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Posted by: Minerva's 914 Mar 17 2019, 04:49 PM

I finally attempted to install my new interior including a set of tan seats but the driver's seat won't slide more than a third of the way back. These were supposed to be a set but I'm wondering if I got 2 passengers' and no drivers' seat. Are there any differences other than the positioning of the fore/aft adjuster, are they reversible and if not, how can I tell if I have 2 passenger seats (other than the position of the fore/aft adjuster as these came without the rails and adjusters attached.

Posted by: anderssj Mar 17 2019, 05:30 PM

The driver's seat will feel like it has a slight hollow on the lower left bolster near the parking brake. Also, if you look at the seats from through the rear window, the angle of the lower back of the headrest should match the angle of the back pad.

Hope this helps. I'll see if I can dig up a picture.

Posted by: Chris914n6 Mar 17 2019, 07:12 PM

The rail with the spring clip is on backwards. It is supposed to keep the seat from sliding forward all the way in the event of a head on crash. Requires a long screw driver to prop it up so the seat can be removed. Seen it plenty of times.

Posted by: worn Mar 17 2019, 07:17 PM

Yep. I found my rebuilt seats were like this. Quick fix.

Posted by: tomh Mar 17 2019, 07:28 PM

I likewise had the exact problem.
A long skinny screwdriver is the ticket:

Posted by: Minerva's 914 Mar 17 2019, 08:02 PM

Yeah, I already thought of that. Nope, it's on correctly.

The movement is not smooth at all, unlike the passenger seat which slides on and all the way back. Driver's seat does not move back smoothly even at the start and unlike if it were hitting the safety stop, it gets progressively harder until I can no longer move it.

Tomorrow I'm going to remove the rails and see if they will glide without the being attached.

Posted by: bbrock Mar 18 2019, 08:06 AM

Have you tried just loosening the bolts on the rails attached to the seat and sliding it in? Mine have a little bit of adjustment in them and I had tightened one of mine where it wasn't perfectly parallel which caused it to bind. After loosening a little, I was able to slide it on and off a few times to self align and then retighten. Just a thought.

Posted by: Minerva's 914 Mar 18 2019, 08:11 AM

Sounds like a good idea. I think I'll remove the base rails and mount the seat on them with all of the bolts loose and see if I can get them to move smoothly on the floor and then tighten everything, take it back apart before reassembling it in the car.

Thanks

Posted by: 76-914 Mar 18 2019, 09:13 AM

The car I just finished behaved the same way even after a good greasing and loosening the bolts some. Turned out to be a buildup of ancient grease which became "clay like". An assortment of small brushes and a can of brake cleaner cleaned them right up. To re-grease use something like a chain or garage door lube (LPS 3 or a teflon type like TriFlo) that doesn't attract dust. I was amazed that old grease could cause binding.

Posted by: Dave_Darling Mar 18 2019, 02:31 PM

Yup, either gunk in the rails, or the rails are not parallel to each other.

--DD