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I removed the "do not remove" cover on my seat belt retractor

11K views 27 replies 18 participants last post by  bethany19651 
#1 ·
My passenger side seat belt has been giving my wife and I fits ever since i purchased my stock 98 TJ a couple weeks ago. I tried everything to fix the retractor portion but nothing seemed to work.
Knowing what was behind the tiny blue "do not remove" cover i chose to remove it anyway in a last ditch effort to correct my slow/stuck seat belt retractor. About 20 feet of thin metal uncoiled in my face. I assume their is no way to fix it now so I began my search on ebay, craigslist and through my local junkyard but have nothing less than $80. Any ideas or suggestions?
 
#3 ·
Hilarious but I cant leave her at home, shes loves the TJ as much as I do. I just emailed DAVEYS, thanks

Hasn't made it to 85 yet but its clear and sunny and I'm not complaining cause we just came from Lejeune where it was a humid 90 one day and rainstorms and 55 the next
 
#10 ·
Holy **** that was a PITA...!!!! At first i thought i was completely screwed but i gave it a shot and rewound the metal spring and used common sense to put it back together. I was so proud of myself thinking it was fixed until i tried it out and it was locked.

I wasn't giving up so i let the spring fly out again and wound it up the opposite direction and low and behold it works now. I don't even care that it retracts slowly anymore which is why I took it off in the first place. I'm leaving it alone now/

I thought i was going to have to buy a new one for $80 but now i can spend that 80 bucks on the HERCULINER to do my tub. I stripped it all out this morning and ill be completing the project on wednesday. Stay tuned for before and after pics. Actually i don't even know how to post pics yet. NewB
 
#14 ·
This is too late for the OP, (I always wondered what would happen if I removed that blue cover) but I 'fixed' my non-retracting front seat belts totally by mistake.

I had to unbolt the winding mechanism from the floor of the tub for another job. The mechanism wound up as far as it would go and ended up hanging about where the door striker is. It only stopped winding up because the thickness of the wound-on belt wouldn't let it go any further.
I pulled it back down*, rebolted it and it's been fine ever since. That was 2 years ago!

Still don't know HOW it's fixed but guess the belt re-tensioned itself by winding on much further than what it usually does.

*When pulling the mechanism back down, it needs to dead level otherwise it keeps locking up. The slightest tilt in any direction will lock it up.
 
#15 ·
98trtusmcTJ said:
Hilarious but I cant leave her at home, shes loves the TJ as much as I do. I just emailed DAVEYS, thanks

Hasn't made it to 85 yet but its clear and sunny and I'm not complaining cause we just came from Lejeune where it was a humid 90 one day and rainstorms and 55 the next
I was born in Lejeune!!! My dad was in the USMC for 21 years! Semper Fi fellas
 
#22 ·
I was born at Pendleton and lived at Lejeune for two years.

And I also removed my mattress tags as well as the warnings on the TJ's sun visors. Hated them.

I also have opened the spring mechanism of a seat belt with the same terrible results. And I got it to work again.

What a major PITA that was, too...

I was a jarhead by blood, but a dogface by contract. When I was about three I had a speedo-type khaki swimsuit with the USMC bulldog on the ass. I was so proud of that bulldog that I can actually remember running in the surf, taking it off and putting it on backwards so I could see him. My Marine dad smacked me upside my head and made me put them back. My mother had been scandalized by her buck nekkid son running around in the surf waving his bulldog at everyone and barking like a DI. HAHAHA!!!
 
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