July 2016
many other matters concerning the
MGA.
All supplied mounting base plates
must be used as per installation instructions.
Naturally, I can take no responsibility
in any unfortunate outcomes that may
arise from following the procedure
outlined in installing the belts, below,
and it is at your risk if you install them
yourself.
However, without three
point seat belts, you are at considerable potential peril every time you
venture out onto the road in an MGA.
In my installation, the top mounting is
into the tonneau panel as per the
workshop manual. The body has a
"sandwich" reinforcement (outer plate
of similar size and thickness to match
the inner plate supplied with safety
belts) for the top mounting and a
quick release on the outer side connection point (otherwise, the belt has
to be unbolted to allow the hood to be
raised).
The quick release mechanism consists of a 5 tonne strength "D" shackle
(10 mm thick stainless steel) and a
right angle mild steel bracket (6 mm
thick by 50 mm wide by 50 mm high
and 40 mm across) to couple to the
floor mounting. Note, a piece of nylon
cord is tied around the "D" shackle
bolt to prevent an embarrassing loss
of the shackle bolt when operating the
"quick release" mechanism, probably
in the rain with the passenger expressing his or her disapproval with
this additional delay in raising the
hood. Estimated to increase the time
spent by 10% - one extra minute in
ten minutes, to release and reconnect both sides!
The floor mounting points have been
chosen for maximum strength and are
located where the steel frame encircles the wooden floor. The outer fixing is bolted through the corner plate
immediately in front of the front bush
of the rear leaf spring using the rear
most screw hole as a guide and
drilled out to 12 mm. The inner fixing
is bolted through the rear most screw
hole by the transmission tunnel, again
after being drilled out to 12 mm. Note
that if choosing a stiff buckle stalk, do
no t chose the shortest length without
first checking (those in the Klippan
series are too short for comfort unless
each seat is as far back as the adjustment allows).
The top mount can be fixed to the top
surface of the inner mudguard with a
minor compromise to occupant safety
(collarbones may be broken in a severe accident). Ideally, the top mount
should be high enough to ensure the
belt line for mounting point to shoulder
is horizontal. This is only possible if
the factory recommended location is
used, as per below. That requires the
tonneau panel to be pierced and may
be considered spoiling the finish. Not
quite so bad if a full length tonneau
cover is fitted, as the mounting bolts
are covered by fabric.
I hope this is helpful.
Regards,
Geoff Goode
35