seat looking a bit worn, what to do

[parkerb]

hi all, my '00 cargo's driver's seat is worn. when i ask the parts guy at ford about a replacement he makes it sound like it's impossible due to safety concerns. i can only replace the fabric or foam/ insert- not an entire chair.

what is everyone else doing? i don't see driver's chairs on ebay often. can i swap in the passenger seat and delete the arm rest?

tia,
parker

[ricebike]

i've seen it done in a ford e150 cargo van

either that or you painstakingly remove the foam / covers from both and swap them over

or just put a seat cover over it

[Windstartled]

Originally Posted by parkerb

hi all, my '00 cargo's driver's seat is worn. when i ask the parts guy at ford about a replacement he makes it sound like it's impossible due to safety concerns. i can only replace the fabric or foam/ insert- not an entire chair.

what is everyone else doing? i don't see driver's chairs on ebay often. can i swap in the passenger seat and delete the arm rest?

Assuming you have fabric, non-power seats removing them and installing new ones is very easy. Those seats are single-piece units fastened to the tracks with 4 downward-facing bolts (NOT the 4 larger bolts that fasten the seat base to the van's floor). Just remove the nuts, pull seat out (without the base they weigh very little), drop new seat in, screw nuts back on.

You can of course use the passenger seat as a replacement or you could go to a boneyard and pick a driver's seat in good condition there for cheap, maybe $20-$25. That way you get to keep the armrest.

[12Ounce]

I would aproach an upholstery shop that works on auto interiors and convertible tops. There is usually one or two around major cities. Ask a local used auto center who they might refer you to.

[phil-l]

Related question: Does anyone know a source for NEW seat cushion foam for Windstars?

[Windstartled]

Originally Posted by phil-l

Related question: Does anyone know a source for NEW seat cushion foam for Windstars?

Not surprisingly there is no part number for cushion foam. I would go with 12Once on this one and suggest an upholstery shop. The alternative would be finding out which contract manufacturer supplied the original seats and try to obtain the material from them, but it's a long shot.