So last summer I helped my friend haul these seats out of New Ringold Junkyard. They are from a 2003 Suburban. Full power, with all controls built into the seat base. They also have both lap and shoulder belts ALSO built into the seats. He wanted these for his old F100 which he has since sold, so the last time I was over there he offered them to me. Here is where I am at a moral fork in the road. Should I put them in my 49? Pros; -Comfy as hell. -Easy way to add both lap and shoulder belts -They are the same color as the interior Cons; -Totally ruin the vintage look of the interior. Way I look at it, seats serve two purposes; to plant your ass in the car, and to be comfy. These seats do both those jobs better than my current couch. So what would you guys do?
yuck......my motto is "it's better to look good than feel good"...hahaha,,, i like to keep things period correct,,,im kind of a stickler when it comes to things like that,,,but i understand not everyone is...
I normally am too, but I want to really drive this thing, and the comfort level is not even close between the two seats.
Here are the actual pics, I went outside in the -5 degree temp to take these haha. Burb seats; Original seat;
Man, those seats would be great for a custom van, but not for a classic. I say go with the stock bench. If you're planning on going cross country with it on a regular basis, the have an upholstery guy add some high density foam in the convenient places and drive it like that. The Suburban seats are hideous! Just an opinion
NO contest,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,the original seats all day long....... sorry to be so negative,,,but those other seats are just flat out HIDEOUS,,especially in a car like yours.... ,,, id rather sit on a milk crate,,,honestly...
a big fat no on the burb seats. big fat double no. I drove my 49 quite a bit and thought the seats were comfortable. if you want shoulder belts there is a nice sturdy post right next to your head. get something late model oem from the junk yard and mount it the same way if you want bucket seats you gotta go big fat buckets.. like early 60's GM. I've seen some nice big buckets in early Mercedes Benz-ziz as well.
that car looks pretty nice and original. I'd put a rubber mat in the interior and call it a day. show some more pics.
Tripple Dog Dare No! Very Fugnugly. They lok like they belong in a modern day suburban. (I know. It is a joke.) Take out your original seat and have it done over at a shop with new foam and contours (for comfort). Stay with the classic look.
Those late model seats are fuckin ugly. Way, way out of context for that car. Personally I've always found the stock benches in 50's cars to be very comfortable. There is no way I would put those seats in anything but a late model truck. Why do you find the stock seats so uncomfortable? If the backs need adjustment, you can turn the screws in or out to make it more upright/reclined. Fold the seat forward and there should be screws on the undersides of the seat backs.
It would definantly look like you put late model burb seats in your car....my vote goes to the 'hell no'
It's pretty obvious what you want to do. I think you should go ahead and put them in. Wouldn't be hard to make it reversible I think. Hacking up a B-pillar to add a shoulder belt is a lot more invasive than bolting some seats to brackets on the floor.
I don't like them as they are, but if you cut the head rests off and get the actual seats reupholstered with some vintage material, maybe that could make the seats tolerable looking?
The burb seats look great in pickups. As an upholster of 30 years I have used many seats including the ones you have. They will look better with the headrests and belts removed (as in the pictures below) but these are pickups. With what little I can see of your sedan it is a more traditional hot rod and those seats are going to look out of place unless you update the whole thing including redesigning the rear seat. This is a set of similar seats with arm rests insted of seat belts. also Suburban. It works in this 38 because the whole car is street rodded. My pick, keep the stock seat!!
The Jalopy Journal
