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SSWesty Samba Member
Joined: August 20, 2008 Posts: 732 Location: Bellevue
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Posted: Fri Feb 17, 2017 8:10 pm Post subject: Re: Front Seat Swap, (Town & Country 2nd Row) |
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Good to hear these seats seem to provide good support on long hauls, bad to hear I may have a clearance issue. Well I guess it's good to know about it now rather than learn about after install. It made me double check my current clearance and if I sit up straight I only have about 3/4-1" of clearance to the headliner. So it sounds like these seats will probably land me up against the headliner, bummer. Not sure I want to give up the swivel just yet. Thanks for the feedback, very helpful for sorting through a decision. |
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c2mrdale Samba Member
Joined: April 30, 2011 Posts: 12 Location: Walla Walla
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Posted: Thu Feb 23, 2017 9:59 am Post subject: Re: Front Seat Swap, (Town & Country 2nd Row) |
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SSWesty wrote: |
...bad to hear I may have a clearance issue. |
I managed to avoid any clearance issues by mounting directly to the top dish of the swivel adapter and cutting off the tracks. My seats sit about 1/8" or less from the carpet. details in this thread. _________________ Ruby the Subie
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* 90 Carat with high-heels (225/70/R16)
* EJ25 with Small Car kit
* Poptop conversion by Vanlab
* Desperately seeking dash AC
* Stow and Go leather seats |
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GDTRFB> Samba Member
Joined: July 01, 2010 Posts: 14 Location: Fredericksburg, VA
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Posted: Wed Mar 15, 2017 9:00 am Post subject: Re: Front Seat Swap, (Town & Country 2nd Row) |
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In case anyone is looking for a Tan set in cloth I have a pair for sale. They didn't quite match my dark brown interior as well as i would have liked. I ended up ordering black leather for a closer match to the dark brown panels and carpet. The tan would look great in a van with the light brown door panels and light brown/camel carpet. I'm located in Fredericksburg, VA if anyone local wants to pick them up. |
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pipodayo Samba Member
Joined: November 14, 2012 Posts: 9 Location: Montreal, Canada
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Posted: Wed Mar 15, 2017 9:12 am Post subject: Re: Front Seat Swap, (Town & Country 2nd Row) |
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Anybody tried to install the 2017 Chrysler Pacifica ? |
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tosimplify Samba Member
Joined: June 08, 2009 Posts: 110 Location: The Open Road
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Posted: Wed Mar 15, 2017 10:15 am Post subject: Re: Front Seat Swap, (Town & Country 2nd Row) |
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I made the big leap a couple of weeks ago, and man, what an improvement.
Black leather seats from a 2015 Caravan, installed on the stock rails on the drivers side (i.e. no swivel), and on the bolt-on swivel base on the passenger side. Since the slider mechanisms are self contained on the seats, I just made a 1/4" thick steel adapter plate for each seat. Bolted the plate to the original rails, and then bolted the new seat sliders to the plate. Lot's of careful measuring to get all the various bolt holes to line up, but straightforward conceptually. Here's a shot of one during early testing:
Big thumbs up on this upgrade. WAY more comfortable, the sliders work like butter, and the reclining angle is a little bit more than the stock seats. Very napworthy. |
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TequilaSunSet Samba Member
Joined: May 30, 2012 Posts: 2109 Location: Philippines
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Posted: Wed Mar 15, 2017 11:37 am Post subject: Re: Front Seat Swap, (Town & Country 2nd Row) |
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I joined the herd a while ago... like my black leather.
[/img] _________________ Don't harsh my mellow...
1985 Hightower Vanagon 1.8T- Gone
1972 Panel Bus- Gone
1967 Bug- Gone
1964 Euro Sunroof Bug- Gone
1969/72/63 Sunroof Bug- Gone
1975 Brazilian Bug in the Philippines 🇵🇭- New to me |
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Westaru Samba Member
Joined: October 10, 2016 Posts: 189 Location: Utah
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Posted: Thu Mar 23, 2017 7:55 pm Post subject: Re: Front Seat Swap, (Town & Country 2nd Row) |
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Many thanks to the OP for discovering these! I've ordered the smallcar brackets and have the seats ready to go. Really wanted the tan leather, but I couldn't find any. Fabric will have to do.
If I use the smallcar brackets, do I need the sliders from my original seats? Or just the sliders on the new seats mounted to the original swivels? I've read the whole thread, and I know these have 4" travel and the original seats have 6" - but not sure WHICH rails the smallcar bracket keeps? |
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tristessa Samba Member
Joined: April 07, 2004 Posts: 3992 Location: Portland, OR
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Posted: Sat Mar 25, 2017 8:00 am Post subject: Re: Front Seat Swap, (Town & Country 2nd Row) |
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pipodayo wrote: |
Anybody tried to install the 2017 Chrysler Pacifica ? |
I'll be trying them on my '75 Bus in a couple of weeks when the seats get here. Scored a set of black leather Pacifica S&G seats from the Arizona seller, $220 shipped for the pair. No hardware at all but meh .. I've got a couple pairs of sliders from some PT Cruiser seats kicking around and a welder, and worst case the universal sliders are cheap enough. Seems as though the leather Pacifica seats have heaters in them too... |
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johnnyjewel Samba Member
Joined: April 23, 2009 Posts: 48 Location: Mid-MO
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Posted: Wed Mar 29, 2017 4:48 pm Post subject: Re: Front Seat Swap, (Town & Country 2nd Row) |
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Would like to ask: Are these Chrysler seats firm? I recently spent 8 days on the road -- with a 4 day respite between 2 four day stints. Turns out that sitting on a HARD surface on the painful side (I put a board to sit on) not only did not cause pain but relieved pain, so I'm thinking that my next seats need to be FIRM.
Chrysler seats: firm or soft?
AND, are Recaro seats firm? I need evidence for dropping the big buck on at least one Recaro . _________________ 1986 Vanagon Westfalia Weekender
1958 MG Magnette
2017 Subaru Impreza Hatch
"Everybody matters or nobody matters." Hieronymus Bosch |
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Zeitgeist 13 Samba Member
Joined: March 05, 2009 Posts: 12115 Location: Port Manteau
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Posted: Wed Mar 29, 2017 5:18 pm Post subject: Re: Front Seat Swap, (Town & Country 2nd Row) |
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Recaros are firm. _________________ Casey--
'89 Bluestar ALH w/12mm Waldo pump, PP764 and GT2052
'01 Weekender --> full camper
y u rune klassik? |
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fxr Samba Member
Joined: December 07, 2014 Posts: 2321 Location: Bay area CA
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Posted: Wed Mar 29, 2017 6:36 pm Post subject: Re: Front Seat Swap, (Town & Country 2nd Row) |
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I can't answer about the firmness, I'm afraid I can't judge from memory - but I used to get buttock ache on my RHS on the originals. I don't on the new T&Cs. That could just be down to the age difference of the seats (wear and tear) or just how my butt fits the T&C contours. Whatever, I'm very glad I fitted them! _________________ Jim Crowther
1984 1.9l EJ22 Westy Wolfsburg Edition
Vespa GTS 300 |
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Forthwithtx Samba Member
Joined: July 14, 2014 Posts: 717 Location: Fort Worth
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Posted: Wed Mar 29, 2017 9:30 pm Post subject: Re: Front Seat Swap, (Town & Country 2nd Row) |
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I'd call them firm. I think it's been covered a bit earlier in this post. _________________ Cheers!
-Karl
'84 GL with 2001/2004 Subaru 2.5L |
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webwalker Samba Member
Joined: January 26, 2006 Posts: 2803 Location: Mount Laurel, NJ
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Posted: Wed Apr 26, 2017 12:07 pm Post subject: Re: Front Seat Swap, (Town & Country 2nd Row) |
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entyceingvws wrote: |
T&C in a Bay Window Bus. Can post more pics if needed
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Hi. Great that someone has tried these in a Bay. I'm looking at a very expensive experiment if they don't fit in my Bay, so I wanted to ask for some measurements before I bought. I have door cards with the integrated armrest / ductwork and just want some measurements to see if simply removing the outer armrests would resolve the fit issue. Any time to put some measuring tape down for a fellow Bay owner?
Marshall _________________ "Consistent maintenance with quality products is the cheapest warranty you'll ever need."
1977 CE1 Transporter Deluxe, Subaru EJ22, Skills Cooling, Steedle HD 091 w/ GuardT .82 4th
Click to view image |
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bobbyblack Samba Member
Joined: May 21, 2015 Posts: 4348 Location: United States, Iowa
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Posted: Fri May 19, 2017 1:20 pm Post subject: Re: Front Seat Swap, (Town & Country 2nd Row) |
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Having shamelessly stolen a picture from page 2 or 3, I have a question regarding How-To; So, I have located 8 Chrysler T&C's within my usual drive in U-Pull-It's, and want some experienced person to chime in on the way NOT to Hurt myself. I believe I have circled the 6 locations I believe need ratcheted off. More hints would help. All 8 are early 2000's, and I'm quoted $22/seat. I'd have to guess that is a good deal...
This picture was captioned something like, "just 6 nuts, took about 10 minutes"
I looked further on the web, and see the whole thing, including frame comes out with 3 bolts each seat, but requires some tool to retain the pivot. I am not at all interested in the frame, so can I just partially close the Stow and Go to the neutral spot and unbolt these 6 locations and remove only the seat?
Thanks!
_________________ '87 Westy 'Flossie','86 Westy 'R1','86 tintop GL - Subi2.2 'J2','83.5 stock tintop L 'ZoomBus','74 Karmann Ghia, '63 Notch |
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campism Samba Member
Joined: September 07, 2007 Posts: 4491 Location: Richmond VA
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Posted: Fri May 19, 2017 6:24 pm Post subject: Re: Front Seat Swap, (Town & Country 2nd Row) |
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I would just like to reiterate that the seat pictured on the near side of the bay above in webwalker's post is a middle Stow N' Go from a pre-2009 Mopar van, and the seats that the OP installed, the seats that this thread is about, the seats that are the vast improvement over stock are from 2009 and later Mopars. Compare that bay seat to the seats in TequilaSunSet's post further up on this page. Not the same seat. See my 2005 Mopar van's middle SNG seat pictured below.
You might be able to install the older seats and they might work, but you owe it to yourself before beginning this job to test ride them for some distance. I have these seats in my own 2005 Grand Caravan and I've ridden a couple hundred miles in them (wife driving) and I do not find them to be that comfortable. I'm just trying to save you guys some possible disappointment, expense and trouble. If you try the early seats and like them, then by all means proceed. _________________ '87 Westy in Wolfram Grey Metallic |
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[email protected] Samba Member
Joined: August 03, 2002 Posts: 12785 Location: Salt Lake City, Utah
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Posted: Fri May 19, 2017 8:01 pm Post subject: Re: Front Seat Swap, (Town & Country 2nd Row) |
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Yes, unbolt those 6 and separate.
Then you will have 2 nut-serts, and 4 studs. On mine I simply hammered the studs a few times side/side, and then one good wack down and they drove out. Then I installed nut-serts in those locations too. But after installation I found I only needed the forward most one.
bobbyblack wrote: |
This picture was captioned something like, "just 6 nuts, took about 10 minutes"
I looked further on the web, and see the whole thing, including frame comes out with 3 bolts each seat, but requires some tool to retain the pivot. I am not at all interested in the frame, so can I just partially close the Stow and Go to the neutral spot and unbolt these 6 locations and remove only the seat?
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_________________ It's just advice, do whatever you want with it!
Please do NOT send me Private Messages through the Samba PM System (I will not see them). Send me an e-mail to john at aircooled dot net
"Like" our Facebook page at
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webwalker Samba Member
Joined: January 26, 2006 Posts: 2803 Location: Mount Laurel, NJ
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Posted: Fri May 26, 2017 8:22 pm Post subject: Re: Front Seat Swap, (Town & Country 2nd Row) |
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a1fa wrote: |
just a heads up. small car is now selling seat mounts separately. $89/pop |
So the latest from smallcar:
They have the adapters back in stock. They intend to keep them in stock.
They are not selling any more seats direct. Their supplier dried up because:
The 2017 Pacifica (which replaced the T&C) has seats that will fit the tracks but are HORRIBLY uncomfortable. So your options for the best seats are to stick to the 2011-2016 2nd gen seats from the Chrysler T&C.
No more seats from smallcar. I wonder if Sewfine will do upholstery on the Stow & Go?
Marshall _________________ "Consistent maintenance with quality products is the cheapest warranty you'll ever need."
1977 CE1 Transporter Deluxe, Subaru EJ22, Skills Cooling, Steedle HD 091 w/ GuardT .82 4th
Click to view image |
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tristessa Samba Member
Joined: April 07, 2004 Posts: 3992 Location: Portland, OR
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Posted: Sat May 27, 2017 2:02 pm Post subject: Re: Front Seat Swap, (Town & Country 2nd Row) |
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webwalker wrote: |
The 2017 Pacifica (which replaced the T&C) has seats that will fit the tracks but are HORRIBLY uncomfortable. |
I put a pair of the new Pacifica S&G seats in my '75 Bay Bus and they're plenty comfortable in my opinion, and my wife's happier with these than the Saab 900NG seats they've replaced (mostly because of armrests in her case).
Admittedly, I haven't had any extended road trips yet -- the most seat time I've had so far was 45 minutes of stop-and-go commute driving -- because I just got it running last month and smogged yesterday. |
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yiucycle Samba Member
Joined: August 22, 2007 Posts: 421
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Posted: Wed May 31, 2017 10:26 am Post subject: Re: Front Seat Swap, (Town & Country 2nd Row) |
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Got a pair of 09' T&C cloth seats on CL for cheap. I didn't want leather because it gets pretty hot here in the summer and leather tend to get hot under the sun.
FYI, my ASI van use a completely different swivel mount than westy van so my adapter mount is different. I also removed the seat slider b/c it was making the seat too tall and i don't need two slider worth of adjustments. Note: It took me a while to figure out how to remove sliders and all the stow n go mounts. Plus watch out for spiders, i found a black widow inside the seat , i think previous owner store the seats in the garage.
I used 80/20 aluminum extrusion that I have laying around and 1/4" carriage bolts(since it slide inside the extrusion channel) as my adapter mounts.
The T&C seat def feel firmer and slimmer in size compare to my old seats. Can't wait to drive it this weekend.
_________________ 1980 2.8LV6 Fiero ASI/Riviera Vanagon
"there is no point in being embarrassed of all the stupid shit i done and will continue to do"
Stop dead photo links! Post your photos to The Samba Gallery! |
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captincanuck Samba Member
Joined: August 13, 2014 Posts: 730 Location: The Great White North
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