Seat belt question .....

[dremu]

Ok... So
I just got a 4" lift on 33s ... By California law am I suppose to have mudflaps?

IIRC it's specified that if your tires stick out more than so much, so you'd need to measure for it.

The root idea is to keep your truck from kicking road debris up onto people behind you, so it's a safety thing.

Scott would know more from direct personal experience.

-- A

 

[Off Duty]

There's no organized, annual or biannual or whatever inspections the way that Texas, NJ, and other folks have 'em.

Sure, strictly speaking an LEO can stop you for some as trivial as having your headlights misaimed, but my experience has been that you gotta do something fairly stupid to get stopped.

That's pretty much the way it is here.
We can conduct safety checks roadside, but generally don't unless you get stupid or mouthy....then you're going to be here a while

But we don't have lift laws or bumper height regulation or the like.

sweet!

No offense to the officers here but I usually take a dim view of most police officer's knowledge of their codes and the minutia of it.

No offense taken here man
I "ain't like most officers"

I know my chit, if I don't know it, I research it (even if you have to sit there while I do), and don't try to BS my way through things.
Knowledge is power
Then again, the last 5 years I was the commander of our motor-unit, so maybe that had something to do with it?

Friend of mine had a '85 K10 on 3/4 tons and 35's our senior year of HS. Local police officer was DETERMINED to prove it was unsafe/illegal according to Michigan's lift laws. My buddy's dad had specifically decreed that it MEET all of the "rules of the road" and be fully legal and it was. However officer BS pulled him over multiple times and wrote him tickets multiple times. Each time it was dismissed in court and finally after the third time or so my buddy's dad told the judge he felt like his son was being targeted and harassed by said officer and the little home town police force.
Instantly the issues stopped and said officer never hassled anyone about their trucks again.

See, stuff like that really pissed me off!
We can screw up our reps well enough, without dip-'s like this helping out!

You can win in court but arguing with the officer might not get you any where and probably will just get you more trouble.

Sorta like you can beat the rap, but you can't beat the ride!

Sorta like open carry of handguns. Perfectly legal in Michigan, Kentucky, and other states but if you go walking down mainstreet with a .45 on your hip in Lansing, Frankfort, or elsewhere you'll probably find yourself face down on the ground with guns pointed at you and handcuffs on. It's been an issue in Michigan lately and there's been plenty of proof of police officers, chiefs, and whole stations being ignorant of or just ignoring the law.

Reading is fundamental.
Comprehension is mandatory!
How can they screw it up?
It's in black and white for them to review
And if it doesn't make sense (or you're too stupid to understand it), get a freaking ruling from your local DA or State attorney general before you go all Wyatt Earp on the citizenship

Win the fight you can win

Sounds familiar:

choose your battles wisely” and “do not fight battles you cannot win

Sun Tzu - The Art of War

 

[Chief Brody]

I'd like to see what a shoulder belt would look like on '75....considering that there is no "B" pillar to put one on....what would you hang it from...sky hooks?

1973 and 1974 didn't come with catalytic convertors either...do they make you put those on?

 

[tRustyK5]

i recall cars starting around '72 had 'clip on' shoulder belts. They mostly stayed clipped above the front doors, but could be brought down and attached to the lap belt to make a three point belt. I guess theoretically they could have done the same on a 73/4/5 on the removable hardtop.

 

[thfonz98]

Yea.... I don't drive it like I stole it .... " generally" & I definatly wasn't driving crazy then ... I seen him comming from a mile away but as soon as he came up to the left in my blind spot I knew he was looking for a reason to pull me over... I know he was totally ignorant to the classic seatbelt law but still tried to insist I was suppose to have a shoulder strap . He even came up with " all vehicles after '62 needed shoulder straps" ......yea riiiiiiiiiight....maybe seat belts in general but not the 3 point.... Well anyway .. U know them they try to do what they want regardless .... Honestly I thought he was gonna pull the old MUD FLAP rule on me... Btw what's the law say on that?

(Late to the party)

ITS Stockton! Only reason needed to being pulled over.
He probably knew of the original equipment rule for safety equipment and was hoping to find something.

Btw Salinas is about the same.

PS More likely was hoping to ticket you for no seatbelt and upon walking up saw it and used that instead of saying he was mistaken. QQ

 

[AJMBLAZER]

Reading is fundamental.
Comprehension is mandatory!
How can they screw it up?
It's in black and white for them to review
And if it doesn't make sense (or you're too stupid to understand it), get a freaking ruling from your local DA or State attorney general before you go all Wyatt Earp on the citizenship

In Michigan and Kentucky it's some of the original laws from the 1800's about carrying openly but not concealed. Then later as it became "unacceptable" to do so it just became a non-issue. Concealed carry was hard to get a permit for until fairly recently...which brought attention to the fact that open carry was still legal, if not practiced or understood.
There's been rallies and the like. The county I grew up in back in Michigan, while largely rural, has a Sheriff that understands it's legal and has said he won't arrest anyone for doing it in his county. Go to the next county north and you're in for a face plant though.

i recall cars starting around '72 had 'clip on' shoulder belts. They mostly stayed clipped above the front doors, but could be brought down and attached to the lap belt to make a three point belt. I guess theoretically they could have done the same on a 73/4/5 on the removable hardtop.

My buddy's '73 Javelin has that setup. Separate shoulder belts that attach to the buckle.

 

[teacher_dave]

I had the same issue with a '76 Scout II. The short answer is that your vehicle is a convertible, which had different requirements (none) for shoulder belts until the 80's.

 

[onetonbb74]

Mine is a 74 pickup with factory lap belts only, so I just drilled a hole, found a plate to drill and tap, put it behind the hole I drilled (yes my arm fit up there) and bolted a stock 79 shoulder seat belt I had to the pillar...Now I don't get harassed by the cops, as a matter of fact, last time I did, I was pulled over 2x in the same day and said fug it, im adding shoulder belts, not worth my time to get pulled over, or go to court and all that bs...