My seatbelt quit working.

Normally, I sit in the seat and engage the seatbelt. If I fail to do this, after putting the truck in gear, I will receive an audible alarm and alarm light on the dash.

Now, when I try to engage the seat belt, it comes out of the receiver. It will not lock into the receiver. And, while driving, I get no alarm that the seatbelt is not engaged. I think the problem is electrical, possibly a fuse. I have checked the fuses not labeled for other accesories but they all look ok.

Any thoughts on what is causing this problem and how to fix it?

Thanks

Tim

 

once it's plugged in you can unplug it and the alarm will not be activated. as far as the belt latch is concerned you should replace it, period. have a nice day

 

The latch is mechanical, not electrical. If it is not holding, it needs to be taken apart and checked -- is it worn out or just needs to be cleaned and lubricated. Otherwise, get a replacement from a junkyard or the dealer...

 

Try some WD-40, or some other lube, in the mechanism.

 

I have lubricated the seatbelt receiver to no avail. I think the seatbelt is somewhat electrical because there is wiring running from the receiver under the seat and then under the carpet.

When attempting to engage the seatbelt, I put the male end into the female end it clicks and feels fully seated. However, I can easily pull it out. The seatbelt is inoperative. When I get in the vehicle and drive I should get an alarm that the seat belt is not engaged. I do not get this alarm.

Any ideas what could be wrong?

Tim

 

I'm sure you aren't, but perhaps you are trying to put the driver side seatbelt into the middle seat reciever?

Just something that popped into my head as I was sitting in the rear seat of a Durango and tried just that,
and it didn't fit.


phox

 

No, I am not. And just to make sure I went out and double checked. I wish that was the solution so I could be done with it.

Thanks anyway.

Tim

 

The wire you see is to detect if the seatbelt has been put into the receiver. By putting the buckle into the receiver, you close the circuit which turns off the warning light/tone. Trust me, the latch itself is mechanical.

 

Exactly. In my situation, the seat belt is not latched. It will not latch. But yet, I get no alarms. Why is the circuit closed when the belt is not latched?

Thanks

Tim

 

The "hook" that holds the buckle into the receiver is not working -- either it has been wore out, broke, or stuck in the "open" position. Just by placing the buckle into the receiver, you close the circuit -- it doesn't matter if it sticks.

If what you are saying is that you are not putting the buckle into the receiver, and the warning light/tone is not coming on, then it is also possible that the switch is stuck in the closed position.

I've seen this happen after someone spilled their pop/soda/coke into the seatbelt buckle receiver. After it dried, the electrical switch stuck into the closed position, and the buckle release stuck in the open position. Exactly like you are describing. I had to tear it apart and clean it out with hot water to free everything up. After I dried everything out, it started working again.

 

I could be wrong, but if you have a serious safety issue like that, the dealer will step up to the plate and fix it. I had a toyota with 145,000 on it, the automatic belt stopped working, they fixed it for free. It was a 1990 camry, and this was done last year.

 

Just a thought from my experience...

Do you have kids?

My 2 year old dropped a penny in my seatbelt latch ( I think she was try to make it go like the coin operated cars at Walmart). Anyway the symptoms were the same as you described until I dug the penny out with a screwdriver.

 

The seatbelt is in the shop today being replaced. I will keep everyone informed when all is well.

Thanks for everyone's input.

Tim

 

Most all locking mechanisms work off of a few springs and maybe pulleys, you may either have to take it apart to figure it out or just bring it to the dealership and have it looked at, its something that i am able to fix myself if nothing is actually broke but its something that you definetly need working.

 

The seatbelt was replaced and works find now.

Thanks all for you input.

Tim