'05 Passat TDI Wagon Seat Belt Problems Anyone

The front seat belts on my '05 Passat TDI Wagon (20k km) are "lazy" and do not retract completely when I leave the vehicle. This is not a huge problem but it is a consistent PITA annoyance because I very often end up slamming the door on the buckle - an unpleasant experience. It is almost as though the return springs on the belts are not strong enough.
I am scheduled for a warranty visit next week but I anticipate the standard "that's the way they are designed" BS non-response that is sure to leave me livid.
Has anyone out there experienced this same issue / phenomonon (on an '04 / '05 Passat) and has anyone received a satisfactory fix? If so, what was the fix - so I can lord it over the VW Service folks?
Thanks muchly;

FWIW, the belts in my 05 golf retract very welll, and have given me no trouble at all. I thought they all used the same mechanism....
I had this problem once in an older car, it turned out that there was a fold in the seat belt, that was causing it to bind inside of the B pillar.
My only advice would be to extend them fully and check?

I've got the same problem on my '04 Passat, haven't booked it in yet to have it sorted though... It's only on the drivers side I've a problem at the moment but the passenger belt very rarely gets used.

This is a common problem as my driver's one was occassionaly lazy (hasn't happened in a while) and my LR is still laying on the back seat though nobody rides back there anyway.

This needs to be a recall and the NHTSA needs to be notified by everyone that this has happened too. I'm filing a complaint now because this is way too common of a complaint and I'm not having someone's blood on my hands because I didn't act. I see too many wrecked cars each day in my line of work to realize seatbelts save lives.

http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/portal/site/nhtsa/menuitem.bead436724af02e770f6df1020008a0c/;jsessionid=Dw9ONU4NJNgvLDsL25gA2EuxYh2kcZraASsT1Idm6cfHFAvSd82y!1564185849

I'm making an appointment tomorrow to have every one of my belts replaced. I really hope they tell me no.......

We have two 2005 Passat TDI Wagons and the seatbelt retractors suck in both cars and on both sides. They are very slow and sometimes do not want to retract at all! Our 06 Jetta retracts the seatbelts very well!!!

Let me know what the dealer comes up with in your car.

Thanks
Deming

From another car forum :

"Sluggish Seatbelts

To cure inertia seatbelts not retracting quickly enough, a light spray with silicone spray will restore them to as new.

Does not mark clothing or, more importantly, harm the webbing.

This done each service stops belts hanging out of doors or buckles being slammed against door shuts."

There is a product called "Rubber and Nylon Lubricant" over here that does the job.

Don't forget to do the whole length of the belt.

alecp said:

From another car forum :

"Sluggish Seatbelts

To cure inertia seatbelts not retracting quickly enough, a light spray with silicone spray will restore them to as new.

Does not mark clothing or, more importantly, harm the webbing.

This done each service stops belts hanging out of doors or buckles being slammed against door shuts."

There is a product called "Rubber and Nylon Lubricant" over here that does the job.

Don't forget to do the whole length of the belt.

Click to expand...

I'm all about DIY but this is too common of a problem on the only safety device that keeps you from eating the windshield or ejecting from the vehicle in a collision.

It's all fun and games that I know the LR is non-op but what if the driver's seat on any of these cars doesn't retract and whoever is driving is hours from a VW dealer as the case can be here in the south? Do you think the average Joe is going to park the car and call a rollback in the meantime? Sure the odds are slim but what if? This needs to be addressed by VW continent-wide because seatbelts shouldn't have to be lubed to work properly.

This is a safety defect and it needs to be addressed.

Thanks for the feedback. It is nice to know I am not alone - but this is of little use as apparently no one has had any luck having the issue either acknowledged or fixed by VW, Misery loves company......

Tomorrow, I have a Warranty Service appointment to replace a faulty #1 Glow plug (it really negatively affected cold whether starting this past week at -27C) AND to Fix my non retracting seat belts (choke)

I hope the VW folks surprise me and take the bull by the horns, admit there is a problem and make it better........yeah, for sure that 'll happen!

Any way, I hope I live through the shock and am able to post a positive outcome.....REALLY! ........I live for such a thing.

Did you file a complaint like I did?

When NHTSA gets involved you'll have all the company you need.

Yes Virginia, there really is a Santa Clause!

Surprise. surprise! I showed up at the dealer at the appointed time, indicated I had thrown a code showing that the #1 Glow plug was "up the stump" and needed replacing and that I thought my 2 front seat belts in a $40K car should funtion better than they are. Within an hour the service prerson confirmed they had replaced 1 glowplug and they had ordered a second for replacement (also kaput) from another local dealer (but couldn't get it delivered before closing time because of snarled traffic and a BIG SNOW DUMP. They ordered 2 replacement seat belt modules also. I will be having the second glow plug and the 2 front seat belts replaced early next week WITHOUT ANY GNASHING OF TEETH, MAKING ANY THREATS OR THROWING ANY TANTRUMS.....Gratis. It was all very pleasant and civilized.

A big bouquet to the Service folks at 5th Avenue AutoHaus in Calgary (bonus - they also have great coffee and cookies)

By the way TooMuchBoost, NHTSA as an American Institution has zero influence in Canada.

a happy camper!