Who cleans their seatbelts?

[BHopkins]

That's how it starts. Next thing you know you are removing the dash to clean under it. Plus the console, seats, carpet etc, it becomes an obsession but at least the next owner gets a well cared for car to trash.

I maintain my cars for my pleasure and enjoyment, not for the next owner.

 

[BHopkins]

there is a reason why 99% of the seat belts are in black colour

Because most car manufacturers are more about providing the best balance of price for the consumer and profit for the company, instead of an attractive interior?

 

[wbwanzer]

I've been driving for 59 years and it has never occurred to me to clean my seatbelts. They don't look dirty, maybe because I don't eat in the car.

 

[Arc]

I maintain my cars for my pleasure and enjoyment, not for the next owner.

I do too but I also want the next guy to see how well it was cared for. When I sold my Mustang I bought probably a $100 dollars worth of new cleaning supplies and put them in the trunk. I saw the car a few years later in a parking lot and it was trashed. Wasted time and money plus it had one of those color changing paint jobs. What a shame to see such a nice hotrod with all that work done on it to end up being so badly treated.

 

[Arc]

Possibly the wrong emphasis.
One has an easier time selling a well-cared for car.

I never have much trouble selling any of my cars. I basically give them away at a low price. Some I actually give away for free. Better to give than to receive

 

[Arc]

In my defense, I had to do it.

My dog had a very bad seizure in the car on the way to the vet. It left a lot of .... remnants. He didn't make it.

I'm sorry to hear that. I also went through that a few years back. Poor little guy got bit by a poisonous snake and took his last breath when I turned in to the vets office. He's the one in my pic. That was a sad day so I understand how you feel.

 

[joekingcorvette]

Sorry to hear of the dog losses. Yes, I occasionally do a quick wipe down of my seat belts. I did a deep cleaning of the seat belt on my 2012 Honda Civic which had 153,000 miles on it. After years of use the drivers side was a little dirty and I cleaned the entire belt and it looked like new. I keep my cars clean and detailed all the time.

 

[BHopkins]

I've been driving for 59 years and it has never occurred to me to clean my seatbelts. They don't look dirty, maybe because I don't eat in the car.

While not all of it, eating in a car is a huge part of what makes seat belts dirty. When I used to supervise the test lab in a seat belt manufacturing facility, we would get seat belts to evaluate, that had were replaced in cars on warranty.

What we found from our evaluations, is that the vast majority of warranty returned seat belt buckles malfunctioned because of filth that was inside the buckle mechanism. That filth often included pieces of dried up, salty, greasy French fries, pieces of gooey candy, chocolate and such. And the occasional dime or penny.

I'm sure you have seen, the word "PRESS" is molded into many seat belt release buttons. It was always a clue of what may be inside the buckle, by how full the "PRESS" lettering was with dirt and filth. Since then, it has always been a pet peeve of mine to keep that lettering like new clean, on seat belt buckles in my cars.

 

[PF52]

I used to have a Ford Ranger as a company truck; it was a hand-me-down from a few other guys before me. I had to clean the seatbelts, the steering wheel, and a whole bunch of other stuff when I first got it. I knew the belts were filthy when I'd get home and find my sweaty shirt had a dark streak on it from the belt! And the hard rubber Ford uses for their steering wheels could accumulate enough layers of crud on them you could scrape it off with a knife. On the plus side, it was the only used Ranger I'd ever driven that didn't have the seat caved in due to broken springs. Most of them were like sitting in a hole!