lower plastic part on driver's seat...
Thread Starter
Intermediate
Joined: Jul 2009
Posts: 34
Likes: 2
From: Horseshoe Bend ID
lower plastic part on driver's seat...
There's a plastic part that goes from the recliner lever around to the lower front of the driver's seat that provides significant structural support for the left bottom bolsters. (It's like the buttress that holds up the walls on a medieval cathedral, but less artistic.) This part has failed before, and it has failed again, causing the driver's seat to sag to the left. (Yes, I have already done the foam insertion to solve the cut bolsters.) What is the name of this part, so that I can search for it? Has anyone thought of replacing this with something a bit more durable, perhaps made of aluminum or steel?
Team Owner
Joined: May 2001
Posts: 36,836
Likes: 244
From: Dear Karma, I have a list of people you missed.
St. Jude Donor '08-'09-'10-'11-'12-'13-'14-'15-'16
Are you speaking about item #7? If so, this is NOT a structural support piece. It is a trim (or "garnish") piece only.
If you have replaced seat foam in the past, did you install some extra padding over the "trapeze" to help prevent the wires on the trapeze from cutting into the foam in the future? Also, one other thing to look at is item #39 in the illustration, that is the "trapeze"; otherwise known by GM as "Front Seat Cushion Wire". It may have one or more wires broken and this causes sagging where the broken wires are. If any of the broken wires are towards the left side, this could very well be the reason your seat "leans". The trapeze is not terribly difficult to replace, but the seat definitely has to come out and the seat foam removed to access it.
http://parts.nalleygmc.com/showAssem...&searchString=
If you have replaced seat foam in the past, did you install some extra padding over the "trapeze" to help prevent the wires on the trapeze from cutting into the foam in the future? Also, one other thing to look at is item #39 in the illustration, that is the "trapeze"; otherwise known by GM as "Front Seat Cushion Wire". It may have one or more wires broken and this causes sagging where the broken wires are. If any of the broken wires are towards the left side, this could very well be the reason your seat "leans". The trapeze is not terribly difficult to replace, but the seat definitely has to come out and the seat foam removed to access it.
http://parts.nalleygmc.com/showAssem...&searchString=
Melting Slicks
Joined: Apr 2009
Posts: 2,479
Likes: 36
Agree! Having just changed my seat covers, I can confirm that the piece you are referring to is not structural. Either your seat foam has broken down in that area or the bottom wires have cut through it. I added a thick synthetic "shammy" over the wires before re-installing my seat foam. I used hog rings to pull it tight over the wires.
Thread Starter
Intermediate
Joined: Jul 2009
Posts: 34
Likes: 2
From: Horseshoe Bend ID
seat surgery
Are you speaking about item #7? If so, this is NOT a structural support piece. It is a trim (or "garnish") piece only.
If you have replaced seat foam in the past, did you install some extra padding over the "trapeze" to help prevent the wires on the trapeze from cutting into the foam in the future? Also, one other thing to look at is item #39 in the illustration, that is the "trapeze"; otherwise known by GM as "Front Seat Cushion Wire". It may have one or more wires broken and this causes sagging where the broken wires are. If any of the broken wires are towards the left side, this could very well be the reason your seat "leans". The trapeze is not terribly difficult to replace, but the seat definitely has to come out and the seat foam removed to access it.
http://parts.nalleygmc.com/showAssem...&searchString=
If you have replaced seat foam in the past, did you install some extra padding over the "trapeze" to help prevent the wires on the trapeze from cutting into the foam in the future? Also, one other thing to look at is item #39 in the illustration, that is the "trapeze"; otherwise known by GM as "Front Seat Cushion Wire". It may have one or more wires broken and this causes sagging where the broken wires are. If any of the broken wires are towards the left side, this could very well be the reason your seat "leans". The trapeze is not terribly difficult to replace, but the seat definitely has to come out and the seat foam removed to access it.
http://parts.nalleygmc.com/showAssem...&searchString=
When I went in yesterday afternoon to take another look, I did a more complete job of reglueing the split bolster foam, but there still isn't enough pushing up to even out the left and right bottom seat bolsters. My next step:
1. Put in another inch or so of foam under the left bolster.
2. To prevent the sharp edge of the seat frame from doing any more damage to the foam, take a thin sheet of aluminum and bend it over the seat frame on both sides. This will mean that I will not have a sharp edge to cut the bolster foam, and it will provide a bit more support.
Many years ago, a couple of friends bought the 9C1 police car package option on a Chevy Impala and a Chevy Malibu. Along with durability and performance improvements, an unexpected part of the package was the "heavy duty front seat." I discovered that this was a vastly more comfortable seat than the standard sedan. It was much firmer--almost like a Mercedes-Benz seat of that era. It wasn't because the foam was firmer, but because the underside of the seat frame was a solid sheet of metal, where the standard sedan seat had a cutout under the buttocks.
As near as I can tell, the standard seat had the cutout so that when you did a test drive, you would sink into the seat, and for the few minutes of a test drive, it would be oh so soft! But in practice, after 30 minutes driving on an unsupportive seat, you begin to appreciate the extra firmness. Think of sleeping on a soft mattress, versus a firm one.
Team Owner
Joined: May 2001
Posts: 36,836
Likes: 244
From: Dear Karma, I have a list of people you missed.
St. Jude Donor '08-'09-'10-'11-'12-'13-'14-'15-'16
Sure enough, it is NOT structural. I replaced it, but I also went in and did a bit more reinforcing with foam. The core problem here is that the seat frame has sliced into the bolster foam on the left side of the seat, probably because when I am exiting the car with the top on, I tend to press on it.
When I went in yesterday afternoon to take another look, I did a more complete job of reglueing the split bolster foam, but there still isn't enough pushing up to even out the left and right bottom seat bolsters. My next step:
1. Put in another inch or so of foam under the left bolster.
2. To prevent the sharp edge of the seat frame from doing any more damage to the foam, take a thin sheet of aluminum and bend it over the seat frame on both sides. This will mean that I will not have a sharp edge to cut the bolster foam, and it will provide a bit more support.
Many years ago, a couple of friends bought the 9C1 police car package option on a Chevy Impala and a Chevy Malibu. Along with durability and performance improvements, an unexpected part of the package was the "heavy duty front seat." I discovered that this was a vastly more comfortable seat than the standard sedan. It was much firmer--almost like a Mercedes-Benz seat of that era. It wasn't because the foam was firmer, but because the underside of the seat frame was a solid sheet of metal, where the standard sedan seat had a cutout under the buttocks.
As near as I can tell, the standard seat had the cutout so that when you did a test drive, you would sink into the seat, and for the few minutes of a test drive, it would be oh so soft! But in practice, after 30 minutes driving on an unsupportive seat, you begin to appreciate the extra firmness. Think of sleeping on a soft mattress, versus a firm one.
When I went in yesterday afternoon to take another look, I did a more complete job of reglueing the split bolster foam, but there still isn't enough pushing up to even out the left and right bottom seat bolsters. My next step:
1. Put in another inch or so of foam under the left bolster.
2. To prevent the sharp edge of the seat frame from doing any more damage to the foam, take a thin sheet of aluminum and bend it over the seat frame on both sides. This will mean that I will not have a sharp edge to cut the bolster foam, and it will provide a bit more support.
Many years ago, a couple of friends bought the 9C1 police car package option on a Chevy Impala and a Chevy Malibu. Along with durability and performance improvements, an unexpected part of the package was the "heavy duty front seat." I discovered that this was a vastly more comfortable seat than the standard sedan. It was much firmer--almost like a Mercedes-Benz seat of that era. It wasn't because the foam was firmer, but because the underside of the seat frame was a solid sheet of metal, where the standard sedan seat had a cutout under the buttocks.
As near as I can tell, the standard seat had the cutout so that when you did a test drive, you would sink into the seat, and for the few minutes of a test drive, it would be oh so soft! But in practice, after 30 minutes driving on an unsupportive seat, you begin to appreciate the extra firmness. Think of sleeping on a soft mattress, versus a firm one.
Thread Starter
Intermediate
Joined: Jul 2009
Posts: 34
Likes: 2
From: Horseshoe Bend ID
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