[lz419]

this is just brilliant !!!!

[iDriveABeamer]

you are a genius.

[Josey McWales]

There are two problems in the seat belt extender: the weak spring and the L shaped metal piece where the spring is attached.

The spring is so weak that the piece of metal can move easily towards the end of the arm. If that piece of metal moves the belt retainer won't be able to push the belt and will let it go. That piece of metal is weak too and sometime it breaks near the point where the spring is attached.

Definitive fix: pull that piece of metal all the way back and lock it in position with a small screw. Screw length should be about 7mm and the screw must be cut flush with the inner surface of the piece of metal we want to lock.

Once that piece of metal is held in place by the screw you can even remove the spring.

[sankohuy]

Originally Posted by Josey McWales

There are two problems in the seat belt extender: the weak spring and the L shaped metal piece where the spring is attached.

The spring is so weak that the piece of metal can move easily towards the end of the arm. If that piece of metal moves the belt retainer won't be able to push the belt and will let it go. That piece of metal is weak too and sometime it breaks near the point where the spring is attached.

Definitive fix: pull that piece of metal all the way back and lock it in position with a small screw. Screw length should be about 7mm and the screw must be cut flush with the inner surface of the piece of metal we want to lock.

Once that piece of metal is held in place by the screw you can even remove the spring.

You know how do I keep the arm from retracting so I can work on it? Or do I have to take out the whole arm?

[ssshake]

Originally Posted by sankohuy

You know how do I keep the arm from retracting so I can work on it? Or do I have to take out the whole arm?

You asked this a long time ago now but I just did this today. You go to the fuse box in your glove box, pull out fuse #30 with pliers. Do this while it's extended. To find out which is fuse 30 look at the paper map that is on the fuse box cover.

[ssshake]

Originally Posted by Josey McWales

There are two problems in the seat belt extender: the weak spring and the L shaped metal piece where the spring is attached.

The spring is so weak that the piece of metal can move easily towards the end of the arm. If that piece of metal moves the belt retainer won't be able to push the belt and will let it go. That piece of metal is weak too and sometime it breaks near the point where the spring is attached.

Definitive fix: pull that piece of metal all the way back and lock it in position with a small screw. Screw length should be about 7mm and the screw must be cut flush with the inner surface of the piece of metal we want to lock.

Once that piece of metal is held in place by the screw you can even remove the spring.

Thanks for this info. I checked mine today and found the metal piece was broken in the same spot. What happened that I found interesting is that the loose metal piece itself was the problem. It was causing obstruction of the butlers "hand" working properly. Either not springing open when it starts to come out, or not locking into place before it grabs the belt.

I removed the piece and it seems to be fine now. I have some questions about what you did.

Why did you have to screw the remaining part of that metal piece in, where as I havent and so far it seems to work as designed. Not sure what I'm missing there.

You said you can "remove the spring" after you secure it. How come? Isn't the spring needed to perform some function, and how does screwing it in eliminate the need for it?

If anyone has this problem, extend the arm, pull fuse #30 in the glove box, open the door, pull the "hand" a bit (it's spring loaded to is pulls out another half inch). Look at this metal bracket and see if it's broken.

Thanks!

[ssshake]

One more piece of advice for people chasing this issue. Seat belt slack is supposedly another issue that causes this. And a solution I've read is using bushings or a tube like this to force the bottom position of the belt to help it engage.


http://www.bimmerfest.com/forums/sho...91#post9111991

If you want to rule this out, before investing effort and money, simply get something you can stuff between the rail and carpet to hold the belt in place on the rail. You could use a sponge, a rag, I used a chunk of packing foam from a box my laptop came in. You can experiment with different positions. I found it did nothing, which then led me to realize the hand wasn't opening and locking properly.

[baseking]

First of all thanks for the cool ideas about fixing the issue, but they seemed a bit crazy - ironing+starch; and a bit ineffective - folding worked for 5 minutes and then it was back to not working.

I am still experimenting with a cooler/better version of my method, but here is what I got for now.

Get a hair pin or two (looks like this).

Move the metal part of the seat belt, above the horizontal line where the butler would grip the belt, and hold it there.

Now slide the pin around the seat belt (outwards towards the inside of the car, squiggly part towards you) at around the same level the trim line above the butler is. This should be about 6.5" away to the right (driver side) of the seat belt buckle stopper button.

Now let the metal part rest on the pin, it should do so with ease. The buckle should be just a finger or less above the trim line.

Time to test it out - close the door and press the start button to trigger the butler. It should work if the pin/buckle are around 1/4" or a bit more above the place where the butler grips. If the buckle is caught by the butler you have it too low, move it up a bit and try again - the buckle would fall towards the door of the car, instead of the usual fall towards the seat.

It actually should improve the buckle position as well, the butler should be holding the buckle a bit above it, easy for gripping with your hand and pulling gently to buckle yourself in. Note that the flat part of the pin is now on your stomach, it shouldn't be moving left/right after it's pressing on your stomach, but your results may vary.

Here's a short illustrative video of the problem and the solution - the buckle is not on top of the pin, but you get the idea.

Would really appreciate any feedback - does it work for you ?
Or any ideas on what else one could use, the idea of having a potentially sharp metal getting stuck in your gut is not a good one. For now I was thinking velcro tie/rubber bands/seat belt button stop higher/tie pin/etc.

[ssshake]

I'm starting to wonder if the seat belt tension matters. I've noticed that the seat belts on the sedans have a less aggressive tensioner. (easier to pull the belt out). I wonder if the issue is related to the resistance of the belt. If it came out with less force required it might no get pulled off the butler hand. Can't do much with this info just a thought.

[delmarco]

The minute I saw this in all the review videos when the E92 came out I knew it was one of those BMW things that would eventually not work or cost second and third owners lots of headaches down the line.

[baseking]

Originally Posted by ssshake

I'm starting to wonder if the seat belt tension matters. I've noticed that the seat belts on the sedans have a less aggressive tensioner. (easier to pull the belt out). I wonder if the issue is related to the resistance of the belt. If it came out with less force required it might no get pulled off the butler hand. Can't do much with this info just a thought.

I don't think it's the tension, at least not my seat belts. Although I did notice that a couple of times the seat belt rests on the backseat in a way that bends the fabric towards the middle of the vehicle, this prevented the butler from catching on to it. I'm not sure how to replicate this though, doesn't seem to happen like 99% of the time.

I just put a small (1 to 1.5 inch) rubber stopper on the seat belt rail to keep it from touching the back seats too much. Here's an amazon link to the rubber thingie I used.

[ChadAndreoPhoto]

Originally Posted by ssshake

Thanks for this info. I checked mine today and found the metal piece was broken in the same spot. What happened that I found interesting is that the loose metal piece itself was the problem. It was causing obstruction of the butlers "hand" working properly. Either not springing open when it starts to come out, or not locking into place before it grabs the belt.

I removed the piece and it seems to be fine now. I have some questions about what you did.

Why did you have to screw the remaining part of that metal piece in, where as I havent and so far it seems to work as designed. Not sure what I'm missing there.

You said you can "remove the spring" after you secure it. How come? Isn't the spring needed to perform some function, and how does screwing it in eliminate the need for it?

If anyone has this problem, extend the arm, pull fuse #30 in the glove box, open the door, pull the "hand" a bit (it's spring loaded to is pulls out another half inch). Look at this metal bracket and see if it's broken.

Thanks!

Any luck with finding an answer as to how drilling a screw into the side can fix the problem?

[GORDON.M3]

Originally Posted by Josey McWales

There are two problems in the seat belt extender: the weak spring and the L shaped metal piece where the spring is attached.

The spring is so weak that the piece of metal can move easily towards the end of the arm. If that piece of metal moves the belt retainer won't be able to push the belt and will let it go. That piece of metal is weak too and sometime it breaks near the point where the spring is attached.

Definitive fix: pull that piece of metal all the way back and lock it in position with a small screw. Screw length should be about 7mm and the screw must be cut flush with the inner surface of the piece of metal we want to lock.

Once that piece of metal is held in place by the screw you can even remove the spring.

Thank you so much, I got rid of the spring completely, everything works perfect now.

Any idea why the spring was there in the first place?

[905SlowE92]

This is fantastic! My passenger side was not hooking all the time, I literally went and did the folding method on the belt and it works like magic!

[Hayk90]

The L shaped metal piece was my issue. I found it wedged in an awkward position that kept the arm from opening and closing properly. Once I removed part of the broken piece, it started to function again and seems to work well. I may have to go back and secure the other half of it, as it missed the belt once or twice.