MOT seatbelt saga - help required ! (1 Viewer)

[sherlock]

Hi I have a 2001 Coachmen Mirada which i have been to MOT at local VOSA station but they failed it for nothing other than front seatbelts being incorrect type as they are saying lapbelts are illegal and must be 3 point ones but i have been told by american rv dealers that lap belts for driver and front seat passeneger are ok and should pass mot, does anyone have experience of this or more importantly know the regulations well enough to get me out of this hole. I now have an rv which as far as vosa is concerned is ok in all other respects but is now off the road. Before anyone suggests me going to the rv dealer who said lap belts are ok, I went all the way to Wolverhampton from Kent 2 days later to get MOT and unlike vosa they found enough (highly questionable ! but no surprise as commercial garage) things wrong that it would have cost me in excess of £1000 to get through and wait a week for parts. Anyone that can help with these regulations then please let me know i'll definately buy you a pint or two wherever you are !
Andy

 

[Geo]

Vosa are applying the correct rules to your vehicle, your only hope is to fit retro boy racer type over the shoulder belts anchoring all 3 points to the seat base
as there are not realy any suitable mounts on the wall area, what we would call a B post to mount convensional belts in a Mirada
you are only the second person in over 3 years that has been pulled on this and no amount of arguing with VOSA is going to change their mind.
Your only other option is to find a local independant testing station or council run testing station
Most Mot testers are not fully aware of this seat belt problem,yet!!!
Geo

 

[Road Runner]

You have a PM

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[Dreamchaserrv]

My previous RV an Escaper passed 3 mot's at a Vosa station. It only had lap belts fitted.:thumb:

 

[kkclassic]

Hi all

Just a quick question does this same rule apply to a 1998 Mirada?

Kevin

 

[motaomer]

lap belts

sorry my feelings on this would be better off not wearing a belt
but once that is on the computer with vosa until it has passed it stays
life is worth more than a lap belt get it changed:thumb:
your family is no good with out u safety first

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[Geo]

Hi all

Just a quick question does this same rule apply to a 1998 Mirada?

Kevin

Yes it does
The simplest answer is as I have stated earlier make and bolt a bracket to your front seats so that a 3 point boy racer belt can be fitted, all that is reqd is one fixing point at the rear of the seat base, you can use the exsisting side mounts already on the seat for the lap belt, use something like M10 Bolts,they at least look the part,ther is no fail criteria for how its mounted so long as it feels firm.
You will only fit them for the test and remove them afterwards,reverting back to the lap belts when driving
As mearcat would say
Simples

 

[Geo]

My previous RV an Escaper passed 3 mot's at a Vosa station. It only had lap belts fitted.:thumb:

So Did my Mirada, wer'nt we the lucky ones:thumb:

sorry my feelings on this would be better off not wearing a belt
but once that is on the computer with vosa until it has passed it stays
life is worth more than a lap belt get it changed:thumb:
your family is no good with out u safety first

Excellent sentiments, care to suggest a meathod of fixing a standard seat belt without B postsoh:
The standard American lab belt is tested and certified, and will be far better than any DIY approach, so I have to disagree
Its the UK MoT regs that are woefully wrong and full of double standards,I know because im heavily involved, some vehicles dont req seat belts at all:Sad: so how can a manufactures lap belt be less adequate than none

 

[vwalan]

can.seat belts not be fitted similar to how range rover fit theirs.as geo has previously said the seat could be the mount for belts. i suppose pre 2001 (oct)could have not needed themif classed as over 3,500 goods vehicles.i should havesaid march.

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[Tony Lee]

From an engineering point of view, the fitting of a lap sash belt is a difficult exercise. Often there is no pillar behind the seat either with enough strength or able to accept an approved anchorage. Rarely are seat structures suitable for mounting the top anchorage either - because the seat base itself is not strong enough to take the torque imposed during a collision, or more likely because the backrest hinge or the backrest itself will just collapse. In this event, you are in a far worse position with a failed lap-sash belt than with an approved lap belt

A rangerover seat and many truck seats are designed from the floor up to comply with structural requirements for a three-point mounting. Most others are not.

 

[vwalan]

i couldnt agree more .but as the mot is only about not being able to pull the belt away from its mount ts not too bad. as for aproved mountings etc ,is there any?like most rules they are a joke.

 

[sherlock]

Thanks for the suggestions everyone !

Hi
Thanks Geo I reckon i'll go down the same line you suggested, try another MOT station first then if that fails just fit the boy-racer belts like you say (worth mentioning even the tester said to do something like that but i was'nt too sure at the time).
Worth also saying that without your advice I would be paying an awful lot of money to get belts fitted with the posts being put in first. The Hastings MOT centre had already sent someone off and he went all the way to Travelworld RV and reportedly they had to put a pillar in both sides involving a lot of work and apparently a lot of money changed hands to do it.
I have to agree that belts fitted and tested out on the RV in USA are much more preferable in my mind than to anything added on in UK and after all how do you test them out or find out if they are safe except in the conventional way !
That pints on its way to you Geo...........
rgds
Andy

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[Geo]

We Vosa people are not as unsympathetic as some assume, if there is a work around we will tell you, I dont agree with all the regs like a lot of vosa people BUT when were asked to put our names on a ticket and our jobs depend on it, Rules im afraid are rules ,right or wrong As there is no standard to test what you install it is safe to assume it will pass the Mot test so long as it looks right, feels right and complys with a 3 point mount :thumb:
In the past when inspecting race competition vehicles, I would tell drivers ,If the rules call for a yellow plastic duck on the roof its no good turning up with a blue one,oh: Simples
Geo