The seat belts is 50 years invented to_day.

Run_to_da_hills

Introduced in 1959, the three-point seatbelt is credited with saving over one million lives. Invented by a Volvo Engineer of Course. I have a VW van that is still fitted with lap bets.

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/motors/2009/0812/1224252410551.html

KTRIC

And still people have problems using them.

My person favourite is just draping the belt around you so the Police think you actually have it fastened. Whats the f*cking point of that ???

Cookie_Monster

Hooray!

Eoin

Run_to_da_hills wrote: »

Introduced in 1959, the three-point seatbelt is credited with saving over one million lives. Invented by a Volvo Engineer of Course. I have a van that is still fitted with lap bets.

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/motors/2009/0812/1224252410551.html

That article says millions of lives, which sounds about right. Didn't Volvo either not patent it, or not charge other companies anything for using the design so it would help more people?

unkel

So 89% of adults now wear a seatbelt in Ireland. Hard to believe that 13 years ago only one in three male drivers wore a seatbelt here :eek:

It's only a few years ago that I was regularly ridiculed when belting up as a rear passenger...

KTRIC

eoin wrote: »

That article says millions of lives, which sounds about right. Didn't Volvo either not patent it, or not charge other companies anything for using the design so it would help more people?

Yep, they own the patent but licence it free of charge to other companies.

seamus

unkel wrote: »

So 89% of adults now wear a seatbelt in Ireland. Hard to believe that 13 years ago only one in three male drivers wore a seatbelt here :eek:

Not all that hard to believe IMO. I've consistently worn a belt now for 15 years since I was a young lad, a rear passenger in head-on crash. I was thrown forward at around 30mph and smacked my face into the headrest of the front passenger seat. Luckily the head rest was hollow, so all I got was a couple of cracked teeth and a headache

My Dad has also worn his seatbelt since that day. All his driving life before that he swore that if he was ever about to crash, he'd just lock his arms and he'd be grand. That he did, but the good aul laws of physics took over and he smacked his head off the roof
His arms/elbow joints were also extremely sore from taking the force of the impact, so he realised that it wasn't the best safety technique.

I do remember though when it was considered "odd" to belt up in the rear seats and when belting up as a front passenger was really only something you did when you saw the Guards.

Drummerboy08

Ah god be good to the days when my old boss used to fasten the seatbelt, and then get into the car, all just to stop the car from beeping....:eek:

AnonoBoy

Didn't belting up in the back become law about 15 years ago or so?

tc20

KTRIC wrote: »

My person favourite is just draping the belt around you so the Police think you actually have it fastened. Whats the f*cking point of that ???

I always liked the solution that natives of Napoli (Naples) in Italy came up with when the seatbelt law was introduced there - they started wearing locally made white t-shirts printed with a thick diagonal black stripe from shoulder to hip

Cuddlesworth

seamus wrote: »

Not all that hard to believe IMO. I've consistently worn a belt now for 15 years since I was a young lad, a rear passenger in head-on crash. I was thrown forward at around 30mph and smacked my face into the headrest of the front passenger seat. Luckily the head rest was hollow, so all I got was a couple of cracked teeth and a headache

That explains that face and brain damage but not your personality.