Trident

Hi all
Just about to buy a vw trident off a neighbour. 95 year with under 70k on the clock. The van only has lap belts in the rear and we have a baby. I have found child seats which go upto 4 years old on a lap belt but not much after. Depending on complexity I would prefer to have these upgraded to 3 point belts in the rear. Which section of forum would I be best to post this query about getting the lap belt converted or is there already a thread / search term I should use?
Cheers
Jim

I think you may have a problem with mounting points.

So unlikely to be a higher level mounting point in the van? I think I have seen this era van (Not motorhome) with rear seats. You don't think there might be a place to fit but autosleeper just didn't use due to regs at the time?

Id be surprised. Its a van conversion, not many vans had any people in the back, unless a inibus which Im fairly sure these weren't.
Retrofit near impossible, been many posts like this on here

Thanks i had looked into it a realised it may not be straight forward. I'm not sure it's a deal breaker for us. We have found a child seat, lap belt approved upto 4 years old. Then there is always the front seat if an adult is happy to sit in rear. Has anyone managed to find the older child seats which just use lap belts?

Then the person in the back has no seat belt???

IanH wrote:Then the person in the back has no seat belt???

It has 2 lap belts in the rear.

We know that 3-point inertia real belts are possible in a T4-based Trident, because later ones had two fitted at the back. But... retro-fitting may be difficult.

If you want a better idea of what's involved, take a look on Ebay at some of the more recent T4-based ones - specifically ones with photos of the tailgate open.

As you can see - not a simple job, and probably not something that anyone could consider a DIY job.

And there's the problem. It's not so much finding a company that can do the engineering work - which in the overall scheme of things isn't complex. It's finding one that will sign off their work as being safe. That's where you may find difficulties.

One thing that has been suggested in another similar thread: it may be worth contacting companies that do conversion work on disability vehicles. Don't expect it to be cheap though!

Is a habitation check a must for private purchasers? I don't mind going through a list and checking things. I've just read the sliding window seems to be an area to check for rot. Likewise bottom of windscreen doors cills etc

Never had a habitation check, but I'd be surprised if those are things they'll check. More for "caravan" bits and pieces for safety and whether working correctly.
Mk1 eyeball first for rust in my case!

Cheers. I know he's had a new skylight thing fitted in last couple of years. It looks to be the proper replacement buy-in wondering how well it was fitted, if DIY he's mid 80s! I suppose apart from rot on the outside I should be looking for water stains or marks on the upholstery? I see the gutters can be an issue with these. How would I know of there were any likely problems? Doesn't look to be any rot up high just a bit at bottom of screen. Im

Bit of rust this side down low

Well well. On further inspection it had 3 point belts in the rear. God knows why I thought they were only laps when I originally viewed!? All looks good apart from an oil leak and that rust to bottom of screen. Spoke to a bodywork guy I know about it earlier

I have to say I like the way you've gone about all of this, sure the forum must have helped, but now its down to just two things, hopefully minor rust (however I'd get it on a ramp asap for a proper inspection, rust will be the ultimate job stopper.
The oil leak should be visible from the ramp too, that should be easier, certainly easier than dealing with rust.
Good Luck, here's a couple of pics of properly treated underside, it really wasn't actually rusty, but is now correctly undersealed. You could do same if you can find a garage like mine!!

Cheers Ian. We recently had our old e36 professionally under sealed so am familiar with the process. That was a dinitrol job. For this van I might consider using a local guy I know well to repair and waxoyl. What is yours treated with and what kind of money did you spend? It still astounds me the amounts these campers fetch. This is a 26 year old vehicle!

Mine is hot waxoyl
Incl a good few other things circa £1000
Money well spent IMHO