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 1989 Ford Probe submitted to NHTSA — not a confirmed defect, not a recall and not a manufacturer bulletin. 27 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.
The 25 most recent of 27, in the owner's own words
WHILE DRIVING THE CAR ON THE ROAD, A CAR PULLED IN FRONT OF ME AND I BRAKED HARD AND MY SEATBELT LOCKED. BUT AFTER THIS INCIDENT THE SEATBELT HAS NEVER WORKED THE SAME. THE SEATBELT DOESN'T LOCK, OR RETRACT. THE CAR ONLY HAS 48,000 MILES. THIS SEEMS TO BE A VERY COMMON PROBLEM FOR THIS CAR. I CAN'T EVEN FIND PARTS TO FIX IT BECAUSE THE CAR IS SO OLD. VERY UNSAFE!
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS 1989 FORD PROBE GT. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE DRIVER'S SIDE SEAT BELT FAILED TO RETRACT. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER WHERE THE TECHNICIAN DIAGNOSED THE RETRACTOR NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. NO REPAIRS WERE MADE AND THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 2,000 AND THE CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 100,000.
THE DRIVER'S SEAT BELT WILL NOT RETRACT. THEREFORE, IT WILL NOT RETRACT IN AN ACCIDENT, IMPAIRING MY SAFETY. I BROUGHT THIS UP TO THE DEALER AND THEY REFUSED TO FIX IT. THERE IS A 1990 RECALL THAT FORD USED TO SCAM THE OWNERS OF THE 1989 MODELS OUT OF THE RECALL EVEN THOUGH THE 1989 WAS THE FIRST YEAR MADE AND ONLY MADE FOR A FEW MONTHS BEFORE BUILDING THE 1990S AND THE 1990 WAS THE EXACT SAME CAR WITH THE EXACT SAME COMPONENTS. FORD IS CHEATING US OUT OF OUR RECALL AND ENDANGERING OUT LIVES. PLEASE MAKE CERTAIN THAT FORD INCLUDES US 1989 PROBE OWNERS IN A NEW RECALL SO THAT WE WON'T DIE BECAUSE THERE AREN'T ENOUGH OF US DYING TO MAKE FORD ACKNOWLEDGE US. I TRIED TO PHONE IN A COMPLAINT BUT I AM NOT SURE IF THAT GOT THROUGH AND WAS RECORDED CORRECTLY. *TR
I PURCHASED A DRIVER SIDE SEAT BELT ON 8/17/02. I PAID 131.00 FOR THE PART .ALL FORD PARTS ARE WARRANTED FOR 12 MONTHS OR 12,000 MILES. INCLUDING SEAT BELTS, EVEN IF THEY ARE DEFECTIVE AFTER THAT WARRANTY EXPIRES THEY KEEP MY MONEY AND I HAVE A DEFECTIVE SEAT BELT THAT DOES NOT WORK PROPERLY. I DECIDED TO SAVE MONEY AND INSTALL IT MYSELF. THE SEAT BELT WORKED FOR ABOUT A WEEK AND THEN IT SEIZED AND WOULD NOT PULL DOWN OVER MY LEFT SHOULDER. I GOT ANOTHER UNDER WARRANTY, INSTALLED IT MYSELF AND IT HAPPENED AGAIN. I WENT BACK TO PENINSULA FORD OF SAN BRUNO AND PAID THEM 198.00 TO INSTALL MY THIRD WARRANTED SEAT BELT. I CAME BACK THE NEXT DAY AND PROVED IT WAS NOT WORKING PROPERLY. THEY AGREED AND ORDERED ME A NEW ONE. THIS IS MY FOURTH SEAT BELT AND THE SAME THING HAPPENED. I WAS ANGRY BECAUSE I WAS LOSING HOURS (WAGES) AT MY WORKPLACE. I HAD A FEW WORDS WITH THE MANAGER AT THE TIME AND GOT MY 198.00 BACK. THEY INSTALLED THE SEAT BELT AND AGAIN IT DID NOT WORK. I TALKED TO THE SERVICE MANAGER AND HE UNPROFESSIONALLY WROTE DOWN MY INFO TOLD ME HE'D ORDER THE PART LATER THAT DAY AND THAT IT SHOULD ARRIVE IN 2 DAYS. I CALLED BACK 2 DAYS LATER, SPOKE TO HIM AND HE SAID HE WAS HOPING IT WOULD COME TODAY BUT IT'S NOT HERE YET. I REASONABLY CALLED BACK 7 DAYS LATER AND ASKED FOR HIM. HE NO LONGER WORK'S HERE SIR WAS THE ANSWER. I WAS DRIVING AROUND WITH NO SEAT BELT. CALIFORNIA HIGHWAY PATROL HAD BECOME MORE STRICT ABOUT THE SEAT BELT LAW AT THAT EXACT MOMENT. I TALKED TO THE MANAGER AND DEMANDED MY MONEY BACK AND HE TOLD ME TO COME BACK TOMORROW. NEXT DAY, I CALLED AND SPOKE TO ANOTHER MANAGER WHO WAS EXTREMELY RUDE, UNPROFESSIONAL AND CONFRONTATIONAL. I WASN'T GETTING ANYWHERE ON THE PHONE SO I IMMEDIATELY DROVE THERE WITH A SEAT BELT THAT DID NOT WORK. I ARGUED FOR HALF HOUR TO GET MY MONEY BACK AND THEY DISCREETLY HINTED NO. THE NEXT DAY I WAS TOLD ALL THEY COULD DO WAS ORDER ME ANOTHER SEAT BELT. MY WARRANTY EXPIRES ON AUG 17, 2003. I AM AN UNSATISFIED CUSTOMER.
DRIVER SIDE SEAT BELT WOULD NOT RETRACT BACK TO RELEASE FOR MORE ROOM, CAUSING THE SEAT BELT TO BE IMPROPERLY WORN OR NOT WORN AT ALL. DEALER HAS BEEN NOTIFIED. *AK
CONTACTED FORD AND THEY SAID THEY HAD NO RECALL INFORMATION. I HEARD OTHERWISE WHICH IS WHY I AM CONTACTING YOU. NO SAFETY DEFECT LISTED. *AK
CONSUMER COMPLAINED IN REGARD TO OPERATION OF DRIVER'S LAP AND SHOULDER BELT. BELT FAILS TO EXTEND AND RETRACT, RESULTING IN FAILURE TO BUCKLE BELT. PLEASE PROVIDE ANY ADDITIONAL INFORMATION/ATTACHMENTS.*AK
DRIVERS SIDE SEAT BELT WILL NO LONGER RETRACT. FAILURE OCCURED DURING NORMAL USE.*AK
AFTER STOPPING THE SEAT BELT WOULD NOT RETRACT--IT LOCKED UP. THE PROBLEM HAS BEEN INTERMITTENT SINCE THE SEATBELT WAS REPLACED APPROXIMATELY 1994 BY HOLLYWOOD FORD. CAR PURCHASED AT GALPIN BUT SERVICED AT STAR NOW. CALLED STAR AND THEY SAID THE VIN DIDN'T COME UP ON THE "OASYS" DATABASE AS EVER HAVING BEEN RECALLED--SO WON'T FIX. NEW BELT COSTS $107.01 PLUS LABOR. I REPLACED THE ENGINE, TRANSMISSION, CLUTCH, SUSPENSION, BRAKES ETC, BUT FEEL SAFETY COMPONENTS LIKE A SEATBELT SHOULD BE DESIGNED TO WORK FOR THE LIFE OF THE VEHICLE. WOULD APPRECIATE A CONTACT TO RECTIFY.
THE CAR SEAT WHICH IS AN EVENFLO ULTARA WILL NOT FIT RIGHT IN THE CAR. IT IS TOO LOOSE.
THE SEAT BELT ON THE DRIVER'S SIDE DOES NOT RETRACT. DEALER IS AWARE OF THE PROBLEM. THE PROBLEM HAS NOT BEEN CORRECTED. THE SEAT BELT WAS CORRECTED UNDER WARRANTY FOR THE SAME PROBLEM IN 1992. *AK
SEAT BELT RETRACTORS FAILED.
SEAT BELT: DRIVIER'S SIDE SEAT BELT HAS STRETCHED TO THE POINT WHERE IT WILL NOT LOCK IN PLACE. BELTS ON RECALL, BUT THIS ONE IS NOT INCLUDED.
THE SEAT BELT ON THE DRIVER'S SIDE DOES NOT RETRACT. THE BELT IS IN THE EXTENDED POSITION. THE PROBLEM HAS NOT BEEN CORRECTED. *AK
SEAT BELT RETRACTOR WILL NOT RETRACT.
SEAT BELT RETRACTOR STICKS.
PASSENGER'S AND DRIVER'S AUTOMATIC LAP/SHOULDER BELT RED RELEASE BUTTON STICKS, AND THE RETRACTOR DOES NOT FUNCTION PROPERLY. ALSO, WILL NOT RELEASE THE BELT WHEN IT IS UNDER TENSION, CAUSING A PERSON TO BECOME TRAPPED INTO THE SEAT. *AK
OWNER RECEIVED A RECALL NOTICE FOR THE SHOULDER BELTS BUT HAS BEEN UNABLE TO GET WORK DONE BECAUSE PARTS ARE NOT AVAILABLE. *AK
DRIVER'S SIDE FRONT SEAT BELT DOES NOT RETRACT OR SECURE YOU DRIVER IN PLACE, HAD REPAIRED ONCE AND THE PROBLEM HAS REOCCURRED. *AK
DRIVER'S SIDE SEAT BELT DEFECTIVE.
THE FRONT DRIVER'S SIDE SEAT BELT WILL NOT RETRACT WHILE THE SEAT BELT IS IN USE. *AK CONSUMER STATES PROBLEM IS NOT AS BAD DURING SUMMER-WARMER DRIER WEATHER MAY HAVE PREVENTED FURTHER DETERIORATION OF RETRACTOR MECHANISM.*JB
DRIVER'S SIDE SEAT BELT FAILURE, SEAT BELT WOULD NOT RETRACT FROM HOUSING. TT
DRIVER'S AND PASSENGER SEAT BELT DON'T RETRACT BACK INTO THE HOUSING. TT
THE DRIVER SIDE SEAT BELT IS BROKEN.PLEASE DESCRIBE DETAILS. TT
DRIVER'S SIDE SEAT BELT DOES NOT RETRACT. PASSENGER SIDE SEAT BELT DOES NOT RETRACT ON IT'S OWN. TT *SLC
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
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