Are 'all' - ie most - seat belt fittings the same?

ThisIsWeird

Hi.

We have a broken seat belt buckle on our Fiat Ducato minibus. Spares seem hard to get, tho' I'm trying. I suspect a new original part will be £illy.

But, there seems to be plenty of very similar alternatives, such as those used on lap belts on many cars.

Most male parts are 21-22mm wide and look very similar. Anyone know if they are interchangeable?

This is the type that needs replacing - ~200mm overall length, and with a webbed section:

and this, for example, looks to be suitable: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/353536382351?

Anyone able to confirm, please?! 

Thanks

molerat

They are not all the same and similar looking ones may not fit.  Is there a part number on your buckle ?

ThisIsWeird

Thanks Mole.

The plastic case - which came off (and one side lost - dammit) has 17 09 26 on it.

When I'm next down I can remove the affected buckle and try it on my own car, a pre-merger Citroen, so I guess if that fits I should be safe getting one from a different model Fiat! 

I'll take dimensions of the male part too, so can compare these.

facade

Trace the male part on paper and compare it with other cars- most rear belts have 2 different buckles & tangs, the one for the centre lap belt won't fasten in the outside buckles, and vice versa, even though they look similar

daivid

Trace or accurately measure the male the part, ring round breakers yards to find one with fiats (ideally another ducato). If you find a breakers yard with suitable vehicles nearby do see if the parts match.

The other option which may cost no more would be to replace both parts of the seat belt.

Slinky

Did this break during a crash? The seatbelts should be replaced if so.

ThisIsWeird

facade said:

Trace the male part on paper and compare it with other cars- most rear belts have 2 different buckles & tangs, the one for the centre lap belt won't fasten in the outside buckles, and vice versa, even though they look similar

Good point - I recall that from my last car, with the kids in the back moaning the belt wouldn't fit...

So that begs the Q - will the Fiat Panda rear lap belts be the standard or centre type?! Lawdie...

ThisIsWeird

daivid said:

Trace or accurately measure the male the part, ring round breakers yards to find one with fiats (ideally another ducato). If you find a breakers yard with suitable vehicles nearby do see if the parts match.

The other option which may cost no more would be to replace both parts of the seat belt.

Cheers. Minibuses are few and far between, sadly. I do have three 'requests' out with national breakers, and one with the only Minibus being broken on eBay.

Replacing both parts with new will undoubtedly be costly.

ThisIsWeird

Slinky said:

Did this break during a crash? The seatbelts should be replaced if so.

No, just the outer casing split in half and fell off, on a 20k mile 'bus. Annoyingly, I found both halves on the floor, and put them in the door bin so I could sort them later. Now I find only one... :-(

ThisIsWeird

Just measured my Citroen's. Well, didn't even have to - completely different!

daivid

https://www.universalseatbelts.co.uk/product/black-webbed-seatbelt-receiver/ £13 for a 'universal' receiver 'for 99.9% of most vehicles' 🤔 and says contact them for further info. I have had no dealings with the retailer but could be worth a punt. If the universal is no good, buying a complete seatbelt doesn't seem too costly. Website says all belts meet necessary standards though you would need to do your own diligence, particularly if the minibus is used beyond domestic use.