MY08 GTB Drivers Seat base tilt issue

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MY08 GTB Drivers Seat base tilt issue

Postby edy80y » Fri Jan 10, 2014 9:32 am

Hi All,

When i tilt up the front end of the seat base only the right hand side moves up and left stays down, i.e. only my right knee goes up.

Has anyone had any experience with inspecting the mechanics of the powered seat base? And once i remove the seat from the car, how much of the seat would i need to disassemble to get to the guts of the base? (i.e. can i leave the back rest connected and only work on the base??)

Cheers,

Eddie
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Re: MY08 GTB Drivers Seat base tilt issue

Postby RX25SE » Fri Jan 10, 2014 12:44 pm

I had the same issue with my 07 30RB a couple of weeks ago.
Sounds like the left mounting tab has snapped the spot welds where it attaches to the base.

You will need to remove the seat and remove the squab (back) before you strip the cushion down to a bare frame.

Start by removing the drive motors and brackets from underneath. You will see the pivot points for the height and tilt (one tilt will be broken) just undo the pivot bolts (you will need allen keys and tork bits) and the entire mechanism should come free.

From there you need to remove the cushion cover by undoing the rail clips from the edges. The cover should come off with the cushion foam in one piece leaving the bare frame.

Then its just a matter of welding the broken tab (use a Mig or Tig as the metal is quite thin) back on using the old spot welds to align it. I ran a weld along all the joints in the cushion frame as I didnt like the look of the factory spot welds.

Assemble in the reverse procedure taking note of the cable routing and clips so the cable wont be damaged as the seat is operated.

Allow a few hours to do the job.

Fairly sure I have the sequence correct, I didnt really take much notice when I was doing it.
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Re: MY08 GTB Drivers Seat base tilt issue

Postby bigBADbenny » Fri Jan 10, 2014 1:54 pm

Mine has the exact same issue as RX25SE seat.

It happened to mine as I improperly reassembled the seat after doing some work on it...

Or it just snapped at that spot. Its just a spot weld iirc.

I'll get around to fixing it one day and can do yours too if local to me in Melb.

Seat removal is easy: but take care to put the window down & to cover the door cards with a doona/s as the seat mounts wreck the armrests/cards.

Also take care to remove all the plugs.

A 12v power supply is handy for moving the seat base into the right position to enable the seat base to be unbolted.

You'll need a decent wrench/socket/ratcheting with wobblers kit to do it and a ton of patience.

The base will probably need to be stripped in order to be welded, if you break a hog ring, a zip tie can substitute ;)

PS I didnt need to do anything much to the seat back, I just attacked the base.


OR: or could just be the motor has a sticky brush or is filled with brush dust, a common issue with older Libs.

The solution can be as simple as the technical tap to loosen the brush or remove the motor, open inspect and clean.

Reassemble with care : I had to make a wee wire jig to hold the brushes in place whilst replacing the core.

Let me know if you need more help.
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Re: MY08 GTB Drivers Seat base tilt issue

Postby edy80y » Fri Jan 10, 2014 3:03 pm

Thanks guys, the explanations have ample detail, all i need is a day with no interruptions.

Will keep you all posted.
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Re: MY08 GTB Drivers Seat base tilt issue

Postby bigBADbenny » Fri Jan 10, 2014 3:51 pm

The bit I forgot to mention is to test tilt operation before reinstalling the seat.

The issues can be a little tab in the mechanism, its probably a stop or a lock, catches on itself and pops the weld.

Good luck with the pending fix/es ;)
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Re: MY08 GTB Drivers Seat base tilt issue

Postby tom_kauf » Wed Dec 09, 2015 12:29 am

Same thing happened today to mine :?.
I wasn't even adjusting it - it just made a noise and collapsed.
Seems to be semi common.
Funny how I sometimes read something, and a year or more later it happens (and I remember having read about it lol).

Time to get it welded back on :).
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Re: MY08 GTB Drivers Seat base tilt issue

Postby bigBADbenny » Wed Dec 09, 2015 6:11 am

Id say a locktited nut n bolt with washers would suffice. :)
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Re: MY08 GTB Drivers Seat base tilt issue

Postby BillyCorgi » Wed Dec 09, 2015 6:51 am

One of the electric adjustment mechanisms broke in our MY09 wagon.
One of the spot welds snapped of on the frame.
We needed a nice new sharp 1/4inch drill to drill through where the spot weld was (heat affected and hard) and we popped in an M6 button head bolt.
The old spot weld makes a nice location point for the drill!
Been good since.
Remember to uncouple the electrical connectors for the seat belt warning and power for the seat mechanism before you remove any bolts for the seat.
The heavy seat can just rip these out if you are not careful.
Last edited by BillyCorgi on Wed Dec 09, 2015 7:43 am, edited 2 times in total.
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Re: MY08 GTB Drivers Seat base tilt issue

Postby bigBADbenny » Wed Dec 09, 2015 7:03 am

Is there even room to get a spot welder in there?
Given the thinness of the cradle, is re spot welding it possible?
Surely the ratio of thickness of the 2 pieces is beyond the recommended 3:1 spot weld material ratio, possibly why the weld fails in the first place :D
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Re: MY08 GTB Drivers Seat base tilt issue

Postby RX25SE » Wed Dec 09, 2015 8:37 pm

Unless you know a panel beater, spot welders can be a little hard to come by. Having said that, I wouldn't be trying a spot weld to repair it, after all that's what failed in the first place.

I ran a few short welds with the MIG and so far, my fat 115kg lump of a body hasn't managed to break it.
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Re: MY08 GTB Drivers Seat base tilt issue

Postby BillyCorgi » Wed Dec 09, 2015 9:04 pm

RX25SE wrote:I ran a few short welds with the MIG and so far, my fat 115kg lump of a body hasn't managed to break it.

Sounds like we shared the same milkman. LOL
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Re: MY08 GTB Drivers Seat base tilt issue

Postby tom_kauf » Wed Dec 09, 2015 11:32 pm

Thanks for the suggestions guys :) . Well tbh I haven't tackled it yet (and since I don't have a welder, I won't be doing it myself). But I just thought some tack welds with whatever welder they use/have. I just based it on what RX25SE posted last year (and explained a bit more today).

But the bolt & nut idea is also a good one!
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Re: MY08 GTB Drivers Seat base tilt issue

Postby tom_kauf » Thu Feb 18, 2016 12:47 pm

UPDATE: The broken Slide is $12 according to the dealer, and they've ordered it for me. It's has to come out of Japan, but at that price it's hardly worth taking it to a welder (unless you have free access to a welder of course). I don't have the Part#, but once they do the repair I'll have it if anyone is interested.
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Re: MY08 GTB Drivers Seat base tilt issue

Postby shav » Thu Feb 18, 2016 12:54 pm

tom_kauf wrote:UPDATE: The broken Slide is $12 according to the dealer, and they've ordered it for me. It's has to come out of Japan, but at that price it's hardly worth taking it to a welder (unless you have free access to a welder of course). I don't have the Part#, but once they do the repair I'll have it if anyone is interested.


Im interested Tom. Mine broke a few years back and Ive been slack to get it looked at. When I get the unit though I will get extra welds put in for added security.
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Re: MY08 GTB Drivers Seat base tilt issue

Postby tom_kauf » Thu Feb 18, 2016 2:21 pm

False alarm. I went to the dealer Parts guy for a fuel filter, and they double checked with the service centre that I'm ok with the seat part being $1240 :shock:.

I specifically asked the lady on the phone, who quoted me 'One Two Four Zero', if that was $12.40 or $1240. She said 'yes, $12' :angry2:.
Unbelievable - who just reads out individual numbers!?!? :?

Seemed too good to be true, and it was.
So it's back to welding it. A friend offered to do it for me, so I'll take some pics for you, and anyone that has to get their seat welded as well.
Last edited by tom_kauf on Thu Feb 18, 2016 2:26 pm, edited 2 times in total.
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