1998 Honda Civic Seatbelt installed incorrectly

Synchro246 · Mar 1, 2007

It's a wonder I never discovered this before. I've owned this car for 6 years.

The rear passenger lap shoulder belt is installed backwords. It's the part where the webbing is actually sewed to the bracket that is bolted to the frame. I'm pretty sure that whole belt will need to be replaced if it's to be used to install a carseat.
I "can" install a carseat, but there will be one twist in the lap portion and one twist in the shoulder portion, no getting around that.

I'm expecting a new baby in May and my two carseats do not fit next to eachother. I have until then to solve this issue.

I think Honda should replace the belt for free, since if the purchacer had noticed it they would have.
What do you think? How should I go about this?

southpawboston · Mar 1, 2007

well i doubt that honda will touch it for free since the car is 9 years old, regardless of whether it's a safety item or not (check the manual to see what the warranty is on seatbelts, if they have a longer warranty than the general new car warranty, but i really doubt it.

question: is there a twist in the belt with the belt unfastened and at rest? or is the belt flat, but the buckle is on 180 degrees backwards? if the belt has one twist to it while at rest, that should be easy to remedy, by unbolting the lower bracket (in the seat bight) and refastening it after removing the twist. however, if the buckle is 180 degrees off and the belt is flat, i'm afraid the only solution is to replace the assembly, and that is not cheap. mabe a tech can chime in on whether it's okay to have a twist in the belt while installed with a carseat.

Dillipop · Mar 1, 2007

Can you flip the buckle? Sometimes my buckles somehow swivel so they face the wrong way. It is a @#$%@ to flip them around, but possible. Or is the buckle upside down? Can you get a pic for us to see?

Synchro246 · Mar 1, 2007

southpawboston said:
question: is there a twist in the belt with the belt unfastened and at rest? or is the belt flat, but the buckle is on 180 degrees backwards? if the belt has one twist to it while at rest, that should be easy to remedy, by unbolting the lower bracket (in the seat bight) and refastening it after removing the twist. however, if the buckle is 180 degrees off and the belt is flat, i'm afraid the only solution is to replace the assembly, and that is not cheap. mabe a tech can chime in on whether it's okay to have a twist in the belt while installed with a carseat.

The belt is flat when at rest.
The bracket that holds it down to the car is in the same position as the correct belt, however the bottom of the belt that is attached to the bracket is backwards--there's a little tag (like one that would be on an article of clothing) at the bottom and it's on opposite sides on the two belts, which makes me think that the belt is upside down on both the bracket and the retractor.

Synchro246 · Mar 1, 2007

Dillipop said:
Can you flip the buckle? Sometimes my buckles somehow swivel so they face the wrong way. It is a @#$%@ to flip them around, but possible. Or is the buckle upside down? Can you get a pic for us to see?

Man, I tried and tried. I don't think it's going to happen. After I tried that for an hour was when I thought to examine where it attaches at the base and that's when I saw the tags are in opposite positions when comparing the two belts, so I think it was like this from the factory--no one did it to the belt.

Victorious4 · Mar 1, 2007

My SO's '97 Civic is the same....

Synchro246 · Mar 1, 2007

papooses said:
My SO's '97 Civic is the same....

NO way! Did you ever try to do anything about it? Or are you just resigned not to use that seat? Or do you use the seat anyway?

Victorious4 · Jul 9, 2007

Sorry! I just noticed your response while searching for another thread....

I called Honda & their answer was just that it's still safe to use so I resigned myself to the fact that it's just the way it is -- with the outboard buckles being forward of the bight + the center hump, I already hate installing seats in this vehicle as it is @@ Just 1 more reason to convince my SO to get rid of it (of course he loves the gas mileage, though)

stevel · Jul 10, 2007

well i doubt that honda will touch it for free since the car is 9 years old, regardless of whether it's a safety item or not (check the manual to see what the warranty is on seatbelts, if they have a longer warranty than the general new car warranty, but i really doubt it.

this is one reason I am loyal to Honda. this is copy/pasted from the warranty info on honda ownerlink for my accord..... :thumbsup: this has been the policy they have had since I worked at a honda dealer over 10 years ago too.

While seat belts cannot completely
remove the possibility of injury,
they do provide a very significant
level of protection when used
properly. Honda believes the best
way to enhance your safety is to
use your seat belt. To encourage
their use, the seat belts should
always be in good operating
condition.
Time Period
This warranty continues for the
useful life of the vehicle.
Warranty Coverage
Honda will repair or replace, at its
option, any Honda seat belt
component that fails to function
properly during normal use. This
includes all parts and labor
charges.
This Warranty Does Not
Cover:
• Replacement of a properlyfunctioning
seat belt assembly
strictly for cosmetic or comfort
reasons.
• Failure caused by abuse,
alteration, accidental damage,
misuse, or malfunction resulting
from a collision.

Patriot201 · Jul 10, 2007

stevel said:
this has been the policy they have had since I worked at a honda dealer over 10 years ago too.

Wow!

So they should replace the OP's belt, then?

stevel · Jul 10, 2007

Patriot20171 said:
Wow!

So they should replace the OP's belt, then?

not if it's just the way it is. as someone else said, theirs is the same way. but if something is defective, then yeah, they should replace it.

LuvBug · Jul 10, 2007

try folding the belt over itself and sliding the buckle across it... it might take some effort. My sister's passenger side belts were like this and after some playing I was able to fix them.

Patriot201 · Jul 10, 2007

I'm having a REALLY hard time visualizing what is wrong with the belt.

LuvBug · Jul 10, 2007

Patriot20171 said:
I'm having a REALLY hard time visualizing what is wrong with the belt.

to me it sounds like it is just on backwards... which happens often. The male part is facing the wrong way, so when you buckle it in the right way you end up with a twist in both the shoulder and lap area.
I hope that is correct because that is how it was in my sister's.

Patriot201 · Jul 10, 2007

LuvBug03 said:
to me it sounds like it is just on backwards... which happens often. The male part is facing the wrong way, so when you buckle it in the right way you end up with a twist in both the shoulder and lap area.
I hope that is correct because that is how it was in my sister's.

Oh! Okay, I think I get it. Thanks!

Synchro246 · Jul 10, 2007

LuvBug03 said:
to me it sounds like it is just on backwards... which happens often. The male part is facing the wrong way, so when you buckle it in the right way you end up with a twist in both the shoulder and lap area.
I hope that is correct because that is how it was in my sister's.

Yup that's how it is. I ended up replacing the car as my daily driver because the side impact ratings were sorta lame anyway. I should call honda just to ask. I SOOOOOO couldn't get the belt to flip. I tried for over an hour and I'm usually good at stuff like that, but it was a no go.
Thanks everyone for your imput!

1998 Honda Civic Seatbelt installed incorrectly

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