Car Seat Supports Mk3

[Elaine Webster]

Hi  Car 1969 Reg, failed MOT, one thing was the seats.  It is whatever holds the back upright.  I have no idea what to order or where from.  Any idea please?? HELP !!!   Thanks. 

[RRR]

Hi Elaine,

Assuming your car has the original seats. These are a fixed back seat with no recline, however they can pivot forward to allow access to the rear shelf. The tilt should be secured by a catch (part 18) mounted to the seat back that latches onto the rear rail of the sliding subframe. 

The rear rail does get deformed so that the seat no longer latches, or in extreme cases breaks-off entirely.  If missing bits, either latch or rear rail on the subframe you need to find something second-hand. I would try Spitbitz, or Spitfiregraveyard in this case. Hopefully they are still trading as I haven't used either for a couple of years.

Edited May 18, 2022 by RRR

[PeteStupps]

2 hours ago, Elaine Webster said:

...whatever holds the back upright.  I have no idea what to order or where from.

It does sound a bit cryptic! Is the seat back flopping around or something? RRR has covered most of it, but I would just confirm that the steel frames can fatigue and crack. Mine has been welded up rather untidily.

The other thing is that mk2 / mk3 Spitfire seats are quite sought-after and usually pricey. See ebay or similar. If your frame is actually broken it might be worth repairing, or at least selling on for repair if you replace it. 

[thescrapman]

The age of Mk3 Spitfire means that they do not actually need the latch to prevent tilting. Get MoT man to look in his book.

But it is good if they do latch.

[RobPearce]

As Colin says, the latch is not an MOT requirement. Indeed most of the things relating to seats only apply if the belt attaches to it, which they don't. However,

12 hours ago, Elaine Webster said:

whatever holds the back upright

doesn't sound like the latch to me, as the latch holds it down, not up. If the back is "slipping back" then, as RRR and Pete said, original Mk3 seats don't recline so any leaning backward is due to the frame having fatigued and broken. The original driver's seat on mine had failed that way, which is why it now has Mk4 seats. Repair is perfectly possible but does require a complete strip-down and thus full re-trimming of the seat.

[mikeyb]

depending if you want original or not, mk1 or mk2 Mazda MX5 seats are a comfortable alternative

[Elaine Webster]

Many thanks all, having it repaired, great advice x