Seat belt tensioners

[Panthera]

Can anyone help please. My seat belts are not retracting in my 99t xkr convertible, they work fine and its just passed its mot, but they hang loosely. Anyone know the fix ?

[mike020150]

The simplest source of this problem is a belt that's twisted as it's retracted. Try looking to see if this has happened. If it has, you may have to release the trim to untangle matters. Incidentally, under tension a twisted belt has significantly less strength than a straight one. It's worth checking it for this reason alone. Mike.

[Panthera]

ok thanks mike, any idea how I get into the housing to check ?

[mike020150]

If you unreel the belt whilst looking carefully into the slot where it goes into the trim you might be able to see if it's twisted. Then, it's only a matter of releasing enough trim (should that proves necessary) to feed the twisted belt back through the slot and to straighten it. if you're lucky it can be done without disturbing the panels. If not, it's common sense dismantling until you can. First check to see if the belt has become twisted before pulling the car's interior to pieces. Mike.