APC Seats for Wrangler

1992 Jeep YJ Wrangler Hardtop

My original seats were okay for their age, but I wanted more comfort
and support. Since I'd have the seats out anyway to redo the floor, I
thought "Now's the time".

American Products Company (don't bother googling, their web site isn't
up "yet") has been clearing out an older line of seats through
retailers and online shops like J.C. Whitney. These APC "Formula 1
Racing Seats" have also been on Ebay. At $89-$99 each, compared to
orignal MSRP of $359 (or so) and retail of @ $180, these seats seemed
like a bargain. I picked a pair up at Godfather Customs (Decatur,
Georgia). Note that some of the online and Ebay bargains are
accompanied by rather pricey "shipping & handling" charges.

These seats claim to be "universal fit" and the salesdroid at
Godfather's said it was a drop-in replacement for a Wrangler "or minor
adjustment". In fact, of course, once you remove the sliding bracket
that comes on the seat, you can measure to see that the front to back
mounting holes are closer together than on the YJ seats and the side to
side ones are further apart. Rather than pay APC $130 (or more) apiece
for adapter brackets, I took 1/8 inch bar steel (hard on drill bits!)
and made my own adapters. I used the seat sliders off my old seats.

As the side to side distance implies, these seats are slightly wider
than stock. However, the front to back size is roughly the same despite
the closer mounting points. Once adapted to the sliders and then
attached on the original YJ floor brackets, the new seats bolted right
in.

Although the pictures in catalogs and on the net don't show this very
well, there is a distinct and deep drop to the place where your fanny
ends up. And it is relatively small in area - not bad for my 165 lbs,
but probably too tiny for the bigger folks to use comfortably. The
front of the seat slopes upward dramatically, giving you the feeling
that you are leaning back even if you have the reclining mechanism
straight up. This, combined with the fact that the seats are taller
than stock, makes the floor a reach for my 30 inch inseam. My wife, at
5'2", cannot touch the floor when sitting upright! I'm comfortable
driving with this arrangement (although I do have to slide the seat
back to get in and then forward again to drive with my stock steering;
if I had a tilt wheel I could probably leave the seat in one place and
just tilt up/down to get in/out). In the short term I'll put a platform
on the floor for my wife's feet (dangling feet are not only not
comfortable, it is bad for your legs/blood circulation, etc.). In the
long term I will eventually retool the adapter brackets to lower the
front of the seat (only a small distance to play with there without
modifying the stock floor bracket) and raise the rear of the seat (a
spacer and longer bolt should do the trick there). Even at that, unless
I'm willing to cut down the stock YJ floor brackets I cannot lower the
seat enough to make my wife comfortable without something on the floor
to rest her feet on. Frankly I don't know what I could do to fix things
so she could drive the YJ with these seats in place.

I wanted fabric seats (vinyl is really not a good option for hot'lanta)
and I wanted reclining seats. I wanted new (because why trade my set of
used seats for somebody else's?). And I wasn't willing to spend >$500
to get fabric recliners from Bestop or Outland. These APC "racing"
seats are not perfect, especially from my wife's perspective, but they
are comfortable, supportive, and affordable. I think I"m going to be
happy driving with these seats on road and off. Since I am doing a fair
amount of work on the jeep right now I have to spread my funds around
carefully. If seats were the _only_ thing I was doing during this
project phase, I'd probably have bought Bestop Trailmax Pro seats (if I
could convince the treasurer to let me have that kind of money for
seats :-). But at these clearance prices I'm a happy camper and
(regardless of price) MUCH more comfortable than the old stock seats.

I'd be happy to try and answer any questions, if I can. Also, although
I don't know WHY you'd want them, I will hang onto the stock seats for
a couple of weeks and give them to someone (local pickup, these aren't
worth paying shipping for).

Cheers,
Ed Humphries
Atlanta, Georgia

You can just go to the wrecker and get Mustang seats. The fit exactly
like you describe. Totally useless unless you have long legs.....
Thanks for the write up and warning about those 'inexpensive' seats.

I have heard Pontiac Fiero seats fit well. The also have stereo
speakers in the headrests...

Mike
86/00 CJ7 Laredo, 33x9.5 BFG Muds, 'glass nose to tail in '00
88 Cherokee 235 BFG AT's
Canadian Off Road Trips Photos: Non members can still view!
Jan/06 http://www.imagestation.com/album/pi...?id=2115147590
(More Off Road album links at bottom of the view page)

wrote:
>
> 1992 Jeep YJ Wrangler Hardtop
>
> My original seats were okay for their age, but I wanted more comfort
> and support. Since I'd have the seats out anyway to redo the floor, I
> thought "Now's the time".
>
> American Products Company (don't bother googling, their web site isn't
> up "yet") has been clearing out an older line of seats through
> retailers and online shops like J.C. Whitney. These APC "Formula 1
> Racing Seats" have also been on Ebay. At $89-$99 each, compared to
> orignal MSRP of $359 (or so) and retail of @ $180, these seats seemed
> like a bargain. I picked a pair up at Godfather Customs (Decatur,
> Georgia). Note that some of the online and Ebay bargains are
> accompanied by rather pricey "shipping & handling" charges.
>
> These seats claim to be "universal fit" and the salesdroid at
> Godfather's said it was a drop-in replacement for a Wrangler "or minor
> adjustment". In fact, of course, once you remove the sliding bracket
> that comes on the seat, you can measure to see that the front to back
> mounting holes are closer together than on the YJ seats and the side to
> side ones are further apart. Rather than pay APC $130 (or more) apiece
> for adapter brackets, I took 1/8 inch bar steel (hard on drill bits!)
> and made my own adapters. I used the seat sliders off my old seats.
>
> As the side to side distance implies, these seats are slightly wider
> than stock. However, the front to back size is roughly the same despite
> the closer mounting points. Once adapted to the sliders and then
> attached on the original YJ floor brackets, the new seats bolted right
> in.
>
> Although the pictures in catalogs and on the net don't show this very
> well, there is a distinct and deep drop to the place where your fanny
> ends up. And it is relatively small in area - not bad for my 165 lbs,
> but probably too tiny for the bigger folks to use comfortably. The
> front of the seat slopes upward dramatically, giving you the feeling
> that you are leaning back even if you have the reclining mechanism
> straight up. This, combined with the fact that the seats are taller
> than stock, makes the floor a reach for my 30 inch inseam. My wife, at
> 5'2", cannot touch the floor when sitting upright! I'm comfortable
> driving with this arrangement (although I do have to slide the seat
> back to get in and then forward again to drive with my stock steering;
> if I had a tilt wheel I could probably leave the seat in one place and
> just tilt up/down to get in/out). In the short term I'll put a platform
> on the floor for my wife's feet (dangling feet are not only not
> comfortable, it is bad for your legs/blood circulation, etc.). In the
> long term I will eventually retool the adapter brackets to lower the
> front of the seat (only a small distance to play with there without
> modifying the stock floor bracket) and raise the rear of the seat (a
> spacer and longer bolt should do the trick there). Even at that, unless
> I'm willing to cut down the stock YJ floor brackets I cannot lower the
> seat enough to make my wife comfortable without something on the floor
> to rest her feet on. Frankly I don't know what I could do to fix things
> so she could drive the YJ with these seats in place.
>
> I wanted fabric seats (vinyl is really not a good option for hot'lanta)
> and I wanted reclining seats. I wanted new (because why trade my set of
> used seats for somebody else's?). And I wasn't willing to spend >$500
> to get fabric recliners from Bestop or Outland. These APC "racing"
> seats are not perfect, especially from my wife's perspective, but they
> are comfortable, supportive, and affordable. I think I"m going to be
> happy driving with these seats on road and off. Since I am doing a fair
> amount of work on the jeep right now I have to spread my funds around
> carefully. If seats were the _only_ thing I was doing during this
> project phase, I'd probably have bought Bestop Trailmax Pro seats (if I
> could convince the treasurer to let me have that kind of money for
> seats :-). But at these clearance prices I'm a happy camper and
> (regardless of price) MUCH more comfortable than the old stock seats.
>
> I'd be happy to try and answer any questions, if I can. Also, although
> I don't know WHY you'd want them, I will hang onto the stock seats for
> a couple of weeks and give them to someone (local pickup, these aren't
> worth paying shipping for).
>
> Cheers,
> Ed Humphries
> Atlanta, Georgia

Hey I didn't get the stereo speakers in my Fiero seats that came in my CJ,
and they were the most uncomfortable seats ever for a jeep, you sat back too
far, and too lo, one of the first things I replaced, that was about 400
replaced things ago.

"Mike Romain" > wrote in message
...
> You can just go to the wrecker and get Mustang seats. The fit exactly
> like you describe. Totally useless unless you have long legs.....
> Thanks for the write up and warning about those 'inexpensive' seats.
>
> I have heard Pontiac Fiero seats fit well. The also have stereo
> speakers in the headrests...
>
> Mike
> 86/00 CJ7 Laredo, 33x9.5 BFG Muds, 'glass nose to tail in '00
> 88 Cherokee 235 BFG AT's
> Canadian Off Road Trips Photos: Non members can still view!
> Jan/06 http://www.imagestation.com/album/pi...?id=2115147590
> (More Off Road album links at bottom of the view page)
>
> wrote:
>>
>> 1992 Jeep YJ Wrangler Hardtop
>>
>> My original seats were okay for their age, but I wanted more comfort
>> and support. Since I'd have the seats out anyway to redo the floor, I
>> thought "Now's the time".
>>
>> American Products Company (don't bother googling, their web site isn't
>> up "yet") has been clearing out an older line of seats through
>> retailers and online shops like J.C. Whitney. These APC "Formula 1
>> Racing Seats" have also been on Ebay. At $89-$99 each, compared to
>> orignal MSRP of $359 (or so) and retail of @ $180, these seats seemed
>> like a bargain. I picked a pair up at Godfather Customs (Decatur,
>> Georgia). Note that some of the online and Ebay bargains are
>> accompanied by rather pricey "shipping & handling" charges.
>>
>> These seats claim to be "universal fit" and the salesdroid at
>> Godfather's said it was a drop-in replacement for a Wrangler "or minor
>> adjustment". In fact, of course, once you remove the sliding bracket
>> that comes on the seat, you can measure to see that the front to back
>> mounting holes are closer together than on the YJ seats and the side to
>> side ones are further apart. Rather than pay APC $130 (or more) apiece
>> for adapter brackets, I took 1/8 inch bar steel (hard on drill bits!)
>> and made my own adapters. I used the seat sliders off my old seats.
>>
>> As the side to side distance implies, these seats are slightly wider
>> than stock. However, the front to back size is roughly the same despite
>> the closer mounting points. Once adapted to the sliders and then
>> attached on the original YJ floor brackets, the new seats bolted right
>> in.
>>
>> Although the pictures in catalogs and on the net don't show this very
>> well, there is a distinct and deep drop to the place where your fanny
>> ends up. And it is relatively small in area - not bad for my 165 lbs,
>> but probably too tiny for the bigger folks to use comfortably. The
>> front of the seat slopes upward dramatically, giving you the feeling
>> that you are leaning back even if you have the reclining mechanism
>> straight up. This, combined with the fact that the seats are taller
>> than stock, makes the floor a reach for my 30 inch inseam. My wife, at
>> 5'2", cannot touch the floor when sitting upright! I'm comfortable
>> driving with this arrangement (although I do have to slide the seat
>> back to get in and then forward again to drive with my stock steering;
>> if I had a tilt wheel I could probably leave the seat in one place and
>> just tilt up/down to get in/out). In the short term I'll put a platform
>> on the floor for my wife's feet (dangling feet are not only not
>> comfortable, it is bad for your legs/blood circulation, etc.). In the
>> long term I will eventually retool the adapter brackets to lower the
>> front of the seat (only a small distance to play with there without
>> modifying the stock floor bracket) and raise the rear of the seat (a
>> spacer and longer bolt should do the trick there). Even at that, unless
>> I'm willing to cut down the stock YJ floor brackets I cannot lower the
>> seat enough to make my wife comfortable without something on the floor
>> to rest her feet on. Frankly I don't know what I could do to fix things
>> so she could drive the YJ with these seats in place.
>>
>> I wanted fabric seats (vinyl is really not a good option for hot'lanta)
>> and I wanted reclining seats. I wanted new (because why trade my set of
>> used seats for somebody else's?). And I wasn't willing to spend >$500
>> to get fabric recliners from Bestop or Outland. These APC "racing"
>> seats are not perfect, especially from my wife's perspective, but they
>> are comfortable, supportive, and affordable. I think I"m going to be
>> happy driving with these seats on road and off. Since I am doing a fair
>> amount of work on the jeep right now I have to spread my funds around
>> carefully. If seats were the _only_ thing I was doing during this
>> project phase, I'd probably have bought Bestop Trailmax Pro seats (if I
>> could convince the treasurer to let me have that kind of money for
>> seats :-). But at these clearance prices I'm a happy camper and
>> (regardless of price) MUCH more comfortable than the old stock seats.
>>
>> I'd be happy to try and answer any questions, if I can. Also, although
>> I don't know WHY you'd want them, I will hang onto the stock seats for
>> a couple of weeks and give them to someone (local pickup, these aren't
>> worth paying shipping for).
>>
>> Cheers,
>> Ed Humphries
>> Atlanta, Georgia

Thanks Greg. I will knock them off my list of possible seat
replacements. I did notice the speakers were an option on the Fiero.

What did you end up with for seats?

Mike

Greg wrote:
>
> Hey I didn't get the stereo speakers in my Fiero seats that came in my CJ,
> and they were the most uncomfortable seats ever for a jeep, you sat back too
> far, and too lo, one of the first things I replaced, that was about 400
> replaced things ago.
>
> "Mike Romain" > wrote in message
> ...
> > You can just go to the wrecker and get Mustang seats. The fit exactly
> > like you describe. Totally useless unless you have long legs.....
> > Thanks for the write up and warning about those 'inexpensive' seats.
> >
> > I have heard Pontiac Fiero seats fit well. The also have stereo
> > speakers in the headrests...
> >
> > Mike
> > 86/00 CJ7 Laredo, 33x9.5 BFG Muds, 'glass nose to tail in '00
> > 88 Cherokee 235 BFG AT's
> > Canadian Off Road Trips Photos: Non members can still view!
> > Jan/06 http://www.imagestation.com/album/pi...?id=2115147590
> > (More Off Road album links at bottom of the view page)
> >
> > wrote:
> >>
> >> 1992 Jeep YJ Wrangler Hardtop
> >>
> >> My original seats were okay for their age, but I wanted more comfort
> >> and support. Since I'd have the seats out anyway to redo the floor, I
> >> thought "Now's the time".
> >>
> >> American Products Company (don't bother googling, their web site isn't
> >> up "yet") has been clearing out an older line of seats through
> >> retailers and online shops like J.C. Whitney. These APC "Formula 1
> >> Racing Seats" have also been on Ebay. At $89-$99 each, compared to
> >> orignal MSRP of $359 (or so) and retail of @ $180, these seats seemed
> >> like a bargain. I picked a pair up at Godfather Customs (Decatur,
> >> Georgia). Note that some of the online and Ebay bargains are
> >> accompanied by rather pricey "shipping & handling" charges.
> >>
> >> These seats claim to be "universal fit" and the salesdroid at
> >> Godfather's said it was a drop-in replacement for a Wrangler "or minor
> >> adjustment". In fact, of course, once you remove the sliding bracket
> >> that comes on the seat, you can measure to see that the front to back
> >> mounting holes are closer together than on the YJ seats and the side to
> >> side ones are further apart. Rather than pay APC $130 (or more) apiece
> >> for adapter brackets, I took 1/8 inch bar steel (hard on drill bits!)
> >> and made my own adapters. I used the seat sliders off my old seats.
> >>
> >> As the side to side distance implies, these seats are slightly wider
> >> than stock. However, the front to back size is roughly the same despite
> >> the closer mounting points. Once adapted to the sliders and then
> >> attached on the original YJ floor brackets, the new seats bolted right
> >> in.
> >>
> >> Although the pictures in catalogs and on the net don't show this very
> >> well, there is a distinct and deep drop to the place where your fanny
> >> ends up. And it is relatively small in area - not bad for my 165 lbs,
> >> but probably too tiny for the bigger folks to use comfortably. The
> >> front of the seat slopes upward dramatically, giving you the feeling
> >> that you are leaning back even if you have the reclining mechanism
> >> straight up. This, combined with the fact that the seats are taller
> >> than stock, makes the floor a reach for my 30 inch inseam. My wife, at
> >> 5'2", cannot touch the floor when sitting upright! I'm comfortable
> >> driving with this arrangement (although I do have to slide the seat
> >> back to get in and then forward again to drive with my stock steering;
> >> if I had a tilt wheel I could probably leave the seat in one place and
> >> just tilt up/down to get in/out). In the short term I'll put a platform
> >> on the floor for my wife's feet (dangling feet are not only not
> >> comfortable, it is bad for your legs/blood circulation, etc.). In the
> >> long term I will eventually retool the adapter brackets to lower the
> >> front of the seat (only a small distance to play with there without
> >> modifying the stock floor bracket) and raise the rear of the seat (a
> >> spacer and longer bolt should do the trick there). Even at that, unless
> >> I'm willing to cut down the stock YJ floor brackets I cannot lower the
> >> seat enough to make my wife comfortable without something on the floor
> >> to rest her feet on. Frankly I don't know what I could do to fix things
> >> so she could drive the YJ with these seats in place.
> >>
> >> I wanted fabric seats (vinyl is really not a good option for hot'lanta)
> >> and I wanted reclining seats. I wanted new (because why trade my set of
> >> used seats for somebody else's?). And I wasn't willing to spend >$500
> >> to get fabric recliners from Bestop or Outland. These APC "racing"
> >> seats are not perfect, especially from my wife's perspective, but they
> >> are comfortable, supportive, and affordable. I think I"m going to be
> >> happy driving with these seats on road and off. Since I am doing a fair
> >> amount of work on the jeep right now I have to spread my funds around
> >> carefully. If seats were the _only_ thing I was doing during this
> >> project phase, I'd probably have bought Bestop Trailmax Pro seats (if I
> >> could convince the treasurer to let me have that kind of money for
> >> seats :-). But at these clearance prices I'm a happy camper and
> >> (regardless of price) MUCH more comfortable than the old stock seats.
> >>
> >> I'd be happy to try and answer any questions, if I can. Also, although
> >> I don't know WHY you'd want them, I will hang onto the stock seats for
> >> a couple of weeks and give them to someone (local pickup, these aren't
> >> worth paying shipping for).
> >>
> >> Cheers,
> >> Ed Humphries
> >> Atlanta, Georgia

LOL
God Bless America, Bill O|||||||O
http://www.billhughes.com/


Mike Romain wrote:
>
> Thanks Greg. I will knock them off my list of possible seat
> replacements. I did notice the speakers were an option on the Fiero.
>
> What did you end up with for seats?
>
> Mike

I bought 2 used YJ seats, which of coarse are a bolt in, it was like going
from a VW to a cadilac.

"Mike Romain" > wrote in message
...
> Thanks Greg. I will knock them off my list of possible seat
> replacements. I did notice the speakers were an option on the Fiero.
>
> What did you end up with for seats?
>
> Mike
>
> Greg wrote:
>>
>> Hey I didn't get the stereo speakers in my Fiero seats that came in my
>> CJ,
>> and they were the most uncomfortable seats ever for a jeep, you sat back
>> too
>> far, and too lo, one of the first things I replaced, that was about 400
>> replaced things ago.
>>
>> "Mike Romain" > wrote in message
>> ...
>> > You can just go to the wrecker and get Mustang seats. The fit exactly
>> > like you describe. Totally useless unless you have long legs.....
>> > Thanks for the write up and warning about those 'inexpensive' seats.
>> >
>> > I have heard Pontiac Fiero seats fit well. The also have stereo
>> > speakers in the headrests...
>> >
>> > Mike
>> > 86/00 CJ7 Laredo, 33x9.5 BFG Muds, 'glass nose to tail in '00
>> > 88 Cherokee 235 BFG AT's
>> > Canadian Off Road Trips Photos: Non members can still view!
>> > Jan/06 http://www.imagestation.com/album/pi...?id=2115147590
>> > (More Off Road album links at bottom of the view page)
>> >
>> > wrote:
>> >>
>> >> 1992 Jeep YJ Wrangler Hardtop
>> >>
>> >> My original seats were okay for their age, but I wanted more comfort
>> >> and support. Since I'd have the seats out anyway to redo the floor, I
>> >> thought "Now's the time".
>> >>
>> >> American Products Company (don't bother googling, their web site isn't
>> >> up "yet") has been clearing out an older line of seats through
>> >> retailers and online shops like J.C. Whitney. These APC "Formula 1
>> >> Racing Seats" have also been on Ebay. At $89-$99 each, compared to
>> >> orignal MSRP of $359 (or so) and retail of @ $180, these seats seemed
>> >> like a bargain. I picked a pair up at Godfather Customs (Decatur,
>> >> Georgia). Note that some of the online and Ebay bargains are
>> >> accompanied by rather pricey "shipping & handling" charges.
>> >>
>> >> These seats claim to be "universal fit" and the salesdroid at
>> >> Godfather's said it was a drop-in replacement for a Wrangler "or minor
>> >> adjustment". In fact, of course, once you remove the sliding bracket
>> >> that comes on the seat, you can measure to see that the front to back
>> >> mounting holes are closer together than on the YJ seats and the side
>> >> to
>> >> side ones are further apart. Rather than pay APC $130 (or more) apiece
>> >> for adapter brackets, I took 1/8 inch bar steel (hard on drill bits!)
>> >> and made my own adapters. I used the seat sliders off my old seats.
>> >>
>> >> As the side to side distance implies, these seats are slightly wider
>> >> than stock. However, the front to back size is roughly the same
>> >> despite
>> >> the closer mounting points. Once adapted to the sliders and then
>> >> attached on the original YJ floor brackets, the new seats bolted right
>> >> in.
>> >>
>> >> Although the pictures in catalogs and on the net don't show this very
>> >> well, there is a distinct and deep drop to the place where your fanny
>> >> ends up. And it is relatively small in area - not bad for my 165 lbs,
>> >> but probably too tiny for the bigger folks to use comfortably. The
>> >> front of the seat slopes upward dramatically, giving you the feeling
>> >> that you are leaning back even if you have the reclining mechanism
>> >> straight up. This, combined with the fact that the seats are taller
>> >> than stock, makes the floor a reach for my 30 inch inseam. My wife, at
>> >> 5'2", cannot touch the floor when sitting upright! I'm comfortable
>> >> driving with this arrangement (although I do have to slide the seat
>> >> back to get in and then forward again to drive with my stock steering;
>> >> if I had a tilt wheel I could probably leave the seat in one place and
>> >> just tilt up/down to get in/out). In the short term I'll put a
>> >> platform
>> >> on the floor for my wife's feet (dangling feet are not only not
>> >> comfortable, it is bad for your legs/blood circulation, etc.). In the
>> >> long term I will eventually retool the adapter brackets to lower the
>> >> front of the seat (only a small distance to play with there without
>> >> modifying the stock floor bracket) and raise the rear of the seat (a
>> >> spacer and longer bolt should do the trick there). Even at that,
>> >> unless
>> >> I'm willing to cut down the stock YJ floor brackets I cannot lower the
>> >> seat enough to make my wife comfortable without something on the floor
>> >> to rest her feet on. Frankly I don't know what I could do to fix
>> >> things
>> >> so she could drive the YJ with these seats in place.
>> >>
>> >> I wanted fabric seats (vinyl is really not a good option for
>> >> hot'lanta)
>> >> and I wanted reclining seats. I wanted new (because why trade my set
>> >> of
>> >> used seats for somebody else's?). And I wasn't willing to spend >$500
>> >> to get fabric recliners from Bestop or Outland. These APC "racing"
>> >> seats are not perfect, especially from my wife's perspective, but they
>> >> are comfortable, supportive, and affordable. I think I"m going to be
>> >> happy driving with these seats on road and off. Since I am doing a
>> >> fair
>> >> amount of work on the jeep right now I have to spread my funds around
>> >> carefully. If seats were the _only_ thing I was doing during this
>> >> project phase, I'd probably have bought Bestop Trailmax Pro seats (if
>> >> I
>> >> could convince the treasurer to let me have that kind of money for
>> >> seats :-). But at these clearance prices I'm a happy camper and
>> >> (regardless of price) MUCH more comfortable than the old stock seats.
>> >>
>> >> I'd be happy to try and answer any questions, if I can. Also, although
>> >> I don't know WHY you'd want them, I will hang onto the stock seats for
>> >> a couple of weeks and give them to someone (local pickup, these aren't
>> >> worth paying shipping for).
>> >>
>> >> Cheers,
>> >> Ed Humphries
>> >> Atlanta, Georgia