For rear passenger (read kids in booster seat safety), I added three point belts to the outboard rear seat positions similar to the 90-91.
My donor seat belts came from a regular cab 1990 Ranger. Got the full set of three. I suggest your donor to NOT have the door closed plunger doodad since that area is needed on the seat belt retractor for mounting into the wagon.
First job is to remove the cargo area side panels, upper panels around the rear headliner, and the rear headliner.
The Ranger seat belts must be cut down to fit under the rear cargo trim panels.
before:
After:
Then drill a hole and fab up a bracket to mount. The one remaining tab on the back of the seat belt retractor fits naturally into the C-pillar (I pulled it forward to be in contact with the c-pillar). The retractor must mount straight up.
The seat fold down release rod has to be custom made since it interferes with the retractor on the right side. Use 10-32 threaded rod to get the right threads for the knob.
I enlarged an existing hole up high for the top mount nut access. Then eyeballed a position for the mounting bolt that was directly above the retractor and drilled a hole. Not pretty but no one sees it.
I wanted to use the factory bolt but the shoulder wasn’t long enough to clear the headliner or trim while in use. So I had to use a 3/8” bolt with a 1.5” sleeve (9/16” o.d.). Used the biggest washers as I could fit on both inside and outside. This is my least liked part of the project because I feel that it’s a helluva lot of leverage on thin sheet metal and may rip out should catastrophe strike.
Now get out your measuring tape and measure twenty times and cut once on that headliner and irreplaceable cargo trim panels. I used a combination of 1/2” drill bit for the ends, a cut off wheel, and a die grinder to make the cuts in the plastic. The headliner I used a razor blade, just a 1/2” or so slot for the top anchor bolts.
Done.
Disclaimer: due to the high position of the top anchor, this isn’t for short people unless they want a neck belt. The factory 90-91 deal dropped the top mount with some bracket I can’t replicate while looking good. Works perfect for booster seats though. Also works good for rear passengers 6’ 2” and up.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
My donor seat belts came from a regular cab 1990 Ranger. Got the full set of three. I suggest your donor to NOT have the door closed plunger doodad since that area is needed on the seat belt retractor for mounting into the wagon.
First job is to remove the cargo area side panels, upper panels around the rear headliner, and the rear headliner.
The Ranger seat belts must be cut down to fit under the rear cargo trim panels.
before:
After:
Then drill a hole and fab up a bracket to mount. The one remaining tab on the back of the seat belt retractor fits naturally into the C-pillar (I pulled it forward to be in contact with the c-pillar). The retractor must mount straight up.
The seat fold down release rod has to be custom made since it interferes with the retractor on the right side. Use 10-32 threaded rod to get the right threads for the knob.
I enlarged an existing hole up high for the top mount nut access. Then eyeballed a position for the mounting bolt that was directly above the retractor and drilled a hole. Not pretty but no one sees it.
I wanted to use the factory bolt but the shoulder wasn’t long enough to clear the headliner or trim while in use. So I had to use a 3/8” bolt with a 1.5” sleeve (9/16” o.d.). Used the biggest washers as I could fit on both inside and outside. This is my least liked part of the project because I feel that it’s a helluva lot of leverage on thin sheet metal and may rip out should catastrophe strike.
Now get out your measuring tape and measure twenty times and cut once on that headliner and irreplaceable cargo trim panels. I used a combination of 1/2” drill bit for the ends, a cut off wheel, and a die grinder to make the cuts in the plastic. The headliner I used a razor blade, just a 1/2” or so slot for the top anchor bolts.
Done.
Disclaimer: due to the high position of the top anchor, this isn’t for short people unless they want a neck belt. The factory 90-91 deal dropped the top mount with some bracket I can’t replicate while looking good. Works perfect for booster seats though. Also works good for rear passengers 6’ 2” and up.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
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