Well my truck has just over 200,000 miles and the driver's side seat is getting a bit tired. The fabric is in great shape, no rips or tears, they look great.

However I think my big butt is sagging a little low in it and there is a bar protruding into my back (down low on the seat back) that is getting a bit annoying on any longish type drive.

Any relatively simple solution? I searched and found someone who suggested this could be an issue in older Runners but no solution on how to remedy.

These are SR5 seats from an 88 4Runner.

Has anyone else experienced this? and what have you done to improve it?

thanks.

 

My '85 seats were a bit uncomfortable, but after slipping on a set of Wet Okole covers, they feel like new now. The neoprene cover adds a fair amount of padding and stiffness to the cushions and with the inflatable lumbar air bladder, it fits in back better as well.

 

It's not an issue with older Runners, it's an issue with ALL older seats, they do wear out...

Any upholstery shop can remove the covers and repad the seats, they will be like new.
If you are handy, you could do it yourself too, but some thought and understanding about how padding works and which type is most suitable has to go into it. It's actually not hard at all to remove the covers and reinstall them.

 

Somewhere I found a place that had replacement seat covers for trucks including the older 4runner. But I'll be damned if I can find it again. I guess I should have book marked it.

This place was different than most the cover shops in that they sold sets that actually replaced the original covers (including using the hog ring ties) rather than just being expensive slip covers. Anyone know of this shop? I can't find it again.

 

My Wet Okoles made my seats feel totally different. They have about 1/4" of foam or so in them and they fit really tight. Sounds like yours may be just in need of replacement if you can feel the bar in it though. Maybe try the local junkyard for a different seat if you can find one that windows werent' down in the rig....

 

oh man, I don't really want to replace the whole seat if I can help it. Those suckers are expensive. Mine LOOK very very good. No holes, no rips, no stains, just right above my butt that darn bar is pressing into my back, in reality I don't notice it until I've been on a longer drive.

I may have to look into doing some upholstery work myself. I'm always game to screw something up! Just need Roger to do a write up for the mechanically impaired. I was able to make my own cover for the center console following his write up and it looks pretty darn good if I do say so myself.

 

I had a similar problem, and since I rarely have a passenger in my junk the passenger side seat cushion was in better shape. I swapped the cushion from the driver's side to the passenger's side and it made a real difference.

Also, I found that lifting the rear of the seat about 1/2" to 1" with blocks or spacers made the seats much more comfortable. I've done this in my '88 beater and my '94 daily driver. I think Roger Brown sells some kits, but it's easy to buy a few longer bolts and make your own spacers.