Structure of Driver's Seat

welcome to priuschat! if it looks fine and feels fine, i wouldn't bother. is it still clicking?

 

Somebody, should be able to determine whether there has been structural damage or not.

If the dealership is unwilling or unable to do this, I would try taking it to a place that does auto upholstery. They might be able to tell you just by feel if something is out of place.

I suppose it does come down to whether you want to live with it or not.

But I would want to know what is going on.

If the seat is broken, and/or has been broken for a period of time, you said it always made clicking sounds, then it could be or become a safety issue.

You kind of need to determine what might be going on. If a visual inspection obviously isn't enough?

Odd that the dealership would visually inspect and find nothing..but then suggest you get a replacement seat out of a wrecked Prius.

IMO it's kind of a binary situation. Either the seat you have has an issue that should or can be repaired, or demands replacement, OR it doesn't. And there should be a way to find out what that reality is....

Auto Upholstery Shops deal with frames, cushions all the time. They might be able to tell you.

I consider the a seat, an integral part of the safety system of a vehicle. I wouldn't ignore it.

PS.

There is a lot of talk about issues regarding Prius seats...mostly comfort related. BUT not a lot of posts about "broken" seats.

If you bought this Prius used, it is possible something happened before you owned it.

Also...if you feel good about the structure and condition of the used seat? $140 doesn't seem like a lot to spend.

But you would be pulling a seat out of a wrecked Prius, so the key would be to make sure the replacement was in good condition.

 

If you can replicate the clicking or any abnormal noises coming from the seat, while driving or not driving, take it back to the dealer. Have the service manager ride along with you and let them hear the noise(s).

Tell them you heard a pop sound and it sounded like a weld broke. It could be a safety issue, especially if you are in an accident.

On my Camry, I had a creaking sound coming from the right side of my dashboard area every time I accelerated and decelerated, and also when the car went over speed bumps or uneven surfaces. The mechanics and service writers all heard it, but they couldn't find the problem, even after disassembling my dashboard a couple of times.

It turned out to be a bad spot weld around the A-pillar/fender area that was allowing some flex in the body structure, and the dashboard would rub against the flexing body structure. After they rewelded the area, it's been solid and quiet.

Be persistent, even if they have to order and install another seat (under warranty of course), don't give up. Stress that it is a safety issue if the seat structure is compromised. Good luck.

SCH-I535

 

It's bothering you. I would spend the $140.00 for the used seat just to find out if it works providing you can get someone to switch them out. Probably an upholstery shop could do it.

 

The dealer should fix it under warranty, definitely a problem with materials or workmanship IMO.

SCH-I535

 

Certainly they should fix it if it is under warranty.

 

Agreed, the OP stated that the seat creaked from the outset, then recently popped (possibly a weld fracture). Car is one year old, should still be under general 3 yr/36k warranty.

SCH-I535

 

But if the OP is 400+ lbs?

SCH-I535

 

My opinion: Run, do not walk, to the nearest alternate dealer and/or upholstery shop and get this diagnosed. Everything you're describing sounds like a busted seat frame, and that "snap" sound doesn't sound good, either. I have a 2010 and the seat makes no noises such as you've described.

Here's where you're risking your life: Those seats, the seat belts holding you to them, and the airbags around them keep you in place in case of major accidents. There have been cases of people ejected through the rear window in a rear-end collision where the seat frame broke. Even if you don't manage to make it through said window, a human body traveling unrestrained inside a car is going to Not Be Good News, either for the body in question or anybody else (children in rear seats?). Remember, in these types of accidents things are happening 'way faster than human reaction time: You may as well be a lump of hamburger for all the control you'll be able to exert in the situation.

In the cases of a frontal, side, or any other collision of drastic or less proportions it's important for the driver to stay in place, either to prevent injury or to remain in control of the car.

If it is a busted seat member, and you don't have any accidents going forward, maybe you won't care. But if you do end up in an accident, it'll be no consolation to your busted/dead body that the car seat should have held when it didn't, and all the lawsuits in the world won't remove the damage from your busted body.

If you want to stay with your dealership, then you can scare the whizz out of them by simply contacting Toyota at some higher level directly. The dealership should have stripped down that seat to parade rest upon your initial complaint; I'm sure that Toyota corporate might have some choice words for those clowns about their, "go buy a salvage seat" recommendation.

Oh, yeah: a minor point. Back in my much younger days I got forced off the passing lane on an interstate by an idiot who didn't see me in his blind spot. As a result, the '71 VW Beetle I was driving got flipped end-for-end down the side of the freeway. It just so happened that, that morning, I had adjusted the manual seat and shoulder belt to its proper position. Hence, I stayed in the seat while the car got whammed around me. One totaled car; one scratch on a foot; and a slight concussion from hitting the driver's side door window and getting knocked out for a few seconds.
Conclusion: I might have avoided the end-for-end flipping by not panic-stopping on the verge's soft dirt. But this was in New Hampshire, and trying to go into the median would have been useless, since it was down there with boulders, big ones. And I couldn't get back onto the road, the idiot was there.
Moral: safety belts and being restrained are very, very important. Don't think that it might not happen to you: It can, there's a limitless supply of idiocy out there.

KBeck.

 

it's a 2010 o/p purchased a year ago, not under warranty.

 

Fine. Cool. But this is (potentially) a major safety item. Had the car been in a major accident? If not, it's an original defect, or a defect that should not have occurred over time. OP: Where did you get this car?

 

I reread everything the OP posted in this thread. He never indicated that the vehicle is not under warranty.

SCH-I535

 

I did as well. He never indicated it was, either...

 

My car never had a loud click unless the seat forward/backwards thing wasn't fully locked in position. But I have had the slight play or click when I stop or reach/move around I can feel the play in the seat. My car has done this since new and I have been in other genIII and they also did it. I'm 6'2" 240lbs so it may take more weight to feel the play in the seat. It seems to be the seatback.

 

If the dealer won't fix it I would write a letter to the President of Toyota. That will get results. A dealer that I bought 4 new Toyotas from left the splash cover off of the area that covers the oil pan. I took it back to the dealer and they would not even acknowledge my car was equipped with that part and they would do nothing about it. Can you believe that? I wrote to the President of Toyota and I got a phone call from his office and I was told to take it to the Toyota dealer of my choice, pay for the repair, send in a receipt and I would be sent a check. No hassle. They did exactly that. Needless to say, I took my business elsewhere.

 

Jeez, hate to relate my own idiocy but since KBeck started I will chime in and say:
GET THE SEAT REPLACED ASAP BEFORE IT FAILS WHILE DRIVING!
Why so emphatic?
I was alone piloting a small aircraft climbing out from a rural airport when the seat track securing latch failed and the seat and I slid backwards about 18 inches to two feet before it hit the back of the track. I could not effectively reach the yoke, rudder pedals, or throttle to control the aircraft and had no copilot. Could have been fatal.

Broken seat --> loss of control --> fatal accident is an equally likely scenario in an automobile . Please fix or replace it.

 

i'm just saying it's a 2010, how can it be in warranty? it doesn't matter that it's a safety issue unless there is a recall.