Well my 8 year old nephew got out of the stang today with that upper seat recline lever that is located in the upper back part of the seat broken and in his hand. Does anyone make a billet or more substantial piece? checked mgw and upr and didnt see anything, also tried using the search feature. Help would be appreciated.

Thanks

Sam

 

no one makes a cover, i do not even know how that could have broke, but best is to go and get a new one from ford

 

that little plastic handle is pretty thin plastic, slips on to the actual lever that is inside the seat. broke on all sides.

sam

 

I've actually heard of a lot of these breaking. I am sure it is only a matter of time before there is a billet piece.

 

yep- if you use the seats regularly, they will likely break...mine both broke before 6 months old- the plastic attachment part is rediculously thin, and they will break if you just pull up on the tip(as the shape intends). I told the kids to keep hand against the seatback and 'slide' it up more than 'lifting' the tip, been almost a year, only one side is loose, a year this time-ready to break again...

somebody screwed up- wait till yours break and you see how thin it is(was)...nice big fingertip handle with something akin to plastic dairyqueen spoon handle thickness attaching it...

 

My drivers side broke after first use, passenger side after about 10 uses. Defective design.

 

i always use mine and have not had any problems, they are not loose or anything and that equals out to 16 months of use

 

Sounds like the good O'l Ford Pinto !........door handles where great for breaking off in your hand ! Glad to see Ford engineering so much history into the S197...

 

These are a POS. Mine broke as well.

My suggestion is to take it back to the dealer and have them replace it for free, as it is obviously a design / materials flaw.

I'd be surprised if you don't get it replaced no charge.

Mike

 

Good one!

I had a 74 Pinto, and both the driver's and passenger's side door handles and window cranks broke.

Hell...............the only thing keeping the driver's seat from falling through the rotted floor was a 2x4 that ran from the back seat perch to the front of the toe board.........

 

I don't use my backseats here, not an issue. Only kidding, but I don't.

 

I stopped by the dealer today, for the heck of it and they said I would have to schedule an appointment on Monday. I would think this would be covered under the warranty. ?? I thought it was funny I ran into this thread just after I got back from the dealer.

 

Yeah my passenger side one broke 6 months out, and i never got it fixed. I should probably get it repaired. I've also noticed I cant move my passenger seat up unless there is enough weight in the seat to slide it (ie, someone sitting in it), which has made any passengers getting in, a pain. Maybe my passenger seat is just totally messed up

 

Although clearly a poor design (mine broke after hitting it with my shoulder getting something out of the back). I think it is a saftey issue. If you are in the back and there's an accident, you want it to break-away when you hit it. They could have made them more durable and put them on the side of the seat, but then you'd run into issues when the side airbag deployed.

 

I've never used mine..... I just use the lever down close to the floor when I want to move the seat back.

 

I've used them many times in both my S197s with no issues whatsoever (nor have ever seen a new or used one with one broken, including many a test drives, maybe thousands of times moving the seats overall)

I probably just jinxed myself though

 

Mine broke a long time ago on the passenger side. I don't see the logic in replacing something that broke so easily with something that will just break again.

I've been hoping for a billet one for a good while. Haven't seen one yet.

 

both of my daughters each broke one, first was the drivers side then the passenger side. I now won't let them use the seat releases or open the doors for fears of dings, or eat/drink in the car or wear shoes (OK, just kidding about the shoes).

Ford replaced both for free (unfortunately on two seperate trips as the breakage occurred about a month apart) but I, too, needed to take it in to the dealer for their service dept to do the work and examine the broken pieces.

If a billit or otherwise stronger item is not designed tho be retrofit to our cars, I plan on returning to Ford as long as the warantee covers it. Then, when that runs out, I'll buy case of those handles for future use...