I have a 2003 Ford explorer and the latch for the back seat lever broke it won't allow the seat to move to the upright position as it is stuck folded position what is the best fix for this problem thanks

Ok first you will have to take out that lever and remove the plastic cover to see if a. The pin on the seat broke -b.if the latch that locks the seat has broken -c. If the spring on it broke

You will need to take the seat apart to determine what is not fastened to release it.

dealers repair book best option/mechanics manuals may find online

On my 2016 Ford Escape the rear passenger seat folded down and would not hold back up the problem was that the seat belt buckle pivoted down below the level of the seat when I try to raise the back of the sheet the seat belt buckle would prevent it it ended up crushing the plastic on the seat belt buckle preventing it from working the hold the seat belt I was able to repair the seat belt buckle with a screwdriver regular Style and a cigarette lighter the soft in the plastic back up so it would stay in position

Hey everyone--after searching in vain for an entire 10 days, and absolutely REFUSING to pay Ford's $100 diagnosis fee, and their $300 replacement suggestion ($400??), I decided to figure this out myself. And I did. Do the following to let loose the tension that has kept your seat stuck in the down position (though my truck is a 2008 Ford Escape, I have a strong feeling this is the case with any vehicle):

1. Remove the seat bottoms (which are folded forward and upward against the back of the front seats). To do this, find the bars that are bracketed into the floor. There may or may not be a little yellow lever on one of the two brackets. If so, flip it and slide the bar out. If it stops, pull the other side out. Doing this should allow you to completely remove the seat from the car. Repeat with other side.

Now you should have plenty of room to work. Move front seats forward, and you've got even more.

2. Remove your back seats entirely. (Sorry- it's a must.) For many, you will require either one or both of these:
One Torx T-50 socket to remove T-50 bolt (which bolts seat belt latches to the floor)
One Torx T-55 (which bolts the folding seat into the bracket that bolts seats to the floor).
One socket extension (tip: the extension gives you much more torque, and its easier to remove bolts) and
One a 5/8" socket. (See continuation after following tip.)

TIP: if you have a 40/60 split, you have to remove the 40 first! This will allow you room to move around the 60 seat and its stuck belt.

Continued:
Remove bolts that bolt bracket to car floor (this is the 40 seat). I believe there's two: 1 directly below the seat, and 1 that also bolts the 60 seat (you'll be using the 5/8" here)-- Don't hold me to it, though, as I've seen some different stuff. Pull seat out of the way to avoid potential damage. NOTE: THOSE BRACKETS ARE SHARP. WATCH THE LEATHER/SEAT MATERIAL-- AND YOUR HANDS.)

2. Remove bolts on the 60. Though the top part of your seat is down, you should be able to the bolt that keeps the bracket to the floor beneath where the seat cushion would be (and where the upper part of the seat is laying flat). A ratchet would probably be best for this since you can keep the socket in place and wind the thing completely out. I should say here that my seat couldn't have been tighter to the floor. If I got mine out, I'm sure you can, too.

Now here come the tricky, but verrrrry easy parts. They are vital.

1. Now that the brackets are off of the floor, the 60 seat should now be free-floating in your hands, but tethered by the T50 bolt that is keeping the seatbelt buckle to the floor. Remove it. Now you should be able to remove the seat altogether. I had to bring mine inside where it wasn't 15 degrees in my garage, but I believe you'll do these parts in the next five minutes. Do this next:

2. TIP the 60 SEAT UPRIGHT (just like it would if things were back to the normal operational mode). This is VITAL. If you cannot fix it with two or three tugs from here (don't waste more time than this-- the final part is coming), then do this next:

3. Find the latch on the back of the seat that locks onto the latch of the car. Using two gloved fingers (or tools), press the latch inward until it's in the LOCKED position (fooling it into thinking you've put it up and latched into into the truck bracket).
This should have also reset the button or lever that you used to unlock the seat in the first place. Now give your belt a tug. It should come loose like normal.

IMPORTANT NOTE: seatbelt tensioners rely on gravity (thing momentum during a crash) that locks the belt. If the seat is not sitting UPRIGHT (like in normal use mode), that mechanism is going to obey gravity if it is tilted backward or forward (which is why the seat got in the downward position to begin with) and lock.

That's it. Bolt the seats back in, and go buy yourself $400 worth of rewards.

Okay so im just going to start from the seat being upright in a normal riding position.

1. You need to fold the head rests first. Pull the black tab under both headrests. They should spring into a folded position.

2. pull the side seat lever (on the door side of the seat). This will fold the top/back support down to an angle.

3. There is one more lever on the backside of this seat. Its in plain sight on the angled portion of your seat. Lift the big plastic lever.

4. While keeping the handle lifted, grasp the back of the seat and pull it torwards the front of the car. The seat should come unlocked and roll forward and down more towards the floor. If you have a bunch of junk on the floor, it obviously wont work. clear the path and the seat will fold completely flat.

Also, your drivers seat and front passenger seat cannot be all the way back, they need to come forward some in order for the second row seats' head rests to clear and fold flat.

Do any of the door handles inside or out feel sloppy (when you pull on them does it feel like there is nothing connected to them)?

If so that the levers on the latches are probably rusted up and sticking. Say for example the outside door handle lever that is attached to the door latch is stuck half way in the open position it will not allow the door lock mechanism to lock or unlock. The door will still latch and stay closed because the lever will not be stuck far enough to release the latch mechanism from hold on to the striker.

I have had pretty good luck removing the door latch (the part that actually holds the door closed) and soaking in penetrating lube and working all the levers until they move freely.

As far as the door that doesn't open I suspect it is stuck in the lock position and one of the handle mechanisms is in the partial up position. Again the symptom would be a sloppy door handle. That lever will need to be put back in its normal resting position before the door can be unlocked. This can be done with a slim jim. Once you have the door panel apart on the door that still opens you will be able to see the parts you need to move. You can then use that knowledge to move those parts on the other door that doesn't open.

If you don't have any experience with a lockout kit (i suspect most people do not) that that's the best way I can describe how you can do this yourself.

I’m happy to assist further over the phone at https://www.6ya.com/expert/jeremy_d728a59f986299fa

The fix is:

• remove the seat bench,
  
• unscrew the bolt attaching the seat belt to the body,
  
• return the seat back to its upright position and make sure it latches
• reattach the seat belt
• replace the seat bench

To prevent this from happening again:

• Leave the seat belt latch in its receiver when not in use.
  

I had the same problem.The dealer wanted $400 to replace the latch. I didn't wnat to pay that much so I looked at it and found that the release strap was twisted and jammed in the mechanism. Here's how I fixed it.

I removed the screw from the lever and removed the lever. I pulled apart the plastic housing. It does not come apart all the way but enough to work on it. Pull the release strap that comes out of the back and pull it clear of the mechanism and straighten it out. slip the lever back on and the seat should fold. Fold it up all the way to make it easier to reassemble. Pull the lever back off and slip the release strap back into the slot and make sure it is not twisted or kinked. Snap the housing back together, put the lever back on, and screw it in. Test it and it should work fine. Hope this helps,

I have had this problem, and I am having it again. The problem is if a little trash gets under the bar in the floor, it will keep the mechanism from locking completely. I had tried everything. The only solution so far is the rock back and forth. Real pain. I am trying to find a secret release.