Fitting rear seat in Astra Van - Legal ?

A friend of mine is looking at fitting a rear seat in an Astra Van to carry the odd passenger.

I am somewhat sceptical - Is this legal ? I feel its not but sombody here maybe able to offer a more informed opinion.

Cheers.

Reply to
a.j.beddoes
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AFAIK If it's there, it will be tested in the MOT. So seat mountings, seta belts etc all have to meet the regs.

On the vans I grew up with (70s and 80s) the back seat was often an optional extra, so the mountings etc were already there. Dunno about nowadays though.

Reply to
PC Paul

============== I don't think there is anything illegal with fitting rear seats in vans. The situation used to be that fitting rear seats in a van was legal but fitting rear side windows was illegal unless you paid extra 'Purchase Tax' (Purchase Tax was the forerunner of VAT). Vans were exempt from Purchase Tax as they were for commercial use which explains why Mini vans were so popular with the young and broke in the 1960s. A new Mini van cost about £370-00 whereas a new Mini car would cost about £560-00.

Cic.

Reply to
Cicero

Vauxhall now do a factory option of a Combo crewvan with rear seats so it must be legal.

There is a company that specialises in rear seats but I have forgotten their name. A Vauxhall van dealer may know it though.

They are expensive but they fit a proper folding bench seat with a footwell (they remove part of the floor) with seatbelts. The seat is solid and likely to be safe in an accident. I would not be happy without some sort of bulkhead if you are carrying a load though.

An MOT tester is unlikely to even see it if you fold it flat and put something in the back!

I am pretty sure that fitting side windows will cause problems though.

Alan

Reply to
Alan

Alan ( snipped-for-privacy@steeles.co.uk) gurgled happily, sounding much like they were saying :

Physically on an Ashtrayvan, p'raps. Legally, no.

C15s were available with windows or with panels. Fitting the windows instead of the panels is very straightforward - the panel is only seam- sealered in, and the window is the usual old-fashioned rubber gasket mount.

Reply to
Adrian

No, providing you inform your insurance company, who will increase your premium for the extra liability.

DJ_Crazy_Frog

Reply to
DJ_Crazy_Frog

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