Grayforge

I recently posted this on the Macan forum, and thought I'd share here too.

I wasn't enthusiastic about how aggressive the Macan seatbelt chime is. It starts nagging immediately after the belt is unbuckled (say when entering a parking garage or your driveway). Our Lexus had a way to disable its chime by actuating a sequence of buttons and controls. I don't think the same is possible on the Macan. The dealer might be able to disable it in software, but they probably don't want to.

So I found a hardware method. I got access to the seatbelt sensor plug and measured the resistance of the 2 wires with the belt plugged in and with the belt undone. Handily, the sensor/switch is open with the seatbelt plugged in and shorted when the seatbelt is undone. And no fancy resistances either, just a switch. So all that is needed is to disconnect the sensor.

Cautions: I left my key in the house, the car turned off and did not unplug anything except the seat belt plug. This was to make sure the car’s computer didn’t get upset seeing something disconnected that might cause it grief. Maybe not necessary, but just in case. Also, this disables the chime by making the car think the seatbelt is always attached. Use your own judgement when doing this regarding hurting driver or car. Your responsibility.

Here's how I did it:

Note that steps designated with a * were used to test the belt sensor. Not necessary for disabling the chime.

1. Slide the seat as far back as it'll go and pop off the clips that cover the mounting bolts.
Use a tiny screwdriver to pry up on the aft end.


2. Unbolt the 2 front seat to body bolts using a 12 point 10mm driver.
Some advise that these bolts are one time use, so for peace of mind, consider replacing them with
new ones. Sun Coast sells them for $2 apiece.


3. Slide the seat all the way forward and pop off the covers over the rear bolts. These pop off by pressing
forward on a tab on the aft end with a small screwdriver and lifting up.


4. Unbolt the rear bolts. I had to use a box end wrench to turn the 10mm 12pt driver instead of a
socket wrench since there's not much clearance there.


5. Find a piece of rubber or towel folded a couple times and place between the rear seat rails and the body.
This prevents the seat rails from digging into your carpet.

6. Lean the whole seat back, then tilt the seat back forward. I set the seat back tilt such that the seat rested
on the rear seat without pulling on the wiring going into the seat from the floor too much.

7. The seatbelt sensor plug is on the right side, just follow the wire from the buckle and it'll lead you to
the plug. Remove the plug from the seat attachment by pulling the tab at the arrow away from the plug,
towards the seat base and slide towards the tab. *


8. Using needle nose pliers, coax the pin holding the seatbelt wire to the seat base out. I also loosened
the zip tie that secures the wire further aft. I slid a thin screwdriver into the zip tie locking teeth to pull
them away from the zip tie a bit. This allows the wire to slide through the zip tie and give you some
more slack. *




9. Unplug the plug halves by pulling the little boxy tab with the nipple on it away
from the plug, then pull the plug halves apart. A small screwdriver might help.




10. That's it! Just zip tie the unplugged wires to secure them and reverse the steps above, leaving
the plug unplugged, of course.


10a. Closed circuit (0 resistance) with belt unlatched. *


10b. Open circuit (infinite resistance) with belt latched. *


No more seatbelt nag!

roule

Thank you Grayforge! Will do this on both front seats!

I always wear my seatbelt but I totally agree that the harsh chimes that automakers use is annoying.

cairo94507

That was an excellent step-by-step how to on an annoying chime many would prefer to silence. I know we all wear our seat belts as conscientious drivers and do not need a warning chime to remind us. Thanks for posting this. I do not presently own a Macan, but am just starting the process of seeing if the wife is ready to swap the C4S for the Macan.

KeninBlaine

I just turned down the level of the chime so it isn't as obnoxious. Great writeup though.

Grayforge

Thanks guys! Happy to share. :-)

roule

Can you recommend your method?

Using a bit of imagination, would it be fair to say there are several other methods of temporarily or permanently reducing the seatbelt chime?

1) unplug seatbelt latch sensor per Grayforge's instructions
2) turn down volume per Ken's recommendation
3) permanently cut/remove seatbelt latch sensor wiring?
4) permanently cut/remove/disable the chime itself?

other ideas?

davidc1

How do you turn down the volume?

KeninBlaine

See page 139 of Owner's manual "Adjusting volume of warning and information tones" Choice of volume is high, medium, and low.

davidc1

Thank you.