Seat Belt complaints by model year
Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (buckles, retractors, anchors and pretensioners).
Mileage when the problem started
What owners report
2000 Ford Contour se sport automatic, 64,200 miles. My pregnant wife and I were rear ended by a man in a Ford cargo van doing about 40 MPH, not paying attention. Conditions were sunny and warm, about 1:15 pm. I was the driver and was at a complete stop, waiting for a Ford taurus in front of me to turn left onto a side street. During the collision the front driver and passenger seats broke into a reclined position (we both ended up looking at the roof because of the seat position) which would have crushed the legs of rear seat passengers. The front passenger seat belt became unbuckled as well. I was pushed into the taurus but the air bags did not deploy. Vehicle was a total loss.
While driving at 45 MPH vehicle was involved in a frontal collision, driver's seat belt buckle released the seat belt. Consumer sustained head injuries. Dealership was notified, but did not resolve the problem.
I have had problems with the seat belts in my car for about a year. Both seat belts in the front don't seem to retract and get tangeled and twisted all the time. I have manually adjusted them everytime I drove. Just 5 months ago I was involved in a car accident, I was stopped in traffic at a light and was rear ended causing me to hit the car infront of me. I hit my head on the steering wheel causing me a concusion. My seat belt did not retract to hold me back and the air bag did not deploy. I have called Ford and they told me that I should pay for the seat belts to be fixed and they did not metion anything about the airbag. I managed to untangle the seat belts on my car and I have noticed that the buckles are facing the wrong way. This I compared to other cars and fords as well.
While wearing my seat belt which I always check to be sure it is fastened I fell asleep at the wheel. I hit the left barrier and jerked the wheel. That is all I remember. When I woke up the car was upside down and I was laying on the roof on my stomach facing forward. The seat belt came unbuckled and the air bag did not deploy. It appears I was thrown into the empty passenger seat as it was broken. I am upset the belt came unbuckled. The car was a 1999 Ford Contour se. I had no buckle problems in the past.
I was rear ended into another car on oct.29 2002 and niether the air bag worked as well as the seatbelt did not lock. I had head, neck, and back injuries at that time. I did't question these things not working because I was not hit hard. Oct. 27,2003 I was involved in the exact same type of accident only this time I was hit hard from behind and hit the car infront of me hard. Again nothing worked and this time the police even questioned the air bag. Again I have injuries to my face, head, neck, shoulder, and back but to what extent I do not know yet. I was at a complete stop in both accidents and hit straight on in the rear. In 2002 I hit the car in front straight on and now in 2003 I hit the front can with the center to passenger side. My car is said to be totaled.
Car turned over upside down in small creek. Safety belt of driver and rear passenger failed to release after multiple attempts by driver. The rear passenger was my two year old daughter and she died, because the safety belts failed to release and jammed. She drowned and my sister in law was the driver and almost died due to the safety belts jamming and not releasing, so she was unable to get to my daughter. The first people on the scene had to cut the safety belts for them to get them both out of the car and it was to late for my daughter. The creek was less than 18 inches deep. Car only turned over one time to upside down position and approximate speed was twenty miles an hour. My daughter had no other injuries from the accident except for drowning (I have read her medical records thoroughly). My sister in law had no other injuries except for near drowning and 2 small cut's. …
While slowing to turn, vehicle was struck from behind, other vehicle was moving from 35-40 MPH. At impact, driver seatbelt came unlatched, causing driver to slide forward, hitting knee on dashboard hard enough to dislodge radio. After main repairs, vehicle was taken to martin Ford sales, union grove, wi. Their inspection found a small piece of plastic or cellophane, no more than an 1/8" thick and 1/2" long. After being unable to duplicate the problem with panic stops, they said the debris 'might have caused the concern'. They would not replace the seatbelt or look into it further. We do not feel that the small piece of cellophane could have caused the problem, nor do we feel that panic stops duplicate a rear-end collison.
Dealer refuses to repair vehicle under safety liability. Claims not under warranty >50K miles. The seat belt in a car should never fail, the driver's side seat belts do not latch, the red release button doesn't move.
Related recalls (2)
Seat belts
Vehicle description: passenger vehicles, light duty trucks, sport utility vehicles, and Mini vans equipped with trw seat belt buckle assemblies. The buckle base of these seat belt assemblies were not properly heat treated and therefore do not pass the load bearing requirement of federal motor vehicle safety standard no.
Remedy: Dealers will inspect the date code on certain seat belt buckles of your vehicle and replace all seat belt buckles that fall within the suspect date code range. Owner notification began October 26, 2000.
Seat belts › Front › Anchorage
Cracks have been found in the front safety belt outboard anchor tabs due to a combination of hydrogen embrittlement of the tab and stress introduced during attachment of the anchor tab to the seat frame. This does not conform with the requirements of FMVSS no. 210, "seat belt assembly anchorages."
Remedy: Dealers will inspect and install an anchor tab reinforcement or replacement of the complete front seat belt assembly if an anchor tab is found to have fractured.
Frequently asked questions
Which Ford Contour years have seat belt problems?
By NHTSA complaints, the 1995 (43), 1999 (24), 1998 (18), 1996 (14) and 1997 (5) model years. Seat Belt complaints make up 5% of all complaints for the 1995.
Is there a recall for Ford Contour seat belt problems?
Yes — 2 recalls, including 00V228001 (seat belts, Aug 18, 2000); 95V-228 (anchorage, Dec 4, 1995). Recall repairs are free at authorized dealers; check a specific car with the VIN recall check.
At what mileage do Ford Contour seat belt problems start?
Across all years, half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 65,000 miles; 9% happened before 50,000 miles.
What part fails most often?
Owners most often name the front › buckle assembly (27 mentions), followed by the front › anchorage (23).
Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) — owner complaints through October 20, 2026, recalls and defect investigations; fuel economy from the EPA. Complaints are unverified reports and are not proof of a defect. How we rate model years.