Apparently, Volvo didn't make their seats to last as long as the rest of the car. I'm on my 3rd 240 and in every one the lumbar support has broken and caved in. On my current '83 244, both front seats are broken and I haven't had a lot of luck finding any decent 240s in the junkyards around Minneapolis.

So, my question is can the lumbar support be fixed? I dont mind cutting the back of the seat open if that is what it will take, but I don't want to do it if it's not worth it. I need to get this fixed before i become a hunchback.

If there's anyone out their living in the Twin Cities area, and you've got a pair of good seats you'd want to part with, that would be extra awesome. Preferably blue and cloth, but i'll take black, too.

Lumbar supports are a pretty easy fix. I've fixed them several times, but only the first time did I buy the Volvo repair kit. You don't need it.

The weak element in the lumbar supports is that pair of skinny wires which connect the seat frame to the little seat springs. The rest of your lumbar components are probably OK. On my seats, I've widened the holes in the seat frames and plastic pieces so I could use heavier wire in place of the original thin stuff. I think you'd find baling wire and coat-hanger wire to be too soft. I've had the best success with some heavier gauge galvanized fence wire.

If you leave it unrepaired, there is a chance the little broken wire will poke through the back of the seat cover. I've always removed my seats to do this repair, but I suppose it is possible to fix it with the seat in the car. There is no need to cut the seat cover--just make it loose at the bottom and roll the cover up. My other tip is to quit the hog rings and use nylon cable ties instead.

Good luck with it!

When I had my seats reupholstered, the guy built in a non-adjustable lumbar support that has worked well. He took a couple of heavy nylon straps about three inches wide and fastened them across the seatback frame then padded them nicely.
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Thanks for all the help. DougC 1981 242, IPD bars and Turbo wheels, M46 :::::: 1993 245, B230 NA L-Block, M47, Turbo bars::::::1984 760, B23FT, M46

Many americans are fat, but I am a fit, slim 170 pounds. At my 6'3" stature, I am not the cause of my seats failures.

The parts from IPD to repair your lumbar run about 30 bucks, and should take an hour to install.

Check out IPD. They offer a spring kit for the bottom, a lumbar rebuild kit for the back, and seat heaters for both. They don't offer a diet kit for our lard a**es.

Bill

The seats were well made. I think the problem is Volvo's engineers never imagined possible the volume and mass of the typical American car occupant. However, 15-20 years, when 240s were in their prime, Americans were smaller, so maybe my hypothesis is invalid.

http://www.ipdusa.com/Volvo-200/Interior/Lumbar-Seat-Repair-Kit/p-69-262-637/

Most of the seats I've looked into had all these support parts intact, but some or all of it had become undone/were on the floor/etc. The steel frame is usually bent/broken in some corners, bring your welding gear.

Look at this site for an educational pictorial called "Tony Hoffman's Seat Fixing Pages": http://home.no.net/ebrox/