I know someone posted that a company called Performance Analysis makes an aluminum replacement gear for the seatbelt extender motor. Can someone post their contact info? Thanks..
I know someone posted that a company called Performance Analysis makes an aluminum replacement gear for the seatbelt extender motor. Can someone post their contact info? Thanks..
I found it! Autoluxmbz.com They sell an aluminum replacement gear for $59!!
, for those of you lucky enough to own one of Stuttgart's classiest sports coupes, one aspect of these cars has always been somewhat tempermental; the beloved seatbelt extender mechanism. More often than not, the extender arm is broken due to abuse or by accident caused either by pulling on the seatbelt too hard, too fast or simply entering or exiting the vehicle before the arm has had a chance to fully retract.
For those of you who simply have a broken arm, well you're lucky as this part is simple to replace as it simply pulls out and you insert the new arm back into the gear drive. However, another scenario poses a more difficult remedy. After years of use, the gear drive inside the seatbelt extender mechanism eventually wears and strips preventing the plastic arm from extending fully if at all.
In the past, the only cure for this situation was to replace the entire assembly, as that is how it is sold by Mercedes; as a single part encompassing the seatbelt extender motor, bracket, and gears. Recently, an aluminum gear has been made available from Autolux, Inc. I was able to contact George Murphy at Performance Analysis who sent me an aluminum gear to replace the flimsy plastic fiber gear that the factory uses. I decided to try this out and was pleased that someone had come up with not only a direct replacement part, but one that was much better than the flimsy original equipment replacement.
The car in this demonstration is a 1987 560SEC AMG (yes, a true AMG car with the wheels, engine, bodywork, the whole nine yards). The vehicle belongs to my friend Richard Giampietro. He brought the car to me to have me diagnose and fix this system. After a careful examination, I noticed that this problem was actually twofold. First off, his retractor arm was showing signs of wear as the plastic teeth were worn in many places. Secondly, as with any gear setup, one worn gear usually means there's probably another gear worn out somewhere. I decided to be conservative at first and ordered a new arm. After installing the arm, it retracted okay but wouldn't extend properly. I knew now that this was going to be more involved. The solution would be to open the side panel and remove the motor assembly to replace the worn components. For starters, the only tools you'll need for this operation is a small flathead screwdriver, a #1 Phillips and #2 Phillips screwdriver, a 17mm socket wrench, an 8mm open-ended wrench and some patience. First, remove the lower seat cushion by pressing the red tabs in opposite directions while lifting the seat cushion upwards at the same time.
Next, remove the seatback cushion by pressing the metal tab located Next, remove the lower screw holding the lower portion of the side
on the bottom of the seat cushion and push upwards firmly. Place the panel in place. This screw is seen by simply pulling aside the black
two cushions outside the car and start examining the side panel. First, noise insulation material.
remove the 3-#1 Phillips screws that hold the decorative chrome plate
on the door sill.
Next, remove the assist handle by inserting a #2 - Phillips screwdriver Next, pry off the panel cover plate which will reveal the harness for
into the hole at the bottom of the handle. Also, using a small flathead the power window switch connection. This is what the panel looks
screwdriver, pry up the power window switch and remove the black like once it is removed.
#2 - Phillips screw pointing downward inside the black case. This
small screw attaches the black casing to the rest of the assist handle.
Remove all of the 6 #2- Phillips screws which hold the wire connection terminals together. Don't worry about marking the wires' positions as all of the wires on both sides of the terminal block are color-coded (Mercedes REALLY should have used a simply 6-pin Molex connector here instead).
Now, you can remove the side panel completely. Place it aside by extending the seat belt completely to give you more slack. Remember that the seat belt is still looped through the outlet in the side panel so it isn't still free from the vehicle but you'll have plenty of slack in the seat belt to allow you to put the panel aside. Next, you must remove the seatbelt extender gear assembly. Although it is completely possible to replace the fiber gear with the assembly still in place, it is MUCH easier to work with the unit on a flat surface; besides, it only involves removing 3 screws and 1 bolt; all of which are easily accessible.
Remove the 3 - #2 Phillips screws as seen on the next illustration. Next, pull the assembly from the car and place it on a flat surface.
Also, disconnect the 2 Molex electrical connectors on the end of the Remove the e-clip holding the gear assembly housing. Also,
assembly. Notice above that my finger is pointing to where the 17mm remove the spring tensioning bolt using an 8mm wrench and
head bolt is located. Remove this bolt with the socket wrench. Also, noting its relative position.
notice that approximately 3 inches below my finger is another Phillips
#2 screw. Remove this screw as well. Finally, remove these last 2
Phillips #2 screws located near the rear of the assembly.
Shown above is the new aluminum gear installed within the plastic Notice the stripped fiber gear causing the arm to not extend...
housing. Reinstall the e-clip which holds the plastic assembly in place
and reinstall the metal spring, tensioning it with the 8mm head bolt.
Finally, replace all the removed items on the vehicle. The installation is exactly the reverse of removal. Once everything is installed, insert the extender arm into the motor drive slot and adjust how far it retracts by adjusting the clip on the extender arm itself shown below. The position of this clip determines how far inward the arm will retract. That's it! The entire operation took me about an hour and the end result is an extender assembly that works like new.
Linear Mode
