-
Seat Belts
Here’s a question for you all. I was completely blown away when I discovered that an 07 marathon didn’ t have shoulder belts as part of the seat belts for the driver and co-pilot…
I talked with a few people and that is what they all say… they are not required and so the convertors don’t install them.
We haven’t picked our new to us bus yet but the little bit that i did drive it flet pretty awkard not having the shoulder straps…
So anyone out there with shoulder belts on the driver and co-pilot seats?
I am considering changing out the seats to have integrated shoulder restraints… anyone done that?
Thanks
Bill
-
11 Replies
-
I’ve never seen a coach with shoulder belts. I don’t think changing out a seat with integrated shoulder and lap belts is as easy as it sounds. Our seats are air seats that go up and down as necessary so our tender bottoms never feel the discomfort of a rough road. I cannot speak to all seat designs but the ones I have seen are built in sections and I doubt if they possess sufficient strength to carry the G loads of an accident. The four tiny bolts holding the sections together sure don’t appear strong enough to do any more than hold the pieces of the seat assembly together.
Our seat belts are attached to the floor of the coach rather than the seats and use very heavy bolts and anchors. Those appear more substantial than the bolts holding the seat sections together. If I had to put in a shoulder belt I would seek out a structural body member to attach to behind the seat. With slides that might not be easy.
I’m not as concerned about pitching forward and the restraint to prevent that as much as I am about something heavy like a tree or truck ending up in the living room because 53,000 pounds of bus hitting such objects at any speed are going to be more than the limited front framework of the coach can handle. Big trucks have a heavy engine leading the way to the accident. We have a heavy engine pushing us to the accident.
-
My seat belts are attached to the seats and not the floor, at least that’s the case with the forward facing seats. My driver’s seat is an ISRI, which looks substantial in its construction. It does have a short belt that attaches the seat above the slide mechanism to the floor mounted base. The bolts through the floor also look substantial on both front seats, maybe even grade 8.
I wouldn’t be concerned with a lap belt on the passenger side because the passenger is to far from any obstructions in front of them. As for the driver, I have to believe air ride seats are now available with an integrated shoulder belt. The best option would be an air bag, but that would be very difficult to do, if at all.
-
ISRI does make a bus seat with integrated 3-point belts.
http://www.isriusa.com/en/products/bus/isrir-6832870-nts.html
-
I have never been too thrilled with the support in my ISRI and wondered about an upgrade. What do things like this cost, were Liberty to have the same leather I already have to match it?
-
Karl: I believe you’ll find that most converters reupholster the original Isri seat in an effort to make it more ‘couch like’ and, in that effort, destroy the support. I installed an Isri 6800 (?) in my coach in 2000 which I liked so much (support wise) I moved it to my later coach. I liked the support (used to drive the coach 50,000 miles/year) but I’m used to European sports cars; not sure it would be as comfortable if someone were fairly ample. Isri also reupholstered my seat when new in a fabric I sent them to match our decor…they changed fabric only, not padding.
-
That’s an idea, if I can get liberty to give me samples of the fabric in the future. They are not know particularly well for playing with others.
-
Thanks everyone for the feedback… I will give it a try with the lap belt and see if I can get over it… My contact at Taylor tours in PHX said there were seats with integrated belts available for around $1K and he thought we could find a co-pilot chair from Villa with integrated belts as well.
Granted we are newbies to the whole prevost scene and don’t want to stir up all kinds of trouble… but with the amount of money folks spend on these conversions… from imported this and that to air driven this and that… spending a little time, money and engineering to make things as safe as possible with a three point belt for the driver/owner seems to me to be something that we all should demand. I doubt I will ever have the desire or the funds to buy a brand new one… but if I do it will have three point belts for sure..
Thanks again for the input.
Bill
-
Bill,
I ordered a pair of Toyota Sienna take out seats from a converter up north. Although I am still rebuilding my coach and I have not installed the seats yet, I am pleased with them. In addition to having the shoulder belt built into the seat, each seat has an extendable foot rest (I will make sure to disable this feature on the driver’s seat).
At a whooping 5’5″ tall and 145 pounds these seats are the perfect size for me. They might be a little small for someone of bigger stature.
The seller is still listing these seats on eBay.
-
I agree with Jon.
With the huge amount of kinetic energy involved in a rolling bus, a shoulder strap won’t do much more than keep you in the seat as you are crushed from the front.
-
Karl, The previous owner changed out the seating and went with Knoedler power chief. Nice they are heated and cooled, and you can get a great massage, power every way thinkable and extremly comfortable! Gary
-
A quick Google lead to a video on these seats. Nice! About $3k each plus install.
Log in to reply.