Driver's Side Seat Belt

rlyons13 · Post by **rlyons13** » Fri Jul 28, 2006 4:19 pm

Guys,

Need some help with the driver's side seat belt in my 1988 McLaren. The car is triple blue. The driver's side seat belt won't retract fully. I know back in the day there was a TSB about this (TSB 89-10, issued 5/17/1989). Anyone have a copy? Anyone know how to fix this?

If I can fix it, I also need the outboard plastic bezel (the sleeve that goes over the end of the belt where it attaches to the door sill). Mine is cracked. The bad part about this is that the sleeve is the "short" one, not the much more common long one. If you have one, please drop me a line.

Now, if I can't fix this, does anyone have a vg used or NOS belt assembly they would want to part with?

Post by **negusm** » Fri Jul 28, 2006 5:54 pm

Call your Ford dealer. They MAY actually be able to locate seatbelts for 88 cars. At least get the part number...then you can do a partsvoice search.

Worst case, get a longer plastic piece and cut it down. If you smoothed out the edges I bet you wouldn't notice much difference.

-Mike

Sandy · Post by **Sandy** » Fri Jul 28, 2006 6:20 pm

I have never seen any 1984-1990 ascMcLaren Convert, whose driver side seat belt fully retracted. They all hang limp. Will mentioned recall address this, OR is/was this the result of the conversion, somehow, as I was told...... ?

rlyons13 · Post by **rlyons13** » Fri Jul 28, 2006 6:30 pm

Sandy,

The TSB I referenced is supposed to be about the problem. I had the same problem with my 20th Anniversary convertible but, in 1990, I was able to buy new belts cheap.

Mike,

What is this "parts voice"?

Post by **negusm** » Fri Jul 28, 2006 7:15 pm

rlyons13 wrote:Sandy,

The TSB I referenced is supposed to be about the problem. I had the same problem with my 20th Anniversary convertible but, in 1990, I was able to buy new belts cheap.

Mike,

What is this "parts voice"?

www.partsvoice.com

You need to use your zip code to get in and then use the portion that searches based on part numbers. Trying any of the other searches is a waste of time.

Your Ford dealer can also do a nationwide search which will have different hits to it.

-Mike

rlyons13 · Post by **rlyons13** » Fri Jul 28, 2006 7:44 pm

OK, before I start using the dealers to do a parts search, can you guys just confirm for me that the McLaren uses the convertible front belts and not the coupe? I'm pretty sure they are different.

Post by **negusm** » Fri Jul 28, 2006 8:24 pm

rlyons13 wrote:OK, before I start using the dealers to do a parts search, can you guys just confirm for me that the McLaren uses the convertible front belts and not the coupe? I'm pretty sure they are different.

Good question. The color of the housing will tell you. Brown = Vert, White = Hatch/Coupe. (at least from 83-86 it worked that way).

-Mike

svo413 · Post by **svo413** » Sat Jul 29, 2006 1:51 am

The only recall I know of on the hatch back mustangs has to do with replacing the white plastic piece on the bottom of the buckle. This holds the seat belt in the buckle. The replacement is black plastic and the recall is still valid as I just had it done on the 85 Mclaren 9 months ago. The white piece is clearly visible in the hatchback 1/4 window and deteriorates in the sun. I know nothing about the verts or what was used in the conversion.

What Sandy said makes sense. The hatch back seatbelt would normally go to the roof and back down to make a shoulder harness. By removing the roof the belt is now too long and the spring does not wind it up completely without a little help. I would expect in 87 and up they used vert seat belts.

Sandy · Post by **Sandy** » Sat Jul 29, 2006 2:58 am

I will make a telephone call tomorrow & get to the bottom of this.....Stay tuned....

rlyons13 · Post by **rlyons13** » Sat Jul 29, 2006 11:08 am

Guys,

The retractors had a tendency to fail. The passenger side in my McLaren is perfect. I've also had this problem on convertible Fox bodies. In the later Fox bodies, they completely re-engineered the convertible belts. I'm told the TSB I mention actually has "fixes" (probably more like work arounds) for the problem.

However, you guys have made it clear that the 88 has to have convertible belts because the roof pivot bracket would have had to be cut off and the belt would have been too long if the coupe belt was used.

As I move along with this, I'll keep you all informed.

Sandy · Post by **Sandy** » Sat Jul 29, 2006 12:09 pm

Made call to contact at asc last night. The 1987-1990 cars arrived at ascMcLaren with normal notchback coupe seat belts in place. ascMcLaren, during conversion removed them and used same year convertible belts. I actually found out that only 2 items in the interior were untouched at asc. That would be the dash panel & steering wheel assembly and the floor carpet. EVERYTHING else came out. Door Panels, Seats, Belts, Console and everything in the back seat area.

Here's a quick photo:-

Bruce84 · Post by **Bruce84** » Thu Jun 12, 2025 4:35 pm

Hello everyone, I have a 1988 Mustang ASC and I need to replace the belt reels because they no longer work. By dismantling the chairs and upholstery, I find myself gassed at a welded metal plate that prevents me from accessing the winder...?? Do you have any tips or tricks for dismantling?? I have already posted this request on another topic, but I am looking for as many leads as possible in order to solve this problem. Thank you for your understanding.

Post by **negusm** » Thu Jun 12, 2025 4:39 pm

Sounds like you'll have to cut that plate out.

But I don't know verts that well.

I don't remember any such plate in my asc coupe so I'm guessing that's an asc mod.

Bruce84 · Post by **Bruce84** » Thu Jun 12, 2025 4:48 pm

Unfortunately it looks like, indeed... I donâ€™t understand why they have blocked access to this important security element!! A small hatch would have been enough from the design stage in order to keep access to the winder. But thank you for your response.

ascMcLaren Enthusiasts

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