DFXR
SILVER Star
My weekend project was getting a pair of '91 BMW e30 seats into my 85 (10/84) FJ60. These are the "comfort" version as opposed to the leather "sport" version. They are cheaper to come by than leather ($150-200 vs $300-500), but definitely less sporty. Completely manual. I got them off CL a few months back after a lot of unproductive junkyard trips.
This will seem pretty mickey mouse to any experienced welders or fabricators but hopefully it'll help someone (like me a few weeks ago) wrestling with the aftermarket seats thing and not wanting to spend a big chunk on the IPOR/procars. It's one way, not the only way. But pretty much any seat that was meant to bolt down to a flat floor like these BMWs can be mounted on a bracket like this - it's just a matter of where you drill the holes.
Bolt pattern on these seats and others from the same period (84-91 3-series or e30) is 16.75" wide, 12.25" front-to-back. They were made to bolt onto a flat floor, and the sliders are integrated into the rear hinge so you've got to stick with them.
Things I learned along the way:
*FJ60s up until 86 or 87 have a unique floor, resulting in unique seat mounts. They might not seem too special but once you start poking around junkyards and really looking at other seats, you'll understand.
*The only junker seats I came across that looked like a direct drop-in fit were from the Dodge Neon. This has been noted on Mud before. The good news is that they will pretty much bolt right up, and from what I saw many Neons ended up at the pickers with relatively low miles. The bad news is that Neon seats are about as comfy and well-made as the car they came from.
*These BMW seats are tall once they're mounted. Very comfy, but tall. I'm 6-1 and I wouldn't want these to put me any higher than they do. I'm not ready to put a bubble on the roof but you get my drift...
*Whatever seats you choose, plan on having to fabricate some kind of mount or bracket, and plan on it being either a small PITA or a big one, depending on your skills and tools. And plan on pulling the new seats in and out of your truck about 400 times while you figure it out.
These seats into this truck (more details in the next post):
This will seem pretty mickey mouse to any experienced welders or fabricators but hopefully it'll help someone (like me a few weeks ago) wrestling with the aftermarket seats thing and not wanting to spend a big chunk on the IPOR/procars. It's one way, not the only way. But pretty much any seat that was meant to bolt down to a flat floor like these BMWs can be mounted on a bracket like this - it's just a matter of where you drill the holes.
Bolt pattern on these seats and others from the same period (84-91 3-series or e30) is 16.75" wide, 12.25" front-to-back. They were made to bolt onto a flat floor, and the sliders are integrated into the rear hinge so you've got to stick with them.
Things I learned along the way:
*FJ60s up until 86 or 87 have a unique floor, resulting in unique seat mounts. They might not seem too special but once you start poking around junkyards and really looking at other seats, you'll understand.
*The only junker seats I came across that looked like a direct drop-in fit were from the Dodge Neon. This has been noted on Mud before. The good news is that they will pretty much bolt right up, and from what I saw many Neons ended up at the pickers with relatively low miles. The bad news is that Neon seats are about as comfy and well-made as the car they came from.
*These BMW seats are tall once they're mounted. Very comfy, but tall. I'm 6-1 and I wouldn't want these to put me any higher than they do. I'm not ready to put a bubble on the roof but you get my drift...
*Whatever seats you choose, plan on having to fabricate some kind of mount or bracket, and plan on it being either a small PITA or a big one, depending on your skills and tools. And plan on pulling the new seats in and out of your truck about 400 times while you figure it out.
These seats into this truck (more details in the next post):
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