Q: How Should You Properly Service and Repair a Front Seat Belt and Retractor on 2001 Dodge Ram 1500?
A: While servicing the seat belts or afterward, examine all belts, buckles, screws and pull-back features to see that everything is working well or if it needs repair. Replacing a belt with slashes, rips or frays, fixing twisted belts, tightening unfastened buckles or fasteners and replacing belts with damaged or unsafe buckles, retractors, latch plates or anchor plates are all good ideas. Don't repair any seat belt element-replace it with new parts verified in the Mopar Parts Catalog. In a Standard Cab, start by moving the front seats as close as possible to the headliner, unscrew the screw keeping the lower front seat belt anchor plate in place on the floor near the base of the B-pillar, remove the screw anchoring the front shoulder belt turning loop to the seat height adjustment lever and lift and remove the belt turning loop from the height adjuster. After that, undo the B-pillar trim, unhook the front seat shoulder belt turning loop and lower seat belt anchor plate from the B-pillar, remove the screw holding the retractor in place and remove the shoulder belt and retractor from the B-pillar. On Club/Quad Cab vehicles, take off the front seat back trim cover, undo the retractor cover's screws and then take out the retractor cover from the back of the seat. Later, get rid of the two screws holding the seat belt retractor to the seat back frame and let go of the front shoulder belt and retractor right from the seat back frame. For Standard Cab installation, install the retractor onto the B-pillar, turn the screw so it is secured to the B-pillar at 39 ft lb., secure the front seat shoulder belt turning loop to the B-pillar and the seat's lower belt anchor plate, set the B-pillar trim into place and connect the shoulder belt turning loop to the height adjuster. Fold the cover the front shoulder belt turning loop and fit the seat belt anchor plate into the floor of the B-pillar. Then tighten the mounting screw to 40 Nm (29 ft. lbs.). For Club/Quad Cab models, place the front shoulder belt and retractor onto the seat back frame, install the retractor and tighten the nuts securing it to 16 Nm (12 ft. lbs.), cover the retractor and tighten the nuts securing the cover to 2 Nm (17 in. lbs.) and then put the trim cover back on the front seat back frame.