The passenger seat belt locks and pins the passenger down. It will not release unless it’s released from the release button. If there’s an accident, my passenger would be seriously injured.
Chevrolet Corvette seat belt problems
53 of the 5,049 owner complaints about the Chevrolet Corvette describe seat belt won't latch or retract, most of them for the 1998 model year.
- owner complaints
- 53
- worst model year
- 1998
- typical mileage
- 64,600
Is there a fix? There are 8 recalls for this area of the car. See below
By model year
Often reported together
Steering lock-up 2Fuel smell 2Brake failure 2Oil consumption 1Jerking 1Headlights 1Fuel leak 1Fuel gauge 1
What owners say
seat belt fully retracted and could not be released in first day. had to drive 155 miles without operating seatbelt. this is a safety issue. My build date was 9/22 if you look at the forums this was not the only car built that day with a failed seat belt. seems like bad parts to me.
The Seatbelt Retractors failed per both of the safety belt recalls. The belts no longer function and GM refuses to provide a remedy to clear the safety recall.
The passenger seat belt immediately locks down and over tightens to a point of almost crushing the passenger. I do believe this belt will not function properly in an accident and may also fail to activate the air bag
Previous claim w/the federal safety agency was filed on wrong vehicle. I am filing this complaint so that it can be associated to the correct vehicle. I was in a passenger side and rear collision resulting in serious injury and permanent impairment which resulted in a total loss of the vehicle and multiple surgeries as well as prolonged and continued impairments and care. I was struck in the passenger side door by a truck crossing 3 lanes into my 4th lane as i sat idol at a stop light, the extreme impact blew holes in the side walls of my tires. i was pushed me into the median in which i ricocheted off of and was hit a second time by the same truck tearing into the hatch and bending the frame of the vehicle declared a total loss. not one of the airbags deployed and the seat belt failed to restrain me. resulting in severe whiplash, TBI, torn rotator cuff and bicep tear, permanent loss of hearing in my right ear and a cranial fracture, back and neck injuries, hip and intestinal blockage(twisted). At the time of the accident the federal safety agency, dealer and GM ran VIN due to the suspicion of air bags and seatbelt failure there were no known recalls on my vehicle or VIN at the time. the first time i was notified VIN was confirmed on recall due to the vehicle being left in "test" mode was 8/13/2020 which i immediately filed a claim with report of injury related accident with corporate and they opened a claim and 30 days later stated that my claim was outside of the 3 yr statute of limitations. GM and dealer failed to file the recall in a timely manner with known issues as early as 2014 resulting in my vehicle not being repaired prior to the accident. I believe this to be a Repose Statute in Colorado that is 6 years from incident and would like to file a claim against the dealer and GM for failure to properly notify of recall. failure to notify me of the recall is negligence which resulted in permanent injury and impairment as well as continued medical care which could have been prevented.
The passenger seat belt will no extend out or retract. Jamming occurs even though it has been to the dealer twice for this issue. It is a persistent problem that started about in 2018.
When I baught the vehical the seat belt always locked and now it says buckle seat belt when it is, dealer is not going to fix. Among other issues
Takata recall visible gasoline leakage after vehicle hasn't been parked over a period of months. Then I began to take notes of what , when , where this leak was occurring, I would fill the tank, park the auto in the garage . The next time I used the vehicle, a noticeable gas odor, spot on the garage floor was noted. I started to place a cardboard under the front end to more readily be able to observe the substance leaking. The odor was unmistakable. Several occurrences n spotting is evident after having parked in my garage . The auto was parked overnight in my garage. I am listing the latest calendar date and photo. I have other dates in my notepad. 2) my seatbelt occasionally will not lock. I hear the click of a seatbelt lock then upon driving away from my home ~ ,25 miles ~ my seatbelt unlocked through no fault of my own. 3) airbag cannot be checked for effectiveness .
Seat belt does not lock,can not buy a replacement.mfg does not make these anymore why?they should make replacement parts ,this is a safety issue.you cannot drive car without seatbelt!
The driver's side seat belt will not retract. It is extended all the way out. Therefore, it will not fit nor will it protect anyone from injury. I find this to be a seatbelt defect and a major safety hazard.
Related recalls
Seat belts: front: retractor
- What is wrong
- General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2024-2025 Chevrolet Corvette vehicles. The driver and/or passenger seat belt retractors may lock in a stowed position and become inaccessible to occupants.
- Risk
- An inaccessible seat belt that cannot restrain an occupant, increases the risk of injury in a crash.
- Remedy
- Dealers will replace the driver and/or passenger seat belt retractors, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed September 19, 2024. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1‑800‑222‑1020. GM's number for this recall is N242441390.
Recall number 24V418000 · Recall details
Seat belts
- What is wrong
- General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2020 Chevrolet Corvette vehicles. The driver's seat belt retractor may not lock as intended during a crash.
- Risk
- In the event of a crash, if the driver's seat belt fails to lock, there is an increased risk of injury.
- Remedy
- GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the driver's side seat-belt retractor, free of charge. The recall began October 15, 2020. Owners may contact GM customer service at 1‑866‑522‑9559. GM's number for this recall is N202307690.
Recall number 20V581000 · Recall details
Seat belts: pretensioner
- What is wrong
- General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2014-2016 Buick Lacrosse and Chevrolet Spark EV, Caprice PPV and SS vehicles, 2014-2017 Buick Encore and Chevrolet Corvette, Silverado 1500 and GMC Sierra 1500 vehicles, 2015-2016 Cadillac Escalade and Escalade ESV, Chevrolet Tahoe, Trax, Suburban and Silverado 2500 and 3500 and GMC Yukon and Yukon XL vehicles, and 2015-2017 GMC Sierra HD 2500 and 3500 vehicles. While being previously remedied for recall 16V‑651, the affected vehicles may not have received the complete software update necessary to remedy the recall condition. Without the update, certain driving conditions may cause the air bag sensing and diagnostic module (SDM) software to activate a diagnostic test. During this test, deployment of the frontal air bags and the seat belt pretensioners would not occur in the event of a crash.
- Risk
- A failure of the front air bags or seat belt pretensioners to deploy in the event of a crash necessitating deployment increases the risk of injury to the driver and front passenger.
- Remedy
- GM will notify owners, and dealers will reflash the SDM software. Vehicles that have had a previous air bag deployment will have the SDM replaced. These repairs will be performed free of charge. The recall began on August 4, 2017. Owners may contact Buick customer service at 1‑800‑521‑7300, Cadillac customer service at 1‑800‑458‑8006, Chevrolet customer service at 1‑800‑222‑1020, or GMC customer service at 1‑800‑462‑8782. GM's number for this recall is 17287.
Recall number 17V437000 · Recall details
Seat belts: pretensioner
- What is wrong
- General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2015-2017 Chevrolet Silverado 2500 HD, 3500 HD, Tahoe, Suburban, GMC Sierra 2500 HD and 3500 HD, GMC Yukon, GMC Yukon XL, Cadillac Escalade and Cadillac Escalade ESV vehicles and 2014-2017 Chevrolet Corvette, Silverado 1500, Trax, Caprice Police Pursuit Vehicle, GMC Sierra 1500, Buick Encore, and 2014-2016 Buick Lacrosse, Chevrolet Spark EV and SS vehicles. In the affected vehicles, certain driving conditions may cause the air bag sensing and diagnostic module (SDM) software to activate a diagnostic test. During this test, deployment of the frontal air bags and the seat belt pretensioners would not occur in the event of a crash.
- Risk
- A failure of the front air bags or seat belt pretensioners to deploy in the event of a crash necessitating deployment increases the risk of injury to the driver and front passenger.
- Remedy
- GM will notify owners, and dealers will reflash the SDM software. Vehicles that have had a previous air bag deployment will have the SDM replaced. These repairs will be performed free of charge. The recall began on October 13, 2016. Owners may contact Buick customer service at 1‑800‑521‑7300, Cadillac customer service at 1‑800‑458‑8006, Chevrolet customer service at 1‑800‑222‑1020, or GMC customer service at 1‑800‑462‑8782. GM's number for this recall is 16007.
Recall number 16V651000 · Recall details
Seat belts
- What is wrong
- General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2014 Chevrolet Corvette vehicles manufactured April 23, 2014 to April 25, 2014. In the affected vehicles, the Sensing and Diagnostic Module (SDM) may experience an internal short circuit, resulting in the deactivation of the air bags and seat belt pretensioners.
- Risk
- If the SDM short circuits, the air bags may not deploy and the seat belt pretensioners may not activate in the event of a crash, increasing the risk of occupant injury.
- Remedy
- GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the Sensing and Diagnostic Module (SDM), free of charge. The recall began on August 1, 2014. Owners may contact General Motors customer service at 1‑800‑222‑1020. GM's number for this recall is 14219.
Recall number 14V299000 · Recall details
Seat belts: front
- What is wrong
- Vehicle description: passenger vehicles. The lap belt webbing can twist allowing the webbing to become jammed in the retractor.
- Risk
- When the belt webbing becomes jammed in the retractor, the seat belt may be unusable.
- Remedy
- Dealers will install inserts to the belt web guide of each lap belt retractor.
Recall number 00V111000 · Recall details
Seat belts: front: anchorage
- What is wrong
- Vehicle description: passenger vehicles. The seat belts in these vehicles incorporate an energy management loop. This loop is inadequate to absorb the necessary forces that can be exerted on it. Therefore, the vehicles fail to conform to the requirements of fmvss no. 208, "occupant crash protection."
- Risk
- In the event of a vehicle crash, the energy management loop will not absorb enough energy, and injury to the seat occupant can occur.
- Remedy
- Dealers will replace the driver and passenger side seat belt retractor assemblies.
Recall number 97V104000 · Recall details
Seat belts: front: anchorage
- What is wrong
- Under certain vehicle operations and occupant usage conditions, the safety belts can lockup or jam in the safety belt retractor.
- Risk
- If lockup occurs, it is impossible to pull belt out ofthe retractor. The occupant of a seat with an unusable safety belt issubject to increased risk of injury or death in the event of a sudden stop oraccident.
- Remedy
- Replace the safety belts if the lockup occurs.
Recall number 91V143000 · Recall details
Questions about the Chevrolet Corvette seat belt
Which Chevrolet Corvette years have seat belt won't latch or retract problems?
The model years with the most reports are 1998 (12 complaints), 1999 (12 complaints) and 2001 (6 complaints).
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