Omega Owners Forum

Omega Help Area => Omega General Help => Topic started by: albitz on 22 February 2012, 00:11:20

Title: Estate rear seat problem.
Post by: albitz on 22 February 2012, 00:11:20
The locking latches on the back of the rear seat should spring up into place to hold the back of the seat in position. On my estate they are reluctant to do so (on both sides) and need a helping hand to pop up.The mechanism doesnt appear particularily complicated,but it looks like the whole seat unit has to be dismantled to access it.Have tried squirting some penetrating fluid in there hoping to free things up,but it didnt have much effect.
Anyone got any experience of this or similar ?

A couple of poor quality pics.
(http://i1238.photobucket.com/albums/ff500/Albs59/DSCF1319.jpg)
White plastic plunger thing should be in this position when the seat is in the upright and closed position.

But its staying down like this. :-\
(http://i1238.photobucket.com/albums/ff500/Albs59/DSCF1318.jpg)
Title: Re: Estate rear seat problem.
Post by: dad1uk on 22 February 2012, 00:19:40
If it's the N/S it is also connected by a wire to the centre seatbelt. I managed to unclip the material and put loads of oil into the workings.
Touch wood its been ok ever since.(Famous last words! ;D)
Title: Re: Estate rear seat problem.
Post by: albitz on 22 February 2012, 00:22:37
Cheers,I will have a close look tomorrow. Do you mean unclip the material from the front,the actual seat upholstery ?
Title: Re: Estate rear seat problem.
Post by: dad1uk on 22 February 2012, 00:28:36
Yes - it's possible to unclip the trim and pull the padding away to get to the mechanism, it's fiddly but can be done.
As per usual (after the event) I wish I had taken photo's.
Title: Re: Estate rear seat problem.
Post by: albitz on 22 February 2012, 00:31:10
Brilliant,thanks.Now I know its doable,I will have a go. :y
Where else but OOF could you get a quick answer to a question like that at quarter past midnight ? ::) :y
Title: Re: Estate rear seat problem.
Post by: adey2 on 22 February 2012, 00:33:41
i had this with mine, turns out the clip on bodywork was bent so it wasnt latching into place, person who owned before me used to haul lots stuff from swindon to devon and back,bent it back with screwdriver and presto it worked, seat locks into place perfect and no problems since
Title: Re: Estate rear seat problem.
Post by: albitz on 22 February 2012, 00:37:29
I had thought about that,but as far as I could tell the clips arent bent.Might just have a closer look at that as well tomorrow,although without another car to compare clips with it may be hard to tell. :-\
Title: Re: Estate rear seat problem.
Post by: adey2 on 22 February 2012, 00:40:11
mine didnt look bent, but id pushed screwdriver into locking mech and it locked into place, this ruled out fault there, so in my quest to find problem it came down to them clips, only takes a little amount out of place to screw it all up
Title: Re: Estate rear seat problem.
Post by: albitz on 22 February 2012, 00:45:42
Will have a bit of a fiddle and hopefully get it sorted.Thanks. :y
Title: Re: Estate rear seat problem.
Post by: adey2 on 22 February 2012, 00:49:23
ok buddy, personally i wouldnt fiddle with anything to do with the seat belt, its all safety critical stuff, if the seat isnt locked into position the seatbelt locks to stop it being used, its to stop you having a crash and going through windscreen with the back seat round your neck, but its your choice
Title: Re: Estate rear seat problem.
Post by: albitz on 22 February 2012, 00:52:10
ok buddy, personally i wouldnt fiddle with anything to do with the seat belt, its all safety critical stuff, if the seat isnt locked into position the seatbelt locks to stop it being used, its to stop you having a crash and going through windscreen with the back seat round your neck, but its your choice

Didnt know that.Thanks,will bear that in mind. :y
Title: Re: Estate rear seat problem.
Post by: MaxV6 on 22 February 2012, 01:00:47
i had this on the mv6 last year,  as with the other chap, it turned out to be the metal hoop from the body work, not the seat mechanism..   they can get  pushed sideways a bit by large gear being hauled around in the boot,  repositioning them fixes the issue. 

Title: Re: Estate rear seat problem.
Post by: 05omegav6 on 23 February 2012, 02:05:50
Albs this may help understand how the centre belt works:http://www.omegaowners.com/forum/index.php?topic=90672.0 (http://www.omegaowners.com/forum/index.php?topic=90672.0) :y

Also before panicking about the centre passenger flying though the screen, if both sides are latched and the top bolt is locked in place the belt will behave exactly as it's meant to. The cable can be disconnected with no ill effects :y.

HTH, Al :y

p.s. Mine is an absolute bugger to get relatched, patient perseverance is the key, the leather doesn't take kindly to frustrated violence :-X The problem seems to be a combination of the latch/striker not quite lining up, and the button sticking down/not returning fully once the latch is secure :-\

MK3 Grannys had a similar issue FWIW.
Title: Re: Estate rear seat problem.
Post by: adey2 on 23 February 2012, 02:26:10
the cable is there to lock the centre belt if the seat isnt fully locked into position, it is a safety critical part and stops the belt being used till the seat is fully locked into place, so as i posted before remove it and you put pasengers at risk if you have a crash and the rear seat isnt locked properly
Title: Re: Estate rear seat problem.
Post by: 05omegav6 on 23 February 2012, 02:46:48
It has no bearing on the seatbelt function in the event of an accident. The inertia real is a completely seperate part of the mechanism. If the dead bolt between the two seat parts is locked in place, and the seat latched at either end it essentially becomes one rigid bulkhead. :y

The mechanism that the cable attatches to also has a tilt switch to lock the belt when the seat is folded. All this does is keep the belt retracted , and therefore out of harms way, whilst the seat is folded :y

I've had this centre belt mechanism apart as the original one failed. Only had to replace it as I managed to release the inertia spring ::)
Title: Re: Estate rear seat problem.
Post by: albitz on 23 February 2012, 06:37:33
I had a play with the locking hoops yesterday. Tried moving them a little to the left/right/up/down but didnt help.Looks like I will have to investigate partial removal of the cloth to get at the mechanism. :(
Title: Re: Estate rear seat problem.
Post by: aaronjb on 23 February 2012, 09:54:56
Once you figure out how to fix yours.. can you come and fix mine, too?

Wait, what am I saying.. as soon as you've fixed it you'll have forgotten how ;) ;D


I kid. I'm watching this thread with interest - mine seems determined to ssip me off every time I fold the seats back up!
Title: Re: Estate rear seat problem.
Post by: albitz on 23 February 2012, 13:25:14
I will report back if I get it sorted Aaron. :y
Title: Re: Estate rear seat problem.
Post by: adey2 on 23 February 2012, 15:41:51
how can people think the cable dont have any safty issues, if the bolt as taxi al says is locked over is in place but the one side that stops the seatbelt moving isnt the rear seat will twist and bend in event of a accident, think back to the adverts when showed a accident of a unrestrained person in rear hitting front seats, wasnt it the force of a elephant or simlar, well all that will be pulling on a unfixed area that is designed to do the load bearing, do your own maths
Title: Re: Estate rear seat problem.
Post by: MaxV6 on 23 February 2012, 16:10:30
Aaron,  i'd be happy to belt yours back in to shape,  ;) 
Title: Re: Estate rear seat problem.
Post by: adey2 on 23 February 2012, 16:13:51
id be happy to do anyones too if stops them removing parts, wonder how many would remove the bolts out the drivers seat and drive down rd,
Title: Re: Estate rear seat problem.
Post by: albitz on 23 February 2012, 18:16:46
Ok,sorted one side (drivers side).peeled off the fabric cover as much as is needed to allow access to the mechanism.Then pulled the foam back and squirted some wd40 in there.Moved the mechanism up & down several times and then tried closing it, worked every time,so put cloth back as it should be - job done. :)
Did the same with the other side,but it seems a bit different.Mechanism feels loose,possibly something has become disconnected. It was pretty dark by then,so will delve a bit deeper on that side tomorrow.
Title: Re: Estate rear seat problem.
Post by: 05omegav6 on 24 February 2012, 03:13:30
how can people think the cable dont have any safty issues, if the bolt as taxi al says is locked over is in place but the one side that stops the seatbelt moving isnt the rear seat will twist and bend in event of a accident, think back to the adverts when showed a accident of a unrestrained person in rear hitting front seats, wasnt it the force of a elephant or simlar, well all that will be pulling on a unfixed area that is designed to do the load bearing, do your own maths

How is that any different from using the outer belt with the seat in the same state?

The point I am trying to make is that with both ends of the seat LATCHED and the centre bolt in place, the seat will NOT move. :-\

If the lock button is fully up then the seat is latched. It's really that simple :y

The centre belt has two seperate mechanisms:

1. The inertia reel, which stops the belt from pulling out under load. This is the safety part and is unaffected by disconnecting the cable in question

2. The tilt switch which locks the reel when the seat is out of position. This also locks the cable release when the seat is unlatched.

NO ONE is suggesting using the seat whilst it is UNLATCHED as that would be criminally insane, surely ::)

id be happy to do anyones too if stops them removing parts, wonder how many would remove the bolts out the drivers seat and drive down rd,
WTF?

If the mechanism is sticking through age/lack of use/worn out, disconnecting the cable is neither here or there. Common sense dictates that when you put the seat back up you check that it has latched in the same way you check the bonnet is properly latched when you shut it...

Just my thoughts, you don't have to agree :-X

p.s. A firm thump with the flat of your hand just below the button on the face of the seat will usually see the lock button rise up to the top of its' travel.