DIY Ventilated & Heated Seat Options (1 Viewer)

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Oct 12, 2017
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Bozeman, MT
Has anyone done a heated/ventilated seat modification before? I live in Montana, so heated seats are a certainty. I figure, if I am going through all of this trouble to build out this truck, might as well add ventilation as well.

I bought a set of Bestop Trailmax II Pro Seats as front seat replacements.
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I will have a local upholstery shop add grey leather to the front seats and the rear bench.

The leather for the center of the seats is going to be perforated so that it can be ventilated.

What ventilation systems have people had any luck with?

I know I could have bought old Saab seats or maybe even tried to buy used 200-series/LX or GX seats. But I didn't want to deal with old used seats on my "brand new" 1989 FJ62.

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One option I found online is using the Sanctum Seat Ventilation System from Leatherseats.com. Its $350 per seat. I've contemplated buying two of these and a set of seat heaters for the rear bench.

Another is the Champion Seat Heater/Cooler system at $249/per seat.

Sports Imports $199/per seat

The level of the website is relative to the cost of the system, which makes me a little wary of the cheaper options.

Has anyone had any experience with any of these or other options out there?
 
Anyone? Or am I too crazy for even thinking about doing this?
 
I'd be interested to know what brackets you used to get the Bestop seats into your 62? I'm needing to do the same thing to my FJ60.
 
The heater/coolers above look just like the Gentherm system (now sold as Katzkin Degreez), and they work great in both heating and cooling mode. Yes, they do cool vs just blow air. (Full disclosure: I sell them :grinpimp:)

Your upholsterer should know this, but you need reticulated foam backing running the entire length of the perforated inserts.

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Link to an install thread: Seat Coolers - https://forum.ih8mud.com/threads/seat-coolers.1082951/
 
I used the katzkin degreez which looks to be the same unit as the leatherseat.com version. I love them on my gen3 Supra seat I have in my fj40. Not having ac and an open top it really helps keep the swampass at bay.

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I took the brackets off my OEM seat and it might be a little crazy, but I think they might actually work on the Bestop Seats without any modification. It will be off by 1/8" - but that's fine by me with some screws and bolts... This ended up taking forever. So if you go this route, plan for 5-10 hours of work to cut out the foam, shape it and make the cuts in the tubing for it to fit perfectly. I haven't even finished the electrical installation yet or had the seat reupholstered.

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Yes @4wdgr8r got it all done. Been using it for over a year now. Game changer.

Summers I have cooled seats and during winter I am nice and cozy (very nice when it’s -30 degrees in Montana).
 
Yes @4wdgr8r got it all done. Been using it for over a year now. Game changer.

Summers I have cooled seats and during winter I am nice and cozy (very nice when it’s -30 degrees in Montana).
I used to scoff at heated seats until last week when I was driving my roommate’s Tundra in -30*F up here. Yes, game changer. I’ll be looking into this mod soon for my 60.
 

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