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Toyota Camry Seat Belt Questions

res751res751 Member Posts: 1
in Toyota
i have a 2003 camry and today when i went to take the seat belt off, the belt folded over on itself as it retracted. when i went to pull it out it stayed folded and now refuses to retract. does anyone know how to take the panel off the side of the car so that i can fix this? i'm not at all happy about it and i've never seen this happen before in any car. i would really appreciate any help you could give me.
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Comments

  • kiawahkiawah Member Posts: 3,666
    Try opening both doors, take off both the front scuff plate, and the rear scuff plate. Now take off the lower center pillar cover, and then the upper center pillar cover. You should now be able to get at the seat belt. You may have to take the seat out.

    Good luck.
  • gooddeal2gooddeal2 Member Posts: 750
    '03? You might still have the warranty left and the dealer might just do it under warranty.
  • dee24dee24 Member Posts: 1
    My 7 year old son got tangled in the rear right seat belt of our 2006 Sienna. The belt tightened up around his waist and started to affect his breathing it kept getting tighter and tighter. I called for help because the seatbelt kept getting tighter everytime I tried to release the seatbelt. The person who was helping me had to cut the seatbelt to get my son out. Has anyone had this problem it just happened this week. Thank You.
  • southerngirl64southerngirl64 Member Posts: 3
    Does anyone know how to turn off the seat belt buzzer in a 2007 Camry LE? It's driving me nuts!!!

    Thanks,
    southerngirl64
  • 210delray210delray Member Posts: 4,721
    That's easy - wear your belt, and put heavy things in the trunk or on the floor, not on the front passenger seat! ;)
  • stlpike07stlpike07 Member Posts: 229
    I agree with 210 Delray, you should wear your seat belt.

    And, like 210 delray said, heavy things on the passenger seat will cause the alarm to go off.
  • southerngirl64southerngirl64 Member Posts: 3
    I do wear my seatbelt. Did you read my original message? All I asked was if somone knew how to connect the annoying buzzer.
  • southerngirl64southerngirl64 Member Posts: 3
    I spoke to my Toyota dealer. I was first told they couldn't disconnect it due to it being a safety issue. However, he did some research and said that had changed with the 2007 Camry and they are now allowed to disconnect it. I will be scheduling an appointment this week!
  • kiawahkiawah Member Posts: 3,666
    I don't understand your situation. If you put your seatbelts on, the car doesn't chime.

    You reference the chime, and someone suggested to wear your seatbelt, and you replied back that you do.

    Are you indicating that you put your seat belt on, and it still chimes? (with no weight on the passenger seat to trigger that seat sensor).

    Or, are you saying you start the car and start driving without your seat belt, causing a chime, and then you connect your seatbelt later (or don't connect it at all)?

    The manual describes the operations of the seatbelt & chime.
  • 210delray210delray Member Posts: 4,721
    I was thinking the same thing. But I know there are people don't want to be "inconvenienced" by wearing a seat belt, for example, in a parking lot or a very short trip. Others like to fasten their belts "on the fly."

    Then there are others who insist on carrying heavy objects (or big dogs) on the front passenger seat (where said objects can wallop your head really well in a serious crash).

    Speaking for myself, the only place I don't wear a belt is in my own (short) driveway when I'm just repositioning the car. And heavy objects always go in the trunk, or if they must be inside the occupant compartment, they are put on the floor or buckled in place on the back seat.
  • sales2010sales2010 Member Posts: 33
    I do understand what you are saying. I always wear my seatbelt. But on my 07 Ford Ranger, the buzzer goes on even if I have it in "P" position. When I was waiting for my son to get out of school, I put the car in park for about 10 minutes. It drove me crazy! But since it was a hot day, I delt with it. That is what I dislike about the system.
  • 210delray210delray Member Posts: 4,721
    Well, it probably shouldn't buzz in "park." But I'd either put on the belt, or turn off the ignition and sweat! (more likely the latter, given today's gas prices)
  • stlpike07stlpike07 Member Posts: 229
    Southerngirl, I believe the buzzer goes off when the speed reaches above 12 mph. So if you are moving your car and aren't driving fast it won't go off (my dealer told me).

    Also, if the buzzer is going off when you are in park, just put the seatbelt on and take it off and the buzzer will stop (it does in my car). And, without a seatbelt on, my buzzer eventually goes off, maybe after about 30 seconds.
  • sales2010sales2010 Member Posts: 33
    Thanks for the advice!
  • rodrirorodriro Member Posts: 1
    Just want to put my late 2 cents in. Why don't you lazy people click the passenger side seat belt when nobody is riding with you? You can have all the heavy stuff you want without the annoying buzz.
  • richard3265richard3265 Member Posts: 1
    The same thing happened to my wife who was seating in the back seat of my daughter's Camry. We pulled into a parking spot and the seat belt tightened around my wife neck (she is short) strangling her. I have looked on the internet and have found very little concerning this. I did read that they are designed to pull tight in an accident then loosen. Maybe this feature is not working properly. Has any one else experienced this.
  • 210delray210delray Member Posts: 4,721
    When you first put on the belt, do not pull it all the way out of its retractor. Otherwise, it will go into this self-locking mode (which should only be used to secure child safety seats). You can tell the belt is in this mode if it makes a ratcheting or clicking sound as it retracts.

    If this occurs for an adult, unbuckle the belt, let it retract fully, and then put in on again without pulling out the belt all the way.

    Almost all cars have this feature today as a safety feature to more securely hold child restaints in place (does not apply for obvious reasons to the driver's belt).
  • 2009_camry2009_camry Member Posts: 1
    You are not alone. I had this problem today with my 2009 Toyota Camry. The belt is locked in the retractor. The dealership told me it was 300 dollars to replace it. I told them to just "fix it" not replace it. They told me there was no fixing it, it has to be removed and replaced with a brand new one. They told me it was not a defect, and that the seatbelt spool had been designed that way for the child seat installation.
    I think that this type of seatbelt design is dangerous. It could choke people and/or injure someone.
  • 210delray210delray Member Posts: 4,721
    Why wasn't this covered under warranty?
  • latrina1latrina1 Member Posts: 1
    I know your post was some time ago but I had the same experience with my 2010 Camry. My son is 4 and the belt became entangled around his neck. I have taken the car to the dealer. I have called customer relations. It saddens me that it seems to be a non issue with them and almost implied it was user error that he couldnt be released because I was panicked. I have worked in health care for over 10years and I am accustomed to maintain composer during critical times and am insulted they would imply that. I had to cut my son from the seat belt because even though I released the tension the seat belt became tighter and tighter. They have since offered to replace the belts but I want them to look into issues with the mechanism
  • concernedmom2concernedmom2 Member Posts: 1
    edited January 2012
    My 6 year old became entangled in her seatbelt yesterday. The seatbelt continued to tighten the more I attempted to loosen it's grip around her waist. There was absolutely no release of the tension despite my efforts. I ended up having to cut the belt in order to free her from the seatbelt. When I called the dealership, I was given a quote of $148 for the belt and about $200 for labor. I immediately went to the internet and began researching if other consumers had similar experiences and sure enough, I found a few. I took the time to post with the hope that my experience will help another consumer. I am hoping that the dealership will offer to replace the belt for free or at least with a significant discount considering this is obviously not due to human error. Oh.... have a 2007 Toyota Camry.
  • misstiff2umisstiff2u Member Posts: 1
    I have had the exact same issue, except they told me the belt was 280 and the labor was 60. I've contacted transportation safety people, Toyota, and among a few other people and haven't received a response. This is a safety hazard and should be completely replaced. Really irritated.
  • momjillmomjill Member Posts: 1
    This just happened to my 13 year old daughter. The belt kept tightening around her waist and chest and we couldn't loosen it. My husband is a career firefighter and is very distressed at how dangerous this is. We had to cut her out. She is now sporting a pair of bruises across her hips!
  • kaceleekacelee Member Posts: 1
    This is happening in my 2011 Camry. They have replaced the mechanism once, but it is still happening. Now they tell me it is designed that way because of car seats for children. I will never buy another Toyota product.
  • mcdawggmcdawgg Member Posts: 1,722
    If you pull the belt all the way out, it will lock, just like other cars.

    Solution:

    Don't pull the belt all the way out.

    2010 Camry (same as 2011), kids, zero issues.
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