Yaris MK1 2002 seatbelt stalk issue

[ffc]

Is there anyone out there that could give me some help please.

I recently picked up a 2002 Toyota Yaris CDX Auto 1.3 as I live close to the the horrible new ULEZ boundary, and this car is compliant.

It is great to drive and super efficient on petrol. However, the drivers side seatbelt stalk (grey receiver) has broken, and I need to find a replacement.

Upon researching, all aftermarket buckles seem to state that the tongue should be approx 21 to 21.5mm wide to fit them. I have measured it and it is between 24 to 25mm wide.

The only option I have is to buy a genuine Toyota buckle (see below);

• Toyota Yaris 1999-2005 Front Seat Belt Stalk1 × £30.01 from Toyota Parts Direct plus about £7 for p&p.

Have any of you any other suggestions, as this part has to be ordered in from Japan, as apparently there are none in the UK.

Any advice would be helpful.

Thanks,

Brian

[flash22]

That isn't a bad price for a new part, quick look on eBay they aren't much cheaper used

[Stevie J]

Best bet is a used one off a scrap car, look on eBay, I found one straight away. 

Dont forget they plug into the warning system for seatbelts as this is in the stalk, so an aftermarket one might not work and the Seatbelt warning light will be on even if buckle is pushed into the receiver.

Genuine Toyota Yaris 2001-2005 Front Seat Belt Buckle Stalk | eBay

[ffc]

Cheers Stevie. My Yaris up to 2005 I believe don't have the seatbelt warning light system.

I have looked on eBay at scrap prices and they are just as expensive as genuine Toyota ones.

The aftermarket ones seem to be okay but it's about the tongue size which is too small against my Toyota one.

Many thanks

Brian

 

[Stevie J]

Yep, I think you are right, although I had a Mk1 (1999) model for 5 years, I thought it had a little light on the dash that came on if you hadnt fastened your belt, but having looked at a photo I took of its dashboard, there is no light for it, just the door open warning light.

I am not sure if there is a difference though between the early Yaris mk1 built in Japan and the later ones built in France. I think the cutoff for Japan built ones was 2001, so yours is probably a french one, the vin should start VNK if its French. Quite a few parts did differ so you need to make sure the part you get fits the French built ones if your vin starts with VNK. I may be wrong and the seatbelt stalks were all the same, but if getting an OEM part means waiting forever for it to come from abroad, and the aftermarket ones wont fit, even if they say they are compatible with French built Yaris Mk1, then the only option open to you would be used salvage parts, and like you say, they are not that cheap either, but at least it would fit and be available quite quickly.

[ffc]

Thank you Stevie for such brilliant advice. You are spot on. The vin does start with VNK so it must be French. No wonder it's not the standard size. Waiting for an ETA from Toyota Parts Direct for an ETA. If too long, as you say, the only other option is to buy a salvage part.

Glad I visited on this site and for your kind assistance.

Kind regards

Brian

[Stevie J]

No problem, thats what these sites are here for, you'll usually find a whole host of knowledge here, there are some very experienced Yaris owners, and members that can advise on parts and technical issues.

If you go for a salvage part, I would make sure it is from a Yaris built from 2002 just to be doubly sure. I know when I have my Mk1, it was a Japan built car, being from 1999, and when I tried to get a rear windscreen wiper blade, I had real problems with getting the one I bought to fit, ie, it wouldnt, and it turned out that the rear window wiper differed between the Japan built Yaris and the later French built one. The French built one had a much more common and readily available wiper arm blade, but the one for my car was harder to get as it was a different design. Even the headlights differed between the early and later Mk1, and same with the rear light clusters.

The fact that your seatbelt tongue wont fit the buckle due to being the wrong dimension frankly doesnt surprise me. The issue of manufacturers using differing part specs over successive years of the same model marque has been going on since the year dot, and often wrong parts are supplied when they say they fit Mk1 Yaris.

Let us know how you get on, but for now, you could simply plug your seatbelt into the passenger buckle, it would work, but obviously wouldnt pass an MOT with a faulty buckle.

[ffc]

I hope Toyota in Swindon have it right. They told me there was only one available for my car. 

I ordered it and is due around 23 to 25th of this month.

I was able to sort of fix my broken buckle. The plastic completely fell apart and cannot be used, but with a bit of fiddling about, it does hold the belt in place.

The biggest pain was trying to get the bolt off from the car floor. You can't get a wrench between the seat to grab it, so I ended up having to remove the whole centre console over the gear stick. Then I couldn't find the right size wrench. Eventually I discovered it was a 9/16" old style bolt and managed to untighten it.

I have temporarily replaced it until the new one arrives. Probably doing it myself has saved me a hundred quid? Never too old to learn eh?

I will let you know if it fits once it arrives.

Thanks again.

 

[ffc]

On 9/9/2023 at 11:35 PM, ffc said:

I hope Toyota in Swindon have it right. They told me there was only one available for my car. 

I ordered it and is due around 23 to 25th of this month.

I was able to sort of fix my broken buckle. The plastic completely fell apart and cannot be used, but with a bit of fiddling about, it does hold the belt in place.

The biggest pain was trying to get the bolt off from the car floor. You can't get a wrench between the seat to grab it, so I ended up having to remove the whole centre console over the gear stick. Then I couldn't find the right size wrench. Eventually I discovered it was a 9/16" old style bolt and managed to untighten it.

I have temporarily replaced it until the new one arrives. Probably doing it myself has saved me a hundred quid? Never too old to learn eh?

I will let you know if it fits once it arrives.

Thanks again.

 

Hi Steve

The seatbelt buckle arrived and it was an exact match for original.

A bit tricky to get to a wrench around the bottom bolt but eventually managed it after removing centre console.

All working perfectly.

Many thanks for all your advice.

While on, I wondered if you knew a quick fix for the original fitted radio/cd player.

All working perfectly, then suddenly after radio playing for about 20 minutes the sound would stop and not turn back on.

All the stations were showing but no sound. Tried CD and the same with that. Following day it was okay but cut out again.

Now it wont make any sound at all, but stations still available and clock has worked throughout.

Any ideas where to look first. If it was a simple fuse, surely the clock and stations wouldn't appear?

Thank you.

 

 

[Stevie J]

Great that you got the seat belt buckle sorted - I presume it took longer than originally thought to come to you, as your last post was about 2 months ago. Well, they do say, the best things come to those who wait.

I would think the stereo system issue could be poor contacts or dry solder joint on the amplifier board, or some other PCB fault within the stereo unit. If it was speaker related then just one speaker would cut in and out, but total loss of sound would likely be an amp fault, or dry / bad soldered connection within the unit.

I am not sure where the amplifier resides on the Mk1, as it is split between the display in the upper part of the central dash, and the CD player and controls in the lower part of the dash. The fact that only upper models in the range such as the CDX and T spirit got the CD player, getting a second hand unit would be more tricky as they are in fewer numbers, and probably cost more. You have to remember too that these units will be getting on in years now, with the last ones made 18+ years ago, so the probability of failure in a replacement second hand unit would be quite high.

Taking the player out and seeing if you can find a local repairer may be an option, but I would imagine prices wont be cheap.