'96 Z-3 seat belt light stays on

[doc47]

Howdy! I know the Car Talk guys would recommend just putting a piece of black tape over the offending light, but I'm wondering if anyone knows how to fix this thing? Is it something I can do?

[MarcoZandrini]

Have you tried buckling the passenger seat seatbelt? The passenger seat occupancy sensor could be bad. Also, check both seatbelts’ “receiver” (the part into which the seatbelt “tongue” goes) for debris. There’s a switch in each receiver. It senses when the seatbelt tongue is properly in the receiver.
Are you experiencing any other electrical or electronic issues?

[shogun]

moved to Z3 forum

[doc47]

Marco, no. No other electrical problems. I'll check the passenger side and debris probs as you suggested. Thank you.
Shogun, I'm not sure what the 7 series has to do with the Z-3. Suggestions?

[Adker]

Try spraying some contact cleaner into the receiving latch. I have had good results with Deoxit D5 which is safe for plastics. It is a bit pricey but it works and some cleaners are hard on plastics. It normally take time and several latch cycles and applications to clean up the contacts so be patient. Also good for stuck window switches, door light switch, etc.

https://www.ebay.com/p/CAIG-DeoxIT-D...1785144&chn=ps

[CoconutPete]

During taking my drivers side seat apart I found the wire to the seat belt receptacle to be crushed and compromised. Perhaps worth a check?

[328 Power 04]

Is your airbag light on too?
First step here should be to read the codes.

[doc47]

During taking my drivers side seat apart I found the wire to the seat belt receptacle to be crushed and compromised. Perhaps worth a check?

I will do that. Thanks. I'm waiting for a warm day!

- - - Updated - - -

Is your airbag light on too?
First step here should be to read the codes.

No. Only the seatbelt light. I will check at an autoparts store to see if they have a code-reader I can use. Good idea. Thanks!

[me77]

Auto parts store code reader won't read SRS & airbag codes.