Hi everyone, I just got my Accord about two months ago, and just registered on HAF a couple days ago. One of the first little problems I noticed was that there were no dings when the ignition was on and the seat belt wasn't buckled. The light never flashed on the dashboard either.

For the first month or so, when I buckled or unbuckled, there was a split-second that the seat belt light would come on, like the sensor was barely catching the belt or something? Now that light never comes on. The chimes don't either, so I don't think it is the bulb itself.

Does anyone know what could be wrong with the sensor, and if it is an easy fix?

Thanks,
Keith

 

Check your warranty booklet. Back in 98 I think they had a warranty on seatbelts & supplementary restraints "for the useful life of the car". It's worth a phone call to the dealer to see if they consider this to be under that warranty...

 

Check the seat belt release button. It could be sticking.

 

Thanks for the quick replies, guys! I checked the button, or at least as good as i know how, and it seems to be going up and down all the way when pressed. Could it have something to do with the wiring under the seat? I don't know which wires it would be, but I imagine it couldn't be that hard to figure out!

Thanks in Advance!

 

For the front driver's seat, there should be an electrical connector coming from the belt buckle. You will have to follow the wiring harness to find the connector. It should only have two pins. Unplug the connector. If you short the connector side that goes to the dash, the seat belt warning light should turn on. Not sure about the chime.

If you have a volt meter, the buckle side should read open when the belt is buckled in when measuring the plug on the buckle side. It should read closed circuit when there is nothing in the buckle.

Internal switch could be stuck, so you may want to try to spray some WD40 in there.

 

Thanks PAhonda! The unhooking and shorting worked: the light came on and the chimes chimed when the key was turned to II. I don't have a volt meter to test the other side of the connector :/ plus I don't know how to work them with so many options..

I did spray the inside of the buckle with lube, but to no avail.

Ill ask my neighbors to borrow a volt meter

 

That probably means that the switch inside of the buckle is not working. The resistance (or open/closed) test will verify.

You will probably need to replace the buckle to get the chime and light to work. You should contact a Honda dealership, because the seatbelt system has a lifetime warranty. I am not sure if the switch in the buckle is covered as part of that warranty, but it can not hurt to ask if it is covered.

If not, the cost is $50-$60, based on the interior color of your car and shouldn't be too difficult to replace. You will have to remove the front seat (4 bolts and unplugging the electrical connectors underneath) to access the buckle.

 

Thanks so much for all your help everyone, especially PAhonda! Since the vehicle is in my mom's name (I'm 18) she's going to call tomorrow about the warranty replacement.

I'll update when I find out what exactly was wrong with it! XD

 

I am wondering why that is a problem for you?
I am very happy that the 97 I have does not care if the seatbelts are buckled or not. My last car, a Ford Edge would not stop chiming if the seatbelt was not buckled, it was so annoying to me.

 

LOL, everyone asks me that! I guess I am just OCD about everything working the way it should! I wear my seat belt for the most part anyways. Plus, what if the sensor is broken, and I was in an accident. The broken sensor could even somehow make the seat belt not lock like it should.