83pingpong

Tired of this old seat. The left front sags so bad it feels like I'll fall between the door and the seat Believe it or not, it is worse than it looks!





So I got a '03 Civic seat for $20. The adjuster rails are nearly 3" wider than stock Toyota seat, so time to fabricate a solution...First task, drill out the rivits and get rid of the mounting posts. The one of the right rear was welded, so a sawzall took care of that one.





I checked the seat for fit, and found the right rear slide track too long. SAWZALL!






OK so cut a 1/4" by 1.5" steel plate for a solid front mount piece







drill mounting holes, and ready for welding...





A couple of rather oversized 3" tabs placed to easily bracket the mounting holes in the truck. The nice thing about 1/4" plate is that my bad welding (old Lincoln tombstone/stick welder) is good enough. It'll never crack or break!





A little more drilling and let's see how it fits...OK, ready for black paint (another strategy to hide my welding!). You can see the stock seat belt lock back in the corner. So I removed the built-in lock on the seat (didn't work with the seat belt anyway --too narrow). Almost there.






Paint drying...update tomorrow

Oh... MERRY CHRISTMAS!


more later

donomite49

looking good, a comfortable seat is a x-mas present you will really enjoy.

i put z28 seats in my 79. the original bench was in such bad shape, the bar across the top was the only support for the back. they were easier to install too, just swapped the yota brackets onto the buckets.

looking forward to pics of the finished project.

slow-mo

Yes please, the bench in my '87 definitely needs replacing.



Link or pics of this swap?

And what year Z28?

83pingpong

I just could not swap the hardware from '83 SR5 buckets to '03 Civic buckets. The Civic bucket base is almost 3 inches wider! My bracket is universal, so I can drill new holes if I find a better seat to mount. But this Civic seat should be OK. I'll post in a few hours after kids open presents (!). It is ready to bolt in.

dropzone

iTrader: (6)

You doing the passenger side too?

83pingpong

I have the matching passenger seat. It would look better if I match them. Not a priority at the moment. Oh, I could hide the upholstery difference with seat covers instead. Not sure. In fact, although the seat is much better, I am not sure I won't change it again. For now, it doesn't bruise my left thigh when I get in and out (a rogue loose spring!).

83pingpong

I didn't pin the rear sides of the tracks. I put a used shock mount insert on a bolt as a rubber bumper. Works fine. Seat belt lock is easier to get to now. Cool. The seat is more firm, but very comfortable. Nice fit.

dropzone

iTrader: (6)

Nice job.
I hear you about.maybe changing seats again. I have had 4 sets in 6 years

83pingpong

I had a '67 Nova long time ago, and swapped a pair of Camaro seats in there. 230 CI inline 6. I put a Hurst shifter on it (was column 3 speed) That was sweet. I wasn't into any fabrication at the time, so the seats must have been nearly a straight bolt on swap, even though the original seat on the Nova was a bench! That was a common thing back then. These days, it rarely works so easy! But as I said, that bracket can get new holes to mount just about anything.

83pingpong

Like to see pics of the z28 seats. The old Camaro seats had thin construction on the back rest, which is obviously useful in standard cab Toyota pickup! Forward/back adjustment is not exactly needed for most people in these trucks... two positions-tilted forward for access behind the seat, and all the way back!

donomite49

can't, sold the truck (miss it too) the motor went out and i could'nt afford to finish that project, a buick turbo v6 th350 auto trans swap.

the seats were out of a early to middle 80's camaro.
i used the stock yota brackets one off the stock bench and another set out of a pick a part.
i drilled a hole in the rear of the brackets and used the original front hole in the brackets. that let them recline a little. the seats were a little bit shorter front to back than the yota seats.

83pickup-man

looks great. probably a lot more comfortable.