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MG MGB Technical - Seat runner packing pieces

My car does not have the wooden packing pieces beneath the seat runners. The runners sit directly on top of the carpet. Apart from raising the seat 1/4" what purpose do they serve? Should I fit some, or perhaps the aluminium alternatives described on Paul Hunt's website?

Peter
Peter Scott

The only purpose that I know of is to raise or lower the seats.

Shareef
Shareef Hassan

Their purpose was to provide a uniform load bearing surface for the seat runners. Originally there was a rubber mat with a jute backing under the seats, which rested directly on the floorpan. The mat has (had)four holes which are just big enough to place a round metal spacer into each, at each bolt hole in the floor. These spacers stand slightly higher than the mat. The packing has holes big enough to accomodate the spacers, and is the right thickness so that when the seat is in place the top of the metal spacer is about flush with the surface of the wooden slat, thereby spreading the load evenly.
If your carpet, and any insulation under it, are thick enough they may equal the thickness of the metal spacer. The metal spacer and wooden slat are sometimes lost by a PO when carpet is installed, which may not be much of a problem. The runner might deform slightly where the bolts are located without the metal spacer under it.
Andrew Blackley

Andrew

Thanks for your explanation. I need to remove the drivers seat as I am going to rebew the handbrake cable. As a preliminary step, I have managed to remove each of the four mounting bolts in turn and lubricate them so they will be easy to remove when I do the job. Interesting that you come from Ohio. I have visited many times as I worked for Timken in Canton for 36 years. My last trip was a vacation trip to visit old friends, last year.

Thanks again, Peter
Peter Scott

The purpose of the round spacers is to give something solid for the runner bolts to bolt down to. If they clamped the rubber mat or carpet these would compress if not rot over time and loosen the bolts causing the seat to come loose. The longditudinal strips - wood or metal - give some support to the runners over their entire length and stop them buckling and preventing seat adjustment. The original wood style were still available when I restored my roadster.
Paul Hunt

Peter: There are lots of MGs here in Northeast Ohio. I live in a small town aboout 30 miles due east of Cleveland, and about 60 miles north of Canton.
As you know Canton is not only home to Timken, but the company synonymous with vacuum cleaners in the UK - Hoover.
Andrew Blackley

Paul Thanks for your comments. It would appear that the spacers and wooden packing strips are still available. I will invest in some before fitting the new handbrake cable. This is typical of my car. Rebuilt ten years ago on a heritage shell with good mechanics and it goes very well. But it had lots of detail bits either missing or incorrect. I have corrected most of them but still find the odd issues hidden away from normal view.

Andrew Yes Hoover and Timken are Canton. On my vacation trip to Canton last year, I visited Virginia National Raceway with one of my ex business colleagues. He races a Porsche 914. It is a great circuit and it was a vintage (what we call classic) meeting. Just lots and lots of European cars mostly UK models. Just like home. Very enjoyable day.
Peter Scott

Paint the wood before installing as I frequently see them rotted out from moisture. I used POR 15.
Mike MaGee

Mike. The best solution is to do away with the wood. In spite of the fact I am the "inventor" of the aluminum packing strip idea, this view is still true. I would not have gone through the trouble of proto-typing the replacements and writing the experiment up if I did not believe that. The wooden strips will deteriorate over time regardless of what you do. The aluminum circular spacers support the seat rails at two points only. The rest of the seat rail is supported only by the wood. As the wood ages it can become brittle, warp and rot, regardless of the form of protective treatment used when it is installed. This is especially true if the treatment is not renewed periodically, which few people do. When I made up the first set of aluminum packing strips, I did it for my daughter's car. The seats would barely move fore-aft. After the aluminum, they moved easily and have continued to do so for many years. They can be made up by anyone who has some simple tools (drill and hacksaw) and the 1/4" thick, 1" wide rectangular stock can be picked up at any good hardware store. It takes about an hour to make a set (to fit one car) the first time you do it. It takes about a half hour to make the second set. Cost is about $16 for materials. At that point, you can use three button headed cap screws to secure the packing strips to the runners and make installing the seats much easier. Les
Les Bengtson

The seats in my 73B were too high after the installation of new webbibg, foams and covers. In addition to removing the two longditudinal webs, I took out the wooden strips and spacers, cut away the carpet using the runner as template, and bolted the runners directly to the floor. This was about two years ago and no problems experienced to-date. I might have to replace the two longditudinal webs in the future if the foams compress (now where are they......?)

Regards,

Barry
73B
B.J. Quartermaine

Les Do you place the aluminium strips on top of the cartpet or do you cut the carpet away and mount the assembly directly to the foor?

Peter
Peter Scott

Peter. I bolt the seats and packing strips on top of the carpet, just as the factory did. The additional strength of the aluminum packing strip makes for easier seat movement, fore-aft.

As to the concept of bolting directly to the floor and cutting away the carpet, it can be done. But, why? The net gain is about 3/8" which is not very significant. A better solution to the problem of too high a seat cushion is to have the person installing the seat cushion cut off the bottom of the cushion a couple of inches and refit it to the seat before installing the seat cover. I am having this done for my 79 right now. With the Moss supplied seat cushion, I am looking directly at the top of the windshield frame. Not the way they came from the factory. Les
Les Bengtson

Being vertically challenged the new seat foams and webbing help. When I first got my car the seats were so sagged I couldn't see over the dash - I felt like a midget. The new stuff raised it by about 3" and now I feel like a King :)
Mike MaGee

Les Thanks for the additional info. I prefer not to cut the carpet so that was the answer I was looking for. At 5ft 7in, seat height is not a problem for me.
Peter
Peter Scott

This thread was discussed between 12/10/2003 and 15/10/2003

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