Major complaint: seatbelt retractors suck donkey balls

[Madtiger]

Is it my LC or anyone else have issue with seatbelt retractors being so damn weak??! Yes, this is a 1st world problem. But i just hate getting rattles after my kids or wife unbuckle. I would have to then stop the car (because i am anal and hate rattles), run around the car to straighten out the seatbelt(s).

I realize that there is no fix...but damn it just irritates me to no end. Now i have to remind my family to slowly unbuckle and make sure the belts are nice and straight.

Yes, i do realize that i have issues.

 

[Lexus68]

I have the same issue and read somewhere it can be solved by cleaning the seatbelts.

 

[ljschnel]

I have the same issue and read somewhere it can be solved by cleaning the seatbelts.

C'mon - if his wife and kids aren't refurling their belts fully and carefully as it is, what makes you think they'll remember to clean them too?

 

[Madtiger]

I have the same issue and read somewhere it can be solved by cleaning the seatbelts.

Well, my LC is less than 6 months old and my family does not have any abnormal secretory problem. My kids do fart a lot but that’s another issue for another day.

 

[Angelo1]

What year is your LC? My previous 2008 did that after 80k miles but my past 2015 and current 19 do not.

 

[Hoosier Daddy]

Ha, I've always attributed this to careless behavior of the kids, rather than to a defect of the seatbelt retractor.

Regardless, I installed large self-stick pieces of Velcro (the fuzzy part) behind the buckle so it won't rattle if the kids leave the buckle dangling.

 

[silverhorse]

Rofl ..
. You sir have a way with words ! A Wordsmith if you will. thank you I needed a good laugh
My favorite post Title of all-time!

 

[TheGrrrrr]

I believe this is why they have seatbelt holsters. You return the male end of the fastener to its holster and the rattling problem is solved. I insist upon this from my passengers. Possibly related: my friends hate me.

 

[tominboise]

Happened on my 80 series. Happens on my 200 series. Happens on my daughters Highlander. Just a crappy design on this and you can tell the same design group handles all of these for Toyota.

 

[KLF]

This a more common thread on the Miata forums than "will these tires fit?" is here. The solution is to pull the belt out as far as it will go (put a binder clip on it to hold it extended), then dunk as much as possible in a bucket of hot water and Woolite. Soak, then gentle scrub, then multiple rinses. Good as new.

Good luck with training the wife and kids though.

 

[rusty87]

Make sure the belt isn’t twisted inside the pillar. A 180 degree twist inside is hard to notice outside and will retract slowly.

 

[Madtiger]

Make sure the belt isn’t twisted inside the pillar. A 180 degree twist inside is hard to notice outside and will retract slowly.

Well that is the issue. In my other cars, the retractor (or whatever it is called) would retract quickly to avoid the belt from being in a bind.

 

[rusty87]

Well that is the issue. In my other cars, the retractor (or whatever it is called) would retract quickly to avoid the belt from being in a bind.

Yeah my kid’s seatbelts seem to be twisted at the face of the pillar and dangling most of the time.

 

[1MOA]

Make the wife and kids ride in another vehicle.

 

[Chrisleduc1]

This a more common thread on the Miata forums than "will these tires fit?" is here.

 

[Madtiger]

Make the wife and kids ride in another vehicle.

If i do that, then between alimony and child support, i am sure that i can keep at least one lug nut from my LC....

 

[Sandroad]

It’s the retractees, not the retractors. But I’m not about to tell anyone in my family they suck donkey balls. So, I live with this in both my Toyotas and my Hondas and my Subarus. If the retractors pulled hard enough to retract without some help, they would be uncomfortably tight when buckled.

 

[Madtiger]

The solution is to pull the belt out as far as it will go (put a binder clip on it to hold it extended), then dunk as much as possible in a bucket of hot water and Woolite. Soak, then gentle scrub, then multiple rinses. Good as new.

Why does that sound like something one would do before screen time in a porn movie?

 

[fjcruising]

I will add to the useless batch of knowledge here, that if you have owned any ford product over the last 30 years that the seatbelt keeps getting tighter and tighter as you drive down the road... they retract alright but if have to go to the bathroom the last thing I need is that damn belt getting tighter and tighter. I had to adjust it every couple of minutes. That doesn’t happen with our useless retractors on the 100 series or 200. Blessing and a curse.

 

[USMCVader]

Madtiger, you are not alone with your OCD. The same situation used to happen in my Tundra when my wife or son would ride in the front seat. Later when they were not in the truck the rattling would drive me crazy to where I would have to stop to fix it. I was hoping that I would not have the same issue with the LC, but have only had it about two months and have not had it happen so far. Guess I have just been lucky and will be back to my normal frustration before long. Thanks for the heads up!