Is Their An Easy Way To Move The Seat?

[blake918]

Hey guys, I wanted to get some opinions on this. I'm pretty tall (about 6'4), and with each passing day, I find the LS is getting smaller and smaller. I love this car, she's been so good to me, it's hard not to. I wanted to know if you guys have any suggestions on how I can mount the seat further back and lower in the car. I took the seat out the other day and positioned it like I would ideally want it which is about an inch or inch and a half off the back seat.

So, how do these customizers do this for NBA players and the like? BTW, the wiring harness is plenty long enough. Jason offered to do it for me, but our geographical differences just won't make it possible to do. Here are a few pictures of what I'm thinking about....

Not suprisingly, moving the seat back about 5" or so makes all of the difference in the world. Here it is just as a test fit sitting on the carpet and unsecured (excuse the mess! LOL):

Now, it's much more comfortable!

Here's what's below the seat:

It looks like the rear mounting bar for the stock seat position might have to be removed to really increase headroom.

So, let me have your thoughts. Is this a bad idea all together? Can it be done? Just, wait and get a more spacious car? Et cetera, et cetera.....

[Threadcutter]

Hey guys, I wanted to get some opinions on this. I'm pretty tall (about 6'5), and with each passing day, I find the LS is getting smaller and smaller. I love this car, she's been so good to me, it's hard not to. I wanted to know if you guys have any suggestions on how I can mount the seat further back and lower in the car. I took the seat out the other day and positioned it like I would ideally want it which is about an inch or inch and a half off the back seat.

So, how do these customizers do this for NBA players and the like? BTW, the wiring harness is plenty long enough. Jason offered to do it for me, but our geographical differences just won't make it possible to do. Here are a few pictures of what I'm thinking about....

It looks like the rear mounting bar for the stock seat position might have to be removed to really increase headroom.

So, let me have your thoughts. Is this a bad idea all together? Can it be done? Just, wait and get a more spacious car? Et cetera, et cetera.....

Blake:

Based on all the hair on your legs, I would have thought that you would have stopped growing some time ago......

I'm 6'3" & I just open the sunroof. I live in western Washington & seem to be "wet" quite a bit of the time........

OK, seriously;

It sure appears that you've already got the hard part done. If you don't have the tools & materials for it, you could have someone "fabricate" four brackets with either threaded inserts or drilled & tapped holes in them. Then, it's just a matter of temporarily attaching the brackets to the seat, placing the seat where you want it and using a Mig welder to "Tack" the brackets to the floorboard. Once the brackets are Tacked, remove the seat, finish Mig welding the brackets to the floorboard. Once you've done that, you'll have to re-cut the carpet to fit properly, but I think what you want to do is infinitely do-able.

Take your time when deciding where to place the seat; will it be beneficial for you to place the brackets as far back as possible?, or do you want to make sure that someone will still be able to sit behind you. Your decision will affect the re-sale value of the car.

Of course, make sure that you aren't welding close to anything that will go up in flames faster than you can extinguish it (like the fuel line/filter) underneath.

[blake918]

Blake:

Based on all the hair on your legs, I would have thought that you would have stopped growing some time ago......

I'm 6'3" & I just open the sunroof. I live in western Washington & seem to be "wet" quite a bit of the time........

OK, seriously;

It sure appears that you've already got the hard part done. If you don't have the tools & materials for it, you could have someone "fabricate" four brackets with either threaded inserts or drilled & tapped holes in them. Then, it's just a matter of temporarily attaching the brackets to the seat, placing the seat where you want it and using a Mig welder to "Tack" the brackets to the floorboard. Once the brackets are Tacked, remove the seat, finish Mig welding the brackets to the floorboard. Once you've done that, you'll have to re-cut the carpet to fit properly, but I think what you want to do is infinitely do-able.

Take your time when deciding where to place the seat; will it be beneficial for you to place the brackets as far back as possible?, or do you want to make sure that someone will still be able to sit behind you. Your decision will affect the re-sale value of the car.

Of course, make sure that you aren't welding close to anything that will go up in flames faster than you can extinguish it (like the fuel line/filter) underneath.

LOL You're a hoot!! I thought I was done growing, I should be by now. I'm sure I am, I'm probably just getting enough of the small space. I leave my sunroof open as long as possible...it depends on how much rattling I can take!

Your method was what I was thinking about with the new brackets. If I was more confident in the strength of the seat tracks themselves, I would really like to bend the "feet" so that they are straight from one end to the other. Then, I could bolt it right to the floor, so I could get another .5" or inch of headroom. I would also have to cut in to the floorbaords which isn't ideal.

The resale value is a somewhat moot point for me since my car has 271k miles; I could forego the tiny bit of value that I do have for more comfort. If I do end up moving the seat, I'll keep this car until its ultimate demise. I guess by biggest concern is if their are any effects on my insurance policy. I can't imagine there would be since I see folks in wheelchairs driving heavily modified trucks and vans all the time.

No you're right, I would want to make sure that seat is situated so that I could slide the seat forward far enough so that someone could sit behind on rare occasion.

The gutted interior pics are old. I've since put the car back together, so I'm back at square one. ;)

[RFeldes]

Blake,,Simple!!!!

Take out the front seat...Get some platform shoes...Put on two rounds of leopard skin Steering whell covers, sit in the back seat and Chauffer yourself around. :whistles: LOL

[blake918]

LOL It's like in Police Academy when Mahoney teaches Hightower to drive...he removes the front seat and drives from the backseat too!!

[Threadcutter]

blake:

I would also have to cut in to the floorbaords which isn't ideal.

My opinion; I'd stay away from doing that.

The resale value is a somewhat moot point for me since my car has 271k miles; I could forego the tiny bit of value that I do have for more comfort. If I do end up moving the seat, I'll keep this car until its ultimate demise.

That's kind of what I figured.........makes sense.

I guess my biggest concern is if their are any effects on my insurance policy. I can't imagine there would be since I see folks in wheelchairs driving heavily modified trucks and vans all the time.

That is an excellent point! I would pay VERY CAREFUL Attention to this. Insurance companies and I are not playing well together these days. It wouldn't surprise me that they'd try to screw you if you were involved in an accident and you had made these modifications. Keep in mind that all of those conversions are done by companies that get certifications & approvals to do that kind of work. You might just want to have a conversation with your agent before you start the mod's.

The gutted interior pics are old. I've since put the car back together, so I'm back at square one. ;)

But of course............Projects are always more fun when you have to (re)do them at least three times.

[Threadcutter]

Blake,,Simple!!!!

Take out the front seat...Get some platform shoes...Put on two rounds of leopard skin Steering whell covers, sit in the back seat and Chauffer yourself around. :whistles: LOL

Blake:

I'm gettin' sweatty what with all this talk about leopard skin......................Any of you guys say anything about Elvira & I'm goin' over the edge!

Hmmmm. I think I've got some avatar work to do.

[blake918]

But of course............Projects are always more fun when you have to (re)do them at least three times.

LMAO That is true! I can't take the credit on the insurance thing; a LOC member who is in the business told me about it in a PM...I never would have thought of this issue had he not told me!

[branshew]

I'm with Threadcutter. Get some brackets made. I was thinking if you could get them made right, then they could bolt to the frame inthe same position that your seat does, and then bolt the seat to the brackets. That way everything would be removable when you sold it.

[Threadcutter]

But of course............Projects are always more fun when you have to (re)do them at least three times.

LMAO That is true! I can't take the credit on the insurance thing; a LOC member who is in the business told me about it in a PM...I never would have thought of this issue had he not told me!

Uh Oh................busted! The wife doesn't like my "faux" Elvira.......................

[jc19907]

I agree with adjusting the seat; not the floor board! Reconfiguring the mounts etc. Could be an insurace disaster; additionally if you were to have a wreck - the force of you moving forward may easily break any weak points in the welding.

Newly fabricated seat brackets (not welding or adding to the existing ones on the seat) should do the trick, if it can be done. 2cts

[Threadcutter]

I agree with adjusting the seat; not the floor board! Reconfiguring the mounts etc. Could be an insurace disaster; additionally if you were to have a wreck - the force of you moving forward may easily break any weak points in the welding.

Newly fabricated seat brackets (not welding or adding to the existing ones on the seat) should do the trick, if it can be done. 2cts

jc:

additionally if you were to have a wreck - the force of you moving forward may easily break any weak points in the welding.

It wasn't until you just said the "above" that I thought much about it. If there were a front end collision, there would not be much force on the seat due to the occupant sliding forward. Remember, you are NOT "belted in" to the seat; you are belted in to the upright center post between the doors/floor and the "catch", which is attached to the floorboard. The greater amount of force that the seat "experienced" would be due to inertia, and the rear mounts would take the "hit", but not as much as the example below.

Conversely, If the vehicle were rear-ended, the full weight/force/inertia of the occupant would be placed on the upright section of the seat, resulting in tremendous upward force on the front mounts, which is where I would guess the welds would break (if indeed they were going to).

I weld both Mig & Tig & I wouldn't personally be as concerned about the weld(s) breaking as I would the floorboard(s) being weakened from the heat & being "ripped" up.

I agree with adjusting the seat; not the floor board

I think I'm more comfortable with this/your idea as well......

You know, it's really too bad............To me, it would be such a simple thing, but I would be quite concerned about having problems with the insurance companies. They'll look for any little thing to weasel out of their obligations to the policyholder

[nc211]

Blake, aside from the insurance risks...what about having a new guide made for the brackets that extend further back? This would not require remounting the current brackets to anything else other than where they're mounted originally, and it would give your seat a lot more track to slide back on? Maybe take your current brackets to a shop and see if they can extend the rails by 4 or 5 inches? They might beable to just weld extensions onto the back of the current ones, grind down any rough spots and weld one or two support spots under the extension section so it doesn't bend? I think you said there is enough wiring harness to do this? If not, maybe splice in some addtional wire to give the seat enough room to move back.

[blake918]

Thanks for all of the great suggestions, guys! I think I'm just going to hold out a bit longer and look for something more spacious due to what my insurance agent told me. I'll be looking at a big American barge, a MB, or VW (all of the tall drivers in the Passat B5 and B6 forums I looked at love their cars because of the comfort. They said VW should change their slogan to " 'Tall' drivers wanted. LOL).

Until then, I've been playing around with sitting on different pillows to give my right leg more support so that it doesn't go numb after 30minutes. It seems to be doing some good!

Thanks yall!

[sapper_daddy]

i was hot rodding a old dakota and i wanted to put some brand new looking leather seat out of a mazda in it....of course i had to make custom seat brackets out of flat bar and bolted then up to the new seats it didn't take much but all you have to do is grins off the old seat mounts and then weld them into their new spots, really that's all there is to it. i wouldn't even worry about what's on the underside of the car but do remember you need to put some primer or cold galvanize on the welds inside and out (aerosol can just a little light coat) and then on the bottom to keep the floor from rusting where you make your new welds you need to spray some undercoating underneath it's actually very simple i wouldn't be scared of taking on the job if you can weld pretty good and any new welds done by someone who is fairly good will be stonger than the original mounts all together, trust me i've built armor with torches and arc welders

[W201 sweden]

Blake, don't you find the actual seat a bit short? I do. If you compare to other roomy cars, many have longer sitting surface, giving better support for the thighs.

If you think you could benefit from it, it is possible (at a reasonable cost/effort) to modify the back rest, so it "sits" further back compared to the seat.

(Like, in some cars the height adjustment just raises the seat, not the back.)

That way, you would keep the original attaching points of the seat and floor, getting more space and a "longer" seat.

Hope it's possible to understand the idea?

/Alexander

[jc19907]

Yep,

Some things the Asian engineers didn't take into account on 2000 and before... Hopefully the newer cars are for folks of all sizes. Asian folks are shorter and smaller framed than Americans - thus this car works out great for most of them. I think this is where you have this problem.

How about some Americanized cup holders...?? Mine are terrible. They'll hold a can and thats it.

I'm about 6 feet tall and about 225. The seat back isn't really wide enough for me, so It doesn't give me that wrap around craddeled feeling (cockpit) that many competitors give you (Volvo, BMW).

Hence, the seat is really adjustable, but not really as comfortable as it should be. When doing some mild cornering, I feel my frame slide out of the seat into the arm rest - annoying. I don't like my HVAC system either, it just doesn't work right; and it's got a mind of its own too. I prefer knobs etc. A 65 K car should have simple heat and A/C controls... My complaints pale in comparison to the overall comfort/performance and drivability of this car. Just a few pokes, thats all... I hope you can get your seat adjusted so you don't have to sell your car. 2cts

[blake918]

Blake, don't you find the actual seat a bit short? I do. If you compare to other roomy cars, many have longer sitting surface, giving better support for the thighs.

If you think you could benefit from it, it is possible (at a reasonable cost/effort) to modify the back rest, so it "sits" further back compared to the seat.

(Like, in some cars the height adjustment just raises the seat, not the back.)

That way, you would keep the original attaching points of the seat and floor, getting more space and a "longer" seat.

Hope it's possible to understand the idea?

/Alexander

Oh yeah, the seats are waaaay too short for me too! I think the short seats are more of a problem than the lack of legroom. I took a 340 mile trip yesterday, and I put a little pillow under my right leg, and it made a huge difference. I was still stiff when I got out of the car, but my leg felt a lot better! Lexus finally decided to make the bottom seat cushion adjustable in the LS430. It took them a while, but they caught on! LOL The American cars from the '70's crack me up because the bottom seat cushion is like 3 feet long....that must be nice!

Yep,

Some things the Asian engineers didn't take into account on 2000 and before... Hopefully the newer cars are for folks of all sizes. Asian folks are shorter and smaller framed than Americans - thus this car works out great for most of them. I think this is where you have this problem.

How about some Americanized cup holders...?? Mine are terrible. They'll hold a can and thats it.

I'm about 6 feet tall and about 225. The seat back isn't really wide enough for me, so It doesn't give me that wrap around craddeled feeling (cockpit) that many competitors give you (Volvo, BMW).

Hence, the seat is really adjustable, but not really as comfortable as it should be. When doing some mild cornering, I feel my frame slide out of the seat into the arm rest - annoying. I don't like my HVAC system either, it just doesn't work right; and it's got a mind of its own too. I prefer knobs etc. A 65 K car should have simple heat and A/C controls... My complaints pale in comparison to the overall comfort/performance and drivability of this car. Just a few pokes, thats all... I hope you can get your seat adjusted so you don't have to sell your car. 2cts

Pokes? Those are all legit complaints to me...I guess that's because I hate all of the same things about my car too!! :D I don't think I'm going to be moving my seat since my insurance agent told me in not so many words that I would get screwed in the case of an accident.