Stupid Seat Belt Question

[Tongan310]

So my seatbelt has been acting odd lately. It locks up whenever it likes too and lately its been locking up as I try to just put it on. If I play with it (Inch it out tugging it constantly) I can get it out after about 5 mintues of slightly pulling it then give it a tad of slack and repeating that a hundred times. So my question is this thing bad or did I screw up something? I did take the whole thing out when installing my radio. Worked fine for a while then this started but too add more salt to the wound it randomly works fine some days...

 

[someotherguy]

Might have just got the little counterweights inside it jumbled up so that they're hanging on the side of the assembly or something. Maybe take it back out of the truck, remove the outer cover and have a peek inside. It doesn't take much for them to engage the lockup mechanism inside, which is by design, so that hard braking or an impact will have the lockup engage immediately.

Richard

 

[chipskittles]

They get dirty, yours are 20 years old now. Maybe blow out the inside of the roller mechanism with compressed air. The fabric of the seatbelt tends to get dirty too. I have cleaned several by pulling them out all the way and using clips to keep the seatbelt from retracting and then soaking the belt in a bowl of warm water and some mild detergent. Nothing harsh. You will be amazed at the crud that comes off them. Dirt = friction. The belt might retract a little better after you are done as well.