My very politically incorrect answer about Imperials that
come without seatbelts:
The 1960 Imperials that I love so came without seatbelts.
I find driving without belts to be a guilty pleasure. With
a car of this size, I find the lap belts to be the most
that I would do were I to install belts, and have not made
a decision on the current car that I am about to revive.
In 1996 my 71 Lincoln Cont. MkIII and I were car #5 in a 5
car chain collision, and the Honda that I hit had crumple
zones that worked as advertised. My lap belt held me and I
felt very little in the way of strain as my car plowed into
the other. I didn't even come close to being pushed into
the steering wheel, despite a good solid front end hit. I
had a surge of panic as I walked up the line and saw what
my car had done to the civic. His car was measured by the
CHP as 11" shorter than stock and was a total loss, having
been driven under the car in front of him. I replaced the
bumper and bumper brackets, did some minor bondo work, and
paid $200 for a cheapie paint job.
The point: I am counting on the rest of the population of
cars that I might hit to be softer, lighter, and far enough
down my hood to be less of a threat to me than I am to
them. I think that Lap belts are enough for me.
I am counting on my own common driving sense to keep myself
away from trees and buildings that do not yeild, tempting
fate as that may seem to be as I write it.
This is a decision that lacks some common sense based on
what our society has been screaming at us regarding safety
and seatbelts, and I am dead certain that I am exposing
myself to risk by driving with only lap belts or no belts
at all, but it is one that I have personally accepted based
on my personal conservative driving habits when in "winged
victory". I have a sports car and motorcycle for
aggressive driving, and know my place when in the '60 or
'73.
Bring on the alternate viewpoints.
By the way, I had a '63 that had seatbelts installed,
probably by the dealer, and they were aluminum topped
airline type jobs that you lift the latch on to release,
and I liked them very much more from an aesthetic &
functional viewpoint. they were unusual and just seemed to
fit the car by being out of the ordinary and nice in their
tactile feel and operation. Much better than those
infernal button-release things that all other cars seem to have.
=====
Kenyon Wills
6o LeBaron - America's Most Carefully Built Car
73 LeBaron - Long Low & Luxurious
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