Please be careful out there.

[tfeverfred]

I'm not trying to scare anyone. I'm posting this because it really made me sit down and think about these cars and safety. The driver in this accident survived and last I read was in critical condition. The passenger died. Neither he or the passenger were wearing seat belts. I don't know the driver, but he was a member of the NTBA. At this time I am considering a roll bar in my T Bucket to install a shoulder restraint. I had thought about it before, but really couldn't figure out how to make it look nice and still be functional. I may or may not install one, maybe I'm just reacting to the story, but one thing for sure.... I will have seat belts and I will pay attention to what is going on around me.

These cars are like motorcycles that don't tip over and have to be driven with that in mind. Even with a little HP these things are fast. VERY fast. These are like no other car I have ever ridden in. They can not be driven like any other car. They are quick and quirky. The ride I had in one secured my thought that I wouldn't need a ton of HP to have fun.

Just be careful when you're out there guys.

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/metro/20070909-9999-1m9pubsafe.html

http://www.10news.com/slideshow/slideshows/14075148/detail.html

 

[Mike]

Not wearing seat belts. Do you suppose these two would take the extra 5-10 seconds to buckle up, if they had a second chance at the day?

Would a seat belt have saved a life in this accident? It certainly could not have caused any more harm than was already caused. And it's not as if this trip would have been delayed any more than it was, had these individuals taken the few extra seconds to simply buckle themselves in.

Anything can happen at any time and we have to be prepared for it, particularly with the responsibilities we have to our families.

I'm sorry this accident had to have such a tragic ending and my heart goes out to the families that are involved.

Fred, seat belt mounting is one area that I will certainly be addressing, when the time comes. Bolting a belt to a wood floor is not my idea of safe.

 

[tfeverfred]

I'm thinking that a piece of tube stock can be welded in between the frame where the top of the kick up is. The section just before where the watts linkage is located. That should be a ggod place to attach lap belts. I'm going to take a look at it this morning when I get to work.

I had never intended to mount the belts to the floor and I never was sure about how the body mounts to the frame. I'll post what I come up with and I'm going to check around to find out what other people are doing.

This was a bad accident, but it's sounding like it could have been avoided. Those fat tires in the back of that T didn't help and if you look close, you'll see that he was using an older juice jar for a master cylinder. I think there are a few things that could have been done to at least make that accident less tramatic.

I hope the driver recovers and my thoughts are with the family of the passenger.

 

[Rick]

The seat belts on the Total body are attached to the back of the seat riser there pretty sturdy.Also the body is mounted to the frame with expanding rubber gromets with a big nut on the inside so when you tighten the bolts that hold the floor on the frame the nut is sucked up to expand the rubber.The hole in the frame is 3/4 inch.I like the placement of the belts

 

[tfeverfred]

That's good to hear, Rick. I'm not that far yet, but since this accident, I had been thinking of ways to hook them up.

 

[Rick]

When i do a 3 or 4 inch wheel stand i think thats what i'll look like when it comes down.This thing doesn't like to ride on two wheels.being a 8 inch rear and only one wheel driving the car it makes a QUICK left turn so when you come down it's real scary.

 

[Mike]

Actually, I'm thinking something more along the lines of attaching the belts to tabs on a weld-in cross member. I suppose I've just spent too much time around race cars to think any other way.