2003 Toyota Matrix Seat belts Problems

“The dates and vehicle mileage stated above are only estimates. About 5-6 years ago the seat belt retractors stopped working. I checked with 2 dealers that told me I would have to pay around $500 to have them repaired. I wrote Toyota in torrance california and reported the problem. Their response was that the seat belts were not covered by warranty and that I would have to pay for the repair. Considering the ongoing problems that Toyota has had with seat belt assemblies on all of their cars, I would think that they would accept responsibility in my case, but no such luck.”

“While I was sitting at a drive thru window at mcdonald's the teller was reaching me my order and all of a sudden she and I heard a loud popping sound she said what was that, I said I don't know she said it came from your car she said madam it came from inside your car, your car is smoking so I turned my head and noticed the seat belt over my shoulder was smoking and as I turned my head around the seat belt on the passenger side of the car popped open and it started smoking so I said what is going on with this car, and when I turned my head forward the airbag on the passenger side popped out…”

“The contact owns a 2003 Toyota Matrix. While the contact was idling at a red light, the seat belt air bag restraint system erroneously activated and forcefully secured the driver into the seat. During the incident, no crash had occurred. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer (baierl Toyota, 19045 perry hwy, mars, pa), but the cause of the failure was not determined. The manufacturer was notified and an investigator was sent to examine the vehicle. The failure mileage was 200,000.”

“I wish to question the safety of seat belt design, as my son has now--3 times--gotten so tangled in his rear-seat belt that it had to be cut to get him loose. We have a Toyota Matrix, but I don't think this problem is specific to that model car. It happened once before in a rental car whose make I don't recall. No question our young, squirmy son did something weird; we think he put the shoulder strap behind him and then turned in some odd way. But after that, the design is such that the lap belt just kept getting tighter and tighter the more he tried to get free. …”

“The contact owns a 2003 Toyota Matrix. The vehicle was parked when the contact noticed a bolt detached from the anchor inside of the front passenger side seat belt. The entire seat belt was attached with a wire and could be easily removed. There were no warning lights illuminated on the instrument panel. The authorized dealer was notified to schedule an appointment for a service repair. The VIN was unknown. The failure and current mileages were 150,000.”