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seat belt tenioner

mosinman

Well-Known Member
Joined
April 26, 2002
Messages
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City, State
Coppell, Tx
Year, Model & Trim Level
1999 XLT
Very minor- but very annoying problem. when I unbuckle my seat belt and sart to get out of the truck, the tensioner wont fully retract the seatbelt. The result is the belt often gets caught in the door if I'm not watching for it. Anyone with same problem or fix? The belt will retract all the way some of the time, other times I have to lift up the belt and "guide" it through the loop. Seems to have the same amount of tension as the passenger's side. I'm six foot one and 230 lbs - I do have to pull the belt out a ways to buckle in.
 



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Nice to hear you are wearing your seat belt. More people need to !!

Yeah , my Ex does the same thing. It gets a twist in it right before it goes through the turnaround. I have just gotten into the habbit of just making sure I straighten it out when I get out and it goes fine from there.
 






Same here. Both driver's and passenger's side seatbelts have this problem.
 






Oh well, guess I'll just get in the habit of making sure it retracts like MONMIX does. At least its somewhat comforting to know I'm not the only one with the problem. Thanks.
 






Ditto, also mine (drivers side) is starting to fray!:thumbdwn:
 






This thread is a few months old, but I have this exact problem with my 94 Sport. The seatbelt won't retract well even if it is lined up well and untwisted.

I'm wondering if there is a way to get to the mechanism and spray it down with some lithium grease or WD40 to loosen things up. Any ideas??

Ed
 






i dunno if that's a good idea.....you might get that stuff all over the belt itself too and then that stuff will get on your clothes, causing a big mess that will take a while to wash out
 






My driverside started doing the same thing here too. It is lined up properly. Just does not go all the way in. Let me know how to fix it.
 






That's a good point Dave, although I was hoping that if I had the belt fully extended while spraying it down I'd be able to avoid the mess.

It actually is a pretty serious issue because as the belt gets caught in my door it gets more and more worn and damaged... eventually I may have to replace it for safety's sake if I don't fix this.

Thanks for any help!

Ed
 






Yeah, I have this problem too, both with the Explorer AND with my GF's Toyota truck.

I have been contemplating making a "bungie" retainer to pull the bottom of the seat belt into the back before I close the door on it. I actually saw this "solution" on a GM truck on display at the Calif State Fair this summer. I wish I had patented it, I'd be collecting the royalty checks now.:D
 






The same thing happens on my X, and my parents X's too, the belt doesn't retract correctly, and gets smashed in the door..... :(
 






does anyone else "stick" so it won't want to be pulled out? I think it's a conspiracy and my X is trying to kill me!
 












Originally posted by DeagleDave
does anyone else "stick" so it won't want to be pulled out? I think it's a conspiracy and my X is trying to kill me!

Has the X ever been in a crash, no matter how small? If so, the seatbelt pawl thing inside might have been damaged. That is why they reccomend replacing those after a crash....
 






No, never in any accidents at all. Actually I bought it from my parents who bought it new. This pawl, is it something that could wear out do you think? If so how do I find it?

Ed
 






well it did have a run in with my neighbors house...but it only sticks once in a while, usually when i'm in a hurry it seems :)
 






Ok, I have the problem with the seatbelt not retracting too. I learned to just retract it my self as I got of of the truck.

That makes about ten of us with the problem. Someone on this board has to know how to fix this short of getting a new seatbelt.

Dave
 






anyone taken the assembly apart?
 






Originally posted by DeagleDave
does anyone else "stick" so it won't want to be pulled out? I think it's a conspiracy and my X is trying to kill me!

Same here.


I think it's only when I'm in a hurry and trying to yank the seatbelt on while hitting the brake turning the key, etc, etc,

But the belt getting stuck in the door stucks. I'd rather have manual 3 or 5 way belts. That would be nice
 



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My '96 is doing this also and yes, very annoying...
I talked with the dealership and they said that it's an entire replacement as it's all one piece and would be like $200 !! :mad:
I agree that you probably don't want to meddle with 2nd hand/used assemblys as this is a "life saving mechanism"... my life (and yours) is no doubt worth $200 (/per?) but if there's a most cost effective fix, that would be nice too.
So far I'm reading "mine too" but no fixes. Has anyone, as this is a somewhat dated thread, found a solution or actually fixed theirs? (aside from the bungee idea).
Thanks.
 






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