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 Toyota 4Runner submitted to NHTSA — not a confirmed defect, not a recall and not a manufacturer bulletin. 10 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
REAR PASSENGER SIDE SWAY BAR ATTACHMENT RUSTED THROUGH AND SNAPPED FROM FRAME. AND ON OTHER SIDE SWAY BAR LINK SNAPPED. IN ADDITION THE FRAME NEAR IT IS ROTTING AWAY. NOTICED IT WHILE DRIVING IT WAS SWAYING BADLY. IN ADDITION THE DRIVER SIDE SEAT BELT WILL UNLATCH OCCASIONALLY WHILE DRIVING.
***SECOND OCCURRENCE ON SAME VEHICLE*** WHILE TRAVELING STRAIGHT, A VEHICLE TURNED LEFT IN FRONT OF OUR 4RUNNER. WE BRAKED FAIRLY HARD. UPON BRAKING, THE LEFT REAR SEAT BELT MADE A WHIRLING NOISE AND COMPLETELY LOST TENSION WHILE UNRAVELING. THIS CAUSED THE REAR OCCUPANT (PROPERLY BUCKLED IN) TO MOVE FORWARD DUE TO THE BRAKING FORCES, AND THE OCCUPANT WAS SUBSEQUENTLY NOT RESTRAINED IN MOVEMENT BY THE FAILING SEAT BELT. THIS SEAT BELT UNRAVELED SO FAR THAT THE OCCUPANT COULD HAVE EASILY SLID UNDERNEATH THE SLACK IN THE BELT. *NM
CONSUMER'S CHILD IS NO LONGER ABLE TO FIT IN THE GRACO COMFORT SPORT CHILD SEAT EVEN THOUGH IT IS SUPPOSE TO FIT UP TO 40LBS.*MR *TT THE CONSUMER WISHES TO WITHDRAWAL HIS COMPLAINT BECAUSE HE HAS LEARNED OF A DIFFERENT WAY TO ADJUST THE SEAT. *NM
MY 7 YEAR OLD DAUGHTER WAS SITTING IN THE REAR PASSENGER SEAT WITH THE SHOULDER BELT ON. WE PARKED AND SOME HOW SHE GOT TANGLED UP IN THE BELT. WHEN I PUSHED THE SEATBELT RELEASE BUTTON IT LOCKED UP AROUND HER WAIST AND WOULD NOT LOOSEN TO GET HER OUT. EVERY TIME I MOVED HER TO GET HER OUT IT WOULD LOCK UP MORE UNTIL SHE WAS STANDING IN THE BACK SEAT WITH THE BELT SO TIGHT AROUND HER WAIST THAT IT WAS LEAVING MARKS AND I HAD TO CUT THE SEAT BELT TO GET HER OUT. THIS CONCERNS ME AS A PARENT THAT THE BELT LOCKS WHEN THE CAR IS TURNED OFF AND IN PARK. I CONTACTED THE TOYOTA DEALER AND THEY ARE GOING TO ORDER ME THE SEAT BELT WE WILL BE NEGOTIATING WHO IS GOING TO PAY FOR THIS.
REAR PASSENGER SEAT BELT MADE A LOUD NOISE AND COMPLETELY UNRAVELED FROM ITS RETRACTION COMPONENT (MOUNTED ON THE PILLAR) WHILE IN USE. SEAT BELT NOW REMAINS EXTENDED, AND WILL NOT RETRACT, EVEN WITH ASSISTANCE. *JB
CONSUMER STATES THAT REAR LEFT SEAT BELT DOES NOT UNLOCK. DEALER NOTIFIED.*AK
WHEN DRIVING 35-40 MPH VEHICLE WAS INVOLVED IN A HEAD-ON COLLISION WHICH CAUSED OVER $5,300 WORTH OF DAMAGE, AND NEITHER DRIVER'S SIDE OR PASSENGER SIDE AIR BAGS DEPLOYED, RESULTING IN INJURIES TO DRIVER'S SIDE OCCUPANT. ALSO, SEAT BELT DID NOT LOCK IN PLACE, FORCING DRIVER INTO THE STEERING WHEEL. PLEASE PROVIDE ANY FURTHER DETAILS.*AK
SEAT BELT RETRACTOR FAILED CAUSING, SEAT BELT TO STUCK.
SEAT BELT.
WHILE DRIVING THE CHILD BECAME TWISTED IN SEAT BELT, IT WORKED LIKE A RATCHET TIGHTENING AROUND HER WAIST, CONSUMER DROVE TO A NEARBY POLICE STATION WHERE THEY HAD TO CUT THE SEAT BELT TO RELEASE THE CHILD. CONSUMER BELIEVES THERE IS A DEFECT IN THE DESIGN OF THE SEAT BELT. *AK *TT
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 .