Customs Swivel Bucket Seats?

I had some super trashed vans captains seats in the '64 panel when I bought it........they came out for a stock p/u bench seat. Horrible looking but the swivel and lock worked really nice, I'm sure you can adapt them to older seats.

 

My Dad had a 73 Monte Carlo with the swivel buckets, red with white top, black interior and a small block. My Dad loved that car.

 

I like the idea, especially if they come from automotive sources. Seat backs in modern cars are frequently cited for failure in car accidents, even in this day, except those from Mercedes cars, I believe. Modern seat tracks and sliders are pretty strong. Using swivel bases / hardware / seats sourced from boats, or construction / garden equipment or other indoor uses just not might be the thing to have on a driver in an emergency, however. Show cars, concept vehicles or other very limited use vehicles excepted. I was considering them for my 29 coupe at one time, but I think my seat will sit too far back in the cabin for that kind of mount - the B pillar will prevent the seat from turning far enough.

 

Lots of food for thought, thanks everybody! I'd still be interested in pics of a OEM swivel set-up to see how it differs from a Van/MH swivel though. After looking, there's lots of swivel assemblies for those, but I'd need to mod them as I don't want multiple 'stops', I figure all I need is one latching stop for the seat facing forward and one 90 degrees from it when swiveled. Looks like the main trick with those will be finding one with smooth ease of movement and a quality build level.

Mark's motorized swivel is intriguing, but I don't think I'd have enough room under the seat. I would like a solenoid-operated latch that releases when the door is opened rather than it being manual, then automatically latches when the seat is rotated back and the door is closed, but I expect I'd have to build that feature.

 

Hello,

When we saw some swivel bucket seats at a car show, that sent ideas into our minds. As nimble as we were being active teenagers, those seats had some pizazz. The opening to the Impala driver’s seating was pretty big. It was easy to sit on the seat and slide over if necessary.

Since I was 5’9” then 5’11 inches by the time I graduated from high school, the opening was handy. The seating area in the back, however was small as I had to move the seats back to get comfy in a good driving position. Despite the good looks of the stock red interior, those seatback angles were just not the best.

https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/vintage-surf-transportation.326942/page-4#post-11989352

My brother’s friend had a small foreign sporty car that actually had better seats than the Impala. Despite freezing on the way to and from our HB in OC surf spot, those seats were adjustable and were very comfortable.

https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/friday-art-show-11-15-19.1173368/#post-13325027

My brother’s idea was churning around for many months and we just could not get a swivel bucket seat that would match the interior of the 1958 Impala in size and style. It would have been upholstered in the stock red material to look as if it were stock. Our friends at the local neighborhood upholstery shop were great at doing those things. When I was injured in my senior year playing football, afterwards, anything swivel would have been great getting in and out of the cars we had.


When our 90 year old grandmother from OKC came out for her first Westcoast visit, she had a heck of a time going places with my wife. The little sporty car bucket seats were low and comfortable. (once in place, the 90 year old did not want to get out) But, if there were swivel seats, access for everyone would have been nice. But, back then, no one even considered swiveling bucket seats for family cars… ha! So, it was sit butt first and then swing the legs into place.

Jnaki

Jump up many years later and old age took over each time my wife and I got into our comfortable bucket seat for short drives and/or our long road trips. Those bucket seats were so comfortable that after a long trip, the body was not as tired as one would think. Bucket seats vs bench seats… no contest.

Any injury can hinder access to the driver’s seating in any car. We enjoy getting in and out of our comfortable sporty bucket seats. The grip of the side bolsters, the thigh supports and comfortable leather aroma just makes driving enjoyable, as it should. But as old age and injuries come together, my injured knee from 1966 made it to 2018 without very much fanfare.

But, a simple sailing accident did a “number” on my previously injured knee and it looked like I was walking/hobbling around with a watermelon strapped to my leg. The orthopedic surgeon said it was a non-operable injury and that it would heal itself. No tearing away from the bones, so no surgery was required. But, it would take a while to recover… Things you do not want to hear: “…At your age, it may take longer than when you originally injured the knee…”

Getting in and out of any of our family of cars was a chore and funny to see an old guy finagling various angles to allow the lower legs to get in driving position, bucket seats or no… The swivel seats would have been an excellent option at that time and even into the “older age era.” YRMV

 

None of them look like they have any seat belts. Is that a problem ?

 

I used to have a 73 Hurst Olds 442 that had them. I loved them but never really bothered to look at the mechanism to see how they worked.