All, I bought a set of XLT Buckets / Console off of Ebay for my son's 97 F250 HD Supercab 4WD [they were from the same year and model truck, except the XLT difference]. He has the XL model, with the vinyl bench that folds for access.
Of course - It's Christmas Eve and we're in the garage - once we get the old seat out we attempt to fit the new seats in. [We do have the bracket for the console. However - the bolt holes don't align properly.
Is there a "subframe" for the XLT model seats? Or is it a drill and bolt job? Any guidance would be appreciated, he is 16 and this is his first truck - I couldn't exactly check the seats until we gave him the seats today..
2006 F350 CC LB 4WD 6.0L Lariat G/N Hitch 4285mi - 1 Turbo Trashed 1600mi, MetaL in Oil,F*rd no help, Bad instrument cluster - significant oil leak - Sold at a Loss!Thanks F*&D
2005 F250 CC SB 6.0L Torqshift Lariat G/N Hitch and Tonneau - Wife's Truck 29K miles Turbo at 14K.
2002 F350 XLT 4WD CC SWB 7.3 PSD 100K miles MPRB 4" Exhaust, Ford AIS, AutoMeter Guages,Hypertech Pwr Prg Stage 2,Rancho 5000's Aluminum Diff Cover, G/N Hitch, 285/75/16 BFG Mud Terrains, 1 CPS 33k 1 Turbo at 85K - Will Drive till it Rusts Away!
1996 F250 SC 4x4 7.3L PSD XLT 5 Speed 86K miles G/N - Sold -To Buy the POS F350 6.0 L 2006 - why did I do it ?
1997 Dodge 2500 CC 4WD 12V Cummins 5 speed Turned up Pump and Boost, 4" MPRB Turbo Back Exhaust, AFE Stage 2 Intake - 285/75R Mud Terrains 151K miles- Hammer Down Blows Black Smoke :-) Son's Truck!
2006 F350 CC LB 4WD 6.0L Lariat G/N Hitch 4285mi - 1 Turbo Trashed 1600mi, MetaL in Oil,F*rd no help, Bad instrument cluster - significant oil leak - Sold at a Loss!Thanks F*&D
2005 F250 CC SB 6.0L Torqshift Lariat G/N Hitch and Tonneau - Wife's Truck 29K miles Turbo at 14K.
2002 F350 XLT 4WD CC SWB 7.3 PSD 100K miles MPRB 4" Exhaust, Ford AIS, AutoMeter Guages,Hypertech Pwr Prg Stage 2,Rancho 5000's Aluminum Diff Cover, G/N Hitch, 285/75/16 BFG Mud Terrains, 1 CPS 33k 1 Turbo at 85K - Will Drive till it Rusts Away!
1996 F250 SC 4x4 7.3L PSD XLT 5 Speed 86K miles G/N - Sold -To Buy the POS F350 6.0 L 2006 - why did I do it ?
1997 Dodge 2500 CC 4WD 12V Cummins 5 speed Turned up Pump and Boost, 4" MPRB Turbo Back Exhaust, AFE Stage 2 Intake - 285/75R Mud Terrains 151K miles- Hammer Down Blows Black Smoke :-) Son's Truck!
I did the exact same conversion in March of 2002. My truck had the cloth bench which was hell on my back.
There is a difference in the 40/20/40 seats from the regular cab/crew cab and supercab. The one piece steel frame assembly that all 3 of the seat components mount to is only found in the seats from a regular cab or crew cab. The supercab seats are different to allow the entire passenger seat to slide forward as well as flip forward to gain access to the back seat.
There is only a mounting "plate" that the centre console is mounted to. The driver and passenger seats share their inside two mounting holes with this plate, and then the two outside mounting holes on each seat are independent.
I removed the bench from the truck (4 bolts, one on each corner) and then set the 40/20/40 centre console and plate assembly in the centre. You will see that the plate actually moulds into the floor pan of the truck; it is quite obvious where it needs to sit. I set the driver and passenger seats into place, closed the doors, and measured the gap between the doors on each side to ensure that the seat was centred, which it was. I also sat in each seat to ensure that the leg room was correct, which it was. The moulding feature of the pan seems to correctly position the seats both side to side and front to back, but you will want to take a bit of time to confirm this.
You will find that you cannot reuse any of the original mounting holes for the bench. You will need to get the new seat assembly in the proper position as I outlined above, mark the new mounting holes, and then drill them out from the top. All of the new holes ended up being easily accessible from the bottom of the truck and did not interfere with anything. I used 3/8" SS bolts, nuts and washers complete with silicone to seal up the holes. I then took one of the old mounting studs from the bench seat to the hardware store and bought SS bolts with the matching size and thread (can't remember what size they ended up being), siliconed them, and inserted them into the existing holes that were used to mount the old bench (there are "nuts" welded onto the bottom side of the floor pan from the factory). The two front bolt heads are hidden underneath the new seat, and the rear bolts are hidden underneath the rear floor mat.
Overall, it was quite an easy job; just take your time positioning the seats where they need to be before you drill. I also wired in the lumbar support feature so the seat is fully functional. The results are well worth it; the 40/20/40 seat is light years ahead of the bench in terms of comfort.
I hope that I haven't forgotten anything; if you have any further questions let us know.
Thanks a million for the information - I suspected this might be the case after positioning the center console mounting plate, but wasn't sure. I have a friend with a 97 F250 HD SC XLT with the exact seats I am installing, but haven't been able to link up with him to have a look at his truck.
You are exactly correct regarding the bench seat bolts, there is no line up at all.
Of course my son was disappointed initially, but it's back to the garage for some more hands on! [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/biggrin.gif[/img]
2006 F350 CC LB 4WD 6.0L Lariat G/N Hitch 4285mi - 1 Turbo Trashed 1600mi, MetaL in Oil,F*rd no help, Bad instrument cluster - significant oil leak - Sold at a Loss!Thanks F*&D
2005 F250 CC SB 6.0L Torqshift Lariat G/N Hitch and Tonneau - Wife's Truck 29K miles Turbo at 14K.
2002 F350 XLT 4WD CC SWB 7.3 PSD 100K miles MPRB 4" Exhaust, Ford AIS, AutoMeter Guages,Hypertech Pwr Prg Stage 2,Rancho 5000's Aluminum Diff Cover, G/N Hitch, 285/75/16 BFG Mud Terrains, 1 CPS 33k 1 Turbo at 85K - Will Drive till it Rusts Away!
1996 F250 SC 4x4 7.3L PSD XLT 5 Speed 86K miles G/N - Sold -To Buy the POS F350 6.0 L 2006 - why did I do it ?
1997 Dodge 2500 CC 4WD 12V Cummins 5 speed Turned up Pump and Boost, 4" MPRB Turbo Back Exhaust, AFE Stage 2 Intake - 285/75R Mud Terrains 151K miles- Hammer Down Blows Black Smoke :-) Son's Truck!
Where did you get the new seat? I want one really bad, I have captain chairs now but the BOSS(My Dog) doesnt like the captain chairs so the split bench is what im after.
2006 F350 CC LB 4WD 6.0L Lariat G/N Hitch 4285mi - 1 Turbo Trashed 1600mi, MetaL in Oil,F*rd no help, Bad instrument cluster - significant oil leak - Sold at a Loss!Thanks F*&D
2005 F250 CC SB 6.0L Torqshift Lariat G/N Hitch and Tonneau - Wife's Truck 29K miles Turbo at 14K.
2002 F350 XLT 4WD CC SWB 7.3 PSD 100K miles MPRB 4" Exhaust, Ford AIS, AutoMeter Guages,Hypertech Pwr Prg Stage 2,Rancho 5000's Aluminum Diff Cover, G/N Hitch, 285/75/16 BFG Mud Terrains, 1 CPS 33k 1 Turbo at 85K - Will Drive till it Rusts Away!
1996 F250 SC 4x4 7.3L PSD XLT 5 Speed 86K miles G/N - Sold -To Buy the POS F350 6.0 L 2006 - why did I do it ?
1997 Dodge 2500 CC 4WD 12V Cummins 5 speed Turned up Pump and Boost, 4" MPRB Turbo Back Exhaust, AFE Stage 2 Intake - 285/75R Mud Terrains 151K miles- Hammer Down Blows Black Smoke :-) Son's Truck!
[ QUOTE ]
Where did you get the new seat? I want one really bad, I have captain chairs now but the BOSS(My Dog) doesnt like the captain chairs so the split bench is what im after.
[/ QUOTE ]
where are you located??? do you have pics of what your seats look like installed? thanks ryan
__________________
RYAN
GAUGES, INTAKE, EXHUAST, SBC CLUTCH, CHIP, BDP INJECTORS, BILSTEINS, BUSHINGS...AND A WHOLE LOT MORE..
[ QUOTE ]
I did the exact same conversion in March of 2002. My truck had the cloth bench which was hell on my back.
There is a difference in the 40/20/40 seats from the regular cab/crew cab and supercab. The one piece steel frame assembly that all 3 of the seat components mount to is only found in the seats from a regular cab or crew cab. The supercab seats are different to allow the entire passenger seat to slide forward as well as flip forward to gain access to the back seat.
There is only a mounting "plate" that the centre console is mounted to. The driver and passenger seats share their inside two mounting holes with this plate, and then the two outside mounting holes on each seat are independent.
I removed the bench from the truck (4 bolts, one on each corner) and then set the 40/20/40 centre console and plate assembly in the centre. You will see that the plate actually moulds into the floor pan of the truck; it is quite obvious where it needs to sit. I set the driver and passenger seats into place, closed the doors, and measured the gap between the doors on each side to ensure that the seat was centred, which it was. I also sat in each seat to ensure that the leg room was correct, which it was. The moulding feature of the pan seems to correctly position the seats both side to side and front to back, but you will want to take a bit of time to confirm this.
You will find that you cannot reuse any of the original mounting holes for the bench. You will need to get the new seat assembly in the proper position as I outlined above, mark the new mounting holes, and then drill them out from the top. All of the new holes ended up being easily accessible from the bottom of the truck and did not interfere with anything. I used 3/8" SS bolts, nuts and washers complete with silicone to seal up the holes. I then took one of the old mounting studs from the bench seat to the hardware store and bought SS bolts with the matching size and thread (can't remember what size they ended up being), siliconed them, and inserted them into the existing holes that were used to mount the old bench (there are "nuts" welded onto the bottom side of the floor pan from the factory). The two front bolt heads are hidden underneath the new seat, and the rear bolts are hidden underneath the rear floor mat.
Overall, it was quite an easy job; just take your time positioning the seats where they need to be before you drill. I also wired in the lumbar support feature so the seat is fully functional. The results are well worth it; the 40/20/40 seat is light years ahead of the bench in terms of comfort.
I hope that I haven't forgotten anything; if you have any further questions let us know.
Brad
[/ QUOTE ]
Just had to say this was a very well written and detailed post. I Like the stainless bolts. Ford uses body seam sealer for joints and putty backed trim nuts before trim was stick on to keep out water. Mostly because it's paintable and more flexable to vibration than silicone. Under washers it should last just fine.
__________________ TheRacer XBuilt E4OD THAT CAN Video. 1997 F-350 7.3 Twin Turboed Power Stroke Diesel. Fueled with 473 + cc's of Dieseland nitrous!
Family owned & sponsored by : FloridaNorth
[ QUOTE ]
Where did you get the new seat? I want one really bad, I have captain chairs now but the BOSS(My Dog) doesnt like the captain chairs so the split bench is what im after.
[/ QUOTE ]
My dog doesn't like my 40-20-40. For him it's like stretching out on two bucket seats with two seat belt clips stabbing him in his belly. He now has an old folded sleeping bag as a cushion giving him a comfortable 20-40. BTW, I like my 40. [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]
__________________
1997 F-350 PSD XLT RC 4x4 E4OD
303K miles and still running very strong
Using WVO and biodiesel since May 2006
Brad, Thanks again - we followed your directions, and I hooked up with a friend with a 97 SC with same seats, and made some measurements.
I used grade 5 7/16 bolts and nuts, and grade 8 1/2" washers top and bottom side [Bolts were 1 & 1/2" long] I coated the finished assembled bolts with silicone, and reinserted the old front bolts back in the floor pan, and siliconed them.
I still have the vinyl bench, 1 piece seat, but split back with integrated headrests.
Thanks, Luke [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/rolleyes.gif[/img]
2006 F350 CC LB 4WD 6.0L Lariat G/N Hitch 4285mi - 1 Turbo Trashed 1600mi, MetaL in Oil,F*rd no help, Bad instrument cluster - significant oil leak - Sold at a Loss!Thanks F*&D
2005 F250 CC SB 6.0L Torqshift Lariat G/N Hitch and Tonneau - Wife's Truck 29K miles Turbo at 14K.
2002 F350 XLT 4WD CC SWB 7.3 PSD 100K miles MPRB 4" Exhaust, Ford AIS, AutoMeter Guages,Hypertech Pwr Prg Stage 2,Rancho 5000's Aluminum Diff Cover, G/N Hitch, 285/75/16 BFG Mud Terrains, 1 CPS 33k 1 Turbo at 85K - Will Drive till it Rusts Away!
1996 F250 SC 4x4 7.3L PSD XLT 5 Speed 86K miles G/N - Sold -To Buy the POS F350 6.0 L 2006 - why did I do it ?
1997 Dodge 2500 CC 4WD 12V Cummins 5 speed Turned up Pump and Boost, 4" MPRB Turbo Back Exhaust, AFE Stage 2 Intake - 285/75R Mud Terrains 151K miles- Hammer Down Blows Black Smoke :-) Son's Truck!
E4OD THAT CAN Video.
nitrous! 
Linear Mode
