brickboard,

a few days ago i posted a message regarding seatbelt lights that produced a good bit of discussion.

having spent some time on my car yesterday, i can share with you the skinny.

both my 1989 and 1990 240 dls do in fact have tiny light bulbs inside the seatbelt "clasper". these bulbs light up the red "push" button on the clasper. they also illuminate the slot where the mating belt end clips in.

further, both of these cars also have a tiny light inside the console which illuminate the belt clasper slightly through tiny slots cut in the front side of the console. kind of a belt and suspenders setup.

if you have a 89 or a 90 240 dl chances are good that your lights are burned out.

replacing the bulbs takes a good bit of patience (more patience than i had yesterday). to replace the bulbs, here is my suggestion. be careful not to get in a hurry and break your console!

1 - slide your seats all the way forward.
2 - take out the 2 phillips screws near the back of your console.
3 - carefully, slide your belt claspers backwards so you can access the backs. (note that there is a metal stop that needs to come out of a hole in the console to allow the claspers to pivot back far enought to work.)
4 - open the trap door to access the bulbs.
5 - carefully replace the bulb and its small metal bulb retainer.
6 - refrain from taking a hammer to the clasper.
7 - refrain from dropping the f bomber in front of your 10-year-old.

hope this clears up the mystery.

2OldVolvos