V8 Vantage seat belts

[Ralph S3]

Hi All,

The seat belts in my 2007 Vantage are starting to fray. I don't think they will fail the MOT yet but I need to do something about it. Has anyone else had a similar problem? I see that each belt is about £600 from AM which is a bit steep. I'm wondering if

a. Does anyone know if these seatbelts are also fitted to any other (hopefully cheaper) cars?
b. Whether it's possible to have the seatbelt webbing renewed?

Thanks Ralph

[Jon39]

I don't think you are alone with this problem Ralf.
The fraying might be caused by the webbing passing through those leather loops.
Having previously been made aware, I try to look at the loop as I pull the belt through.

You have provided another example of Aston Martins hugely inflated parts prices, so it might be surprising that they still don't make a profit.

I can vaguely remember a poster here talking about seat belts, think it might have been getting a change of colour, but it is not easy to find the old posts. Think they found a supplier who could help.

[Riddochg]

Ralph I changed mine a few years back very frayed.

Pretty sure it was Aston Bits. Wasn’t that expensive. I’ll check. Bear in mind that the belts will be generic not Aston specific. Think mine were Ford. If you can determine that you can get them cheap as chips. I’ll see what I can turn up.

[LTP]

Just thought I'd chip in to say with almost certainty that the belts will be unique to the vehicle.

The webbing will have been chosen from a range of webbing types made by the restraints supplier to have a certain degree of extension under crash loading so it allows the occupants to move forward in a controlled manner and work in conjunction with the airbags. The amount of webbing on the reel will have been chosen so the belts work correctly and the retractors themselves have both a belt-based and vehicle based lock-up system that will be selected for the retractor installation. If you can find the exact same AML part number fitted to another vehicle from Ford, JLR or Volvo (and it has to be exactly the same part number) then you might get yourself the correct belt at a cheaper price.

Seatbelt webbing is sewn using the specified thread and stitch pattern so that it meets the strength requirements and, as said before, you need to have exactly the correct webbing type.

So I suppose it all depends if you just want to pass an MOT or potentially save your and your passenger's lives in the event of a crash. Your choice - I know what I'd do.

[Riddochg]

LTP is right. I checked back and they were Aston replacements. Didn't pay a fraction of the current price though. No idea what the price has risen.

Heres a possible alternative a firm that specialises in refurbishing belts. Just found them the internet so cant vouch for them but they look credible. Might be worth a call.

https://www.quickfitsbs.com/index.php

[Ralph S3]

Thanks All,

A couple of the guys on the Facebook Vantage group came up with firms they have used to have the webbing replaced. To LTP's point, they make and design seatbelts for race cars and classic cars so I would hope they know what they are doing re the right material and stitching.

Even good second hand units are in excess of £300 each so I will be going the re-webbing route.

I'm not sure that the leather strap on the seat is actually to blame. Both sides of each belt are frayed and I think the back the chrome guide is either tarnished or corroded and snagging the belts a little. I'll report back once I have everything apart in a month or two.

Ralph

[JonnyCJ]

If it's just cosmetic fraying, rather than eating into the body of the webbing, try using a fuzz away if you have one at home.

Did my old CL55 belts a few years back and they came up a treat. Takes away all the fuzziness.

[LTP]

Just a comment on the leather straps - the straps on my 2015 V8V have magnetic closures to hold them closed and, as far as I know these straps play no part in the restraints system and the magnetic closures on mine would open to allow the webbing to assume the correct line over the occupants shoulder. I believe that the straps are just for convenience to stop the belt falling behind the seatback when the seat is unoccupied so the occupant can reach them easily - I rarely, if ever, use mine.

The fraying is far more likely to come from the seatbelt bezel where the webbing comes through the trim. This bezel usually DOES form part of the restraints system as it will be put under load if the belt is pulled tight in a crash as it's the point where the webbing changes direction. I wouldn't expect the bezel to have any sharp edges or flash lines, but it may be worth a check.

One further point: like most modern cars I believe that the Vantage belts have a pre-tensioner system designed to pull the belts tight if the car detects a crash is in progress - in the case of the Vantage I think this is built into the retractor (one of the possible reasons why the retractor could be so expensive - other models have the pre-tensioner built into the buckle assembly). These are usually a pyrotechnic squib device (a small explosive) that is electrically triggered by the restraints control module. If ever these have been fired in an accident then the belt needs to be replaced.

Ralph S3 said:

they make and design seatbelts for race cars and classic cars so I would hope they know what they are doing re the right material and stitching.Ralph

You'd hope so, but I don't believe that classic restraints systems were quite so sophisticated in tuning the restraints response via webbing extension to minimise injury criteria and I also believe race cars just want to keep the driver strapped firmly in, especially as they use multi-point harnesses rather than lap-and-diagonal belts. Ask them what percentage extension webbing they use and how they know which type to use for the Vantage restraints - if they look at you blankly or start waffling I'd turn around and walk away. £600 to stay alive seems pretty cheap to me.

Edited by LTP on Thursday 4th February 13:55

[shinjuku]

Mine also have some light fraying that doesn't look too structural at the moment, but I should get them replaced at some point.

600GBP is a lot, but if there's structural integrity of the seat belt being taken into question... I'd rather be 600 quid down, than dead.

Part of the cost, I was told (if I remember rightly), was that the belts are indeed delivered as an explosive device and have very strict delivery and handling requirements.

You've probably saved over 600GBP in fuel alone, in the last 12 months, so get a new belt

[raceboy]

The seat belt belt unit is definitely an AM part, I needed a new one due to the return spring letting go so the seat belt would not retract, tried to find an alternative supplier but drew a blank, on getting the old part out it is stamped Aston Martin, no sign of any Ford or Volvo logos.
A new unit is about £600 so I'd look at de-fuzzing them or trying one of the webbing replacement firms.

[Emilio Largo]

This was recently posted by an owner:



But I would certainly not rule out that leather strap as a potential (co-)culprit. Not unhappy that mine hasn´t got these.

[BiggaJ]

My drivers side belt is fraying on one edge. only got 22k miles on a 2009 model year car. Aston Bits have the stuff to do it but I think a large part of the cost is labour unless you feel like doing yourself.

[p4cks]

This could be a better option https://www.quickfitsbs.com/modern_vehicles_seatbe...

[LTP]

Emilio Largo said:

This was recently posted by an owner:

That looks horrible and needed replacing - it would be a cheese-grater for the webbing. I'm going to take a guess and say that it probably came off a Roadster or Volante as it looks like corrosion or plating deterioration caused by environmental exposure; it could also be defective plating in the first place, but I'm not a materials engineer so I could be wrong.

[LTP]

p4cks said:

This could be a better option https://www.quickfitsbs.com/modern_vehicles_seatbe...

All I'll say is "better than what?" (that's a rhetorical question - I'm not really expecting an answer)

[p4cks]

LTP said:

All I'll say is "better than what?" (that's a rhetorical question - I'm not really expecting an answer)

Than going to the dealer for an overpriced version of something that does the same thing that these guys could offer?

[LTP]

p4cks said:

Than going to the dealer for an overpriced version of something that does the same thing that these guys could offer?

As you responded, you need to read my other posts in this thread again. I doubt very much that their products do the exactly same thing

Edited by LTP on Thursday 4th February 18:51

[p4cks]

LTP said:

p4cks said:

Than going to the dealer for an overpriced version of something that does the same thing that these guys could offer?

As you responded, you need to read my other posts in this thread again.I doubt very much that their products do the exactly same thing

I did, although maybe we have missed each other's point. Your post was just you making some suggestions about what you would do and how you'd feel better getting the belts from Aston themselves as they'd likely to have been made specifically for AM, then confusingly saying that they might also be available from another source such as Ford or Volvo (who don't make a car with the same power so how the belts would perform the same using your logic is beyond me)

What I suggested in my post is that there are companies that specifically deal in seat belt webbing and should one consider contacting them to find out if they're able to refurbish their unit using the same/similar webbing then it may turn out to be considerably cheaper and/or easier. AM don't make seatbelts, they use suppliers like the one I linked to and if you cut out the middle-man you can often save quite a bit.

[LTP]

p4cks said:

I did, although maybe we have missed each other's point. Your post was just you making some suggestions about what you would do and how you'd feel better getting the belts from Aston themselves as they'd likely to have been made specifically for AM, then confusingly saying that they might also be available from another source such as Ford or Volvo (who don't make a car with the same power so how the belts would perform the same using your logic is beyond me)

What I suggested in my post is that there are companies that specifically deal in seat belt webbing and should one consider contacting them to find out if they're able to refurbish their unit using the same/similar webbing then it may turn out to be considerably cheaper and/or easier. AM don't make seatbelts, they use suppliers like the one I linked to and if you cut out the middle-man you can often save quite a bit

I was also pointing out what criteria the OEM's use to select and engineer the seatbelts for their cars and why an off-the-shelf product would almost certainly not be the same thing. I strongly suspect that the company you linked to does not supply seatbelts to Aston Martin or to any other OEM.

As for being confused as to why I suggested there might be an outside possibility to get the same belts from Ford, Volvo or JLR (and, you'll note, no-one else), that's because Aston Martin, JLR and Volvo all were owned by and were part of Ford's Premier Automotive Group and they used to share parts where appropriate. You'll notice I said that it would be necessary that the part numbers be EXACTLY the same to guarantee the part is identical. Incidentally, the power the car produces is completely irrelevant when selecting and engineering a restraint system.

I'm now wondering if you are just unknowledgable about the brand in general and restraint systems in particular (in which case why are you posting in this thread?) or you're a troll.

Edited by LTP on Thursday 4th February 19:29

[p4cks]

Christ what an interesting conclusion that I must be a troll. The OP asked for alternatives (re-read his first post) so I posted one.

The pattern of the webbing is largely inconsequentual. What the OP needs is the same specifications of the ones used in the vehicle he has. The company I linked to may or may not be able to supply the same specification, but it's certainly worth an ask.

Alternatively, he can listen to the likes of you who would think nothing of going to a dealer and spunking £600 on something which is widely available elsewhere.