UncleMaz

Anyone want to buy a really nice set of original early black leather front seats?

3000teeth

Interested in trading for some good condition red sport seats from an '87?

UncleMaz

Sound awesome. However, I need black. Maybe someone will want red ones who has black ones and wants to work a three way trade.

UncleMaz

I think I am going to have a local welder add brackets to the seat frame a la the late seats. Pics to follow.

hernanca

For completeness, here are a couple of pictures (edit: were cr@ppy-er - found originals! - a little better) I took of an '81. As a reference, my notes tell me that the female receiver, shown installed, measures 10 inches from the female insert receiver face to the mounting bolt centerline.

UncleMaz

Thanks Carlos. I have not ruled this method out. Once I get all of the carpet out out of there, I will compare the two cars: 80 and 85 I have for structural differences if perceptible to me.

hernanca

Found the original pictures I had taken, so I updated my post above with them.

Also, I remembered something, in case you or anyone else goes this route (putting early seats in a later car). There was a significant spacer (about 20 mm in length or so) which the mounting bolt went through, and female seat belt part seated itself on top of. This seems necessary due to the thick layer of insulation and then thinner layer of carpet surrounding the tunnel. The female seat belt section sits flush on top of all that. Wish I would have measured that spacer, but I did not.

UncleMaz

I will measure the spacer and report back.

Landseer

S4 seats in an early car also have some subtle challenges.

Seats have a raised place that should fit in a female dip on the car.
Early car base frames don't have the dip, so the seat frames don't lock into the base frames.
Instead, they have to be raised up with washers at all four corners.
That puts a heck of a shear force potential on the 4 little allen bolts. (Bolts have strength axially, but not crosswise in shear) Dangerous actually. I've got a pair that need another solution.

Sorry to digress.

James Bailey

The seat bolts to the floor bracket are larger for the later seats because of the additional load potential of the seat belt receiver being attached to the seat.