ass production cars that used them at this point were the Nash Statesman and Nash Ambassador.
Nash was not immediately imitated by the major automakers. It was not until 1955 that the Ford Motor Company added them and the other major producers waited even later than that. As Ralph Nader indicated, the automakers did not want to bring attention to such things as injuries, crashes, and death. Instead, they concentrated on design features that were more aesthetic in their advertising. They did not focus on selling safety features.
As a matter of fact, Nader noted, there was actually pressure exerted on Ford Motor Company not to try to sell its safety features. Ford had designed a promotable package for 1956 which it marketed under the category of "lifeguard safety package." This included optional front and rear seatbelts. However, the marketing campaign was dropped under pressure from GM and essentially marketing safety features did not recur until the late 1960s.
This safety push in the late 1960s was not primarily due to the automakers, but to legislation passed by state and federal government requiring seatbelts. The initial push was to outfit cars with simple front seatbelts. The first state to require this was Wisconsin, in 1962. By 1965, automakers had added front seatbelts to all new cars, and rear seatbelts by 1967. By 1968, federal law was in place which required front and rear seatbelts and front shoulder straps. In some respects, this is where the situation remains regarding seatbelt protection.
There was other use of seatbelts before this time in various capacities. For example, airplanes made early use of seatbelts, with military airplanes beginning use of them during 1910. In addition, racecar drivers also utilized seatbelts, although of a much more sophisticated design, beginning in the 1920s. Both the airplanes and racecars made use of designs that demanded both restraint and protection from
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