Hi

I am looking for a set of seat rails for a 1985 XJ SC. The seats had been replaced with Recaro's but we want to put the original seats back. Unfortunately the seat rails are nowhere to be found.

I am helping out a friend so I do not have much knowledge of the XJS (just taken delivery of a XK8). Does anyone know where I might still be able go get a set.

 

Try Just XJS
Just Jaguar XJS Parts and Spares, all models 1975 to 1996

 

Thanks Greg. I will contact them.

 

You don't say where you are located. I am in Florida, USA. I have a pair of front seat rails. PM me if you are interested.
I can post pics here if you want to see what they look like. These came out of a 1985 XJS.

 

Here are some pics of the XJS seat rails

85 XJS Left and Right seat rails

85 XJS Left and Right seat rails

85 XJS Left and Right seat rails

 

QUOTE from another post:
SEAT MOUNTING BOLTS: On the early cars such as the author's '83, the four bolts that hold the front seat rails to the floor tend to be aggravating. The front two bolts go into rectangular block nuts that do not hold themselves in place, although it usually isn't too difficult to hold them in place with a large screwdriver long enough to get the threads started. The rear bolt near the door threads into a trapped nut that can move around for alignment. The rear bolt adjacent to the console is threaded directly into a boss welded to the floor; since this is the only corner that cannot be moved for alignment, this is the one that locates the seat. When putting the seat in, it is a good idea to get all four bolts started before tightening any, and then tighten the rear one near the console first.

To make the job a little easier, you can replace the two rectangular block nuts at the front with clip nuts that will hold themselves in place. The clip nuts are described as an "extruded U nut, 5/16 Regular" or "Long". The "regular" means that the clip part is 5/8" deep, while the "long" has a clip about 7/8" deep. Suitable U-nuts were bought at Lowe's and made by Curtis Industries, Inc., Eastlake, OH 44095. The Curtis part number is 838758 for the regular and 838759 for the long. Similar U-nuts are also sold by auto body parts shops, with the regular having a part number 4016.

The best course of action seems to be to have a selection of regular and long U-nuts on hand to do this job. On the author's car, the regular fit the locations near the doors while the locations near the console required the long. You don't wanna use the long on the locations near the doors if you don't have to, since they would protrude more than necessary and possibly hurt someone's ankle or run pantyhose.

Of course, strength here is of some importance; you don't want that seat coming loose in an accident. However, even though the U-nuts are extruded from sheet metal, they are probably stronger than the original rectangular block nuts -- which are made of something related to silly putty. Since the U-nut is a clip, it is made of spring steel and therefore quite strong. And the extruded threads are perhaps twice as long as the threads on the rectangular block.

Since U-nuts seem to only come in coarse thread and the original mounting bolts are fine thread, you will have to replace the front two bolts as well to get the U-nuts to work. The shape of the head of the bolt is crucial, since the wrong shape may obstruct the adjustment of the seat. The bolt to use with it is a "socket head cap screw, 5/16-18 x 1". Curtis part number 835558, but this is a fairly common critter and can be found most anywhere. This is driven by a 1/4" Allen wrench. The original lock washer may be used with this bolt.

On the earlier cars, these bolts were Phillips head, and an unusually large Phillips head at that. This makes them quite difficult to get really tight, especially the rear ones since it may be difficult to get the screwdriver to engage the bolt head straight on. Later cars use Torx T-40 bolts instead, a big improvement. The Allen drive cap screws also work quite well; if you have the Phillips, you might consider picking up some 3/4" long fine 5/16" fine thread cap screws for the rear locations, making all four removable with an Allen wrench.