Hey all, long story short, my passenger seatbelt got fully extended so its in ratchet mode and wrapped around the seat lever under the front of the seat so I can't get it fully retracted. Is there any way to unlock the seatbelt when its in ratchet mode?

The seat is far enough back that I can't get a good angle on the back seat bolts or the bottom seatbelt anchor. Since the seatbelt in in ratchet mode, I can't move the seat up.

Easiest solution would be "turning off" the ratchet mode, or I guess cutting and replacing the seatbelt...

 

The rachet mode is electronic so pulling the battery would stop it from being in that mode, but it sounds more like the rachet is already locked. Unless you can somehow give the belt some slack, it will still be locked even if the electricity is cut. Have you tried removing the belt guide that attaches to the top of the seat ? Its one screw and should give you a good amount of slack if you remove it.

 

Well, its completely fubar'd, but the service dept did say it was probably a warranty replacement. The way the passenger seat slide release is designed, its actually a design oversight imo.

 

Mine did the same thing and the seat was all the way back only way i could get it free was to pull the seat out. Really cut up my hand trying to get the back ones out with the seat stuck back.

 

Given the lifetime warranty on seat belts, they should be able to just cut and replace under warranty.

 

It's a limited lifetime seatbelt warranty, not everything is covered. Deployed in a wreck or dog chewed is not covered.

The ratcheting mechanism is all mechanical, no easy way out on this. Unbolt the anchor bolt on the roll hoop 1st, then see if you can get the belt to retract.