Power Seats Repair

While the seats were out, I took the opportunity to give the leather a thorough cleaning.I used a ZEP leather cleaner and it seemed to do a nice job. I now want to apply a product that will make the leather soft again. I've heard good things about "Leatherique". James suggests mink oil. When it comes down to it, price may be the determining factor but on the other hand, I really want to treat the seats right so I can have the best chance of restoring them to their former glory.

After I had cleaned up the seats, I turned my attention to the power seat mechanisms. The seats would not move at all when they were in the car and they showed little improvement after I had removed them and bench tested them. I decided that a complete overhaul of the mechanisms was in order. This is not a task for the faint of heart. I consider myself pretty good at taking things apart and getting them back together properly but these things challenge even me. I suggest as always, working in stages and not getting too many things apart at once. Use lots of Ziplock bags and take lots of pictures. (and you thought I was just taking the pictures for you!)

I took the sliders apart and cleaned them up then I painted them black. I then greased all the moving parts and reassembled them. Beware as one of the sliders is spring loaded. It could catch you in the teeth pretty easily. No, I didn't get hit by the spring THIS TIME!

I then took the end caps off the motor assemblies to check for gummed up bearings and other damage. I found the bearings in very nice condition, the brushes were not too badly worn but one of the brush holders was a bit loose so I put some epoxy on it to hold it steady.

May 18, 2003 - Leather Seat Treatment

Recently I purchased some Leatherique leather treatment so I decided to give it a go. The treatment system consists of two products: Rejuvenator Oil and Prestine Clean . The first step is to apply the Oil to re-moisten the leather. This works quite well as dried out leather just drinks it up. I applied it just using my hand to rub it into the leather grain. This way I don't waste any oil that is soaked up in an application rag. After the oil soaks in a couple days, I'll apply the cleaner. Full instructions on how to use these products.

The reason the power seats weren't working in the first place was that the main power wire had corroded so badly that there was nothing left but a ball of green dust. The power wires from both front seats come to a junction under the carpet near the front left corner of the driver's seat. I took that junction apart and rebuilt the connection using solder, heat shrink tube and electrical tape.