:( Ok, I know this may sound dumb, but I have a question about seatbelts in my 71 El Camino.......

I have a bench seat that has a center belt with buckle, two lap belts with buckles for the driver and passenger, and then two other belts with buckles that hang in the back behind the seat....WHAT THE HECK DO THESE BUCKLE TO?

Thanks!

Newbie Elky owner...

ME TOO. Although I believe they are used to hold in or on the Smugglers Box cover that is missing on mine.
....Come to think of it, If some one has one let me know! I'll also check with acauth1.

I do believe those hanging behind your seat are the "female" end of the shoulder belt. You should have another "male" end for each one somewhere near the mid section of the seat. Maybe it's tucked down in your bench somewhere.

I looked around everywhere for the male end....no luck. I think they make two point lap/shoulder belts, I'll probably just get those.

Thanks for the info.

no the belts he is referring to are specialized belts for the smugglers box, not missing safety belts.

Where is this located, and what does it look like?

Thanks!

well, I'd go and take a pic, but mines in the shop getting a new trans.
But the female hangs from the top of the front of the smuggles box and i can't remember where the male end is attached to. But, the belts are black so you can't confuse them with the regular belts.
Could you send pic of yours, maybe I'm thinking of a different place.

I have a set of belts to hold the spare tire in place in my 87. Could they be for the same purpose? http://elcaminocentral.com/users/87ss/thinking.gif

I have a set of belts to hold the spare tire in place in my 87. Could they be for the same purpose? http://elcaminocentral.com/users/87ss/thinking.gif

Yup.

Would the fact that 71caminoguy is talking about a 3rd gen. Elky have anything to do with what these belts are for? If the '71 is anything like my '69, there is nothing behind the seat except the small storage bin directly behind the drivers seat. Of course it's possible my '69 is missing something that I had no idea should be there. I know there is a big difference behind the seat of mine and the 5th gens. most of you guys are driving.

Well my 71 has these belts hanging also (There is a place on the rear kick panel to latch them so they do not swing loose) and i have enough male ends on te bench seat to hook them as shoulder belts i assumed that what they were. (but maybe not). I wish it had all in one lap and shoulder belts. Anyone know of this option for a 3rd gen?

There was no option for a 3rd gen combo lap/shoulder belt. They are individual belts. As he said, there are belts everywhere! His male ends must be missing, and they are impossible to find, I found out. When I removed my seat and took it to a trim shop with all the belts that ran through the sleeves still attached to the seat, to have them install the new original type seat covers I purchased from OPG, they did me the favor of tossing the male ends for the shoulder belts. They said they didn't know what they were for, as my car was home in the garage and they had the seat in their shop, and couldn't see the female buckle ends hanging from the sail panel. Man was I pi**ed! Told them they could have at least called me and asked! But to throw them away, my property, without checking, was irresponsible! It cost me over $100 to have those two short male ends made up, and even the people that made them for me, and they were supposed to be experts on making belts, didn't know how long they were supposed to be. So I just guessed, and told them to make them 14". I hope I guessed right, they seem to be OK. I was going to take the trim shop to small claims court, but decided it wasn't worth the time and effort. :mad:

the belt from the center of the bolt to the end of the chrome male insert is approx 21.25 inches. Just for reference. :)

Darn! I guess I had them make 'em too short! Wish I was a member of this forum back when I had to replace 'em! Might have even located some original ones! Thanks for the info!

I know this is sort of an old post but I just saw it. I installed retractable aftermarket three point belts in my 70 elky. I can't find the link to the site though. They mount where that strap is behind the seat. They work perfect. I also replaced the tired worn belts in my old 81 Z28. I'll post a pic and try to find the link when I get home.

I also replaced the tired worn belts in my old 81 Z28. I'll post a pic and try to find the link when I get home. Yes, please do. I have a 78 Camaro that I need to wrap up and those might just be the ticket :cool:

Heres the link for the seat belts. I used the same belt for my '81 Camaro and my '70 El Camino. http://store.yahoo.net/wescoperformance/resebe.html

I posted interior pics of the Camino in my member folder.
http://elcaminocentral.com/modules.php?set_albumName=1970SS454ElCamino&op=modload&name=Gallery&file=index&include=view_album.php

Heres the link for the seat belts. I used the same belt for my '81 Camaro What did you do to hide the roof mounted retractors covers?

The retractor in the El Camino is actually bolted to the floor. In my Camaro the retractor bolts to the roof and the factory cover won't fit. It really doesn't look too bad though. Looks better than my old worn out belts did. If you want a pic of the Camaro belts pm me.

THere are a couple of sources for belts but none are factory for a 73-77 El. I know on my 74 THe retractor for the lap belt was on the floor on the rear leg of the seat mount towards the door. The shoulder belt, if you can call it that, isn't connected to the lap belt at all. ITs all folded up and clips into a shelf that is part of the molding on the ceiling. I gave up and just put some pep boys lap belts in as I couldn't find replacement retractors and seat belts that matched the "fold up" shoulder belts.

Seems the shoulder belt clip has a kind of kingpin that fit into a hole in the original lap belt buckle. Not very elegant but I could see the thinking behind it. Obviously an afterthought to comply with federal safety standards of the time.

Anyway I know JCWhitney has some retractable shoulder belts complete with the retractor. THere's another place that has them too called Wesco. Universal but they should work. Here's a link if you're interested.

http://store.yahoo.net/wescoperformance/resebe.html