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wet seatbelts and correctly plugging the holes

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  • Mike Engler #37320

    wet seatbelts and correctly plugging the holes

    Hi All,

    my 77's lower seatbelts (the one mounted under the seat), will get wet when it rains, or when I drive through puddles etc .. So I took the seats out, and pulled the carpet out, and found no rust holes or anything .. The door seals are not perfect, however the wetness of the belt, compared to the size of the puddles I've driven through didn't match ..

    I pulled the cover off of the lower seatbelt area, and amongst the loonies, leaves and other assorted crap that had managed it's way in there, I noticed a seemingly factory predrilled hole ahead of where the actual seatbelt retractor housing bolts down .. The hole is about a 1.5cm diameter. Bigger than the bolt used to hold down the seatbelt. Is this normal? Am I missing some plugs there?

    I figure what has happened is there's some plug that was there from the factory, and over the years of neglect this car has seen, the plugs wore/fell out.. Which has allowed all kinds of crap to get into the seatbelt housing. (Which is rusted all to heck now!)

    I could just plug it with silicone or something, but I'd like to keep as much original as possible...

    Thanks,
    Mike Engler #37320
  • Jack H.
    Extremely Frequent Poster
    • April 1, 1990
    • 9906

    #2
    Re: wet seatbelts and correctly plugging the holes

    Corvette and other Chevy cars are famous for having designed-in body holes. These are there for that rare happenstance when the car's interior is flooded and serve as drains by pulling the plug(s). Plug should be shown going into the hole somewhere in your AIM book. I assure you it was not the factory's intent to put a 'leak generator' on the undercarriage of your car!

    Comment

    • Jack H.
      Extremely Frequent Poster
      • April 1, 1990
      • 9906

      #3
      Re: wet seatbelts and correctly plugging the holes

      Corvette and other Chevy cars are famous for having designed-in body holes. These are there for that rare happenstance when the car's interior is flooded and serve as drains by pulling the plug(s). Plug should be shown going into the hole somewhere in your AIM book. I assure you it was not the factory's intent to put a 'leak generator' on the undercarriage of your car!

      Comment

      • Mike Engler #37320

        #4
        Thanks Jack! *NM*

        Comment

        • Mike Engler #37320

          #5
          Thanks Jack! *NM*

          Comment

          • Harmon C.
            Extremely Frequent Poster
            • August 31, 1994
            • 3228

            #6
            Re: wet seatbelts and correctly plugging the holes

            Wet seat belts can be a problem to find the leak. In shark cars their was a drain hose for the rear grills at the rear window that ran above the wheel well inside and if rotted out can get to the seat belts. At the rear of the sill plate was a metal water diverter after 1974. I am not sure if your 77 has the above parts but you might check as I have found thease areas to leak in older sharks. As for the hole in the bottom is it covered by the metal seat belt anchor.
            Lyle

            Comment

            • Harmon C.
              Extremely Frequent Poster
              • August 31, 1994
              • 3228

              #7
              Re: wet seatbelts and correctly plugging the holes

              Wet seat belts can be a problem to find the leak. In shark cars their was a drain hose for the rear grills at the rear window that ran above the wheel well inside and if rotted out can get to the seat belts. At the rear of the sill plate was a metal water diverter after 1974. I am not sure if your 77 has the above parts but you might check as I have found thease areas to leak in older sharks. As for the hole in the bottom is it covered by the metal seat belt anchor.
              Lyle

              Comment

              • Myles Kukurudz

                #8
                Re: wet seatbelts and correctly plugging the holes

                Hi Mike,
                I had a 73 that was a leaker and discovered the water would run down the door jamb and into the interior area right at the back end of the sill plate. Some vendors sell a diverter plate with a rubber seal to install here
                Regards Myles

                Comment

                • Myles Kukurudz

                  #9
                  Re: wet seatbelts and correctly plugging the holes

                  Hi Mike,
                  I had a 73 that was a leaker and discovered the water would run down the door jamb and into the interior area right at the back end of the sill plate. Some vendors sell a diverter plate with a rubber seal to install here
                  Regards Myles

                  Comment

                  • Gary S.
                    Extremely Frequent Poster
                    • July 31, 1992
                    • 1628

                    #10
                    Re: wet seatbelts and correctly plugging the holes

                    You ought to consider removing that seat belt assembly and cleaning up the rust. My 72 had a driver's seat belt that wouldn't retract. After removal, it was obvious why. The metal "cup" that the seat belt retracts and wraps around was very rusty. All I did was to pull the seat belt out to its full extension and then sand the rust off with fine sandpaper. Once that was done, I masked the belt material, the plastic spring cap, and a couple of other places. Then I put an primer that converts the rust to a non-oxidizing material. It has worked well now for over a year. If your selt belt mechanism is so badly rusted that this won't work, consider some of the vendors out there who do this work. The archives have some very interesting comments about some of the work being done.
                    Gary

                    Comment

                    • Gary S.
                      Extremely Frequent Poster
                      • July 31, 1992
                      • 1628

                      #11
                      Re: wet seatbelts and correctly plugging the holes

                      You ought to consider removing that seat belt assembly and cleaning up the rust. My 72 had a driver's seat belt that wouldn't retract. After removal, it was obvious why. The metal "cup" that the seat belt retracts and wraps around was very rusty. All I did was to pull the seat belt out to its full extension and then sand the rust off with fine sandpaper. Once that was done, I masked the belt material, the plastic spring cap, and a couple of other places. Then I put an primer that converts the rust to a non-oxidizing material. It has worked well now for over a year. If your selt belt mechanism is so badly rusted that this won't work, consider some of the vendors out there who do this work. The archives have some very interesting comments about some of the work being done.
                      Gary

                      Comment

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