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Most of us already know about the issue of the seat belt guides in the C7. There is an opening in the top of the guide that lets the belt pass through. In some seat/seat back positions this opening is so aligned with the seat belt edge that the seat belt can pass in/out of the guide unexpectedly. Or be half-in and half-out of the guide. At the least, this is likely to cause premature wear of the seat belt due to rubbing against the sharper edges of the guide. Worse case possibility is the seat belt operation being impeded by being half-in/half-out of the guide. In the instant of an emergency, I would not want the seat belt to bind or otherwise be impeded because of this. Neither would you. Regardless of your preference to have your belt in the guide or out of the guide, you may want to bridge that guide gap to prevent this from happening.
There have been solutions shown by members of the forum including using heat shrink tubing. This will work well enough in a pinch provided you don't mind the appearance and you don't think you'll have a need to remove it for cleaning, etc. Alternatively, we offer an inexpensive accessory that solves the problem, installs easily, looks good, and gives you the ability to remove it when needed. Our part is made of ABS and has a smooth surface with a much lower coefficient of friction than heat shrink tubing.
You can buy it here: Sandyeggo Designs' Seatbelt Stay
Regardless of what you decide please consider doing something to bridge the opening in the seat belt guides. Its a simple fix and not worth the risk to ignore it.
There is no reason for me to bridge the gap on a guide that I don’t use. My seatbelt is intentionally never in the guide.
Before I stopped using the guide I did notice that the seatbelt would easily slip partially out of the guide and bind up the seatbelt so for those who prefer to use the guide I see merit to your product.
Im pretty sure in the manual that comes with the car that it states that the guide is to be used for people that are "smaller adults" or "older children" so that the belt is in the correct position if needed.
So its not intended to be used by average/large adults.
I think it pops out by design if you are too large to be using the guide.
I don’t use the seatbelt guide. I found having the seatbelt in the guide made the belt uncomfortable on my shoulder so I removed the seatbelt from the guide and now it feels normal.
I love your products, as I've proclaimed many times before, but this is not a product to "make it safer."
Please don't go there.
Thanks for the kind words on our products.
I think maybe you have a misinterpretation of my post. It is my opinion that the opening in the guide is a possible safety issue. That's why I advise bridging the gap with *something*. Bridging the gap will make the car a little safer for the reasons I have already explained.
And yes, I think my product provides the best solution for this.
Dave
I don’t use the seatbelt guide. I found having the seatbelt in the guide made the belt uncomfortable on my shoulder so I removed the seatbelt from the guide and now it feels normal.
"Regardless of your preference to have your belt in the guide or out of the guide, you may want to bridge that guide gap to prevent this from happening."
"Regardless of your preference to have your belt in the guide or out of the guide, you may want to bridge that guide gap to prevent this from happening."
There is no reason for me to bridge the gap on a guide that I don’t use. My seatbelt is intentionally never in the guide.
Before I stopped using the guide I did notice that the seatbelt would easily slip partially out of the guide and bind up the seatbelt so for those who prefer to use the guide I see merit to your product.
There is no reason for me to bridge the gap on a guide that I don’t use. My seatbelt is intentionally never in the guide.
Before I stopped using the guide I did notice that the seatbelt would easily slip partially out of the guide and bind up the seatbelt so for those who prefer to use the guide I see merit to your product.
Im pretty sure in the manual that comes with the car that it states that the guide is to be used for people that are "smaller adults" or "older children" so that the belt is in the correct position if needed.
So its not intended to be used by average/large adults.
I think it pops out by design if you are too large to be using the guide.
I don't understand the manual assertion that the guide is there for "smaller" adults. I'm 6'3" and find it far more comfortable in the guide. I was continually annoyed by it slipping out, and bought the SandyEggo clips. They're great and look good.
The other issue it solves is that when you release the belt outside of the guide and just let it go, the metal tongue retracts back and hammers the door trim. My first C7 was a CPO car w/ 3k miles, and there were 20+ noticeable impact divots in the door trim courtesy of the original owner.
My only issue is that the belt sometimes gets twisted even while in the guide with the clip, which necessitates removing the clip to untwist. Perhaps if the inner part of the clip were thicker it could not twist in the guide.
Otherwise, I prefer using the guide and S E clip.
Last edited by NashvilleGrandSport; 09-20-2018 at 09:49 AM.
Hmmm . . . never had that happen in 3 years of nearly daily-driver use in either of my C7s.
A lot depends on the position of the seat back relative to the seat belt. The anchor point in the bulkhead is fixed so in some seat positions the angles through the guide are more severe. We may see different issues with each individual.
I would like to restate this: You don't want the belt going in/out of the guide on its own. Bridging the gap with something will solve the issue.
There is no reason for me to bridge the gap on a guide that I don’t use. My seatbelt is intentionally never in the guide.
Before I stopped using the guide I did notice that the seatbelt would easily slip partially out of the guide and bind up the seatbelt so for those who prefer to use the guide I see merit to your product.
Okay, so here's my point. Even if you have the seat belt outside the guide, there is some possibility, however remote, that the belt could bind in the gap in some situation. It would depend on a lot of factors including seat position, driver height, shoulder position, etc. It may never happen but why take a chance? Its a simple fix using heat shrink tubing or our product.
Cheers,
Dave
im pretty sure in the manual that comes with the car that it states that the guide is to be used for people that are "smaller adults" or "older children" so that the belt is in the correct position if needed.
So its not intended to be used by average/large adults.
I think it pops out by design if you are too large to be using the guide.
From a safety standpoint, it's desirable that the belt(s) make a straight line from the mounting to your body. When there are "bends" in the belt, your body will pull it straight in an impact and that introduces more slack into the system.
If you need the factory clip to keep the shoulder belt properly positioned on your body, GM has done the research and decided it's the lesser evil.
I'm about 6' and sit high in the car, my wife is 5'-5' and sits lower, for both of us the belt slips out of the clip if we try to use it, and not using the clip is more comfortable. Everyone is different.
Exactly, that's the way it fits my 6'3" body. Inside the clip, it's completely level with my shoulders. Outside, it angles upward to the retraction point.
I have the clip as well, trying to keep the factory "spirit" in mind. No matter how careful, I always get a twist starting. I have to carefully guide the belt. I'm 6' and have no issues with the Sandyeggo clips, just my belt is a bit wonky.
I have the clip as well, trying to keep the factory "spirit" in mind. No matter how careful, I always get a twist starting. I have to carefully guide the belt. I'm 6' and have no issues with the Sandyeggo clips, just my belt is a bit wonky.
Hi. Could you pm me a photo or two of what's happening? Even better would be a video. I am looking at redesigning the clip in the future and I want to solve as many problems as I can..
Cheers,
Dave
After posting, I came up with this solution for the belt twisting. I used two strips of thin body side molding I had to fill in some of the space to prevent that. Worked today on 4 separate trips.
Hi. Could you pm me a photo or two of what's happening? Even better would be a video. I am looking at redesigning the clip in the future and I want to solve as many problems as I can...Cheers,Dave
Lemme work on a video, but from this photo you can see that the belt has a good crease on it. I don't think it has anything to do with your clip.
If I'm not careful, it will twist. Worse yet, if I don't slowly release it into the track, it goes slack, the buckle sits right between the door and frame... slam the door ... uhgg...
09-19-2018, 10:54 PM
C7 safety issue - IMHO
