Tyheethan

Last week we just bought the 97 CTD listed in my signature. I know she has a few minor issues we need to deal with (tires, parking brake not working, seat belt light on dash won't go off), but I feel like we got a good deal $6k.

Anyhow, does anyone have any ideas as to where do I start with troubleshooting the parking brake issue. This is the first manual tranny CTD I have had and with autos, the parking brake usually isn't an issue.

Also, any ideas on the seat belt light staying on?

Thanks!

KHoffman

The E-brake could be a number of things,need more info on what about it isn't working. The seatbelt light is controlled by a microswitch in the drivers seatbelt buckle. Try checking the wires going to it under the seat, but probably the switch is broken.

mishkaya

When I bought my '01 the parking brake wasn't working either and in my case it was one of the cables that was seized due to rusting. As for the seatbelt light, I took care of the problem permanently by shunting the wires from the seatbelt switch as I always wear my seatbelt but turn the ignition switch to run before I attach the seatbelt to give the grid heaters time to do their thing , but I can't stand the dinger going off all the time.
mishkaya

johnh

i must have a strange truck, i don't have a seat belt light or any wires going to them... i know because i took them out to r & r the seats

torquefan

Make sure somebody hasn't defeated the airbag. If the ACM (airbag controller) detects a fault in the airbag system it turns on the airbag lamp. If it can't turn on the airbag lamp, (someone has removed the bulb, for instance) it is designed to turn on the seatbelt lamp.

SIXSLUG

My truck started doing this and I found the switch in the seatbelt latch to be bad. The dealer wanted 90 bucks to diagnose it so I drove away and unhooked the connector under the middle seat. I always buckle up so its not a problem. Kurt

Joseph H. Smith

I have a 98 qc and I bought the manuals new with the truck. I have the same light on but according to the manual this does not have anything to do with whether or not your seat belt is fastened. It does a self diagnostic on the seat belt system. It is electric because it goes through the seat and is not attached to the frame of the truck. When that light illuminates it means there is an electrical problem with the system and not with the seat belt switch on the buckle.

SIXSLUG

If I wiggled the buckle I could get the light to go on and off. JHS, What have I done by disconnecting the plug? Kurt

Joseph H. Smith

Give me a little time to get into the manual as it has been awhile since I went over the system.

SIXSLUG

Thanks, Joseph. I just want to be sure it didn't affect the airbag. Kurt

Tyheethan

I'm interested in this too JHS as I want to know if I have a problem with the airbag that the seatbelt light is trying to tell me about.

Joseph H. Smith

The seat belt light on the dash indicates the drivers side seat belt is not buckled for the first 10 seconds after you turn on the key. After that it has 2 functions. First as since the seat belt is part of the seat and not anchored to the truck the seat belt locking mechanism is operated by solenoids at the reals in the seats. The system is controled by a module below the center consol. It has an impact sensor that when it senses an impact it shuts off the power to the solenoids thus locking the reels not allowing the seat belts to extend. When you turn the key on it energizes the soleniods and releases the reels to be able to pull them out and put them on. When you turn off the key there is a 30 minute timer that allows the seat belts to be extended so you can get out of them. It is only 30 minutes as Dodge did not want it to run down the batteries.

The second function for the seat belt light which I forgot about is it is used as a backup to the airbag light indicator. If the ACM display control detects the airbag light is not working it will use the seat belt light as a backup to inform you that you have a problem with the airbag system.

After the 10 seconds has elapsed from turning on the ignition key if there are not problems with the seat belts and your airbag light is not burnt out (and the airbag system does not have a problem) the seat belt light will turn off. It will let you know that your drivers side seat belt is not fastened with a chime and not the light. There is a procedure for doing a self test on the seat belt system in which it tests whether or not the soleniods are working. If you want that let me know and I will e-mail it to you a scanned copy as opposed to writing it out here. My e-mail is horsehead7@excite.com. Let me know.

SIXSLUG

Thanks Joseph. My airbag light is working as is the seatbelt light at startup. This problem started for my truck about a year ago and the seat belt light would flicker on/off while driving. After figuring out is was the buckle portion I took it to the dealer to get it checked out and they wanted 85$ to look at it and get the vin #. I walked out. After searching for a new buckle online and not having much luck I just unhooked the plug at the wires under the seat that engages the buckle. I kind of forgot about it until I saw this post! Before this occured I checked to see if the solenoids were locking my belts and after a couple hours I could still unreel them thru an open window. Do you know if the 01's had these solenoids? I checked the drain on the batteries and could only detect the underhood light drawing any power. Thanks, Kurt

Joseph H. Smith

Since you have a quadcab the seat belts should go into your seats. Since they do there has to be an electric function/control. I would assume that it is still the same but you could just call and talk to your local dealer parts room or service department. I have found that most will talk to you without a problem. If you can get your hands on a hanes or chiltons they should tell you. My book is from chrysler and only for my year so I cannot verify if yours does or not. I would still call a dealer and just talk to them. I still buy parts from a couple of dealers (depending on what it is) so they are very helpful on stuff even though I won't be using them for that particular repair.
Let me know what you find out. Joe

SIXSLUG

I'll do that, thanks. Kurt