Front bench seat adjuster not working

[GoldSwinger71]

I have a 71 Dart Swinger with the lovely front bench seat. I'm 6'1 and I'd really really like to get the seat adjusted as far back as I can.

When I pull on the adjuster I can get the driver's side track moving, but the passenger side isn't releasing. I reached under the seat and found a wire heading to the passenger side, and I pulled on it to try and get it to to release, but really couldn't tell if it was moving anything on that side. It felt extremely slack, but still attached to something. Is there a mid-point pivot or something that holds it under tension? None of the manuals I've looked at has any great detail on the adjuster.

I haven't gotten to the point of pulling the bolts for the front seat yet... I'll need a helper for the weight.

Thanks!

-Daniel

 

[Dana67Dart]

I would pull the seat. It's only 4 bolts and 1 person can get it out if you take your time.

Me bet is the track lube is old and stiff, and or the wire you felt is broken or stretched

 

[Alaskan_TA]

A, B,C & E-body bench seats have a crossover wire 'J-hook' near the front center.

If your crossover wire is intact side to side, see if you can pull it forward into the hook.

1970 Duster bench seat shown;

 

[GoldSwinger71]

A, B,C & E-body bench seats have a crossover wire 'J-hook' near the front center.

If your crossover wire is intact side to side, see if you can pull it forward into the hook.

1970 Duster bench seat shown;

View attachment 1715430829

I shoved a hand under there and found that the J hook is intact. So I will definitely need to take the seat out and tighten up that wire.

Thanks for the picture, it was extremely helpful!

 

[Alaskan_TA]

If the wire is intact & the hook is there, you may be able to pull the wire forward to re-hook it without taking the seat out.

Just be aware that pulling the wire releases the tracks on both sides, so the seat may move.

You also want the seat all the way forward or backwards so each side track is in the same notch.

That way the tracks will run parallel with the adjuster vs. crooked.

 

[KosmicKuda]

Lay a mirror flat on the carpet under the seat. By moving it around with a light under there, you should be able to see what's going on. Then you might be able to easily correct it without removing the seat.

Or, remove the nuts under the floor, lift the seat so the studs are out of the holes, and just tilt the entire seat backwards so the back is resting against the rear seat cushion. That might give you enough room to fix it without removing it from the car..

 

[Bad Sport]

I haven't gotten to the point of pulling the bolts for the front seat yet...

Word of caution, if you do pull the seat and you had it pushed back, be very mindful of where your hands are. If it's in the way of the bottom track and you pull on the wire, it can slam forward with a fair amount of force.

It hurts.............don't ask me how I know, lol.

 

[GoldSwinger71]

Thanks all for the tips! I plan to get it apart this weekend to see what's going on. The driver side bench portion is a bit ... flat? So I may end up taking it to a shop to get them to make it extra comfy for all the miles I'll be putting on starting this spring.

 

[GoldSwinger71]

I was thinking of making some small blocks with holes to go over the threaded portion that passes through the floor just so I can store / transport it without gouging everything in site.