Question: Vintages of autos can be determined by looking at certain features, providing the owners have not “upgraded” their auto. I’ll make a brief list with some approximate dates, let’s see if the list can be improved: 1961: 1st year front turning signals required. 196?: 1st year amber turning signals in front. 196?: Turning signals visible from sides. (Nadar lights) 1980: Headlights changed from round to rectangular. 1988: High middle brake light in rear. (Nadar light) 1990: Headlights changed from rectangular to molded to body. Any additions, corrections and changes are welcome. By the way, my 1976 Celica GT and the 1977 model are identicle except that the 77 has dual racing mirrors. I’m one of those guilty of adding a 77 miror to my Celica. Also, 1988 Ford Aerostar’s have square doors for the gas cap and 89’s and up have round doors.

Answer: it might have been 1965, but this doesn’t prove it. seat belts were an option from early in the 60s, and kits to retrofit belts were common. i know that this was the case in 1962 (i just recently read a 1962 issue of car and driver that discussed this very issue.) 1986, actually, and this was required by law. Some ’85’s had them as “special” safety features, and many older cars have since had them retrofitted by overcautious (IMHO) drivers. (By the way, this was introduced on early-1970’s Toronados as a styling feature. Then the insurance companies noticed that these cars seemed to get rear-ended less often. Research was conducted, and the rest is history.) My dad’s ‘65 Valiant had front seat belts. I am pretty sure that they were an option. Rear seat belts were not available from the factory. He bought them and installed them himself.
While we’re on the subject: 1965 Valiant (?100?) 2-door. 250 cid slant six (option), “heavy duty” suspension (option), heater (option), AM radio (option), front seat belts (option), positraction/whatever-Mopar-calls-it rear (option again).
Wanna guess what it cost?

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