cb944

Hi all,

I got some replacement seats for my worn out 944 seats.. they look to be from a 911, I'm guessing an 80's model but I'm not really sure. They look the same as these:



Basically, the seats tilt forward OK, but they won't recline. I don't quite understand how they work, but I'm guessing you should just be able to pull the seat back levers up and they'll recline? These seem to be the only levers on the seats. I've taken them apart, tried everything I can think of and I'm now at the stage the only option left seems to be to hit the reclining mechanism very hard with a mallet!

Does anyone know how these reclining mechanisms are supposed to work? One of the seats has two switches which appear to adjust the seat height, the other is completely manual and has no switches, just the two levers near the headrest.

Chris.

theiceman

isn't there a dial **** at the base of the seat so you can turn it and set the amount of recline ?

theiceman

PS those look like 944 seats. I think my 87 had ones similar .. although I think they ar all the same really.

cb944

thanks... I was told they're 911 seats, but I think you're right and they're all pretty much the same.

There isn't a dial on the base.. but, well after posting this I went back out into the garage again and tried again. Within about ten minutes I realised I've been a bit stupid!

After two days of dismantling these seats, putting them back together, three different people all looking at them, some people hitting them with hammers, levering things, sitting on them and just pulling hard, I suddenly noticed that the handle at the front of the seat base connects to a bar underneath the seat. I don't know why I didn't see it before.. this lever was seized up so badly it didn't move and I thought it was just to help pull the seat back and forward, but after pushing/pulling it about for around 15 minutes and a lot of WD40, it freed up and the recline function now works. I have one more seat to fix now

So, two days of looking at the wrong part and wondering why I couldn't figure out how it was supposed to work, and finally I get what I should've seen ten minutes into day one. To anyone who actually has some seats like this, feel free to laugh, hopefully if I can get this seat back together in one piece, then I'll probably see the funny side of it in about a week!

Cheers,

Chris.

hamah

Those seats also came in my 911 (although if you go to http://www.worlduph.com/porsche7.htm#sport%20check they are shown as 944 patterns...btw change the 7 in that url to 5 to see the 911 patterns). I think they may have been offered in both models over the years 85-94 (or at least some some 964s like mine in 91). Anyway try the lower lever at the bottom front. One is too slide the seat forward and the other reclines the back.

ivangene

scanning doc - please hold on with the hammering

cb944

thanks a lot for the info - Hamah; cheers for this, I'd been trying to figure out what year these had come from and that narrows it down pretty neatly. Don't know why I didn't find that site while searching, I'm pretty sure now I've come across it before. After all the messing around I've had over the past couple of days, I'm beginning to think I might as well go the whole hog and get a re-upholstery kit!

Ivangene - man, I really I'd just asked how these seats are supposed to work when I got them earlier this week. That recline lever was so badly seized I just assumed it didn't do anything. I've been trying to recline the seats using the tilt mechanism for days now!

Anyway, it turns out that parts of the recline mechanism were rusted together and this was stopping those levers from working. The bases were in pretty bad condition, but I finally got them working properly again.. I just have to get them back together now.

Cheers,

Chris.

hamah

If you do go ahead you'll probably want to get a pro to replace the seat covers. Depending on the condition underneath you may also want to consider replacing the foam as well. Be careful when you order. The pattern in my link is for the Standard (Comfy) seat where it looks from your picture above that you may have Sport seats. I highly recommend World Upholstery (no affiliation) and make sure to call ahead if you decide to replace your covers. They are very helpful and will make sure you order the correct kit. They will also send you leather samples to make sure the dye lot matches the colour you are looking for. A good friend of mine bought carpets, seat covers, top, and boot cover from them. It cost a fair bit but his interior looks like new and he couldn't be happier.