Does anyone know what it means the red label at the base of the seatbelt (bottom, near chair) says REPLACE SEATBELTS (or something to that extent). Why is it there? Why does it say that?

If you can see the label it means the seatbelt is damaged and needs replacing. The label is usually hidden after the seatbelt has had a sharp pull like during an accident the label is pulled out indicating that the seatbelt should be replaced.

Hmm, I can see them clearly on both of the front belts, will have to check the back ones. Was told the car had no accident history, and has no other signs of any accident (including a clear record) and the mechanic we took it to before buying said everything was in tip top shape....

Any idea what else could cause this? Should I be worried?

Mine are mostly showing but they passed safety inspection 2 weeks ago.

They are called seatbelt pretensioners.
Google them, find out what they do.
Decide for yourself if want them in good condition.

Nope, the white tag shows and it's ok. They show in every Mitsu I've ever looked at. There is a hidden red section on the belt which shows only if the webbing has torn the safety loop. Safety loop is stitched and gives away in an accident rather than breaking your collar bone. lol
So, safety tag visible = ok.
Red section visible = replace belt.

EDIT: read above post, they are NOT pretensioners. These are explosive loaded bits in the bottom reel that go off in an accident and reel in any slack in the belt before you lunge forward. About the explosive force of a .22 bullet. Activated by a weight.
Sequence:
(1) Hit something. Negative "G" force.
(2) Pretensioner goes off, belt tightens.
(3) Body lunges forward.
(4) Loop stiches rip, you move forward slightly. (reduces maximum "G" force on the body.
(5) Air bag - if you have one - pops into your face, soft pillow effect.
(6) Air bag deflates, car full of white powder - don't breathe it in!
(7) Open door, climb/fall/jump out of car. If the door does not work, open the window and climb through.
(8) Look at car, and weep.
(9) Admire your seatbelt bruises/burn marks the next day.

You now know what to expect . . . . .

Loop showing or pretensioner going off means belt needs to be replaced. I don't know how the seat belts with no people in that spot fare, if they go off too, all the belts in the car need to be replaced. Probably some lockout mechanism so that they don't go off if the belt is not being used at the time of the accident.

Don't know the "G" force required to activate air bag, pretensioner or tear the loop stitches.

Thanks for that MadMax, clears up quite a lot. My Dad was always saying I should replace my belt when the words were showing.

From my own experience, the red "replace belt" warning can show simply because the plastic sleeve which normally hides it has slipped down. Adjust the sleeve to the correct position (the bottom of it is shaped to cover the head of the mounting bolt) & with luck the warning will be hidden. Pull it up further & you should see a loop on both sides of the belt with undamaged rip-stiching.

cheers Max

I had these show after I installed my VR-X carpet, which involved unbolting the seatbelts from the base. I thought I'd ****ed them up but from what I can see it's just the rubbery/plastic sleeve which sits over the bottom of the belt and the bolt is quite loose and worn, making them barely visible.
Double check it isn't just the cover.

The covers on these slide down and the tag shows. Pull the cover up so the bottom tip is on the bolt and see if it covers the tag. If the red REPLACE BELT is still clearly visible outside the sleeve with it all the way up, replace the belt. (and possibly clip)

The other thing I have found in seat-belts that have gone off or been in a crash is that they no longer retract properly.

My TL has a white fabric label that simply says Mitsubishi Australia and give the date of manuf and the maker.....no stitched section or red tag anywhere.

My TL has a white fabric label that simply says Mitsubishi Australia and give the date of manuf and the maker.....no stitched section or red tag anywhere.

You'd definitely have one, it'd just be behind the rubber slip cover over the bottom of the belt, below the fabric label. Basically it sounds like your belts are fine.

I ended up readjusting my rubber cover to where it should be and now the red labels are completely hidden, so my belts are happily perfectly fine.

You'd definitely have one, it'd just be behind the rubber slip cover over the bottom of the belt, below the fabric label. Basically it sounds like your belts are fine.

I ended up readjusting my rubber cover to where it should be and now the red labels are completely hidden, so my belts are happily perfectly fine.

I've lifted the plastic cover and there is no rip bit or red label anywhere...checked both sides. See pic.
http://s1050.photobucket.com/albums/s412/hako2/
http://s1050.photobucket.com/albums/s412/hako2/

Jeez I guess I stand corrected then. That's weird...

The other thing I have found in seat-belts that have gone off or been in a crash is that they no longer retract properly.

Thats a good point, I've noticed that in a loan car once, seat belt never or hardly retracted on its own. My car has never been in a crash and yeah the red bit is sticking out. I'll have to check further tonight. Either way it retracts perfectly so I am sure they are fine just the rubber bit has moved.

Jeez I guess I stand corrected then. That's weird...

im almost certain its stitched down into the canvas type thing at the bottom with the cross stitching. it rips the belt and tag up out of the canvas sleeve at the bottom. thats what is looks like, may be wrong tho.

TL/TW have side airbags and seat belt pretensioners hence they dont have the rip stitching on the seat belts.
It never ceases to amaze me at how many customers with seat mounted airbags fit incompatible seat covers.

according to MMA they end up showing after a while they told me i can replace them id i wanted to but they are fine go figure lol.


still passed all 3 inspections including transport

From my own experience, the red "replace belt" warning can show simply because the plastic sleeve which normally hides it has slipped down. Adjust the sleeve to the correct position (the bottom of it is shaped to cover the head of the mounting bolt) & with luck the warning will be hidden. Pull it up further & you should see a loop on both sides of the belt with undamaged rip-stiching.

Thank you, the first correct answer toes to Shepherd.....

The problem with the TE to TJ set up is the plastic cover tends to sag over the years, it will then expose the top of the red tag. If you take off the lower bracket on the floor and have a look you will see where the buckle comes out of a cut out, look at the plastic and you will see that it has mis shapen due to having the weight of the cover sitting on the round bolt for the last 10 - 15 years. Simple fix, slide it off and replace it if you can or re inforce that area of the cover. It does not change in any way how the belt operates

And no, they are not "pre tensioners" a pre tensioner is in a TL and TW where there is an explosive charge like an airbag in the belt assy, when activated it draws the belt tight. IN these it is the oppersite, it will break the stitching and allow the person to move forward a SLIGHT amount and thus slow the impact from the belt a little.


You'd definitely have one, it'd just be behind the rubber slip cover over the bottom of the belt, below the fabric label. Basically it sounds like your belts are fine.

I ended up readjusting my rubber cover to where it should be and now the red labels are completely hidden, so my belts are happily perfectly fine.

Again this is where incorrect information can end up costing people as people with a TL may try and rush out to buy new belts thinking that theirs are defective, TL and TW as well as 380 DO NOT have the tags as they are not needed, are a totally different design of belt, these have the pre tensioners in the belt assy as described above.


Main lesson is DONT MESS WITH SEAT BELTS and if they are really defective replace them, a cover can be repaired as it serves only to trim the car, the rest of the best is not servicable and should never be attempted

If you are in an accident and the car is fixed under insurance, are they required to be replaced if the tag is showing?
We got our car back a while ago after running up the back of someone and the replace tag was showing, I kept telling dad to ring and rip someone a new one but he never got round to it, eventually I just replaced it myself.

I changed a belt over in a 02 TJ today, the last belt was not retracting in my Uncles TJ.

I took a couple of Pics just to look at the break away stitching, which was all intact....



http://i1191.photobucket.com/albums/z467/Shootmarty/2012-03-07161916.jpg

http://i1191.photobucket.com/albums/z467/Shootmarty/2012-03-07161932.jpg

Heres a shot with each side of the stitching (in three groups) still intact....

http://i1191.photobucket.com/albums/z467/Shootmarty/2012-03-07161953.jpg

There is a good chance the rubber sheath can slide down, revealing the "Replace" tag.
You need a 19mm Socket/Spanner (if you want to undo it) and maybe a philips head if the belt guide gets in your way....
Look to see if the stitching is intact, properly place the rubber sheath, and it should be good...

The rubber sheath in the top photo, shows the rubber out of shape and starting to slide down, if the stitching had been broken in first goup, it would easily reveal 40mm or more of the "replace " label....

Its hidden under the lowest piece of the B pillar....



And one of the Spool Locking mech....(this one was getting Binned)

http://i1191.photobucket.com/albums/z467/Shootmarty/2012-03-07162216.jpg

If you are in an accident and the car is fixed under insurance, are they required to be replaced if the tag is showing?
We got our car back a while ago after running up the back of someone and the replace tag was showing, I kept telling dad to ring and rip someone a new one but he never got round to it, eventually I just replaced it myself.

If you are in an accident, comprehensive insurance is designed to repair or replace anything that has been damaged as a result of the crash. Yes they need to fix that. Send them the receipt for the new belt and they must pay.

I thought the TJ Advance had belt pretensioners. It is listed in the features.

If you are in an accident, comprehensive insurance is designed to repair or replace anything that has been damaged as a result of the crash. Yes they need to fix that. Send them the receipt for the new belt and they must pay.
if its broken and due to the crash... unless the stitches are ripped the belt is still ok

I thought the TJ Advance had belt pretensioners. It is listed in the features.

In that case the listing was wrong, TJ definately do NOT have pre tensioners, my TE would be about the only pre TL geting around with them fitted as I fitted them together with every loom out of a TL when I did my last build

So a Magna has, depending on age, the following combinations?

(1) Tear away loop, no explosive pretensioner, no airbag. (?)
(2) No tearaway loop, but pretensioner, with or without airbag. (?)
(3) No tearaway loop, no pretensioner, but lots of airbags. (?)

Another variable possible is the type of material used in the seatbelts and how much "stretch" they have at negative 5 to 10Gs with a 110 Kg driver. lol

These are all questions, by the way.
If this is correct, which years/models do they apply to?

- - - - Just trying to get it all straight in my tine little (mad) head - - - - -

So a Magna has, depending on age, the following combinations?

(1) Tear away loop, no explosive pretensioner, no airbag. (?)
(2) No tearaway loop, but pretensioner, with or without airbag. (?)
(3) No tearaway loop, no pretensioner, but lots of airbags. (?)

Another variable possible is the type of material used in the seatbelts and how much "stretch" they have at negative 5 to 10Gs with a 110 Kg driver. lol

These are all questions, by the way.
If this is correct, which years/models do they apply to?

- - - - Just trying to get it all straight in my tine little (mad) head - - - - -

When you say no airbag, do you mean specifically in the seat? My TJ has a tearaway loop, not sure about pretensioner, and steering wheel & passenger dash airbags.

So a Magna has, depending on age, the following combinations?

(1) Tear away loop, no explosive pretensioner, no airbag. (?)
(2) No tearaway loop, but pretensioner, with or without airbag. (?)
(3) No tearaway loop, no pretensioner, but lots of airbags. (?)

Another variable possible is the type of material used in the seatbelts and how much "stretch" they have at negative 5 to 10Gs with a 110 Kg driver. lol

These are all questions, by the way.
If this is correct, which years/models do they apply to?

- - - - Just trying to get it all straight in my tine little (mad) head - - - - -

No, completely wrong

TE - TJ series
Optional airbags (drivers and passenger only, no seat), all have the "tear away loop" as you call it
TL-380 All have seat and front bags with pre tensioned seatbelts.