The seat belt in the middle row of the 6 seater model X can get wrapped under the seat and locked, creating a very dangerous situation for children or anyone sitting in that seat. The seats in the 6 seater middle row Do Not fold down, and there's no way to release this seatbelt once it gets locked
Tesla Model X seat belt problems
14 of the 1,561 owner complaints about the Tesla Model X describe seat belt won't latch or retract, most of them for the 2023 model year.
- owner complaints
- 14
- worst model year
- 2023
By model year
- 20251
- 20234
- 20222
- 20202
- 20182
- 20172
- 20161
Often reported together
What owners say
My 2023 Tesla Model X suffers from severe, intermittent safety system failures. Specifically, the Automatic Emergency Braking and Steering Assist randomly become unavailable while driving. Tesla Service refuses to repair this, claiming they are "unable to replicate" the intermittent alerts. However, the vehicle's history proves severe safety flaws: Tesla previously had to replace the entire steering wheel assembly and the driver's seat belt lap pretensioner due to failures, and had to recalibrate the forward ADAS camera because it went out of spec causing Autopilot failures. These unresolved, randomly occurring defects pose a severe crash hazard that Tesla is ignoring.
I own a Tesla Model X 6-seater. The second-row seatbelt repeatedly becomes twisted and fails to retract or lay flat after only a few days of normal use. I have brought the vehicle to the Tesla Service Center in Austin, TX (2323 Ridgepoint Dr) multiple times — five separate repair visits so far — for the same issue. Each time, the technicians temporarily correct the twist or adjust the belt path, but the issue returns within days. I have attached screenshots of all five repair records, including Tesla’s technician notes describing the repeated attempts to resolve the problem. The problem appears to be caused by misalignment of the seatbelt retractor or seat design, not by user misuse. When the belt twists, it cannot retract properly or lay flat across the passenger, which may reduce its effectiveness during a collision. Tesla Service has not offered a permanent fix or design correction, and the defect continues to recur. This appears to be a systemic issue in the second-row seatbelt system of the Model X six-seat configuration. Because the defect involves a federally required safety restraint that may not function as intended, I am reporting this as a potential safety defect for further investigation.
Seat belt buckle is always stuck at second row right seat. Tesla did not fix it during last service appointment. My child has to climb underneath the seat belt.
The contact owns a 2022 Tesla Model X. The contact stated that while the vehicle was parked, the driver’s side rear passenger’s seat belt failed to release the child occupying the seat. The contact stated that after five minutes the seat belt was released. The contact then stated that while driving at approximately 20 MPH, with the front passenger and the driver’s side rear seats occupied, the restraint system fault for each passenger was displayed. Additionally, the contact stated that on several occasions while driving at various speeds, the messages appeared intermittently while both seats were unoccupied. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where it was diagnosed that a seat belt module needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired but the failure persisted. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 2,000.
Seat belts in rear seats are not installed correctly. The tongue of the seatbelt does not fit into the buckle properly/ correctly. The service center was notified of this issue. A service apportionment was set up. The service technician identified that they see the problem. The car was left to be serviced and the problem to be corrected. However when we were notified that the service of complete and the car was ready to picked up, upon picking up the car there was no change. The seatbelts are the exact same way as when we dropped it off. We were told that seatbelts function as expected. Our children carseats are in those seats and we are concerned for their safety. These factors, coupled with the volume of recall notices we’ve received on the vehicle so far, give us significant pause and raise major concerns about the composition, fidelity, and safety of this Tesla Model X.
Middle row center seat seatbelt won’t retract
The second row center seat has a seatbelt that has failed. The seatbelt will not retract and is completely inoperative. I contacted Tesla about this issue and they said that it is not covered under warranty and they want to charge me $1,133.00 to repair it. I cannot afford this, and I believe the manufacturer should repair this defect free of charge since this vehicle is only 5 years old.
Seatbelt sometimes will not auto retract and gets stuck with lots of slack. Car is very clean, no blockages and seatbelt doesn’t have any tears or frays
The contact owns a 2018 Tesla Model X. The contact stated that the second-row passenger's side seat belt had fully retracted and could not be pulled out. The vehicle was taken to a Tesla Service Center, where it was diagnosed that the seat belt was twisted internally. The Tesla Service Center untwisted the seat belt internally. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 27,000.
Related recalls
Seat belts: front: warning light/devices
- What is wrong
- Tesla, Inc. (Tesla) is recalling certain 2012-2024 Model S, 2015-2024 Model X, 2017-2023 Model 3, and 2020-2023 Model Y vehicles. In the event of an unbelted driver, the seat belt warning light and audible chime may not activate as intended. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 208, "Occupant Crash Protection."
- Risk
- A seat belt warning system that fails to alert occupants of an unbelted seat belt can increase the risk of injury during a crash.
- Remedy
- Tesla will release an over-the-air (OTA) software update. Owner notification letters were mailed July 26, 2024. Owners may contact Tesla customer service at 1‑877‑798‑3752. Tesla's number for this recall is SB-24-00-008.
Recall number 24V376000 · Recall details
Seat belts: front
- What is wrong
- Tesla, Inc. (Tesla) is recalling certain 2021-2023 Model S and Model X vehicles. The front-row seat belts may not be connected properly to the pretensioner anchors, which can cause the seat belts to detach.
- Risk
- A detached seat belt may not properly restrain an occupant during a crash, increasing the risk of injury.
- Remedy
- Tesla Service will inspect the front-row seat belts and connect the seat belts to pretensioner anchors, or replace the seat belt assemblies, as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed September 12, 2023. Owners may contact Tesla customer service at 1‑877‑798‑3752. Tesla's number for this recall is SB-23-20-004.
Recall number 23V488000 · Recall details
Seat belts: front
- What is wrong
- Tesla, Inc. (Tesla) is recalling certain 2021-2022 Model S and Model X, 2017-2022 Model 3, and 2020-2022 Model Y vehicles. The audible chime may not activate when the vehicle starts and the driver has not buckled their seat belt. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 208, "Occupant Crash Protection."
- Risk
- The driver may be unaware that their seat belt is not fastened, increasing the risk of injury during a crash.
- Remedy
- Tesla will perform an over-the-air (OTA) software update, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed April 1, 2022. Owners may contact Tesla customer service at 1‑877‑798‑3752. Tesla's number for this recall is SB-22-00-002.
Recall number 22V045000 · Recall details
Questions about the Tesla Model X seat belt
Which Tesla Model X years have seat belt won't latch or retract problems?
The model years with the most reports are 2023 (4 complaints), 2017 (2 complaints) and 2018 (2 complaints).
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