[the_brototype]

This has also happened to me. The day after I bought my car (pre owned) I gave someone a ride and he twisted the seatbelt somehow so badly it wouldn't retract or extend--it was just jammed and I didn't have a working passenger seatbelt. Meanwhile the driver's side belt would barely retract and it appeared that the belt may have been twisted inside the wall. BMW told me warranty would not cover either belt because it was "user error". I ended up having to take the side paneling and trim off of both sides of the car to undo the twisting. I discovered that both belts were twisted inside the wall of the car. I think the driver's side belt actually had multiple twists, including one inside the roll on the retractor. It took me a few hours but I got everything straightened out and put back together. I have noticed several times that this same passenger twists the belt when he gets out. I don't know how or why. I just have to keep an eye on it.

[AndDown]

Originally Posted by the_brototype

This has also happened to me. The day after I bought my car (pre owned) I gave someone a ride and he twisted the seatbelt somehow so badly it wouldn't retract or extend--it was just jammed and I didn't have a working passenger seatbelt. Meanwhile the driver's side belt would barely retract and it appeared that the belt may have been twisted inside the wall. BMW told me warranty would not cover either belt because it was "user error". I ended up having to take the side paneling and trim off of both sides of the car to undo the twisting. I discovered that both belts were twisted inside the wall of the car. I think the driver's side belt actually had multiple twists, including one inside the roll on the retractor. It took me a few hours but I got everything straightened out and put back together. I have noticed several times that this same passenger twists the belt when he gets out. I don't know how or why. I just have to keep an eye on it.

Sounds like you need to teach this "someone" how to use a seatbelt, lol

[scooterD]

Originally Posted by morphomeman

Last year, the front passenger seat belt on my 2015 235 got twisted and would not retract. The dealer replaced the entire belt assembly under warranty.
This week, same problem with driver belt, but no more warranty, so it cost me $500!
We all know that the belt sits quite far back and there are all sorts of threads on how to manage reaching for it and even on how to untwist the belt in some cases.
On the 3-series coupe that we had a decade ago, there was a robot arm that 'offered' you the seat belt. I am pretty sure that the 4-series coupe still has this gizmo. The 2-series is presumably too down-market for such a system.
I suspect that there is a design/geometry flaw on the 2-series and that the seat belt mechanism malfunctions because of this design: the anchor point is far back, so that the angle when pulling it leads to the twisting and eventual malfunction.
Anyone else out there experience this problem? I am thinking of writing to BMW.

So glad I found this post!

The seat belt definitely is an issue for me as well. On day 2 it got stuck and I had to gently guide it out while it was doubled up and stuck. I checked the way I retract it and found that the belt was slightly cupped and causing the belt to double over itself. This does not happen in my 335i, but sure does in the 230i.

My "fix" is to be conscious of how I retract the belt and make sure I don't have it curled or cupped in my hand in any way. Sucks that you have to think about how to retract the belt, but sucks worse when it gets stuck.

My 2017 230i model is a cheaper quality car compared to my 2012 335i and the seatbelt issue is case-in-point.

Let me know if you have found out any other way to fix this annoying problem!

[Dogmire]

Hello all,
New (used) ‘17 230i owner & new to the forum. I’ve experienced these frustrations as well. My drivers side seatbelt is sewn with a half twist that makes it jam when retracting. If you look at the lower attachment lug (where the seatbelt meets the floor - pop off the plastic cover), you’ll see that it is sewn with a half twist - compare it to the passenger side that doesn’t bind or have the half twist. I just did my troubleshooting, and haven’t yet taken it in to BMW to file a warranty inspection, but this is the reason mine jams. Anyone else have this same issue?

[Sonertial]

I'll add to the chorus.

Has happened to me once, when I was in a bit of a hurry and was wearing gloves on a cold morning. I stopped what I was doing immediately on feeling that something wasn't right, since a colleague had jammed his up hard on his M2. My wife also managed to do the same on the passenger side.

I was able to untwist mine both times, and since then I am very cautious. My mate took it in to the dealership where our local M tech was able to untwist it, but needed to remove the trim to do so.

Definitely a design weakness.

[John in VA]

I have not had a twist/retraction problem with the F22 or F30, but the 2002 325xi & 2003 530i driver's belts retracted a bit slowly. I pulled the belts out as far as possible & sprayed some silicone spray on the belt. This helped immensely.

[GrimJaw]

This is my current situation. There is either a twist of a retraction problem. I don't feel like going behind the wall. Gonna try and untwist it the best I can from the outside I suppose

[aerobod]

I’ve had success fixing a twist behind the trim on another couple of cars where this has happened (Citroen C4 rental car and VW Golf) by pulling the belt as far out as possible, then feeding a twist in the opposite direction back through the guide in the pillar.

[NaOH228i]

I found this seat belt holder on real oem under the retrofit / conversion / accessories category. Part# 52302208036.

I can't attest to how well it works, but the picture looks like it brings the belt forward towards the seat and holds it in place.

[John in VA]

Originally Posted by NaOH228i

I found this seat belt holder on real oem under the retrofit / conversion / accessories category. Part# 52302208036.

I can't attest to how well it works, but the picture looks like it brings the belt forward towards the seat and holds it in place.

Those holders do make it easier to keep track of the buckle & easier to reach. We have them in the F22 & E46 coupes. Haven't had a belt twist.

[dradernh]

Originally Posted by NaOH228i

I found this seat belt holder on real oem under the retrofit / conversion / accessories category. Part# 52302208036.

I can't attest to how well it works, but the picture looks like it brings the belt forward towards the seat and holds it in place.

Originally Posted by John in VA

Those holders do make it easier to keep track of the buckle & easier to reach. We have them in the F22 & E46 coupes. Haven't had a belt twist.

Those certainly look handy!

I went to getbmwparts.com for pricing ($29.52 for the set), and this text is in their description of the part:

"***This product has quality control issues and has been very unpopular with our customers. We cannot recommend it for sale at this time."

This is their page for the parts: https://www.getbmwparts.com/oem-part...ht-52302208036.

It might be worth contacting them to find out what the issue has been – and if a solution is in sight.

[John in VA]

Originally Posted by dradernh

I went to getbmwparts.com for pricing ($29.52 for the set), and this text is in their description of the part:

"***This product has quality control issues and has been very unpopular with our customers. We cannot recommend it for sale at this time."

This is their page for the parts: https://www.getbmwparts.com/oem-part...ht-52302208036.

It might be worth contacting them to find out what the issue has been – and if a solution is in sight.

The only thing I can imagine is that the distal articulating piece (holds the belt at the top on the seat back) is easily detached from the piece held by the headrest posts. It's meant to break away in the event of an accident, but the newer set I have (purchased last spring) does fall apart more easily than the 3-year-old one in the E46.

[danf15e]

(Forgive me for my ignorance) I bought an F22 yesterday and the same thing happened to me today. I tried fixing it so I pulled the entire seat belt out (slowly) and while I was slowly retracting it, the belt got stuck and now doesn't want to come out or go back in...just a little bit of play. I want to try to fix this but I'm not sure how to take the b pillar trim off. Please help me!