I've had a '97 xlt for about six months and the reclining lever has broken off the drivers seat. How do I fix this?

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97 Blue XLT

Dude! Mine broke off too! This happened after I lifted mine about two inches and was having a bit of trouble getting out of the vehicle. Now and then sliding off the chair insted of lifting myself off. I don't really think there's a way of fixing the part other than replacing it with a new part from the dealer or junk yard.

Ricardo

Its Funny you mentioned this. Tonight I am going to meet my Ford Mechanic so he can give me my New Seat Recling Lever Assy to fit my 1997 Explorer Sport. The original design was poor, in that at the thinest point on the lever, they decided to put a hole, an Rivet it to the Assembly. After many times of getting out of the Truck, the lever bends, and then the average person will just straighten the Lever back out. well at some point it WILL snap off. i do not know how much this part cost's. The only way to Replace it is to replace the entire Hinge Assembly that bolts the back of the seat to the bottom of the seat.
Tool's needed would be a set of Torx Bits, 13mm Socket, & a Short Philips Screw driver. You will have to slide the Seat Cover up to gain access at the top Torx Head Bolt. There are 2 13mm bolts, and 2 Torx head Bolts.
Hopefully the New Design will be better made. I will let you know how the new part lookes after I get it tonight. If anyone would like Photo's let me know, I can scan them and e-mail them to you.



[Edited by CBoug76 on 10-12-2000 at 06:20 AM]

Ford has really got to work on this problem.
This happened to mine about two years ago.
I decided to choose my battles and not fight this one. It has been in the same position for 2 years. The suggestion about going to the junkyard was a good one. I am sure the
factuary would love to charge outragious prices for this part.



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1992 XLT, 4x4, 4.0L EFI

Hi Chris,
Would you be willing to take pictures and do a write up on how to replace and install the lever? I have heard many stories about this lever breaking off, especially the 97 models, and think it would make a great article to put in the "Explorer Tips" section for everyone to benefit from. What do you say? http://www.4x4central.com/ubb/smile.gif

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Happy Wheelin'
Ray L. http://www.4x4central.com/ubb/smile.gif
97 XLT 4X4 4.0L SOHC



[This message has been edited by Ray Lobato (edited 03-02-2000).]

Ray,
I will be changing the Lever today at Lunch time. I have my camera, and will be taking photo's. I will Write something up and scan the photo's. The Process looks easy enough, but you guys know how that goes.... If Someone felt up to it to do some Fabrication work, they could make a New Lever, and then it could be possibly sold to people who have a broken Lever. Then only thing is, everybody that wants to use the new Lever would have to Grind the Rivets off of the existing Assembly, so that they can Bolt the New Lever into place. Then They are Back in business.

Anyone know of a good place on the web that i can upload pictures to? Im going thru a Firewall, so that might be a problem, but anyone that has good expierence with this type of thing, I'd Love to hear from you.


[Edited by CBoug76 on 10-12-2000 at 06:20 AM]

how much was the part?

Ok, things went good. I had No Problems with the Change. I took Photo's and will have them on the web next Week. If anyone is looking for the FORD Part to get to fix your Broken Lever here is the Part number for the NEW Renforced part: "XL2A-7862649-AA" Ford's part number for the same part (The one that breaks) is here: "F77Z-9862649-AA". DO NOT ASK FOR THIS ONE!

I will have the Photo's next week, along with a write up of it.

[Edited by CBoug76 on 10-12-2000 at 06:29 AM]

I just wanted to mention that I have a 97'xlt and I am having the same problem. I keep on bending it back. Is there anyway to fix this before it breaks?

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Seth M.
97 XLT 4X4 4.0L SOHC

I just had my wife's '98 at the dealer for some warranty work on the rear wiper (shocker!), and they replaced the driver's seat lever under warranty. I hadn't even noticed how bent it was until the dealer pointed it out. If your's is still under warranty, I suggest you see if the dealer will take care of if for free.

gatlin

Just got off the Phone with a Local Ford Dealer, the Cost for the Lever Assembly is around $50.00 (XL2A-7862649-AA)

I found this in rec.autos.makers.foed.explorer:
On this NG I learned about TSB 98-25-15. This bulletin relates to a
redesigned seat back tilt lever. I had the problem with these things
continually bending.

I went to the local Ford dealer and the service writer claimed no knowledge
of the TSB. After insisting that he look, low and behold we got the new
part numbers.

Last week I spent five days with a fishing buddy of mine (he weighs a
conservative 325 pounds) and absolutely no sign of the levers bending, I
weigh about 200 pounds.

and a reply to this one:
On my 97 AWD V8 XLT the lever bent after a year and a half. My clueless local
Ford dealer (Frederick Ford Motor Company) had "no knowledge of this or the
cracked manifold defect."

Well it took the effort of handing them the TSB. Low and behold after they
pecked it into some computer they found there was indeed, a TSB. Get it fixed;
the new lever is much stronger..

Hope this helps

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Peter
'99 Sport SOHC V6
Stock 4wd

any tips on how to remove the seat cover? My seat lever broke on my '98 sport while I was getting out of my car, it caught on my pants, and I didn't even pull hard, and it snapped right off. any advice would be appreciated.

Billy-Bob-Ray-Junior sayz to put a par them-thar vicegrippies on it. :)



No, really, I took it to a friend of mine at work who has a mig welder and he just welded it back on. Since my 91 is 'slightly' out of warranty, the dealer would fix it(go figure). It took him all of two minutes and has been fine since.

Hey, are you guy's talking about the lever, or the internals of the hinge/latch? I was driving down the interstate the other day and the damn seat back flipped back! It was an interesting few seconds, I'll tell you.....nothing like looking at the headliner while you are doing 70!

Now the seat will not stay upright and I had to put a few bolts into the slot to jam it upright as a temp. fix.

Does the whole hinge/latch assembly cost $45, or does just the lever come off? And does this TSB 98-25-15 cover the whole assembly? Is it only for 98's or is my '96 included?

Thanks, looks like I gotta go on a diet!

What is the point ofa TSB? I mean if the friggin part needs to be replaced, and your not notified with in the period of the initial factory waranty, how are you supposed to have the friggin part replaced. At least according to the @ss hole at the service department they won't replace the seat lever for me, even though ther is a TSB saying the part is crap, or well first off they told me there was no such TSB, and wouldn't bother to look into it for me. Anyone bitched enough to get this fixed, and how did you do it? It's really getting me mad.

This happened to me about 6 months ago. I'm glad to know I'm not the only one. Actually, because of the power seats, I don't miss the lever, but it's good to know there is a fix.

Eric

A TSB is a Technical Service Bulletin for the benefit of the Ford Service Department. It has nothing to do with warranty. It is just a notice to the Service Personnel that there is either a better (revised) part available or a better way of doing something. You can bitch all you want to Ford about it but unless you talk to a really sympathetic person at Ford it won't get you anywhere. I ran into it on my '97 Sport when my lever broke off. It broke about a month before the TSB came out so they of course replaced it with the same problematic design. Thirteen months later when it broke again (this time I was out of my 36K warranty) I tried to get them to replace it at their expense since the TSB was issued only a month after they put mine on. Their reply was "we only give a 12 month, 12K warranty on repairs". Unless an item is considered a safety related problem it won't qualify for a recall. Recalls are the only thing that Ford is obligated to repair at their expense when the warranty runs out. It sucks to find a TSB for a problem which shows that the problem was at least frequent enough to warrant a TSB, yet have Ford basically tell you it's your problem now.

Well that sucks for me, so does anyone know how to get the seat cover off so I can get to the top part of the assembly?

Flimsy part, lousy service. And they wonder why no one wants to buy American anymore....

Originally posted by MHanrahan
Well that sucks for me, so does anyone know how to get the seat cover off so I can get to the top part of the assembly?

I tried messing with mine when it broke. I never could get the plastic all the way off. I did get it far enough down to check out the lever. It is held on by 3 or 4 very large rivets. I could have drilled out the rivets, however my rivet gun isn't big enough to put new rivets back in. I wonder if a thin head bolt could take the place of the rivets?

I have pulled the entire cover of my seat off if anyone has any question, ask, and I will be happy to answer them.

How hard is it to get the seat cover off, and then back on. that seems like it would be the hardest part. I'm thinking what I may do is go to the dealer and talk to them about the "implied warranty", the lever was intended to adjust the seat, yet fails to preform due to a manufacturers defect, I think I need to find some more specifics on the whole implied warranty thing, pretty sure there is some sort of law pertaining to that.

its a little tough to get the entire seat cover off. It looks like it would be hard to get back on after it has been taken off, but this is false! It is actually easy to get back on after it has been completly removed. When I changed my Reclining assembly, I didn't remove the seat cover, I just pushed it away from the bolts.

If anybody want, I have Photos of the entire process.

Massachusetts implied warranty law states:

The implied warranty of merchantability is a guarantee provided by law in the sale of all consumer products, including automobiles, even if they cost less than $700 or have been driven 125,000 miles or more before sale to you. The implied warranty is in addition to any express, written warranty. Under the implied warranty, a product must do what it was designed to do with "reasonable" safety, efficiency and ease for a "reasonable" period of time. If it does not run properly, the seller is responsible for repair, replacement or a refund. The law does not define the word "reasonable." This will depend in part upon the condition, age, and sale price of the vehicle.

1.I think that it is reasonable to say that A seat recline lever is intended to recline the seat, my broken one doesn't.
2.I also think it is reasonable that a seat lever should work after 50k miles, or everyone would need to have them replaced at 50k miles.
3.And last of all I think it is reasonable that if my seat recline lever broke off with the seat in a position that I am unable to see the road while driving that the manafacturers defect becomes a saftey concern?

Does this sound reasonable to everyone, maybe I'm being cheap, but I think it's ridiculous that ford can sell defective products and not have to replace them.

Hey CBoug... Mine just broke this morning. I was wondering if I could see the pictures and what not. I have a warranty but we have a 100 dollar deductible on that. I don't have enough things to take in right now for warranty work so if it doesnt look too hard I may just replace it myself. So if you could send me the pictures I would be most greatful.

Sure, Im not sure if I have scanned them YET, but I will look at home, and If they are not scanned, I will scan them this weekend. And then send them off to you.

Thanks alot.
BTW what are Torx bits? Are they similar to allen wrenches? Also does anyone have all of the TSB? What does the TSB say? Is it a new part or is it just something different they do when they install it? Thanks in Advance.

Chris - If you don't mind, please post them here. I want to replace mine, but looking at it, it doesn't appear to come off without drilling out the rivets. That is the only thing preventing me from going down to Ford and buying a replacement bracket.

Sure thing guys,

Robert,
The replacement is the whole reclining assembly(not just the Lever).

I said I was going to get the Photos for LAST weekend and im sorry! Well here they are, the steps needed to Fix the Broken Recliner Lever.

http://home.comcast.net/~cboug/truck/seat/seat13.jpg

Tools Needed:
#1 Phillips Screwdriver
#2 Phillips Screwdriver
#2 Stubby Phillips Screwdriver
3/8” Ratchet
Metric Socket(Can not remember size)
Torx Bit(Can not remember size)

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http://home.comcast.net/~cboug/truck/seat/seat12.jpg

Step 1,
Remove screws holding Side Cover on.

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http://home.comcast.net/~cboug/truck/seat/seat04.jpg

Step 2,
Remove seat Controls from Side Cover.

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http://home.comcast.net/~cboug/truck/seat/seat09.jpg

Step 3,
Un-Hook & Remove the Seat Back Cover, This can be done by unhooking bottom edge(Red Arrow) and also by reaching your arm inside the cover and finding where it attached to the steel seat support inside of the back of the seat. Then Slid it up and off of the Seat Back Frame. (It may seem that this will be hard to re-attach when you go to put it back together but I assure you that it actually goes back together quite easily.)

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http://home.comcast.net/~cboug/truck/seat/seat06.jpg

Step 4,
Using 3/8” Ratchet and the Correct Torx Bit, Remove the 2 upper bolts attaching the Recliner Assembly to the Seat Back.

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http://home.comcast.net/~cboug/truck/seat/seat05.jpg

Step 5,
Using 3/8” Ratchet and Correct Metric Socket, Remove the 2 lower bolts attaching the Recliner Assembly to the Base of the Seat.

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http://home.comcast.net/~cboug/truck/seat/seat07.jpg

Step 6,
Using 3/8” Ratchet and Correct Metric Socket, Replace the 2 lower bolts attaching the NEW Recliner Assembly to the Base of the Seat.

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http://home.comcast.net/~cboug/truck/seat/seat10.jpg

Step 7 A,
It might be Easier to re-assemble if you have The Reliner Assembly in a Reclinmed Position As shown in this Photo.

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http://home.comcast.net/~cboug/truck/seat/seat06.jpg

Step 7 B,
Using 3/8” Ratchet and the Correct Torx Bit, Replace the 2 upper bolts attaching the NEW Recliner Assembly to the Seat Back.

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http://home.comcast.net/~cboug/truck/seat/seat09.jpg

Step 8,
Replace the Seat Back Cover, This can be done by sliding the Cover back over the Seat Back Frame, once all the way on, reach up inside the cover and find hooking edge and hook it back on to the steel back support of the Seat Back Frame. Then work the front edge under the Seat Back and hook it to the Rear Edge as seen in Photo.

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http://home.comcast.net/~cboug/truck/seat/seat11.jpg

Step 9,
Replace the Side Side Cover, Reattaching the Seat Controls First.

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http://home.comcast.net/~cboug/truck/seat/seat12.jpg

Step 10,
Stand back and Admire your work.

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http://home.comcast.net/~cboug/truck/seat/seat01.jpg

OLD Broken Recliner Assembly

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http://home.comcast.net/~cboug/truck/seat/seat02.jpg

NEW Recliner Assembly

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http://home.comcast.net/~cboug/truck/seat/seat03.jpg

OLD & NEW Recliner Assembly's

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http://home.comcast.net/~cboug/truck/seat/seat08.jpg

Red Arrow: Rivets
Blue Arrow: Thick Arm
Yellow Arrow: Thin Lever that breaks
Purple Line: Place where the Break happens

its alright. Just looking at the pictures i can tell that your explanation is gonna be good.

Thanks Chris,

I checked mine and it looks the same. I think I'll e-mail whoever it is at the Ford parts link on this site and see what they will sell them for. I might just settle for the driver's side bracket since it is the one I have to look at every time I get in. Thanks to the pictures, I at least now know what I am in for. It sure is a crappy design when it requires the entire mechanism to be replaced when the actual bracke that breaks is held on by two rivets.

I Still have my OLd Assembly, and I plan on some day creating a new bracket making it out of Heavier Gague Steel. I was able to thread the holes where the Riverts go with a 5/16 thread, I know its Large but this is the smallest I was able to go. When I have a New Design, I will be sure to post it here on this thread.

i'm glad i stumbled to this topic mine just happened last night! how long did it take you to install the replacement part?

it takes about Hour +/- 15-30 minutes to do this.

The Write up is Complete!
Check out the Reply I made with all the Photos.

Hey, the recline lever on my 92 XLT just broke. What a POS, only lasted 10 years.

Seriously though, thanks for the HOW TO pics.

Hey I just emailed Torrie and we had a long email correspondence to figure out the right part and he finally gave me a different part number than you used. One of the questions he asked was if i had captain chairs or sport buckets. another question he asked was if i had a 2dr or a 4dr. well the part number he gave me was XL2Z-7862649-AA Genuine Ford seat back latch assy LH $ 53.99 Anyone know why this is different than Chris' part number. I don't know which one to order now. I have a 98 XLT power seats any ideas on what the difference is? Is there a spot on the old one that i can find the part number without taking the whole seat apart? Could this be the newly designed one?

It could be the newly designed one, as you can see in the photos that both New & Old look alike. Maybe it all depends on what Handle is assembled onto it? on the new one ther is a part that I am not using, In step # 6 Photo you can see it to the left of the Red Arrow. It is between the Spring and the Main Plate.... The old one did not have this.....

Well...before I order it here are the two seats. I told Torrie I had the sport buckets Tell me what you think.
Captain's Chairs (http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraida/p1073d1d32a96b670beed4162e212456d/fdd98727.jpg.orig.jpg)
Sport Buckets (http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraida/pff8aba4aabdadeec3ebd23e9a05e4fe8/fdd98722.jpg.orig.jpg)
My Seat (http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraida/p2a592829e2547d1c3dc72b1918bbe6a5/fdd982d4.jpg.orig.jpg)

welcome to the club everyone. I went through my second one on my '98 XLT three months ago. But believe it or not, I went back to the same dealership and they fixed it for free. Who says ya cant find service these days? You just have to go to really small towns.

The reason Ford fixed it for free the second time is because all Ford repairs are warranted for 12 months / 12K miles. They tend to stick to the letter. When mine broke for a second time after 13 months, Ford wouldn't budge from their warranty policy. I know it is up to a dealer's discretion, but my experience is they tend to be very consumer un-friendly.