My driver's seatbelt has been acting flaky for a while now and needed some help to get it to retract like it should. Last week, my wife used the car and pulled the belt out all the way and now it's stuck there. So I have 2 questions:
How do I get the pillar cover off to get at the belt reel and does this sound like it's repairable or do I need to replace the entire belt/reel assembly?

Thanks for any help.

Gary

Has the car been in a fender bender? The seatbelts have pyrotechnic retraction units to tighten the belts in the event of an accident. The deployment threshold I believe is a 9mph dead-stop, while the airbags deploy at 16mph dead-stop. Somebody correct me if I'm wrong. At any rate, it is possible that your seatbelt unit fired at some point even if the airbag didn't. If so, it has to be replaced.

Taking the B-pillar cover off is usually just a bolt or two at the bottom of the cover, then lift up and pull out. Disconnect battery just to be safe while working near pyros.

If it needs to be replaced, you'll just have to see for yourself. If in doubt, replace it. The seatbelt is the most critical part of that car's safety system.

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-tp


1990 300SE "Corinne"- 145k daily driver - street modified differential - PARTING OUT OR SELLING SOON - PORTLAND OR. AREA - PM ME FOR DETAILS
1988 560SEL "Gunther"- 190K passes anything except a gas station
1997 S420 - 265k just bought it with a rebuilt trans. Lovely condition

I don't think it's ever been in a collision. It's worked fine for the last several years that I've owned the car. It's just in the last several months that it's been acting up and not retracting properly. I'll try to pull off the cover this weekend and see what I can find out. Is it obvious if the pyros have fired off at some point in the past?

Both front belts failed within the new car warranty period in my car - back way back when. - Had them changed out under warranty. Only problem was waiting for new replacement units shipped out from Germany ( a couple of months at the time).

You will need to get some replacement units from a bone yard. Make sure they haven't been used.

Good luck. These are very expensive new.

Also, make sure to keep your seat belts clean. The rear belts in my coupe were never used and they had some form of protection on them that hasn't worn away over the years. When I pulled on one it wouldn't retract, so I cleaned them with a rag that was dampened with a little dish soap and water.... They retract very well now.

Also, if a set of seat belts hasn't been used for a long time, give it an exercise. Keep pulling it out and retracting for a few minutes. You'll notice at the beginning that they're easier to pull out after a few minutes of doing so.

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Allen Kroliczek
Oak Grove Autosport | Oak Grove Autosport
01 G500, 82 300TD, quite a few more.....

The driver's belt on my '85 would occasionally stick and not want to pull out. I found that the ratchet mechanism was sticking due to 20+ years of dust and dirt. I vacuumed the b-pillar, used compressed air to blow out the dust, and lubed the moving parts with tiny amounts of light oil. It was interesting to see that the '85 300D (W123, OM617) has the pyrotechnic tighteners.

Interesting since most USA-imported W123s at that time did not have airbags so there is nothing to tell the seatbelt pyros to fire. I guess it was just easier for the factory to install the pyros on every car whether it was destined to get an airbag or not.

Jeremy

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"Buster" in the '95

Our all-Diesel family
1996 E300D (W210) . .338,000 miles Wife's car
2005 E320 CDI . . 113,000 miles My car
Santa Rosa population 176,762 (2022)
Total. . . . . . . . . . . . 627,762
"Oh lord won't you buy me a Mercedes Benz."
-- Janis Joplin, October 1, 1970

My 85' 300SD came without airbags, but has pyro belts. There is a control module for them under the radio.

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