Hi everyone
I wanted to post an update to the thread:
I received my Whalen Bushes after organizing someone to do Mule duty coming from the States last week. I just could not wait to get those frikken seats fixed so the first opportunity I had was yesterday afternoon.
I pretty much memorized this video:
and felt pretty confident that I could with some blood sweat and tears be able to get it done.
The total cost of the excercise was:
1. $30 for the Bushes from Whalen
2. R260 for the T50 Torque Bit. I had to buy a Bit set to get the T50 as I could not find it as a loose bit.
3. R390 for a torque wrench to fit my T50 bit.
and here we go!
As In the video I loosened the Seatbelt bolt but this as I later found out was actually not necessary and was one of the most tedious tasks to get it screwed back on.
When finished loosening the seat and wanted to start unplugging my socket, it seemed there is a specific wire which forms part of the actual unit and did not plug out like the other ones on the unit which kind of stopped me in my tracks. It was was actually a blessing in disguise as I just threw a blanked over the center console and basically laid the front end on the seat with the under carriage facing me exposing all the bits I needed without actually taking the seat out of the car.
Tip number 1. Take out 1 rail at a time and fix it then replacing it.
Tip number 2. Make sure you put something under the seat like a towel where it lays on the carpet as it might indent or damage the carpet with the ends of the railing.
Tip number 3. Put something soft over the steering wheel as you might scrape the steering wheel when actually working on the driver side seat.
It does take some practice to get the rods in and out of the railing shell and to correctly fit it. I think I can now do it in my sleep almost.
It was as if each railing was just that slightly different with it's own set of challenges. very weird and interesting all together.
Once all is cleaned out and the bushes replaced (it was actually the easiest part of the whole exercise) replace the rods and make sure all lines up by using the inspection hole as per the video.
Tip number 4. Don't try and keep the small piece of metal rod inserted into the big rods when lowering it into the railing shell. Rather just insert it before in it's seating at the bottom and connect the dots using a screw driver in the inspection hole.
1st seat took around 2.5 hours after I made the mistake of switching the railing rods around
2nd seat took me less than an hour.
Got it all screwed back together and WOW!!!! what a difference it makes to the whole driving experience and the car as a whole.
It is seriously the best money and time spent ever!
Contact me if you want to attempt it yourself and let me know if you want to buy some bushes from Whalen. I am leaving for the US this coming Sunday the 26th of Feb 2017 and will be able to bring some back. Inbox me and we can work out some logistics.
Tip number 5. Don't try and order this stuff from South Africa. I still have a set somewhere between the US and SA and no one but no one can tell you where it is or whether it will ever arrive.
Christo
