88wildrunner

has anyone ever replaced the rear bench seat with buckets seats?

i thought it would be a cool idea to put them in the rear with a center console.
i still have my front bucket seats lying around, from when i installed some hunsakers.

toylocost

They would sit really high unless you got rid of the slider frame which could work I guess. Might still be high though. Youd have to build a frame thing cause there is a dip in the floor under the stock seats I think. That would be cool if you did it right.

eightnine

yeah the floor is not flat there is a dip in it so that the bench will fit right. I think it would have to be totally custom job to get anything beside a bench to fit there

flatland4runner

I thought about that but I figured there wouldnt be room to still have the fold down seats out back..but it would look great

312necro213

I have been thinking about this for a while and I have seen several problems so far:
1. The spot under the bucket seat is a hump in the body to support it.
2. If you were to do some custom fab work with this your carpet/upholstry is going to look like if you don't get it all redone.
3. It may be uncomfortable because due to how far you will have to lower everything to get it all to fit your legs will be stretched out almost straight.
4. this one may be a problem only if you want to do it, rear heat to the center console would be cool. but absolutely not necessary.

Things I have already solved in my mind:
1. Get a console from the local pick'n'pull, hopefully one of those huge dodge ones
2. There would be more room under the seats for amps and other components.
3. it would be a one of a kind rig, although it is already

Hayes

It would be fairly easy to do. Mounting will be the hard part, and making sure there is enough headroom. There is a rig in the most recent of 4wdto that has Celica buckets in the back.

muddpigg

iTrader: (1)

I saw it done on a 1st gen 4rnr. I got a set of buckets to replace my bench. Look like there out of an Aerostar. When the weather warms up I keep you informed.

88wildrunner

if anyone can post some pics of this done that would be great.

i want to see how it would look before i put a lot a time into working on it.

the only problem i could see is the seats sitting to high, because of the hump in the back. i wouldnt have any trouble making mounts for the seats though

4bows

Last summer I test fit a pair of PRP seats as replacements for the bench in my 1st gen...regretfully I opted to reinstall the bench. The PRP's have what I would consider a fairly low profile and they still positioned the passenger too high. I'm 5'-8" and it put the top of my head really close to the topper...I also have an internal cage. I just didn't want to risk a head/neck injury if the passenger were to get bounced around even the slightest bit.

For most bucket seats a person would probably need to notch the hump where the rear deck platform drops down into the bench seat platform and do some custom sheet metal work. This mod would allow the seats to sit as low and far back as possible. You may have gas tank clearance issues and you would probably have to weld in some tubing tied to the frame to support the rear of the seats...and then you have to close up the hole in the tub.

I'd like to see pics of some rigs where folks have shoehorned in some buckets! As soon as we find out the make and model of the seats that DO fit we'll be good to go!

312necro213

I just found a place on ebay that I have been talking to and they said they can get me a custom carpet to fit whatever I end up doing back here. I am replacing the head gasket on my 4runner right now but when thats done the interior is next . So here is my plan. Remove the rear bench, remove the carpet to prevent fire and plus I will be getting a new one. See how close the gas tank is in this area and see what exactly supports this hump, and once I figure everything out... bust out the plasma cutter then I will rebuild this section around some Lexus Ls400 seats I have lying around. I plan on doing this in about 2 weeks so I will keep you guys posted.