NHTSA Complaint #10240561 — 2004 CADILLAC DEVILLE

AFTER SHORT LOCAL DRIVE OF ABOUT 20 MILES, I STOPPED FOR GAS AND FILLED MY TANK. I WAS ALONE IN VEHICLE, NO PASSENGER, AND WHEN I RESTARTED MY CAR I SMELLED SOMETHING BURNING. IN SECONDS, I OBSERVED WHITE SMOKE POURING OUT OF PASSENGER SEAT BELT RETRACTOR. THE CAR IMMEDIATELY FILLED WITH SMOKE. I EXITED CAR AND RAN AROUND CAR AND OPENED BOTH PASSENGER SIDE DOORS LETTING SMOKE OUT. THE SMOKE WAS STILL COMING OUT AND I WAS STILL PARKED AT GAS PUMP, SO I LEFT THE DOORS OPENED, GOT BACK IN THE CAR AND MOVED IT TO A SAFER PLACE. BY THE TIME I HAD MOVED THE CAR, THE SEAT HAD STOPPED BURNING, SO I WAITED A FEW MINUTES AND DROVE THE CAR HOME ABOUT FIVE MILES. THE CAR HAD AN UNBELIEVABLE BAD SMELL IN IT THAT BURNED MY EYES AND GAVE ME A HEADACHE. I TOOK THE CAR TO MY LOCAL GM DEALER AND THEY REPAIRED THE SEAT BY REPLACING THE LUMBAR SWITCH AND SWITCH HOLDER UNDER WARRANTY. MY CONCERN IS THAT IF THIS SEAT COULD CATCH FIRE WITHOUT ANYONE EVEN SITTING IN IT, THEN THE DRIVERS SEAT WOULD EVEN BE MORE AT RISK. MY OTHER CONCERN IS THAT IF THIS FIRE HAD STARTED WHILE DRIVING THROUGH A CITY, THE SPEED AT WHICH THE CAR FILLED WITH SMOKE WOULD HAVE MADE IT EXTREMELY DANGEROUS GETTING SAFELY OFF THE ROAD. MY DEALER TRIED TO ASSURE ME THAT IT HAD NOT HAPPENED BEFORE AND IT WOULD BE VERY UNLIKELY TO HAPPEN AGAIN. I STILL DO NOT TRUST THIS VEHICLE AND I WILL MOST LIKELY TRADE IT IN BUT I THINK THIS PROBLEM SHOULD BE RESEARCHED BY SOMEONE OTHER THAN A GM DEALER. I'M CERTAIN PARTS ARE NO LONGER AVAILABLE. *TR