6 Common Problems With Jeep Wrangler Passenger Seat – When the jeep wrangler first hit the car market in 1986, it was received by a lot of enthusiasm. Its rugged build appealed mostly to the off-road community and two decades later, the jeep wrangler is one of the most popular vehicles on our roads.
Despite being one of the best SUVs to ever hit our roads, the wrangler has over the years been in the limelight for having several issues. Today, we are going to look at some of the common jeep wrangler passenger seat problems.
This article aims to familiarize jeep lovers with common seat issues and how to fix them. If you are considering buying a wrangler, please note that even though this car may have certain issues regarding the seats.
It is quite reliable. And after all, no car is perfect. Plus, if you take proper care of your seats, you will never have to deal with most of these issues.
Anyway, let’s get straight into the common passenger seat issues you might run into with a Jeep Wrangler.
6 Common Problems With Jeep Wrangler Passenger Seat
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1. The lever that tilts the back of the seat is not working
This isn’t just a passenger seat problem with wranglers but it’s also very common in other car brands.
The lever that is responsible for tilting the back of the seat forward is bound to get stuck especially if it has been used for a long period. This issue is unlikely to occur on a newly purchased wrangler.
If you experience this, you have probably used your wrangler for a couple of years and that’s why the seat tilting mechanism is malfunctioning.
Though this may be a source of headache when you are trying to tilt the passenger seat forward. However, it’s very easy to fix a malfunctioning passenger tilting lever.
The first thing you need to do is ensure that the seat slides all the way forward. In some wrangler models, the back of the seat may not fold if the seat hasn’t slid forward.
You might also have to push the seat down so as to ‘jumpstart’ the tilting mechanism. If your angler is a couple of years old, cycling the levers back and forth a couple of times can help. Avoid being too rough as this may damage the lever and cost you more money in repairs.
If the above DIY solutions don’t work, you will have to replace the tilting cable. To do this, you will need to check if your dealer has a new cable for your wrangler. They can replace it for you. Or you can do it yourself if you have the skills.
2. Front passenger seat not unfolding
This problem mostly affects two-door wranglers because one has to fold the front passenger seat so that passengers can get in the back.
A very common issue with 2 door jeeps is that whenever seats are folded regularly, most owners hear the sound of breaking plastic.
And even though it can be hard to identify what is broken, this is what usually leads to a stuck front passenger seat.
If your front seat isn’t unfolding, you need to look for a plastic clip. Even though most people don’t notice this clip coming off the rail when folding the seats.
Should the clip get off the rail, the seat won’t unfold. You have to return the clip to its original position on the rail. Or buy another clip if you can’t see the one that was there from your dealer.
For those who never fold their seats, there is a huge chance that the clip may have come off at one point. And you probably got rid of it when you were cleaning your car.
Please confirm whether you can fold or unfold the front passenger seat. If not, plan on how you are going to get another clip and fit it on the rail.
Unfortunately, Jeep is yet to find a reliable way of folding the seats without worrying about breaking something. Returning the clip back to its position on the rails can be a bit confusing. This is why you need to refer to the following guide.
3. Broken passenger seatback
There have been complaints from several wrangler owners that their passenger seatback doesn’t lock upright. This can be quite inconvenient because your passengers will have a tough time when you are giving them a ride.
A broken passenger seatback can be caused by a couple of issues. The clip we talked about earlier may have come off and that could be causing your seat back to assume an incorrect position.
Or, your seat mechanism may have broken and you will have to take it to the dealership or mechanic for repair or replacement.
If you are dealing with a broken passenger seat, you may fix it by working out the handle that adjusts the movement. It may have gotten stuck and playing with it can help put it back in place.
If this works for your passenger seat, you will have saved a lot of money that would have been used in repairs or replacing the seat.
Another fix to this problem is by looking for objects that may have jammed between the seat back and the rear bench.
Any object that is of considerable size may force your seat back into an odd position. Therefore, if you always carry objects at the back of your passenger seat, confirm that there is no foreign element.
4. The passenger seat doesn’t tilt up towards the dash
You will be surprised at how wrangler passenger seat problems vary from one car owner to another. This is also a common issue in jeep wranglers.
If your passenger seat doesn’t tilt up towards the dash but can slide forward, then there is one main cause and that’s a broken cable located underneath the seats.
Jeeps made from 98 all have a tilting passenger seat feature. Therefore, if you have a model that is from 98 going higher, your passenger seat should tilt easily towards the dash. And if that’s not happening then confirm if the cables beneath are working properly.
In most cases, the passenger seats stop tilting upwards when the cable wears out or snaps. The good thing about most wranglers is that beneath the seat, there is usually a lever that can be used to manually adjust the seat.
Look for it and get the passenger seat to the ideal position. If you can’t locate this lever, refer to your manual.
5. Loose or broken passenger seat
This is a problem that doesn’t occur right away. It takes time for the brackets in your passenger seat to loosen up or break.
So, if your passengers are complaining that one side of the seat bends backward, or they can feel some discomfort when seated, you could be dealing with a broken passenger seat bracket.
When you realize that there is something broken in your passenger seat, the first step is to find out what is broken. You may remove the seats yourself, or have the guys at the body shop do that for you.
Once the seats are out, find out what is broken. You can weld up broken parts and put the seat together. If the cushion has worn out, you can replace it with a new one as well.
If the brackets look the same, there is no need of changing them. However, if there is a missing bolt, that could be the reason why the seat leans on one side when weight is applied on top of it.
Replace the bolt and test if the problem is fixed before returning the seats back to the wrangler.
6. The front passenger seat doesn’t move front or back
Are you finding it hard to move the seat front or back? This is a very simple problem. And the first thing you need to look out for is debris on the track.
Jeep wranglers are undeniably one of the best off-road vehicles. However, in your outdoor escapades, it is normal for debris to stick along the rail and hinder the seats from moving back and forth.
If it’s not debris, it could be an object blocking the track. Clean the track thoroughly whilst removing all debris and the seat should be freed.
Will the Dealership Fix My Jeep Wrangler Passenger Seat Issues?
Yes, they will, provided your car has a warranty. When buying a car, it is advisable that you get one with a longer warranty as this ensures that should the vehicle get damaged, the repair costs will be handled by the dealer.
However, if there is no warranty, your dealer won’t pay for anything. Nit unless they are very keen on customer satisfaction, you will have to cater for repairs and replacements regarding passenger seat issues.
Fortunately, most of these problems can easily be solved in your garage. Not unless you are dealing with a serious issue such as a broken passenger seat, the rest you can fix by yourself.
Provided you are good at research, some of these small car problems need not worry you.