try to get a pic of rear seats tomorrow when J returns to work, he wont stop driving it long enough to pull engine.

I have a 69 HT with no head rest bench and need neck support for back injury plus I have a 6 year old in back seat so rear rests and shoulder belts are mandatory.

Sorry for sideways pic, cant seem to get em to post upright but you can see rear a bit and get the basic idea. Will post if its close to correct width.

They wouldnt have front shoulder belts though...

Thanks all. My projects for this year, being that the car is new to me as of Jan., are to address anything safety-wise I can think of. Because I want this to be the family summer cruiser, good seating is high on my list.

In addition to convertibles, I thought about looking to see if a modern small hatchback rear seat met the needs and size. Something like a Mazda 3, though I don't remember those being integrated seat belts.