All Investigations » Investigation PE05008

Defect Investigation of Seatbelt Malfunction

Subject:	Seatbelt malfunction
Components covered:	Seat belts Seat belts rear Seat belts:rear/other
Investigations Summary:	This investigation was opened on Feb. 10, 2005. It was closed on Jun. 13, 2005. Odi received ten consumer complaints alleging that the middle-row passenger seatbelt webbing frequently jams in the integrated seatbelt guide housing slot. During normal body movement of the occupant, the webbing jams in the slot due to a dislodged cover plate, thus causing excess slack in the seatbelt assembly. Toyotaâ¿s letter response to the agency identifies 40 other consumer and field reports and 3,073 warranty repairs that require the replacement of the seatbelt guide assembly. In addition, there are another 16 warranty claims on my 2005 sienna vehicles. Complainants expressed concern for children occupying the middle-row seats. They may not recognize the potential safety risk or be able to remedy a slack seatbelt. A slack or jammed seatbelt does not offer proper occupant protection in the event of a crash. Toyota has implemented a recent design change to correct the problem. Toyota will apply the design change to new production vehicles and although the design can be applied to earlier my 2004 and 2005 vehicles, Toyota has not announced a safety recall for those vehicles. This investigation is upgraded to an engineering analysis (ea05-010) and will include my 2005 vehicles.
Vehicles Affected by this investigation:	2004 Toyota Sienna