4Runner Front Seat Swap?

[Seanz0rz]

The front seats in my 4Runner have become extremely uncomfortable. I am looking to swap in seats from something more comfortable.

so what would be some comfortable seats to swap in? I would prefer they already come with seat heaters, but not a deal breaker. also they should be fairly inexpensive. i'd like to complete this for less than 200, hopefully much less. seat material quality can be less than perfect, as you can usually find decent quality leather replacements.

what i am finding is newer seats all have airbags in the seat, which jacks up the price and complicates my install.

ideas?

[04 Rocko Taco]

Watching this thread, let me know what you come up with, I would LOVE to have some new seats for my '04 Taco. Then I can demote Taco seats to the '84. haha.

[CJM]

Seats out of any sports car will work id think. Mustang, nissan, toyota, etc. Id think the best options might be seats out of a lexus or maybe camry.

[DHC6twinotter]

The Celica GTS seats are really comfortable. Several years ago, I sat in a 2nd gen with them. Really nice.

I like the seats in my 4Runner, but I dunno if the Sport package had different seats than the limited models. Nice side bolsters, and the lumbar support is in the perfect spot.

[Seanz0rz]

yeah I'm looking at sports cars.

any vehicle that anyone owns that has very comfortable front seats? supportive with bolsters, comfortable on long rides, etc.

[04 Rocko Taco]

Volvo S70.

Christian on GATTORA has a set in his Taco, very comfortable.

[Bob98SR5]

Sean,

See if you can find Flo-fits. I have them in my BMW. They are basically clones of Recaros and have been OEM in Mustangs (I don't know which years, I have been told this).

http://www.flickr.com/photos/sizzlerscheesetoast/sets/72157626563283777/

Nevermind the bike pics in there, gotta move them out. I had these recovered in black two tone cloth too for $300 cash. FYI recovering cost

[CJM]

Seats out of a focus I rode in comes to mind, the sport edition has the sild blosters are are very comfy.

[Bob98SR5]

but i do like my stock toyota oem seats the best. they look just right, not too big, not too small, comfortable bolsters, etc. fitting them if you could find them would be a breeze.

[Crinale]

I've been thinking trying to swap the seats out of an e30 like mine into my Taco... but even stock 4runner buckets are significantly more comfortable than the saggy bench I have to deal with.

[paddlenbike]

Does your 4runner have the sport package seats? I find mine to be comfortable, so I'm wondering if yours are just broken-down. The leather ones have a lot less support than the cloth sport ones. The 7-way adjustable seats in my 1994 SR5 V6 Toyota were the most comfortable of any car I've ever owned.
1994 4runner/pickup seats:
https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-lbO8iMpypjI/UN_v3ugzk3I/AAAAAAAAJIQ/CkyOS3wLk7w/s400/P7100570r.jpg

EDIT--you got me looking thru my pictures; I forgot what a sharp looking truck that was.
https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-Eegd0PnFL04/UN_u9Bi4iXI/AAAAAAAAJH0/_ch1qXYpVYc/s640/P4180353.JPG

If you don't care about your interior matching, the Honda Prelude Si seats are really nice too.

[aschaaf]

Volvo S70.

Christian on GATTORA has a set in his Taco, very comfortable.

I am new to this forum and am interested in swapping out my crappy 4th Gen 4Runner seats with something way more comfortable. I used to drive a Volvo XC70 - and that car had the best seats ever made! We could go on a 17 hour road trip and never feel fatigued. I am really serious about knowing what it takes to swap out the stock seats with a pair of Volvo seats. I'm a girl and I'm handy but not that handy. I know I will need someone to do the actual work for me. I just like to know what's involved so I know who to talk to and how to describe what needs to be done. I will probably go to a junk/salvage yard to get the seats.

Any help would be much appreciated!

-Thanks.

[Seanz0rz]

Welcome to the forum!

To fit the seats, I see a couple of options:

1. The factory 4runner seat rails are kept and the donor seats adapted to those rails. This, at the very least, will involve drilling some holes and possibly partially disassembling the old and new seats. Some welding may be involved.

2. The donor seat is modified to mount in the existing mounting locations in your 4runner. This will most definitely involve some welding and creative problem solving.

Either way you are going to have to take it to a shop that is willing to do the custom work, and will walk out without any sort of warranty or guarantee. I could rough guess the cost for labor at over $1k, maybe much more.

You could do as much of the leg work as possible, then find a "friend" to weld it up or do anything you are not comfortable doing. I would start with the passenger seat and find a comfortable donor pair that is from a car (less tall). Work on that one so you can still drive the vehicle, and pay close attention to seat height and pitch, etc. Once you have you passenger side figured out, get it modified and test it out. If everything came out like you expected, have the driver side done.

As for donor seats, you will want to find some that have not been exposed to rain, snow, sun, or animals. A good pair of seats will probably run about 700-1000 dollars, depending on model and age.

Hopefully that made some sense, I've been gluing plastic all day so who knows how cooked my brain is! This is still a mod I want to do, but is down the road a bit for me.

[04 Rocko Taco]

I've often considered going the Volvo seat route as well.

Welcome to UY!

I will try and check with my friend over on GA TTORA to see what he did in his Taco, but if I recall, I think he just welded the rails in, and they didnt slide anymore. I think there has to be a better option.

[paddlenbike]

Does the 4th gen have SRS airbags in the seats? If so, you might think twice about disabling a safety device.

[4x4mike]

I think one of the biggest obstacle will be the seat height/angle and slider width. Chances are they are quite different between the 4th gen and the Volvo so there will have to be some trail and error with a bunch of test fits.

I think the way to do it is to fab a solid base that mounts to the floor and then the seats mount to it. This can reduce the width issue of the tracks. Before mounting the base figure out the angle you're going to need. Ideally the mounting to the base is easy and you'll retain the adjustment.

Oh and welcome.

[aschaaf]

Thank you all for your kind words and the warm welcome! It sounds like the work to get a pair of Volvo seats in my 4R would be pretty custom, and probably cost more than I really want to spend. The other option I have been considering was getting a pair of the Corbeau Sport seats since they would be a little easier to install?? If I am still going to run the same cost for installation of a pair of those seats however, I may opt to go the Volvo seat route. It sounds like the Corbeau is a bit more straight forward and perhaps something I could even do?

As for your buddy over at GA TTORA (not sure what that is or what it stands for), his permanent weld option doesn't sound ideal to me. I still want functionality and versatility. BUT, i still am interested in what he did.

So there is a place here in Salt Lake City called Utah Pull-n-Save. It's a salvage yard where you go pull the parts yourself. for bucket seats, the cost is $35 per seat. There is a 2001 Volvo XC70 that I could go pull the seats from myself (if it isn't too hard). This would only cost me $70 and time, then I could have someone put them in...if I find someone willing to do the work.

Also, i will have to check on the Side Airbag situation with my year/make/model. I too would hate to give up a safety feature like that. Thank you for bringing that to my attention.

Again, thank you all for your help. I really appreciate it!

Cheers.

[Good Times]

the Lexus GX model is the Toyota 4runner twin. See if you like the ergonomics on the GX seats and if you do that'll be the easiest swap which should bolt right up (I'm just assuming here so you'll probably want to double check first). The other option is to look into Land Cruiser seats since the 4runner is based on the prado series that might work too.

good luck and welcome aboard!

[4x4mike]

That's a great deal on a seat. Places like that don't exist where I'm from. If you can get a deal on a seat the swap and fabrication might be worthwhile. Check the heights and angles to see that they would work. Work as in your head isn't against the ceiling, the seatbelts are compatible and that you have some adjustment.

Corbeau makes a bracket for the 3rd gen and 4th gen 4runners so they might be worthwhile to look into.

http://racing-seats-usa.com/racing-seats-car-brackets.html

For what they are it seems like a decent price but high if you're bolting a $35 seat to them. Plus you're loosing power adjustment if you already have that. I think it would be easier to get the Corbeau brackets and adapt the seats to them rather than trying to adapter a bracket to work with the floor. Even if you had to pay someone shop labor adapting has a chance of being cheaper than full on fabbing.

I don't know much about the Corbeau brackets but I assume they are designed around safety. This is important because in an accident you're strapped to the seat and you don't want anything to break free and go flying.

[aschaaf]

That's a really good idea. I will look and see if I can't find some Lexus seats :-)

[aschaaf]

That's a great deal on a seat. Places like that don't exist where I'm from. If you can get a deal on a seat the swap and fabrication might be worthwhile. Check the heights and angles to see that they would work. Work as in your head isn't against the ceiling, the seatbelts are compatible and that you have some adjustment.

Corbeau makes a bracket for the 3rd gen and 4th gen 4runners so they might be worthwhile to look into.

http://racing-seats-usa.com/racing-seats-car-brackets.html

For what they are it seems like a decent price but high if you're bolting a $35 seat to them. Plus you're loosing power adjustment if you already have that. I think it would be easier to get the Corbeau brackets and adapt the seats to them rather than trying to adapter a bracket to work with the floor. Even if you had to pay someone shop labor adapting has a chance of being cheaper than full on fabbing.

I don't know much about the Corbeau brackets but I assume they are designed around safety. This is important because in an accident you're strapped to the seat and you don't want anything to break free and go flying.


Would you just measure the heights and angles and then try to "superimpose" those dimensions in the 4Runner before you pull the trigger on purchasing the Volvo seat? I'm just trying to picture how I would go about checking the height and angle before pulling out either seat and setting in the new Volvo seat?

If I am understanding you correctly, you think it might be worth getting the bracket from Corbeau and using that to mount the Volvo seat to? What if then don't line up?? Then you are having fabrication work done anyways.

Thanks for your comments and thoughts!

[Seanz0rz]

What about a Lexus GX470 seat? It should be more comfortable, and I think it actually might bolt up out of the box. I could be wrong about that part, but the vehicles are very similar.

looks like Lance beat me to it.

My problem with pick n pulls seats is they sit outside and get wet. They also get greasy when people looking for parts touch them. You really have to go when the car first gets there to get good seats. The other problem, at least here, is that virtually all new vehicles do not go to pick n pulls, but to auto dismantlers that end up charging much higher prices because of the labor involved. The product is better though.

[aschaaf]

You have a good point SeanOrz about the possible poor condition of the seats from a pick-n-pull place, but it can't hurt to go look at them and if they aren't in good condition then wait till another car comes through. I am still doing my research on how easy/hard/painful this may be. I spoke with a guy from Corbeau (they are here in Salt Lake too) about what I am trying to do. He thinks they can make a bracket work for my volvo seat replacement. I just need to look at the mounting system for both the Volvo seat and the 4Runner and also make sure the seat height, etc will work for me. Like I said, still have some homework to do.

Stay tuned...

[4x4mike]

So after talking to the Corbeau does the angle thing make sense?

The only reason I mentioned them is that they make a bracket. Your current bracket would most likely go out the door with your old seat. The Corbeau bracket was made to fit your vehicle and accept a different seat. That doesn't mean a Volvo seat will fit it but with the bracket already in place you have a good foundation to work on.

[04 Rocko Taco]

Man, this thread had brought back my desires two fold. I want to swap seats in every rig I have. :hillbill:

I need some new racing seats, would love some Hunsaker SS for the '84 crawler.
The seats in my '04 Taco DD are pretty ragged.
And I want to recover the leather seats in Mrs. Rocko's 96 cruiser.

[aschaaf]

So after talking to the Corbeau does the angle thing make sense?

The only reason I mentioned them is that they make a bracket. Your current bracket would most likely go out the door with your old seat. The Corbeau bracket was made to fit your vehicle and accept a different seat. That doesn't mean a Volvo seat will fit it but with the bracket already in place you have a good foundation to work on.


I didn't talk "angles" with the Corbeau guy, but what you are saying definitely makes sense. The other downside to using the Corbeau bracket (as you or someone else already mentioned) is that you lose the automatic adjustment of the seat in the forward and back position -> you just get a lever on the Corbeau bracket that controls the fore/aft seat position.

I am taking my 4R into the shop on Monday, I will confer with my mechanic and ask his opinion about switching out the seat. Maybe he as some thoughts or suggestions. The main reason I am messing with the seat in the first place is because it has a broken weld and it clicks and bobs and moves around a whole lot. Additionally, the front leg adjustment of the seat also has a bunch of play in it and it drives me nuts. That part doesn't have a broken weld, just poor craftsmanship. I may just have him repair the weld and stick the seat back in. If he says it would be "easy" and relatively inexpensive to replace the seat I will continue down that path.