Speaking of seat belts

[Ole Anderson]

My dad flew a small plane in the early 1960's just as seat belts in cars became standard. So it was cool to wear a seat belt in the car just like you did in the plane. I feel naked without one, and I taught that to my family. Sure glad I did. Saved my wife's life two times. Once when she rolled the car with my son in the kiddie seat and once when she was t-boned and pushed through a gas station. Seat belt bruises the second time. Then my son fell asleep in the fast lane on the expressway on the way home from work, hit a sign barrier in the median at 75 mph, absolutely totaled his Ford Ranger and basically walked away with a split lip and bruises.

Anyone else care to share a seat belt story?

[Mike Lassiter]

40 years ago....
Driving a 73 Chevy truck on back road and spun out in the road, turned 180 going backwards at 50 mph as the truck went off the road. Truck flipped over and landed in a cluster of trees on it's side sort of. Windshield was folded over in half. Back glass flipped down into the bed. Cab tilted from impact with the ground when the truck rolled over. Neither door could be opened, Had to climb out the back window opening in the bed. I always worn my seatbelt then, That was the only smart thing I did that day. I had my arm on the top of the window opening on the drivers door and felt the grass on my arm as the truck rolled over. Tree the truck hit the hardest was about center of the full fuel tank of gas when I got out.

Walked away without a scratch due to the seat belt which was also shoulder harness. Truck was totaled. I still have the pictures I took of the truck afterwards. That wreck probably saved my life. I was reckless and drove fast. I could have killed someone else or myself I think had this not happened and slowed me down.

[Ken Fitzgerald]

In June, 1967 I traded my 2-door baby blue '56 Chevy "Chevrolet" for a monthly payment and a lagoon aqua '64 SS Impala convertible with a white top and white bucket seats. It had a stock 300hp 327 ci V-8 engine with a 4 speed Muncie and a 3.70 rear end. I bought it at a dealership and the guy who owned it before me had installed seat belts in it. He had also installed head rests. The following January, I was driving to work in the fog, when a tractor-trailer loaded with coiled steel was on the wrong side of the road and hit me head on. Earlier that morning at my parents' home, I had put on the seat belts for the VERY FIRST time. I walked away from the accident because I was wearing those seatbelts.

Years later, I was in the US Navy in Meridian, MS when our youngest son was born. To supplement our income, I was working part time on the loading docks at the local Sears store. I got employee discounts. When the youngest son was born, he came home in a car seat held in by SEAT BELTS.

In 1982, late night I was involved in another wreck where the new 3 week old car I was driving was totaled. I walked away with a dislocated finger that was on the steering wheel at the time of impact. I was wearing my seat belt.

Do I wear seat belts? I feel naked without them.

[Greg Peterson]

Just a quick little video of how much car safety engineering has come. The idea of big and heavy, in and of itself, is untrue.

2009 Chevy Malibu vs 1959 Bel Air Crash Test: https://youtu.be/fPF4fBGNK0U

[Steve Peterson]

No crash stories. My mom tells me that when I was an infant in the early 60s they had baby seats that were basically cardboard boxes that propped the me up so I could see out the window.

Steve

[Greg Peterson]

I remember sitting in the back of station wagons that had fold out seats that faced backwards. Yeah, I don't know if that would pass muster now.

[Fred Chan]

Back in the early 70's before seat belts and air bags became mandatory I used to meet my brother (insurance adjuster) at his workplace. To kill time I'd wander around the storage area and look at the wrecks. One thing I noticed was all the cars with skull sized round holes in the windshields with blood and hair stuck in them. Even cars that had light front end damage had the holes. I've always worn seat belts ever since.

[Dan Hintz]

Early 90's driving a '67 Celica hatchback waiting at the bottom leg of a T intersection to turn left. Light turns green, I pull out, and a fully-loaded dumptruck T-bones me on the driver's side and turns my car into a perfect taco.

Even though I saw the truck at the last millisecond, the seatbelt prevented me from leaning farther away from the door. Fortunately, the worst I had to deal with was a few cuts/scrapes and a lot of internal bruising which took a couple of months to heal.

But I still wear my seatbelt every single time.

[Dave Anderson NH]

12 years ago a couple of days before Christmas we got out of work early at 11AM. I went home, had lunch, and put a 20lb propane tank in the Ford Taurus to go get it filled. I had a miserable cold at the time. About 5 miles from home I went into a coughing fit, hyperventilated, and blacked out for a couple of seconds. I went right across the road into a yard and hit a paper birch tree at 40mph. I was wearing my seat belt and the air bags deployed. My jacket ended up with permanent marks diagonally across my chest and around the waist from the seat belt and shoulder harness. There was also a scorch mark on the jacket from the firing of the airbag. I ended up with some cracked ribs but was overall in good shape. My car doesn't go out of park without my seat belt on.

[Erik Loza]

Year, 2000: Driving home from work on the freeway around 8 o'clock at night when a Mitsubishi coupe somehow lost control while merging onto the freeway, shot diagonally across all four lanes of the freeway, struck the cement median wall, and bounced back into my path. I T-boned her in the driver's side door at full speed, it happened so fast. Wearing my seatbelt, walked away but my Jeep's front end was destroyed. Young gal driving had not been wearing a seatbelt, hit the steering wheel with her face, was in bad shape but no life threatening injuries. I never drive anywhere without buckling up.

Erik

[Brian Elfert]

Just a quick little video of how much car safety engineering has come. The idea of big and heavy, in and of itself, is untrue.

2009 Chevy Malibu vs 1959 Bel Air Crash Test: https://youtu.be/fPF4fBGNK0U

The only reason the Malibu won in this crash test were all the safety features added in the 50 years since the Bel Air was built. I think there is some truth to the biggest and heaviest vehicle winning in a crash. What do you think would happen if a 2015 Chevy Suburban was crash tested against something like a 2015 Chevy Spark? I bet the Spark would come out on the losing end of the test.

Personally, I drive normal sized vehicles and don't worry about what happens in an accident. A large SUV like a Suburban is way too expensive to own both from the initial purchase price and the extra cost for gas. Large SUVs are hard to maneuver in the city and many parking lots.

[Rick Potter]

Best ad on TV is that
Subaru ad titled "They Lived".

[Alan Rutherford]

Back in the early 70's before seat belts and air bags became mandatory I used to meet my brother (insurance adjuster) at his workplace. To kill time I'd wander around the storage area and look at the wrecks. One thing I noticed was all the cars with skull sized round holes in the windshields with blood and hair stuck in them. Even cars that had light front end damage had the holes. I've always worn seat belts ever since.

I grew up in the US about 3,000 from BC but heads made holes in windshields the same way. My father had a large body and fender shop that I spent a lot of time in. You could also find lots of examples of someone's gut folding the steering wheel back over the steering column.

I've used seat belts since back when you had to drill the holes to install them yourself.

[Ole Anderson]

I had a guy at work (drove a big Caddy) that claimed if you were ever going to crash, put your foot to the floor on the gas as the car with the most momentum would win. Never could talk him out of that idea.

[Greg Peterson]

The Suburban may fare better, but it is possible the smaller vehicle would utilize the latest safety design features.

https://youtu.be/9iKGfo1wmOM