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    I am renovating a1980 Leyland Sherpa, why bother?, you ask - well it was cheap and has only done 53k mls, the chassis is fine so it is worth doing a bit to the interior and the rust spots on the body

     But enough idle chat, I need to replace driver and passenger seats.

     The existing seats are bolted onto swivel plates which I want to retain as they form the end of the bed. The plates are 14.5in long by 17.5in wide with bolt centres at 11.75 in(300mm?) by 15.75in (400mm?) the seat cushion height is 10in above the plate and the seat back needs to be at least 29in with a headrest of  about 7in as we are both tall.

   Has anyone got seats from a van or car they are scrapping or should I scour the breakers with my spanners and a tape measure? Any suggestions for suitable donor vehicle  

Hello David & Gill

Looks like you are in for a lot of searching round scrapyards.   On the Sherpas I have had the driver and passenger seats reclined to make up bed with rear seats.  They did not swivel though.  These seats were fitted by the convertor (SunTours I think) and you would need to be lucky to find them in a scrapyard.

You might be better looking for (or having made) some covers for the ones you have.

---

Steven

 Hi Steven

Thanks for the info. Our seats do not recline and the main reason for changing them is not the condition of the covers but the height of the seat backs which on the passenger seat is too low for my wife (who is tall and has a neck problem). The van had been home converted several owners back and I think it will probably come down to a bit of patient hunting around and a large dose of ingenuity to get her just right for us. 

This is our first motorcaravan since a Bedford van which we fitted out with windows, a gas hob, a sink and a makeshift bed when we were half our present age ie. a long time ago. We are on a steep learning curve and are grateful for all the help we can get,

                                      So thanks again

Car seats will definitely be more comfortable than van style seats.

Have a look at seats from a Ford Orion, Sierra, or Granada,  (or even newer Fords, but check for the combined seat widths, as the Sherpa, from my knowledge, is'nt   too wide across the cab). They seem to be able to fit most vans with a little bit of modification. The original mountings and runners are only bolted to the seat base frame with 4 bolts, and are easily removed to fit the seats to the swivel plates that you have.

Just ensure that the 'new' seats are fitted securely to the swivel plates at the height that you need them to be. If there is a lot of height to make up, consider building a small 'safe' type box between the runner base and the swivel, and bolt that between the surfaces. Handy for keeping small items safe too. Make it from 18 guage sheet steel.

Hope this helps.

Bill.

To Johnho and Bill

Thanks for the hints and you are right about eventually