Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
One reason is that it gets in the way of side curtain airbags, another was the lack of adjustability on most cars that had it, it rarely fit people the way it was intended to if you were too tall or too short, which could lead to injury.
One reason is that it gets in the way of side curtain airbags, another was the lack of adjustability on most cars that had it, it rarely fit people the way it was intended to if you were too tall or too short, which could lead to injury.
A couple of reasons. As McKinney said, airbags got in the way. Way back in the late 80's / early 90's, the government told auto manufacturers to either install side airbags, or auto seatbelts in their cars. Going the cheap route, they rolled out auto seatbelts. When side airbags became mandatory years later, they ditched the seatbelts.
There was also an issue with selling the vehicles in other countries. Canada, for example, had higher safety regulations than the US at the time -- making cars with auto seatbelts nearly ineligible to import in Canada.
Then there were the safety issues. When the powered part of the belt was attached to the door, if the car got into an accident that forced the door open, the driver / passenger could potentially be ejected. There was also an issue with people not wearing the lap belts (which had to be put on manually). In a collision, without a lap belt, people would actually go UNDER the powered belt, causing further injuries. Lastly, some people got annoyed by the powered belts, and simply unhooked them (using only the lap belt). For obvious reasons, this caused more injuries in the event of a wreck.
With stronger cars, and more airbags, they're an obsolete technology.
EDIT:
Quote:
Originally Posted by Timing2012
There is adjustability on manual seatbelt?
Most cars with manual seatbelts have the ability to move the shoulder part up or down, adjusting for driver height (though it's not required, so many cheaper cars go without it). With non-adjustable shoulder height seatbelts (or powered seatbelts), short drivers find the belt going across their neck (which is obviously not safe).
Location: We_tside PNW (Columbia Gorge) / CO / SA TX / Thailand
34,722 posts, read 58,054,000 times
Reputation: 46190
Maybe too many people got 'Strangled' getting in and out of their cars.
I still have a few in my fleet, they are NOT my favorites, and often get passengers (& self) all tangled up / frustrated on how to quickly 'Sit & Git".
Kinda like a 'riding' mower with a safety switch under the seat... ONE more thing to check if it won't fire up... Safety Switches... Argh.... Also for clutches, tranny shift levers, ... just what we need... "Smart Cars" that leave us stranded due to failure of a silly switch.
I had a '81 Toyota Cressida (back in the 90s) that had them (one of the first cars I think to have them) as well as my '91 Honda Accord. My grandpas old '90 Mazda 929 also had them, as well as his 1993 Mercury Tracer wagon. Once more cars started getting airbags, they phased them out.
My aunt had a 1995 Mercury Villager that had them (but it also had a driver airbag), so it was a featured at least through 1995 on some vehicles, even with airbags. I don't think any car with dual airbags had them.
I found them to be comfortable, especially on my Accord and the lap belt was all I had to fasten and it was super easy to pull over and buckle.
The motorized belts were a much safer design than the door mounted belts that some cars had (found in many late 80s/early 90s GM cars without airbags), because those would offer no protection if the door was to fly open in a crash. I had a '94 Chevy Lumina with those, they were comfortable though.
The 1995-1996 Ford Escort / Mercury Tracer was the only exception to that, I believe. Dual airbag and automatic seat belts... but then again, it was a 1991 design that had no airbags from 1991-1993 and just a driver airbag in 1994.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
