fixings for 3 point harness

[bill]

more questions, I am going to fit a three point harness any recommendations as to where the over the shoulder part should be fitted, in between the the rear seats or the rear parcel shelf?
thank you.
bill.

[Philm]

Seatback, not the parcel shelf. There should be some hard points you can fix to.

[Neil Lewis]

Firstly, if you intend to do some sprints or other competition requiring harnesses, the Motorsports Association is making everyone fit four point belts now.  The two top belts can still be attached at one point but they must be separate lengths of webbing.  And also the two inch wide straps are being phased out for three inch wide straps.  So consider those points before you buy any harness belts.  Although if it's just for road use, three-point, 2 inch belts are fine.  Finally, for road events (for that read historic rallies), you are required to keep the original belts in place so put the eye bolts through the original belt mounting tabs, ie, in place of teh existing large headed bolts.

I don't know what series your Fulvia is but the Series 2/3 cars have fixings in teh back for rear seat belts.  Fitting eye bolts (to clip the straps to) is easy cos they just screw straight in where the original belts go.  The lap strap goes between the two lower belt mounts: one at teh base of the B pillar and one between the seats behind the handbrake.  But I think you worked that out...

The shoulder straps can be fitted in two positions using the upper or lower rear belt mountings.  The lower mountings are both in place so that's easy but it does mean the straps will slope and be less effective in an accident.  My preference is to keep the straps horizontal.  So fit one to the top rear belt mounting on the parcel shelf beside the C pillar.  The other one needs a bit more work since you'll have to drill holes in the parcel shelf near the centre of the car.  Make sure the holes allow that strap to take the same angle as the one towards the side of the car, ie, so they spread out at the same angle.  Drill two holes to match the holes you made in the parcel shelf in an 18 inch to two foot length of 40mm angle iron.  This bar needs to fit tight in the angle between the seat back and the shelf and should be welded in although that's really just to locate it because it's the length of the bar which stops it pulling through the car's metal in an accident.  Fit the eye bolts using nuts underneath accessed from the boot; you could weld the nuts in place to save having someone else holding the spanner!

By the way, seat belt bolts are an Imperial size; 5/8 UNF if I remember correctly but I'm sure someone can correct me if I'm wrong.

Neil

[bill]

Thank you Neil for your very helpful reply, I would never have noticed the fixings you mentioned. I bought
seat belt eyes £1.50p and the sear belt back plates £1.20p from Rally Design so that was not to bad a price.The bolt size is 7/16unf, I think they are all a stardard size.

When at the AGM. I noticed quite a few fulvias with the bumper bars removed is this a big job? I realise the lighting would need modifying, looking at the rear bumper I can see the bolt holding the bumper on to a round tube does this stay? it seems to vanish into the body work.
Once again your help is appreciated.

BILL.

[Neil Lewis]

The bumpers are fairly easy to remove although you're likely to e break some of the bolts holding them on.  The bumpers are stainless steel but the brackets welded onto the back of them are mild steel and usually they they have gone very rotten.

Taking the rear one first and again assuming Series 2/3 there are just two bolts securing the bumper to the tubes you mention.   Open tyhe boot lid and disconnect the teh spade connection on the rear wiring harness (typical 1960s spiders web of wires).  Carefully pull the wires through the two grommets in the boot floor and the rear valance (you'll need to pass each spade connector in turn to allow room in the gromet for each wire to pass). If you want to pop the two number plate lamps from the holes in the top of the bumper, be careful because the plastic they're made from will have gone brittle with age.  Now undo the two bolts which screw into the two tubes (the tubes are threaded).  One of my tubes broke off the car and had to be welded back on!!!  The two bent metal bars can stay on the bumper.  Buy some eye bolts (M10 I think) and screw those into the tubes if you want some towing eyes at the back.  You'll need to fix new number plate lamps onto the rear panel.  It's possible to get pukka lamps but the chromed plastic trailer lamps work reasonably well.

The front is more difficult because the indicators have to be moved.  Disconnect the spades from the back of the indicators and push the wires through the two large holes just behind them (often the connectors break off so be careful).  Undo the nut and bolt in each front corner of the bumper (these are usually rusted solid and are actually quite difficult to get a spanner on.  Unscrew the two bolts which pass through the metal brackets (the ones through the vertical slots in the front valance) and lift the bumper off.  The same goes for the front bumper as the back, the brackets on teh bumper may be very rusty and break off!  Undo teh bolts securing the outer brackets from withing each wheel arch.  Undo the bolts which hold the inner brackets to the inner wing; there should be two bolts on each side in slotted holes.  If you're going to fit some spotlamps, those brackets can be turn 180 degrees (so they point inwards) and the spot lamps bolted on where the bumper bolts went.

So that's removed the bumper; now the fiddly bit.  The easy way to refit the indicators is to buy some HF ones.  But I don't like to spend money needlessly so it is possible to fit the existing indicators back into the holes the wires cam through.  There are tow methods for doing this but firstly you'll have to remove the indicators from teh bumper.  This is really troublesome because they're M5 screws with 8mm nuts and they just love to rust up and break off.  If you break them, it is possible to weld new screws to the existing M5 socket that holds the lens on.  Alternatively drill the hole sright through and taps it M5 (it's very easy to ruin the whole thing).

Now the two methods of refitting the indicator units.  You can just fix teh whol lot behind teh existing holes.  I've not done this and the ones I've seen don't look too good in my opinion.  I fixed them on the outside so the looked a bit like the HF ones although not as neat.  Either way you'll have to elongate the two rectangular holes so the lens peeps through (method one) or the body of the indicator fits throuigh from the front.  Now very carefully cut around the skirt on theback of the indicators to match the profile of the valance and allow the lamp to fit vertically against the metal.  You can make up cardboard templates to give an idea of teh curve but you'll end up carefully filing to get the whole thing to fit right.  Remember you only get one go at this so take it slowly and just remove a small amount of metal at a time.  Now remember the two M5 screws which stick out of the back of the indicator?  You'll need to drill two holes in the valance so the screws go through and put the nuts and washers on teh back inside the wheel arch.  I said you'd break a couple of those so weld on longer screws (tices as long is about right) and put those in the outside position so they pass through the holes in the valance correctly.

It's all very fiddly and not for the feint hearted.  But for almost no expense and a lot of ingenuity you can have HF look-alike indicators which, from more than a few feet away, look like the real thing!  I'm sure mus descriptioon is as clear as mud and I just wish I had some pictures to show you but I sold that car 15 years ago...

Have fun
Neil