Seatbelt retractor doesn't want to roll up on 2005 | Ford Thunderbird forum club group 1955-2005 models

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Seatbelt retractor doesn't want to roll up on 2005

Rickyboy

Rickyboy

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Thunderbird Year
2005
Recently purchased my 2005 and working on tweaking it out and getting familiar with it. The driver's seatbelt doesn't want to retract when I unbuckle. It can be coaxed in but requires some help. Has anyone had any luck making this work better? I'm thinking about digging into it to see if there is any adjustment on the tensioner but expect a safety item like this will not be adjustable. Any help would be appreciated.

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Rickyboy said:
Recently purchased my 2005 and working on tweaking it out and getting familiar with it. The driver's seatbelt doesn't want to retract when I unbuckle. It can be coaxed in but requires some help. Has anyone had any luck making this work better? I'm thinking about digging into it to see if there is any adjustment on the tensioner but expect a safety item like this will not be adjustable. Any help would be appreciated.
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Hi,

If the drivers side belt looks dirty (compared to the passenger side) that may be the cause.
Had that problem myself on another car.

Roll out the belt and fasten it.
Then clean it and let it dry before letting it roll back.
Check Youtube, there are many videos on how to clean.
So, if dirty, start with cleaning to see if that solves it before checking further.

// Stefan
 
You may already done this, but pull the belt all the way out until you can't get it to come out any further. Now check belt for damage or fold near the end where it goes back out of sight.

If you wish to dig deeper you can remove the plastic rear panels behind the seats. They just pull, a real hearty pull by getting your fingers behind the panel down at the carpet & the panel will release from their clips. Then you be able to access the seat belt rewind unit.

Let us know how it works out.
 
Thanks to both of you! I started with the cleaning idea and sure enough, the seatbelt had a stiff area from the dirt/oil where it goes over your shoulder. I followed the Youtube video for cleaning the belts and soaked it in hot soapy water for about 45 minutes. Got it as clean as I could and dried it out and that softened it up. Works great now. Glad it was an easy fix.
 
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