No response to this Q over in Stock Issues other than "feed it back in and twist it," so reposting/trying over here.

I am the second owner of my 2017 F56S. When I bought it at around 74k miles, it had been twisted somewhere within the B pillar. I managed to untwist it (that was "fun"), but from then on it was constantly trying to twist back. To keep it from doing so successfully I had to be REALLY particular about how I extend the seat belt (literally *every time* I buckle up -- it's a fight).

Recently I had my car in a (not mechanic) shop and when I got it back, it had twisted inside the B pillar again. Knowing how hard it was to keep the thing untwisted I don't blame the shop.

But I am tired of fighting this, and I'm suspicious of whether I should be concerned about the seat belt in more general terms. I have seen at least one thread about this phenomenon that involved a couple of F56 owners, from a few years back, but the discussion had no real resolution.

I have the following questions:

(1) Anybody else dealt with this and have comments/insight?
(2) Anybody ever pop the trim panels covering the B pillar to see what was going on in there and/or fix it? Did you fix it successfully? Or at least get some insights? Do tell.
(3) If you popped the panels, how in blazes did you do it? The instruction set I was able to lay hands on is kinda... sparse.

I would take this to a shop for repair but as I'm decidedly DIY, I really want to understand what's happening in there rather than just handing it off.

Thanks for any assist!

 

Is it the buckle that's twisted on the webbing? I'm having a hard time visualizing how it could possibly be twisted 'inside' the pillar.

Can you get a picture of the seat belt in the resting position on the pillar? It should unwind from the roller inside the pillar straight up, then rest flat against the pillar down to the floor.

 

To help you visualize: When you put the driver seat belt on, with lap part properly resting flat, the part that goes across the chest is twisted. This is not the case with the passenger side. Similarly, the driver side belt doesn't rest in the way you describe. The passenger side does, but not the driver side. You probably already know that when hanging in the proper resting position, the tongue of the latch (or whatever proper term is for that part) is facing the center of the car; when the belt is twisted, the tongue instead faces the B pillar/vehicle exterior or the rear of the car (due to the twist).

There isn't a question here as to whether the belt is twisted. It is, and it can be twisted back. I'm more interested right now in discussion of (1) why this keeps re-happening and (2) how the heck to properly get the lower B pillar trim panel off (the panel extends all the way to the rear seat, so it's going to be interesting, I guess). I can get a better read on what is going on if I can get both it and the upper trim panel off.

When I got the car (as 2nd owner) I was able to get things back to normal by force-feeding the belt, while in proper untwisted position (i.e., forcing the twist up to the anchor/pivot up top), into the B pillar. Problem was that when the belt was extended again, it would tend to ride up into the frontmost corner of the anchor/pivot and curl there, twisting back up again. Hence the whole exercise with having to be deliberate each and every time I put the seat belt on.

See this thread (from 2014) for more forum discussion of this phenomenon: https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...ngling-up.html

 

Here we go - here's a pic. FYI the bottom end of the belt is confirmed as anchored with proper orientation (not that I've ever undone that bolt to mess with it anyway). Factory position.

 

Here is the removal for the upper panel:


Removing that panel should allow you to see what's going on down inside the lower panel.

Looks like there is a guide loop to keep the belt straight:

I imagine the belt is twisted somewhere around the guide loop, and that's what's causing it to keep twisting?

 

Thanks for the terminology correction -- the guide loop is where the twist always takes place. When not twisted, it catches at the front (vehicle front) of the guide loop during belt extension, and folds over itself. I can "force it back" but at very next use it tries to go back to being twisted. It's crazymaking.

I've seen these pics -- I can likely get that upper panel to pop as shown, but it's the lower panel that the automatic reel is behind. I'd like to pop both panels to see what is going on in there in full. Most of the B pillar belt length is behind the lower panel. I've found the lower panel instructions (not pictured) as well, and they are... "not great."

 

Almost look like the bottom anchor was installed backwards, and the buckle is twisted on the webbing. I would be tempted to remove and replace the lower anchor, then twist the buckle back around to be in the right position, assuming the webbing inside the pillar is correct.

 

Yeah, looks like you have to remove the whole back half of the car to get the lower panel out...

 

Yeah... the bottom anchor is actually installed just fine. I've checked which "side" of the seat belt (you can differentiate via the stitching) faces towards car center vs car exterior on the passenger side (down at the bottom anchor) and the driver side matches.

And if you look closely, you'll see that the seat belt is twisted 180 degrees, not 360, so removing the bolt and flipping the belt to "de-twist" isn't going to fix the issue, it will leave the thing backwards. Unfortunately.

Given the history with this thing it would be a bad call to assume the webbing inside the pillar is correct. I know that it isn't because I've been dealing with untwisting/realigning/whatever we might call it at the guide loop since I bought the car. :/

 

Hers mine

You are twisted behind the pillar.

The buckle stop rivet is smooth facing buckle tongue.

 

This should start you off. about 14 minutes in

 

@TVPostSound , I officially owe you one. That video is gold. As soon as I get done beating up my other vehicle (not a MINI -- and taking a rotary tool to a rusted nut/bolt, yay), I'm going to get cracking on this seat belt thing & will update the thread. More to come! Thank you!!

 

Well, this has taken a while, but I finally got to this and:

• Did not have to remove the entire back half of the car. Only had to:
  1. Get the upper trim panel loose, and slide it down the seat belt (did not have to remove it or the belt from the car.
  2. Remove 1 screw holding the top right corner of the side panel in place.
  3. Pop the side panel out at its frontmost edge.
• From there it was easy (with a good work light) to see what was going on in there. The belt was indeed twisted inside the B pillar, above the automatic reel (floor) and below that crossbar behind the panel (crossbar bolted to the pillar halfway between floor and roof).
  • It took no meaningful effort to move that twist to above the crossbar / below the upper guide loop.
  • From there it was a matter of forcing the twist through the upper guide loop, which didn't take long either.

Now the real question is whether I can find a way to keep it from twisting again. I'm thinking of sticking a grommet or something at the frontmost corner of the upper guide loop, as that's where it usually twists up.

But for the first time since buying my F56, my driver's seat belt is not twisted somewhere. Go me, I get to start 2023 by not having to curse the seat belt any more. Thanks @TVPostSound and @njaremka

 

Quick and final update: Getting the seatbelt untwisted -- all the way through as described -- has worked wonders. Not having issues with it re-twisting.

I think the upshot is that it was always (in my ownership of the car -- I'm the second owner) twisted between the automatic reel and the crossbar behind the trim panel, in turn causing it to continue the twist (and undo any "untwist") up to and through the upper guide loop.

I know there are others who have dealt with / are dealing with a seat belt that keeps twisting up. Have at least seen that discussion in another forum. The upshot is that if your seat belt keeps "re-twisting" it's worth a look behind the B pillar trim, which can be done just by following the same steps I did. A constant re-twisting belt probably means that there is a twist behind the B pillar trim which, if fixed, will help in a big way.

Hope this helps someone out there.