Owner-reported complaints naming the seat belt system, filed with NHTSA
Data refreshed
Reports naming seat belts, buckles, retractors and pretensioners. Every record below is an owner-reported complaint about the 1998 Chevrolet Corvette submitted to NHTSA — not a confirmed defect, not a recall and not a manufacturer bulletin. 22 reports on file name it.
Complaints are reports submitted by owners and drivers to NHTSA. They are not verified and do not establish that a defect exists.
Shown in the owner’s own words, exactly as filed
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.
TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 1998 CHEVROLET CORVETTE. SHE STATED THAT THE VEHICLE WAS PURCHASED USED IN 2005 AND THE PASSENGER SIDE FRONT SEAT BELT DOES NOT RETRACT. THE CONTACT REFERENCED RECALL 00V111000, SEAT BELTS:FRONT. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER AND THE DEALER ADVISED HER THAT THEY HAD NO RECORDS OF THIS RECALL. THE MANUFACTURER ALSO ADVISED HER OF THE SAME AND DID NOT HAVE ANY RECORDS INDICATING IF THE RECALL REPAIR WAS PERFORMED. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 84,000 AND THE CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 97,000.
TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 1998 CHEVROLET CORVETTE. WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 5 MPH, THE ENGINE SHUT OFF. THE SERVICE COLUMN LOCK WARNING LIGHT ILLUMINATED ON THE INSTRUMENT PANEL. IN ADDITION, THERE WAS A MALFUNCTION WITH THE PASSENGER AND DRIVER'S SIDE SEAT BELTS. THE VEHICLE HAS NOT BEEN TAKEN TO AN AUTHORIZED DEALER. THE CONTACT WAS DISPLEASED TO KNOW THAT HIS VIN WAS EXCLUDED FROM THE RECALL THAT LISTS THIS SAME FAILURE. THE RECALL NUMBER WAS UNKNOWN. THE FAILURE AND CURRENT MILEAGES WERE 120,000.
BOTH RETRACTORS ARE BROKEN DUE TO LAB BELT WEBBING TWISTED AND JAMMED. DEALER ADMITTED RECALL 00-V-111-000, AND INSTALLED INSERTS TO THE BELT WEB GUIDE OF EACH LAP BELT RETRACTOR, BUT DID NOT REPLACE THE RETRACTORS.*AK
CONSUMER STATES PURCHASED VEHICLE FROM DLR IN 07/02. DLR CHECKED RECALL SYSTEM THAT VERIFIED RECALL ID 00V111000 HAD BEEN REMEDIED BY A PREVIOUS DLR. CURRENT DLR INSPECTED VEHICLE AND DETERMINED RECALL HAD NOT BEEN REMEDIED AT ALL.
THE CONSUMER HAS REPEATEDLY RECIEVED BAD SERVICES FROM HIS LOCAL CHEVROLET DEALERS AND IS REQUESTING THE PARTS AND INSTRUCTIONS TO PERFORM HIS OWN RECALL REPAIR (00V-111) FOR THE SEAT BELT. NLM
ON OCCASSION THE DRIVER'S SEAT BELT HAS STUCK IN A LOCKED POSITION SUCH THAT YOU CANNOT PULL IT OUT AND SECURE IT. ALSO, THE PASSENGER SIDE HAS TANGLED AND NOT RETRACTED PROPERLY. I HAD RECEIVED A RECALL NOTICE NUMBER 00034. I TURNED THIS CARD INTO JOE MACPHERSON CHEVROLET AND AFTER SEVERAL WEEKS AND CALLING BACK I WAS TOLD THE PART WAS IN AND TO BRING MY CAR IN SO THE REPAIR COULD BE MADE. I DID. THAT WAS IN JANUARY. FOR A WHILE IT WORKED FINE BUT LATELY THE DRIVER'S SEAT BELT APPEARS TO LOCK AND I CANNOT SECURE IT AND HAVE HAD TO DRIVE WITHOUT A SEAT BELT. SOMETIMES IT WORKS FINE AND SOMETIMES IT SIMPLY WON'T RELEASE. TODAY I TOOK MY CAR IN AND TOLD THEM ABOUT IT, THAT IT WAS STILL LOCKING AND NOT WORKING PROPERLY. THE ADVISOR, DAVID BRUNN (7173) TOLD ME IF I WANTED TO PAY FOR A NEW SEAT BELT THEY WOULD FIX IT. I AGAIN EXPLAINED THAT THIS WAS A SAFETY ITEM, A PREVIOUS RECALL THAT ALTHOUGH REPAIRED WAS STILL NOT WORKING CORRECTLY. HE BECAME VERY DEFENSIVE. *AK
SEAT BELT WEBBING ON PASSENGER'S SIDE WILL NOT RETRACT INTO HOIUSING UNLESS CONSUMER WILL DO IT MANUALLY. THEN, WILL WORK AT A TIME. BUT, THERE IS A WARNING LABEL ON WEBBING THAT WON'T ALLOW BELT TO RETRACT. DEALER TOLD CONSUMER TO REMOVE LABEL BECAUSE CONSUMER WAS OWNER OF VEHICLE, AND DEALER WAS NOT ALLOWED TO DO SO. *AK
SERVICE MANUAL CHEVROLET CORVETTE, AUTHENTIC TECH. SERVICES INFORMATION, VOLUME 1 OF VOLUME 3, PART GMP/98-Y-1, PAGES 3, 7-8 AND 9-3 THROUGH 9-19. DEALER REPLACED PART OF RESTRAINT SYSTEM. WHEN ACCORDING TO REPAIR MANUAL, ENTIRE RESTRAINT. MANUFCTURER HAS BEEN NOTIFIED.*AK
THE PASSENGER SIDE SEAT BELT JAMMED FOR AT LEAST THE FIFTH TIME AFTER THE DEALER INSTALLED THE CLIP REQUIRED BY THE RECALL. AN ACCIDENT OCCURRED A FEW MINUTES AFTER THE LAST JAM. MY PASSENGER WAS VERY LUCKY NOT TO HAVE BEEN INJURED WITH MORE THAN A BRUISE ON HER LEG AND A BUMP ON HER HEAD. WHEN SHIFTING FROM FIRST GEAR INTO SECOND AT ABOUT 35 MPH (ENGINE SPEED AT ABOUT 3300 RPM), THE REAR END CAME AROUND TO THE LEFT CAUSING THE CAR TO DO A 180. THE TRACTION CONTROL SYSTEM NEVER INTERVENED AS IT HAS DONE MANY TIMES IN MUCH LESS SEVERE SITUATIONS. THE CAR THEN WENT SIDEWAYS ACROSS TRAFFIC INTO A CURB AND THEN OVER THE CURB INTO A FENCE ON THE EDGE OF AN OVERPASS. A POLICE OFFICER WAS A FEW CARS BEHIND ME AND SAW THE ENTIRE INCIDENT. IN HIS POLICE REPORT HE ESTIMATED MY SPEED AT 35 MPH. *AK
THE SEAT BELTS TWIST AND JAM IN THE BELT GUIDES. I HAVE BEEN ABLE TO UNJAM THEM EVERY TIME WITH SOME FIDDLING. HOWEVER IT IS TIME CONSUMING AND SOMETIMES IT HAPPENS WITH THE BELT ON AND THIS MAKES IT VERY DIFFICULT TO DRIVE WITH THE BELT LOCKED IN ONE POSITION. THE STEERING COLUMN LOCK FAILED TO DISENGAGE AND THE STEERING WHEEL WON'T TURN. I AM IN A CORVETTE CLUB AND THIS IS A COMMON PROBLEM WITH 1997, 1998, AND EARLY 1999'S. REF. IN EA02-031 *CJS
BOTH DRIVER AND PASSENGER SEAT BELT WEBBINGS OFTEN FOLD OVER WHILE RETRACTING. ONCE THE FOLDED WEBBING IS PULLED INTO RETRACTOR THE RETRACTOR JAMS. FURTHER USE OF SEATBELT IS IMPOSSIBLE. THIS IS DANGEROUS AND ILLEGAL. THE ENTIRE MOLDING MUST BE DISASSEMBLED EACH TIME TO GET THE BELT TO RELEASE AND BE USABLE AGAIN. THIS REQUIRES TOOLS AND .5 HOURS OF TIME. THIS HAS HAPPENED TO ME NO LESS THAN 20 TIMES IN A 2 MONTH PERIOD. WHEN PICKING MY DAUGHTER UP FROM SCHOOL THE RETRACTOR OFTEN JAMS FORCING HER TO NOT WEAR A SAFETY BELT. DEALER HAS BEEN NO HELP. GM HAS BEEN NO HELP. I HAVE A $38000 CAR THAT IS BOTH DANGEROUS AND ILLEGAL TO DRIVE. SOMEONE PLEASE HELP, THIS IS A VERY COMMON OCCURENCE ON ALL 1997 AND UP CORVETTES AND GM KNOWS ABOUT IT. NHTSA DATABASE LISTS CAMPAIGN ID NUMBER 00V111000 FOR THIS EXACT PROBLEM BUT GM JUST BLOWS ME OFF AND TELLS ME THERE IS NO FIX AND NO RECALL. *AK
WHILE BACKING OUT OF THE DRIVEWAY ALL OF A SUDDEN THE STEERING WHEEL LOCKED UP. DEALERSHIP WAS NOT AWARE OF THIS PROBLEM. NOTHING WAS DONE ABOUT THIS PROBLEM. ALSO SEATBELT DOES NOT RETRACT. *AK *ML REF. IN EA02-031 *CJS
SEAT BELT WILL NOT LATCH. *AK
SEATBELT BUCKLE LOCKS UP IN THE UPRIGHT POSITION WHICH WONT PROTECT THE OCCUPANT IN EVENT OF A CRASH. DEALER REPLACED PASSENGER'S SEATBELT 3 TIMES. PLEASE PROVIDE FURTHER INFORMATION. *AK
DRIVER'S SEAT BELT LATCH. SEAT BELT UNHOOKS ITSELF.
SEAT BELT.
THE SEATBELTS GET EASILY TWISTED AND FAIL TO RETRACT, RENDERING THEM USLESS. DEALER IS AWARE OF MANY CUSTOMER COMPLATINS BUT STATED THAT GM DOESN'T HAVE A FIX. THIS IS VERY DANGEROUS TO BE TRAVELING WHEN YOU GET OUT OF THE VEHICLE AND THEN CAN'T WEAR THE SEATBELT FOR THE REST OF THE TRIP, UNTIL YOU GO TO THE DEALER TO GET THEM TO FIX IT. THEY WONT REPLACE THE PART SINCE THEY DON'T HAVE FIX FOR IT. KNOW MANY 1998-1999 CORVETTE OWNERS THAT HAVE COMPLAINED ABOUT THE SAME PROBLEM. SOMETHING NEEDS TO BE DONE TO FORCE GM TO FIX THIS DESIGN PROBLEM.
AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION FLUID LEAKS (SERVICED 4 TIMES WITH MANY COMPONENTS REPLACED), PASSENGER SEATBELT RETRACTOR FAILS TO RETRACT (DEALER REPLACED)
PASSENGER SIDE SEAT BELT FAILED. *YC
PASSENGER SEAT BELT WOULD NOT RETRACT. YH
PASSENGER'S SIDE SEAT BELT RETRACTOR ISN'T WORKING PROPERLY. ALSO, GEAR SHIFT IS CAUSING THE VEHICLE TO SHIFT FROM 1ST TO 4TH, LEADING TO AN UNPREDICTABLE SLOWING OF THE VEHICLE. *AK *ML
Higher-selling and older vehicles accumulate more reports. Counts are not failure rates and are not directly comparable between vehicles that sold in very different numbers.
Categories with enough reports to have a page of their own
Data on this page last refreshed .