More leg room

I'm looking to get an Xterra, but want to get it modified so that the seat can go a notch or two further back. (The reason is that I'm 6'6" and found when I test drove it that my legs were *just* a little cramped.)

Does anyone know a place that can do this (preferably in the California Bay Area), or any leads? Would this be a bad idea? Any other really tall folks out there face this problem?

Any advice is really appreciated!

Thanks,
-Bill

Rrdstarr probably has better info, he's the tall one here.

But from what I remember someone said if you take the rails off your seat and truck that a shop could manufacture longer ones for you. I would call around to any local auto upholstery shops to start.

Yeah, a reputable interior shop should be able to help you out, but I can't recommend one in your area. I'm looking to make modifications to my seats soon or replace them. Haven't decided which course to take yet, but more legroom is part of my plan, along with better support for my thighs and lower back. The main thing is to be sure the company doing it is not compromising the strength of the seat mounting. You don't want to just let any yahoo do the job or you may have a big problem int he event of an accident.

Originally posted by ChuckH
I'm looking to make modifications to my seats soon or replace them. ..... more legroom is part of my plan, along with better support for my thighs and lower back. .

I hear you on that. Wasn't Steve on Voy saying that the '02's have much better seats? Has anyone tried them yet?

If they're that good, I might start lurking at the local wrecking yards to see if an '02 shows up. Just gotta make sure I find a set w/o turd smears from the accident.

I wonder what Nissan is charging for them?

Haha, could be more than a smear! :eek:

You know; I sat in a 2002 and thought the seat felt a little better, but I wasn't really sure and attributed the difference to the fact that the seat was new. My passenger side seat feels better than the driver's seat too, since it hasn't worn much. What I did notice in the '02 was that it seemed the seat was higher or the steering wheel was lower. Even with the tilt all the way up there was less space between my legs and the wheel. Maybe they put thicker padding in the seat? Regardless, the '02 seat was still hardly exciting. I did notice that the part number for seat covers is different for '02, so maybe they are different. Maybe I should go sit in one again.

My problem right now is that my left ass cheek seems to be sitting lower than the right and there is metal coming through the left shoulder bolster, so I feel all crooked and stuff. The seats are definately poorly made.

I'm currently considering seats form other cars and trucks or aftermarket. Problem is all the ones I like are way more money than I can spend. I might just see if an upholstery shop can put higher quality padding in the factory seats and build them up a little bit for better support.

These are the most affordable I have found. They also look the most comfortable for the money. They don't recline, like Schlud does when he's camping, but how often do you cahnge the rake of your seat?

So anyways, I am 6'4", hazel eyes, brown hair......

I am okay as far as leg room is concerned; seat is all the way back in the track and reclined about 20-degrees. My bitch is I need more thigh support; longer or higher padding! I have enough room under the steering wheel. I had Recaros in the Porsche but they were $1200 ea and custom sized. ChuckH saw some Corbeaus that might fit the bill.

What was the question? I suppose you could take the seat to an upholster to see if they can make a longer track for the seat. I wouldn't relocate the holes where the seat sits! They put them there for a purpose, to hold you and the seat should you decide to run over an elk!!!! I'll pull mine out this spring and see if I can fab something in machine shop class.

I really like the looks of the Beard too! ChuckH check them out they make them for people with wasists greater than 38" :D and +3" to height for me! I think I know what my tax refund is going too!!!!

http://www.redart.com/ultrapro.asp Beard seats

http://www.mastercraftseats.com/seats.html

How did you know I looked at a Corbeau seat? I just found those at 6:00 at work tonight and hadn't even told you yet! You must have been thinking about the Sparco seats I like and then your psycho, errr, I mean psychic powers saw that I was looking at Corbeau's today! :D

I'm also interested in Carrera seats, Flo-Fit, and those 323 GTX seats in our storage shed at work. although they need to be fixed up too.

I didnt think the 02 seats were any better than the older model. Im 6 foot 6 and dont have too much trouble. My chief bitch is with the transfer case shift digging me in the knee (waah!). The XTerra seats sure wear quickly too...

Originally posted by ozxterra
I didnt think the 02 seats were any better than the older model. Im 6 foot 6 and dont have too much trouble.

Damn! We need to start a city league basketball team.:eek:

Your 2" inches taller than me????????? HOLY CRAP!!!!!!!!! I thought i was the big guy in the PNWX?

I think so - When I stand straight. I spend too much time in front of computers so I slouch a lot these days. Last time I checked I was 6 foot 6 250lbs..(too fat)


Chad

I would love new seats, but all the ones I like don't recline or are too expensive. I need seats that recline since I camp in my truck and need to fold the seats forward.

The higher you can raise your seat, the less leg room you need.
(If you had a 4' high seat, your legs would hang straight down.)

Start by putting some pads on the bottom of the seat.
Try 1" and 2". Will give you some idea of what works
or does not work.

I had my seats restuffed. Not sure how much the seat
bottom was raised but it helped. I also had them shave
some from the lumbar pad. I found I could raise the seat
to a more upright position (used the Rick Starr settings before)
and could also move the seat forward a couple of notches.

The seats are better but not perfect.

Hi. Just found this place. "Toy Man" I noticed you said you had your seats restuffed. How much did it cost you? And they actually reduced that lumbar padding on the lower part of the seat? Did you restuff both front seats? I really would like to know the most economical way of making those front seats (especially the drivers seat) more comfortable. Today I sat in a 2002, and the seats did feel a lot better than mine (which is a 2001 SE). Anyone have any ideas how much Nissan would charge to swap in the new seats into the old model? Any info would be great! Thanks.

Toy Man" I noticed you said you had your seats restuffed. How much did it cost you? And they actually reduced that lumbar padding on the lower part of the seat? Did you restuff both front seats?

I had both seats re-done. Extra padding in the seat
and the lumbar 'lump' shaved. The padding helped
but I still needed a small piece of firm foam to set on.

Shaving the lumbar made the most difference.
It feels like I gained a inch or two in leg room.
(probably not true - just feels that way.)

Cost seems to vary depending where you are at.
I paid $250.00 per seat at a place in Portland OR
that does a lot of custom work.

Toy Man

You might try setting in a 2003 drivers seat.

It felt better - this was with both 'knob's cranked
all the way up. It also has a small lumbar adjustment.
Did not test drive it.

The 'leather' looked and felt cheap to me.

If you are successful in finding a seat solution,
I'm sure many Xterra people would like to know about it.

Toy Man

Thanks for the reply Toy Man! I guess I will ask around about upholstry work and see what I find. I also will be taking my X in for some minor maintainence and will ask the parts and service guys about the seat swapping. I'll let you all know what I find out. Thanks again!