1st Gen - Driver's Seat Issue

[illzoni]

I'm having issues with my 1987 driver's seat...

The seat has been pretty good since buying the T4R about 2 years ago. Doesn't sag in the wrong places, cover is in decent shape, and used to do the basic mechanical stuff as it should.

A few days ago, as I arched my back up to adjust the beaded seat under my farse, putting extra strain on the upper part or the seat, it kinda ratcheted back a couple of settings toward reclining. As it used to work, the first spot was most upright position which I didn't like for driving. The next position I could use if I wanted to be very upright. And the third position was the one I used most. Now the best I can do is the fourth position, which is more recline than I like.

Can I do anything to remedy this?
Should I just replace it?
What could/should I replace it with?

Thx,
Jon

 

[Bad_Vision]

its a simple cog set up on the bottom part of the seat is a cog with notches dictating position of the upper section. on the upper section is a tooth fitting that fits into the lower cog.
with too much pressure you can cause a bend in the teeth or damage to the cog.
without seeing pictures of the mechanism i couldn't tell you if its fixable.
if you can pull the seat out and pull the side covers off and get some picks of the mechanism this will show the problem and if there is a way to fix it.
worse case scenario is that you'll need to replace this mechanism with a junkyard its easy to do if the seat is out.

 

[illzoni]

Okay, I'll check what I can see this weekend.

Thx,
Jon

 

[the_dingman]

For reference when working on it, the seats are held in by 4 (14mm I think) bolts, and are VERY easy to remove. I'd take it out to have a better look at it.

With how easy they come out, I often remove my seats when cleaning or working in the back seat.

 

[illzoni]

For reference when working on it, the seats are held in by 4 (14mm I think) bolts, and are VERY easy to remove. I'd take it out to have a better look at it.

With how easy they come out, I often remove my seats when cleaning or working in the back seat.

Cool. Thanks.

 

[illzoni]

Well, it's not good...

It's not the ratchet system, but the seat back itself that has failed. The attached photos show how the welds have broken where the seat frame attaches to the mounting bracket.

I have a friend with some welding experience and this doesn't look too complicated. Think we can handle it?

Or should I just get a new seat or seat back? Where?

Thx,
Jon

 

[Iroke17]

Looks like a simple weld.

 

[fourwd1]

Find someone that can do some simple spotwelds for you and buy them a 6 pack.

 

[illzoni]

Fixed.

My friend with the welder isn't particularly artful, but the price was right!

I've reposted the before photos along with after. When I view them in preview they're side-by-side. I did quite a bit of grinding to clean them up. I think they're pretty solid and I shouldn't have further problems.

The last photo shows a bracket with holds the lower end of the adjustable bolster. The second to last shows the other one after repair. I actually had the seat nearly reassembled after the first batch of welding when I found the fixed bracket was somewhat out of position. With the geometry crucial to the bolsters lining up correctly, I attempted to persuade it into correct position...and the welds broke. So I did a good job of cleaning it up and waited for my friend to become available for a second time yesterday. Since these welds won't contact anything (and they'd be impossible to get to) I didn't grind them at all.

My seat is back to normal operation. I'm thrilled.

 

[Bad_Vision]

HOLY **** SPATTER BATMAN
it should be good right up until you get thrown threw the windshield but if you impact that hard your seat will be the last of your problem....lol
it looks ok should hold up just make sure you use the seat belts ok

 

[illzoni]

Failed. :-(

 

[KidVermicious]

Failed. :-(

I didn't see this before, but I coulda told you those booger welds weren't going to hold. That looks like something I'd do, and I can't weld for crap.

If you don't know anybody that can weld (i.e., not your friend), I'd check around the smaller 4x4 and fab shops. Find a local 4wheeling club or two and post up asking for help. You'll likely find somebody to charge you just a basic shop rate (1/2hour for that, tops) or a few beers. Getting my sliders welded on was a couple hours of prep and welding, and I paid for it with a couple buckets of random Toyota parts I had lying around the garage that dudeman needed and I didn't. Just ask around.

 

[illzoni]

From what I can tell, I think this weld failed: