How can I replace my seat belt retractor?

[AmTeC]

Hey guys, So my CB7's seatbelt never fully retracts and then the belt gets caught in the door and chips the new paint goddammit!

I have a parts car, is there a way I can swap the retractor mechanism? The seat belt colors are different between cars, so I would rather not have to switch the belts themselves

[Darkcloud]

To be honest it's just easier to swap the the belts alone. But to swap out the parts I'd say is easy as well. You just have to open in it and see how they work and if they're calibrated to retract. I never did a swap of internals for the belts. Let alone know of anyone who has done an internal retract swap.

[Jon]

I was working on doing a swap just to keep my seatbelt color... let me just say it's a pain in the ass to get everything taken apart.
You need two sets of parts because chances are you are going to:
A) Break something internally that you need for the belts to retract correctly.
B) Have the mechanism explode on you and wont be able to figure out how it goes back together.
C) Have a second set to compare against to make sure you have it put together correctly.
D) All the above.

It can be done... it's just not easy. I'll see if I can find all the belts I have taken apart to show you what is going on with them and what you'll encounter.

[Raf99]

I was working on doing a swap just to keep my seatbelt color... let me just say it's a pain in the ass to get everything taken apart.
You need two sets of parts because chances are you are going to:
A) Break something internally that you need for the belts to retract correctly.
B) Have the mechanism explode on you and wont be able to figure out how it goes back together.
C) Have a second set to compare against to make sure you have it put together correctly.
D) All the above.

It can be done... it's just not easy. I'll see if I can find all the belts I have taken apart to show you what is going on with them and what you'll encounter.

^^^ This. I tried to take it apart too to see if I could "tighten" it. Well a machine twists it up and puts it together so tight that you could never wind it tight enough to duplicate what the factory did. So I wouldn't take it apart. On top of this any used unit you get will have the same problem. Your only option is to buy new from the dealership, if possible.

I know in my cb7 if the seat belt lower B pillar cover is pushed into far it will cause the seat belt to do this. I took it off and cut the upper part on the inside that rubs against the belt and that helped a lot! (removing any friction that is not needed on the belt as it retracts).

[Jon]

Oh good, I'm not the only idiot who tried to do it!

You could always check and see if the dealership will replace the units under the recall?

[Raf99]

Oh good, I'm not the only idiot who tried to do it!

You could always check and see if the dealership will replace the units under the recall?

Checked that too. Answer = no. I asked them what if my seat belt fails, he said you would need a used one or scrap the car. I lol. But he is right.

Edit: But you can still get these from the dealer new or online new. A sweet $433 CDN here just for the belt.

[Jon]

Ugh, might have to get me a replacement set now just in case... can't imagine the price going down in a few months or years.

[Raf99]

Meh... if it doesn't kill you the 25 year old air bag and crumple zone will

[AmTeC]

Welp, I decided to pull the whole assembly including the belts, and before I began I pulled on the belt to see how it retracts to make sure im not wasting my time, The whole week they worked okay, and they randomly stopped working today, both the left and right ones. I pulled the panels to see if something was rubbing or stuck, nope, they just went bad right then and there. dern

[Fleetw00d]

Here's a DIY I did when I tried to tighten my coupe belts - didn't really work, but good info on how it comes apart. The spring seems to be almost constant rate, it doesn't pull any harder even if you wind it tighter.

http://www.cb7tuner.com/vbb/showthread.php?t=206081

I've got a set of maroon coupe belts, but I don't remember how well they retracted.

[wtfisafleek]

I would call a Honda corporate office to verify, not the dealer that would actually be doing the work. It's in their best interests to not do work for (basically)free, so of course they want to turn you away.