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MG MGB Technical - MGB-R Seats

Hi all,
Just trybing to get some information on seat options.
1972 MGB Roaster.
I am tearing out the interior.
The seat slide mounts are rusted and I broke off 2 bolts in the floor mounts. I am trying to get those out now with extreactors and a good carbide bit.

The real question is that I wanted to buy all new seats with a roller bearing slide mount.
Looks like most of the seats I see in the MGB Catalogs are bolt to OEM slide mounts.

Any suppliers that make seats for the MGB that have roller bearing slide mounts?

I boought some nice bucket seats with these roller bearing slides when I re-did a VW, but I think the MGB seats mount so close to the floor, that I have to be careful to get something mounting similarly low.

Any information would be greatly appreciated.

Best regards,
Doug
DT Toms

No idea on brg. mounts, that said the orginal work quite well when the floors are good and the tracks lubed and lined up. Bob thompson/International auto
Bob Thompson

I agree with Bob. I asked a question about a month back on how to get my 4'11" wife closer to the steering wheel, since she can't reach the pedals on her '77B. I had the driver's seat out yesterday to upholster, and found one slide binding on its mate. The slide wasn't entirely straight. I straightened, as best I could, and the seat goes forward an additional 4 inches. She drove it last night without a back cushion. She still complains about having to stretch to see over the steering wheel, though.
Fred Doyen

Can you buy new floor rails to replace any bend/rusted problems with OEM? I guess the spacing is critical if I have to off-set and re-tap new holes since I currently have 2 bolts broken off. I have not had good luck with screw extractors.

Thanks for all the input.

Best regards,
Doug
DT Toms

DT

There are lots of used rails out there, probably on their way to the dumpster. Contact me off line if interested.

Larry
Larry Hallanger

DT, try heating up the nuts that are welded to the floor with a torch. Then from the inside of the car, drill the bolts out. Most of the time, if you drill in the center, the bolt will unscrew itself the rest of the way out of the hole.
Jeff Schlemmer

Those bolts are a bugger. Use lots of rust penetrant, heat and drill if you have to.

Offset and drill is not an option as the floor there can't be accessed from below due to cross-rail. The bolt is screwed into a trapped nut. Oh, the floor likes to fatigue there around the nut. Corrosion accelerates the process. Lots of fun to have the mounts rip out of the floor in the middle of a turn.

If you can get the area cleaned up and the bolt bits out, inspect carefully for cracking. If there is any, have a decent body shop weld on a reinforcing plate over all 4 mounts and use a slightly longer bolt for the reassembly.

Stock slides work very well esp. when the return spring is under there!

Mike!
mike!

Thanks for all the comments.
I think I have several options for my attack.

Apprciate everyone's time and effort.

Best regards,
Doug
DT Toms

This thread was discussed between 11/01/2005 and 12/01/2005

MG MGB Technical index

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