late 70s M-M question

[Dave Simon]

A FH I worked for in the mid 80s had a 78? M-M side loader as a removal car. It was charcoal gray, black vinyl top, maroon velour. It was a dog that we inherited from another SCI firm. I think it came out of Kentucky or TN. At any rate, the seatbelts were cut off and inoperable.

In the case of a sideloader where the b-post is cut down to a stub, where do the shoulder belts mount? I haven't seen the car in 20 years, but I just can't picture how that would work.

 

[Jeremy D. Ledford]

OK! Making an educated guess here! Up to the mid 1970's the lap and shoulder belts were a two peice unit set up on many cars. You had to clip to shoulder belt to the lap belt clip before you bucked up if you were to use the shoulder belt with your lap belt. Some builders would let the shoulder strap portion hang down from an anchor point in the ceiling which was in alignment to the B pillar area of the front/rear door area. There would clip on the partition just at the back edge of the seat on a endloader or combo much as it does in my 73 M-M and there was a clip on the lower part of the bulkhead/partiotion to secure it from just flapping around. Some had a clip at the top of the front door just above the glass on the headliner. The shoulder belt was adjusted and clipped over head out of the way and was sucured with the anchor mount on the ceiling welded to one of the crossmembers of the drivers compartment in the headlining in the b-pillar area.

 

[Tony Karsnia - Deceased - 1971-2020]

Here is a photo to back up Jeremy's description. As you can see, Miller-Meteor mounted two small "boxes" on the headliner, attached to the supporting roof bows, which is where the shoulder belts attached. It has been awhile since I've worked with one of these 'ol girls, but if my memory serves me correctly, the shoulder belt would actually coil up into the box when its use was not desired. The front seat occupants still had full use of the lap belts which, as Jeremy stated, accomodated the shoulder belts via a round peg and clip receiver.

I doubt if many 3-ways were used with the shoulder belts. Heck, in those days, it seemed like very few people wore seat belts at all.

This example is a 1978 Miller-Meteor Cadillac 3-way electric that saw service at the Cudmore Funeral Home in International Falls, Minnesota.

(Karsnia collection)

 

[Dave Simon]

Tony, thanks for the pics, that makes a lot of sense to hang the belts in the ceiling-mounted enclosures.

That poor car that I had exposure to was a real piece of crap...it had led a rough life before we got it, and sombody had finagled to give us that thing in trade for a 1982? S&S in white with a black top and blue brocade interior. The S&S had a persistent rear main seal leak that nobody could stop for any length of time, but was other wise a nice car.