Replacement seats

[jomee]

Hi ,
A question that has been asked more than a few times regarding replacement seats.
The usual suspects are hard to find fiat ,alfa,rover etc.
So looking for something readily available looking at hyundai coupe , megane coupe and ford cougar.
The coupe seats look like they will fit , so the big question is.
Has anyone got something easily found that fits.
Many thanks.

[Richard B]

Why not have the original seats repaired?

[jomee]

The cost is silly and even when refurbished they are still not the most comfortable seats and  PVC is say no more .....the word sweat comes to mind.
Mine are about 70 percent good , but kill my back,so leather and comfort are the order of the day.

[Spider]

How about these?

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Alfa-Tan-Leather-Seats-T4-Camper-T25-Vw-/140954410805?pt=UK_CarsParts_Vehicles_CarParts_SM&hash=item20d1899f35



Could always dye them if they are the wrong colour.

[StagNL]

A lot of those cars with seats that can be made to fit Stags are thin on the ground here, and even if they are to be found, the price for second hand parts can be high.
This is particularly the case for the rarer cars such as Rover Tomcats and Jags.

What I did is fit Saab 9-5 seats.  Mine are leather as I too wanted to get rid of the sweat problem - given, it only reduces the ammount of sweat.  They sit well too and have more side support than the originals.  Price was a factor in my choice to replace with a different type rather than fix up the originals.
Why these?  Because I had just bought a Saab and thought that they would look good in a Stag by not having silly shapes.

If I were to do this again, I'd look for 9-3 seats or different seats altogether.  Getting the frames on these modified to fit wasn't a walk in the park.

Julian

[jomee]

Thanks for the feedback looked at the alfa on eBay collection only but many thanks for the link.
Carriage from uk overseas (to me is always not viable).
Do you reckon 93 would be an easier fit? I assume it would be from convertible 93, they are thinnish on the ground here also, I seen  some sets of BMW E Series but cost is mega for sets in good nick.

Renault megane are good looking but not sure if they go in.
So anymore ideas are very welcome.

[StagNL]

9-3 seats as they are narrower.  The 9-5 was about as wide as can fit.  I needed to move them over in relation to the frame runners otherwise the wider and taller backrest would foul on the B-post.
Anyway, there are probably better options out there as I had to cut up the frame to lower the seat on the runners.  Runners themselves fit in fine with only two holes needing to be drilled.
Due to the cutting I have lost the seat height and tilt adjustment.

Where are you as it sounds you are not in UK?

[jomee]

Hi Julian,
I am in the republic of Ireland so that explains the carriage issue.
I have read your previous post on the  95seats sounded like they were a lot of work.
They look really good fitted, i nave looked for all the easy proven fits but they are like hens teeth,
I have given up looking.
What do you reckon the max dimensions that fit especially width wise and height wise for sitting.

[CharliesStag]

Rover Tomcat seats are another candidate.  Many have fitted these with good results.

[jomee]

Yeah I seen many posted on line and they look smart also rear seat look the part.
However again finding them is ..impossible seen a set on line carriage was almost 200sterling.
Some coupe seat that are available must fit :-/

[thescrapman]

Floyd fitted 3-series BMW seats to his Stag.

Might have sat him slightly high though. he left all the motors and stuff undernesth the, they were stupidly heavy! I think they are now in Peter Jacksons PI estate.

If you removed all the motors they could fit well. Lets see if he spots this thread.

Cheers

Colin

[jomee]

Cheers Colin,
Do you know what BMW E mark it was from .
Were getting there..bm seats  are very expensive in good nick and usually
will only  come with the complete interior together in the region of E500 up.
John

[FloydP]

7735 wrote:

Cheers Colin,
Do you know what BMW E mark it was from .

Hi, I don't know the e model as both sets I used were £20 ebay jobs, The seats that are now in Peters estate were from a 3 series convertible with the seat belts fitted within the seats, which is where the problem came in the stag as the seat belt upper guide on the seat clashed with the t bar so they couldn't move back very far.
The seats in it now are from a 3 series coupe, I got them of a guy who was going to put them in a tvr so know idea as to the age of bmw. These seats are a really good fit, they are slightly higher than the stag seats but that might be down to the fact that there wasn't much padding  left in the originals.
Anyway heres a couple of pictures to maybe help you identify the e number of the bmw they came from.
Cheers,
Floyd.

[jomee]

Cheers Floyd,
They look really smart, was fitting difficult ?.
I was hoping to fit by bracing across the fixing points with steel either, side to side or
back to front and drop in replacement on original runners bolt down ....and crusing.
Stag seats are just killing my back and my legs so a bit of height may well suit me.
I reckon stag seats even when new could not. Have been to comfortable.
John

[FloydP]

The BMW fixing centers bolt straight on to the two gearbox tunnel mounting holes for the standard seats and the sill side fixings were a couple of inches to wide for the seats, so a couple of flat bits of steel with 2 holes in, one bolts to existing fixing then a nut and bolt to the seat frame, took 5 mins, super simple.
Your right about the comfort, modern seats have come on a lot since the stag ones, my decision was partly due to my back as well, but being massively cheaper helped as well.

[jomee]

Cheers Floyd,
I think I am being swung to bm especially after hearing how easy you got them to fit , how good they look and comfortable leather.
Anyone know what all the compatible bm coupe models to fit  stag as Floyd pointed convertible seat belt issues.
John

[FloydP]

Hi John, just had a look on eBay, I've found the same seats as mine and there from an e36 coupe, here's the link which has more details about what year there from:-
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/BMW-E36-BLACK-LEATHER-SPORT-SEATS-328I-325I-323I-320I-318I-M3-EVO-COUPE-/221210160811?pt=UK_CarsParts_Vehicles_CarParts_SM&hash=item3381272eab
Cheers,
Floyd.

[jomee]

Cheers Floyd ,
Thanks for that link to eBay.
On the look out for E series seats.
I will try to see if I can get my own courier to pick up seats when I see
a set as eBay sellers just make courier prices here mega.
Does anyone know if other E seats will fit.
John

[StagNL]

Those BMW seats do look nice.  Sounds like an easier time fitting them too.

[jomee]

Yeah julian ,
they seem my best bet and Also handy fitted.
Finding a good set here will be a task.
Now just when I thought I had it figured any ideas on rear seat replacements?
Anyone got bm E Series or close match to the front e36 bm fitted.
apart from rover coupe, the only one I know of, any ideas.
My back seat are well past it also...the list goes on       :'(
John

[FloydP]

It might be worth you going on the stag owners club forum and asking the question there, I think you can register to get access to post free for a month.

[jomee]

Cheers Floyd,
The feedback here is better than what I had elsewhere !
I now am going for bm seats as fitting sound straight forward.
Did your bm seat have electric adjuster, heaters or simple manual runners.
Will they electric adjusters etc fit as easily
As I have seen a pair advertised here with electric  adjusters etc.
I would be well chuffed if I got them as smart as yours fitted.
Any ideas on rear seats?

[cheesoid]

Jaguar XJS seats are about the best non original seats i have seen fitted and even then they need a bit of work, I had these seats fitted to my car as a stop gap while the original MK1 with US head rests were re trimmed.
I do find the MK1 seats give slightly better support than the MK11 seats and now they are trimmed in black leather do look the part, but cheap they are not!

[FloydP]

The first set of seats I had from the soft top bm were electric and I just popped a lead with a cigarette lighter plug on to them and plugged it in only when I needed to adjust them, if I'd kept them in I would have wired them in properly. The set I've got in now are all manual so no wires to worry about, they did have the explosive seat belt tensioners on them but I've removed them, I reckon you'd need an ecu if you wanted to keep them!!
My back seats were black and hadnt seen a lot of use so I've kept them, you might be as well to try and pick up a second hand rear as they don't seem to make much money on eBay and anything else you use is likely to be loads of work to make fit.
I thought I'd heard that early xjs front seats were a straight fit, never come across any to try though.
Floyd.

[jomee]

I have seen jag seats fitted they do look good but to find a pair in EIRE would but the holy Graile.
I will give up on rear as the only one I have seen is rover tomcat.
One concern on bm electric is if the motors give up the ghost then I may be another saga,
so manual may be the order of the day any other advice Gladys received.
The hunt for e36 begins   :D wish me luck.
John