Power seat issue

[Falcon_LS]

I never mess with my seats, as I just adjust them once and leave it the way it is. But whilst vacuuming the interior of my Grand Marquis this afternoon, I wanted to move the driver's seat forward so I could reach the area under it.

The seat moved forward a bit and stopped. It would neither move forward or backwards, so I was standing there scratching my head, considering I cannot drive with the seat almost glued to the steering wheel. When I push the switch in either direction, I would hear a thump from the motor, but the seat would not move. It was stuck.

I went to get my toolbox, and when I came back, the seat actually moved when I moved the switch. It kept working intermittently (moving a bit then stopping and moving again after you wait for a while), but that thump from the motor is still there when it locked in place. I decided I would blast the seat rails with WD-40, and I only managed to spray the back ends, but have noticed the seat moving faster than it did before.

So I'm thinking there must be some dust/sand and a lack of lubrication on the seat frame causing this issue. If the switch or the motor was the culprit, I don't think the seat would move at all. Just wondering if this would be a correct assumption, or if my motor is going bad.

I am considering pulling the seat out, blasting the rails with some WD-40 to clean them up and then spray some white silicone grease before putting it back in. Thanks!

 

[mechtech2]

Sure, after years of no use, who knows what is sticking?
For a quick fix, try spraying what you can get to with a tube nozzle.
Then actually push on the seat as the motor helps.
It may work.
If not, taking a seat off is no big deal, and you should get it where you want then.
Maybe you'll find a few USA quarters and dimes under there!

 

[Falcon_LS]

Originally Posted By: mechtech2
Sure, after years of no use, who knows what is sticking?
For a quick fix, try spraying what you can get to with a tube nozzle.
Then actually push on the seat as the motor helps.
It may work.
If not, taking a seat off is no big deal, and you should get it where you want then.
Maybe you'll find a few USA quarters and dimes under there!


Thanks, Mechtech! I'll give that a try and see where it takes me before removing the seat.

Had the seats out before to shampoo the carpet, I really should have thought of this then.

Didn't find any American coins though.

The car was only in Baltimore, MD from 20-22 September 2000 during its transit to Kuwait from St. Thomas, Ontario. It was shipped once the dealership's other vehicles arrived from all the different assembly plants.