Rover owners: Fatigue cracks in front seat frames

Added some photos of where exactly the early Rover 216/416 seat frames crack. The crossbar that runs along the back of the seat squab is made of very thin gauge steel and is easily distorted if you regularly carry passengers in the back.

First symptoms are creaks and rattles as the load is taken up by the structure which flexes more due to cracks which leads to more fatigue cracks then flexing...

You have to be very careful when welding since there's foam and pvc vinyl seat covers close by. Normally I would have stripped down the seats but as these are 22 years old and all the vinyl 'leather-look portions have shrunk over the years, it would have torn when reassembling. So I unclipped as much as I could then propped it out of the way while using heat-shield made from plumbers' gas soldering flame/heat proof matting.

Vitally important to use a small drill and drill out the ends of the cracks otherwise they will spread. Once drilled, sand back the paint so the MIG welder can earth to it then carefully position the bar, clamp it up then plug-weld it. If only one of your seats has cracked then definately good idea to check the other as all things being equal, means it might be ready to snap off. The crossbar holds the back of the seat-squab cushion and outer trim in place plus adds rigidity to the structure.

I've got to do the driver's seat today and will take some before shots and maybe some video. I had to do the passenger side quickly as the car was going in for MOT the next day. (it passed - rust is cosmetic at the moment)