Is there any way to move a busted power seat?

[Benzilla]

Today I was vacuuming out my '90 Brougham, I put the seat all the way forward to do under it, and when I went to put it back, it wouldn't move. Now, I don't know why it's doing this. The motor always ran strong, it wasn't like it was getting weak. I think it might be a short or something. You can't even hear it pulling like it wants to move but can't. Anyway, right now the seat it stuck all the way forward. Is there any way I can move it back until I find a place that can fix it? Like manually moving the motor or something. A while ago I heard of a guy that did this, I just can't remember how. It will only be until I can find a shop, right now I can hardly even drive it, my knees are beside the steering wheel.

[ewill3rd]

Typically you would need to remove the cushion or otherwise access the drive cables. GM likes to use a motor with a square drive inside and square cables. If you unhook the ends of the cables from the fore/aft motor and drive the cable(s) in each direction you should be able to move it until you can check it out.
Not an easy task depending on how they assembled the seat and whether they used one drive cable or two.
If it is two then you have to figure out how to drive them both, or one a little, then the other.

If it is an electrical problem (like a bad switch or broken wire) you can use some fused jumpers to directly connect to the correct motor and move it back. That takes some more skills though.
Wiring diagrams don't hurt either.
If you are in a pinch, I might be able to point you in the right direction. I think I could find a '90 Fleetwood book somewhere to look at and give you a few pointers.

[creeker]

Maybe try holding button on while reaching under the seat and gently move the wires around.

[Benzilla]

Originally Posted by creeker

Maybe try holding button on while reaching under the seat and gently move the wires around.

Already tried it.

thanks for the advice guys.

[AElayyat]

I'd also check the switch just to make sure that it is not the cause.

[Rob Benham]

A story I've dined out on for years was about driving home in my new to me BMW 735. It was raining...hard.

I got to playing with all the new gadgets and ran the seat fully forward. Yep, it stayed there. I chose to go the whole journey with my knees behind the wheel cos of the rain. I guessed that it had just come unplugged on full travel...and it had.

[Red_October_7000]

important question -do other forms of adjustment work? Can you move it up and down?

When I got my Corvette the power seat was no good. It had gotten glass stuck in it from when the window was broken out to steal the roof (the roof of a 1984 Corvette is a single piece of perspex that is worth over $1,000). I was fiddling with it when the seat, which had exhibited no movenent fore and aft at all, and no motor sound, suddenly broke free and moved a bit. Running it fore and aft some more crunched up the glass enough to move it fully and let me take it out and clean the glass out of the seat and uder the car. Try moving the seat -a lot.

On a sidenote if you ever break glass in a vehicle you will never get it all out. We still find it in the 'Vette. Also it was found in a 1978 Ford F600 that had a window broken who knows how many years past, and in my mother's Impala that the dealership had gone over both on taking in and prior to sale (Quite a lot of it actually). That car had been in a bad wreck and is a story in itself, PM if you want an interesting read...

But check the fuse, the connector, and the switches (where are they in a 90? The door?) Power seats in my experience usually use a fuse that will show no indication of blowing... it's a huge metal jobber. Continuity tester time!

[Benzilla]

Thanks, everything works fine except for forward and backward.