Just bought an 08 TL and believe I have the rear seat belt rattle described in TSB 04-043. I believe I can fix it with Procedure D in this TSB, but am not sure how to get to it. Any information on how to get to the seat belt housing in the rear deck would be appreciated. I would rather not deal with taking it to the dealer if this is a simple fix.

TSB 04-043

4. To isolate the center seat belt retractor noise,
quickly pull on the seat belt to lock the retractor,
and see if the noise is reduced or goes away.
• If the noise is reduced or goes away, go to
REPAIR PROCEDURE D.


REPAIR PROCEDURE D
1. Remove the seat belt retractor from the rear shelf:
• Refer to page 20-68 of the 2004–05 TL Service
Manual to remove the rear shelf.
• Enter keyword REAR SHELF, and select
Interior Trim Removal/Installation-Rear Shelf
Area from the list.
2. Cut two 12 mm by 100 mm pieces of wool felt.
Apply one of the felt pieces to the back of the
second piece of felt (double them up).
3. Peel the backing off the second piece of felt and
center it onto the bottom side of the retractor. Make
sure the edge of the felt is located against the edge
of the retractor frame. Then wrap the ends of the
felt around the top side of the retractor, and firmly
press them into place. Make sure the felt is not
under the edge of the retractor mounting bolt.

 

You can search in the "garage" link for Backseat removal instructions.
You have to remove the back seat to get to the rear deck.

There are scans of the manuals. They will be all you need

 

is it just getting snagged and not retracting? should check that before trying any TSB's yourself. Happens all the time in my TL, someone is in the backseat, when i drop em off the seatbelt doesnt pull up all the way and it hangs and knocks against the door while i drive.

 

No, it is the center belt and it stops rattling when I pull on it to lock it in place just liek the TSB says. I am pretty convinced I have the issue in the TSB, just need to work on getting to it. I might just bag it and take it to the dealer.

 

hi mjferguson,

i have had the same problem in my 2007 TL-S since I purchased it in February 2007. Dealer wouldn't do anything to fix it, they told me the car wasn't meant to play bass heavy music (haha). I just recently started looking at these boards again and was happy to see this post.

Do you have a copy of the TSB 04-043? I found one on the Acurazine website from January 31, 2008, but it does not indicate the updated repair procedures you describe above. I will be taking the car into the dealer soon to fix this and a few other things.

Thanks!