3G Seat Fix Step-by-Step Instructions

[pdavey]

Well for the past few months my seat has not been as comfortable as it used to be when I bought it. I figured either the foam had broken down or the seat had torn underneath, so I looked for a new seat cushion online ($159.00) and also looked to see if anyone had any advice on the interwebs. Well I found some instructions for someone who had fixed their seat and improved upon it slightly.

The metal frame that the seat sits on by no means is smooth and with bottom of the cushion sitting directly on the springs it is no wonder these things tear apart. With the instructions I have put together below you could likely just stop at the point where you take the duck cloth and cover the bottom of the seat, however with the extra inch bolster I on top of the springs it really does give you a softer seat.

Here is the original post (have to give credit where credit is due):
http://www.cumminsforum.com/forum/6-7l- ... post970807

Here is what I did:
Purchase List at JoAnn's Fabrics (~$30):
- 1 yard duck cloth or equivalent utility/reinforcing fabric
- 1 sheet of 1"x15"x17" medium density foam (green foam)
- 1 sheet of 1"x15"x17" lower density foam (yellow foam or nu-foam a foam alternative - I chose the nu-foam)
- 1 can Fast Tack Upholstery Adhesive
- 1 package needle punched batting (45"x60" - use needle punched as it doesn't fall apart like poly-fil)

Total time: 2 hours
First take the seat apart by unscrewing the power control set and seat back lever on the side of the seat

Then release all of the clips that hold the leather or cloth onto the seat frame (there isn't much of a trick to these other then the front where you have to turn it down and on the back of the seat where you have to release the top layer, then unhook the part that goes across the back of the frame and then unhook the lower fabric on the seat frame at the back)
NOTE: If you have heated seats you will need to disconnect the heated seat from the power supply (grey connector under the seat at the back under the seat) and also disconnect the seat from the seat back (2 wire green connector). See picture in the assembly section for more detail.

Once you have the leather or cloth off, remove from the seat by feeding the back piece under the seat back (because of the stiff plastic sheet covering the back portion of the frame it may take a little convincing to come through)

Take the seat cushion off the frame and inspect for damage. As you can see my seat had a tear in the side of cushion that sat on the rail and on the front part of the cushion over the front of the frame rail.

I used the tack adhesive and sprayed both sides of the foam tears and placed them back together (for those who have never used fast tack you need to spray both halves of what you are trying to connect to get a permanent bond)

[pdavey]

After the cushion was back together (you don't have to wait long for the fast tack to bond ~2 minutes), I cut a piece of the duck cloth about 26"x26" and then sprayed the cloth and the bottom of the cushion that sits on the springs. I used the duck cloth as a reinforcing agent on the bottom of the cushion to keep the cushion together.

I then cut two small pieces of duck cloth (about 3"x12") for the top sides of the seats (one to go over the split I repaired and one to go over the other side as extra protection). I sprayed both the cloth and the area to be adhered on the cushion and placed the duck cloth on the top of the seat.

Additionally due to sliding out of the front seat the batting on the bottom of the leather had decomposed slightly so I cut 3 pieces of the batting and bonded those together and then placed in the area where the missing batting was to add a bit of support on the leather and recreate the bolster.

NOTE: You could skip this step if you want to keep the seat height and feel the same as stock. Additionally you could only add 1" of foam instead of two if you prefer a little less loft

I then bonded the 2 1"x15"x17" pieces of foam together and covered the bottom of the medium density foam with a layer duck cloth and the top of the nu-foam with a layer of the batting. The duck cloth over the medium density foam will keep the foam from breaking down against the springs. (you do not need to cut down the foam at all as it is the perfect size for the seat area)

I hammered down the rough spots on the frame of the seat as best I could and then cut two strips of duck cloth to cover the welds and joins on the seat. I used the same fast tack spray to bond the duck cloth to the metal frame (you may want to use an old towel over the carpet or the center console to catch any over spray of the fast tack).

Once all the pieces are glued and set (I waited about 30 minutes in total) you can re-install the cushion.

I first placed the new cushion I made over the springs (duck cloth side down).

[pdavey]

Then placed the repaired seat cushion on top of the new cushion and the leather seat cover over the top.

I reconnected all the clips that hold the leather seat on and reconnected the heated seat wires (green connector connects the seat back to the seat and the grey connector connects the heated seat to the switch)

I reconnected the clips in the following order to make sure I had a secure fit:
1: font of the seat
2: first clip on the back of the seat (there are two clips the one that holds the leather on and then the cover)
3: the strap that goes across the back of the frame on the back of the seat
4: the side of the seat near the console
5: the side of the seat near the door (there are two clips on this side)
6: the frame cover (with the plastic reinforcement on it - it connects over the frame strap and over the first clip on the back of the seat)

I then put back on the power controls and reconnected the seat back lever.

As you can see in the picture of the finished product the seat sits a little higher (kinda like a pillow-top mattress as described in the other post). When you sit down on it, it is a lot softer, however the bolsters on the side of the seat still provide the bucket seat support.

[FirerescuePW]

Absolutely a worthwhile mod. I added 1 inch of the nu-foam under each seat pad and it made quite a difference. I like the idea of using an inch of each density under the OEM pad.

The cloth on the door side of my fabric seems to be balling up underneath. Is this what you fixed by adding batting to the back side of your leather? If so, i may need to do an overhaul.

[pdavey]

Yep. The balling is the batting breaking down under the seat. If you use the batting I used it won't ball up. I ripped out any remaining pieces of the old batting and then glued three pieces of the new batting together glued them into the area and cut them down to size. Funny enough the part of my seat on the right side where the foam was torn, the batting was fine. think it must be me sliding down on the seat when getting out

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[RustyPW]

Way to go Peter. Nice repair job. Should put this up in the FAQ thread.

[GunniPWguy]

Nice! I will need to do this soon. Saggy seat syndrome. Also have a few stress cracks in the leather forming that are going to need patching.