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 Sienna submitted to NHTSA — not a confirmed defect, not a recall and not a manufacturer bulletin. 13 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
DRIVER IN WRONG LANE HIT MY VAN, WITH MOST OF IMPACT ON RIGHT FRONT SIDE OF VAN. BOTH VEHICLES WERE TOTALLED IN COLLISION. RIGHT FRONT PASSENGER SEAT BELT INITIALLY HELD, BUT RELEASED DURING COLLISION AND PASSENGER ENDED UP ON DRIVER'S ARMREST. NEITHER AIRBAG DEPLOYED. *TT
I HAVE A 1998 TOYOTA SIENNA LE. ALL OF THE SEAT BELTS DO NOT RETRACT BACK INTO THE PANELS WITHOUT HELP FROM THE PASSENGERS. IF YOU LEAN FORWARD THEY STAY WHERE THEY ARE EXTENDED TO. I HAVE HAD THEM LOOKED AT AND THE TECHNICIAN SAID THE RETURN SPRINGS HAVE ALL RELAXED. THIS IS THE 4TH TOYOTA AUTOMOBILE I HAVE OWNED AND ALL OF THEM HAVE DONE THIS. I DON'T KNOW HOW THIS CAN BE SAFE? *TR
THE SEAT BELTS IN OUR 1998 TOYOTA SIENNA HAVE BEEN FAILING. THEY WILL NOT RETRACT. WE HAVE HAD TWO REPLACED AT OUR COST, NOW TWO MORE HAVE FAILED. I HAVE THE PARTS FROM THE SECOND BELT THAT FAILED. IT IS NOT TWISTED AND THERE IS NO FOREIGN MATERIAL IN THE BELT OR IT'S PATH. PRIOR TO THE FAILURE OF OUR SEAT BELTS, I TALKED OUR FRIENDS (THE MILLER FAMILY) INTO BUYING A VAN JUST LIKE OURS. THEY WERE HIT BY A RED LIGHT RUNNER MAY 29, 2005. THE SEAT BELT HOLDING THEIR THREE-YEAR-OLD SON, KYLE, FAILED AND HE WAS EJECTED FROM THE VEHICLE. HE WAS KILLED INSTANTLY. THE REST OF THE FAMILY WALKED AWAY FROM THE CRASH. TOYOTA HAS REFUSED TO ACKNOWLEDGE ANY RESPONSIBILITY IN THE FAILURE OF OUR SEAT BELTS. I HAVE READ OF SIMILAR PROBLEMS FROM OTHER OWNERS (ON THE INTERNET). PLEASE HELP TO HOLD TOYOTA RESPONSIBLE. AT THE VERY LEAST, THEY SHOULD REPLACE THE BELTS AT THEIR COST. *TR
DT*: THE CONTACT STATED WHILE PULLING OUT THE LEFT MIDDLE ROW SEAT BELT STRAP OF THE RETRACTOR, THE MATERIAL WAS FRAYING INTO. ADDITIONALLY, THE LEFT SECOND ROW SEAT BELT AND THE LEFT THIRD ROW SEAT BELT STRAP COMPLETELY DISENGAGED FROM THE RETRACTOR. THE CONTACT SPOKE TO THE DEALER, WHO INSISTED THAT DUE TO THE AGE OF THE VEHICLE IT WASN'T THEIR PROBLEM. UPDATED 05/30/2006. *AK
SEAT BELT HAD TO BE REPLACED TWICE DUE TO FAILING MECHANISM. WHEN TAKEN TO DEALER FOR SERVICE IT WAS DETERMINED THAT FAILURE WAS DUE TO THE SPRING.*AK
THE AIR BAG LIGHT REMAINED ILLUMINATING WHILE DRIVING. THE DEALER INFORMED THE CONSUMER THE VEHICLE WAS NOT COVERED UNDER A RECALL. *JB THE SEAT BELT LIGHT WOULD COME ON AND THE SEAT BELTS TENSIONERS WERE FOUND INOPERATIVE. THE AIR BAG LIGHT WOULD STAY ON DUE TO SENSOR FAILURE. *SC
WE WERE IN AN AUTOMOBILE ACCIDENT RECENTLY AND HAVE A QUESTION ABOUT NEEDING TO REPLACE THE SEAT BELTS AND POSSIBLY QUESTION OF MALFUNCTION OF AIRBAGS. OUR TOYOTA SIENNA VAN WAS GOING ABOUT 35 MPH AND HIT STRAIGHT-ON A CAR THAT TURNED IN FRONT OF US HITTING THE DRIVER SIDE WITH EXTENSIVE DAMAGE WITH ESSENTIALLY NO BRAKING. ESSENTIALLY THE TOYOTA SUSTAINED A FRONT IMPACT COLLISION. THE AIRBAGS DIDN'T DEPLOY AND OUR REPAIR MECHANIC IS TELLING US THIS IMPACT WAS NOT SUFFICIENT TO DEPLOY AIRBAGS. THE DRIVER AND PASSENGER OF THE TOYOTA SUSTAINED CHEST INJURIES, KNEE INJURIES, WITH GENERALIZED PAIN, ESPECIALLY NECK, SHOULDERS, AND BACK. WE THINK THERE IS SOMETHING WRONG WITH THE AIRBAGS NOT DEPLOYING AND THE SEAT BELTS INVOLVED IN THE ACCIDENT SHOULD BE REPLACED. OUR AUTO MECHANIC IS TELLING US THAT AIRBAGS DID NOT DEPLOY BECAUSE OF INSUFFICIENT IMPACT, AND THE SEAT BELT DOES NOT NEED TO BE REPLACED. CAN YOU HELP US HOW WE GET THE CORRECT ANSWERS? SCOTT S. LEE 949-295-0438 CELL 949-598-3302 WORK [email protected]. *JB
FRONT SEATBELT WARNING LIGHT COMES ON WHEN BUCKLED, GOES OFF WHEN UNBUCKLED. NOT SURE IF SEATBELT WILL FUNCTION PROPERLY IN A CRASH. DEALER CHARGED $92 TO DIAGNOSE AND QUOTED $375 TO REPLACE WHOLE SEATBELT ASSEMBLY. I'VE READ ONLINE ABOUT OTHER PEOPLE HAVING THE SAME PROBLEM WITH THIS LIGHT SO I FELT I SHOULD REPORT IT.*AK
SEAT BELT LIGHT REMAINS ILLUMINATED. DEALER REPLACED SYSTEM WHICH HAS NOT CORRECTED THE PROBLEM. *AK CONSUMER STATES THE SEAT BELT WAS REPLACED AND THE WARNING LIGHT NO LONGER ILLUMINATES. *JB
SEAT BELT.
REAR SEAT BELT FAILED. *YC
VEHICLE PULLS TO THE RIGHT.ALSO, HEADRESTS ARE VERY LOOSE AND WIGGLE AROUND WHEN VEHICLE IS DRIVEN/THIRD RAW BACKSEATS ARE LOOSE AND VIBRATE.
THE SHOULDER BELTS IN THE MIDDLE ROW LOCK UP INSTANTLY WHEN FIRST PUT ON BY THE PASSENGER. THE BELT STAYS LOCKED UP AND BINDS THE PASSENGER(S) IN THE SEAT. THE LEFT SIDE SEAT BELT WAS REPLACED BY THE DEALERSHIP ABOUT 2 WEEKS AGO. THERE WAS NO CHANGE IN THE SEAT BELT. THE BELT CONTINUNES TO LOCK UP. *AK
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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