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Installing a drivers seat armrest, how-to with Pics!

36K views 19 replies 14 participants last post by  equitube 
#1 ·
I wanted an armrest for my drivers seat, it seemed the only option would be junkyard seat(s) but they seem to get plucked pretty fast. Well, I was uncovering the rear passenger seats that came out of my van and noticed the center seat had an armrest and it was correct for the drivers side so this is what followed.

The cool thing is that rear passenger seats are easy to find, I see people on Craigslist trying to get rid of them and they're still in the J/Y vans. So if you can find a seat in the right color you're all set.

You're going to need a right angle grinder with a grinding wheel and a cut-off wheel. Also need a welder or a friend with a welder. If you have the tools this project should just take few hours.

If you find a seat with the armrest you need all it will take is a hacksaw to get what you need. The armrest attaches to a bracket that's welded to the tubing of the seat frame. Use the hacksaw to cut through the seat frame above and below the bracket. You could take a utility knife and cut the upholstery out of the way so you can see what you're doing. Pull the clip that holds the armrest and remove the armrest. Take the clip and put it in a safe place or it will get lost. :D


Here's the bracket where it was welded to the seat frame. I've already cut it loose here. The sparks from my grinder started all the seat foam smoldering, so cut the seat frame first. Then you can use a cutting wheel on an angle grinder to cut the welds and remove the bracket from the piece of tubing.


Remove the backrest from your drivers seat. There are velcro tabs at the bottom corners and a closure strip under the bottom of the seat back. Release them and pull the upholstery up enough to get to the four 13mm bolts holding the backrest.


Pull the steel frame out of the seat back. It's nested down into the foam so you'll have to stick your hand in there and coax it free, then it will just slide out.


Here's the seat frame separated from the backrest.


Loosely bolt the steel frame back in place to get the location of the armrest bracket. Use a stick from the armrest on the drivers door to the passenger door. This will give you the proper height for attaching the bracket to the seat frame. Make some reference marks on the frame.


You'll probably need to do some clean-up grinding on the bracket to get it to fit the seat frame. I attached it temporarily with tape then tack welded it top and bottom. Take it back to the van to check the fit. If you're happy with it weld it up. Use a rat tail file or some emery and clean up the bushing the armrest goes into, I had some weld spatter in there.

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Put the frame back into the backrest. Make absolutely sure the frame is completely nested back into the foam. Feel around in there and keep moving the foam around until its in place. Take a pair of scissors and cut away the foam so it comes up flush with the bracket. Do not cut the upholstery yet!

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The clip can go in place now. Close it up with pliers for a snug fit. Put some grease on a q-tip and swab it inside the bushing and on the clip.


Re-install the seat back, get all the upholstery pulled in place and reattached. Finally, cut the upholstery for the armrest, one hole for the mounting pin and one for the stop pin. Clean up the mounting pin on the armrest and put some grease on it. Carefully insert the armrest while rotating it until the clip locks it in.

Go for a drive and enjoy your new armrest!

 
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#7 ·
Nice write up. Now if someone would tell me please how to REMOVE the arm rests from both front bucket seats and the middle bench seat, I would be happy.

I need to remove them because my Astro is a taxicab, and passengers will break them off or damage them sooner or later. It would be much simpler to just remove them now.

Thanks, and if you post a how-to, please post pix.
 
#8 ·
JuneauCabbie said:
Nice write up. Now if someone would tell me please how to REMOVE the arm rests from both front bucket seats and the middle bench seat, I would be happy.

I need to remove them because my Astro is a taxicab, and passengers will break them off or damage them sooner or later. It would be much simpler to just remove them now.

Thanks, and if you post a how-to, please post pix.
Have a look at these two links in my post here: viewtopic.php?f=13&t=8054#p81794 Jim
 
#9 ·
JuneauCabbie said:
Nice write up. Now if someone would tell me please how to REMOVE the arm rests from both front bucket seats and the middle bench seat, I would be happy.

I need to remove them because my Astro is a taxicab, and passengers will break them off or damage them sooner or later. It would be much simpler to just remove them now.

Thanks, and if you post a how-to, please post pix.
Here's a close-up of the clip that holds the armrest in and the slot that it rides in:
clip.jpg

And here's a close-up of where that clip goes inside the seat, on the bushing the armrest pin slides into:
clip2.jpg

You could try pulling out hard on the armrest while rotating it up and down, if you're lucky that will walk the clip out of its slot and the armrest will come free. If that doesn't work just undo the upholstery at the bottom of the backrest and slide it up a few inches so you can pull the clip off with a pair of needle nose pliers.

Hope that helps!
 
#13 ·
CRexilius said:
Thats weird, my 98 astro comes with left and right fold down arm rests on both front seats.
Using that logic... it would make sense that I could install an armrest on both sides of front seats then? Currently my 2005 Astro has a right side arm rest on the driver's seat, and a left side arm rest on the passenger seat (essentially, just the sides that face the middle). I guess GM discontinued putting left and right arm rests on both front seats because they would be in way as you get in and out of the van and might even break in time. But, I plan on adding a swivel base to my front passenger seat and it would be great to have arm rests on both sides, especially when facing back (not while the van is being driven of course)! :mrgreen:

I might throw out my rear bench seats since I probably won't use them anymore, and they've got nice matching arm rests. Or I could check out a junk yard and pull a couple of grey armrests from there. Since I'm not very handy with modifications, I'd probably get someone at an automotive upholstery shop to do the welding and grinding to attach the new arm rests.

And yes, I know I'm resurrecting a really old post! I happened to see it in the side bar, and it's a Sticky, and it looked interesting. :banana:
 
#14 ·
Does anyone know how to disengage the cable for the lower back support from the adjustment knob on the side of the seat.
I found a good seatback at the JY today --the upholstery is shot but the frame and armrest and armrest braket and pins are excellent I want to remove the frame from my current seat which has a broken arm rest and use this frame with my upholstery.
When I took the JY one off the seat base the cable runs out of the seatback under the seat base and is attached to the inside end of the adjustment knob. It looked like some kind of push/twist/lift deal but it was all cracked and broke up when I f'd with it trying to disengage the cable. I may find when I cut the back off the JY one there is a point there I can remove it but I dont know yet...
Also the underseat drawer on the passenger side --do I need to remove the whole seat to recover that ? the JY one has one looks as if it was never used want to try and get it next time.
 
#15 ·
I don't know about the knob, but you have to remove the nuts holding the seat to the floor to get the drawer. It just slides over the bolts, then the seat and base go on top.
 
#16 ·
That's fine most of the other stuff is gone so there is room to get at them. The cable is going to be the fun issue. I never even realized that knob was there on my van. I found it was there after I got back out of the JY and loaded up to go. The lower back support was nice on the way home !
 
#17 ·
I finally got it all figured out --the cable wont easily disengage from the knob/adjustment assembly in the seat base. But it will come out of the seat back frame fairly easy --getting it back in can be a trick. To get it out I backed off the knob all the way to loosen the cable as much as possible. With the seat back unbolted and flipped off to the side to access the back of the seat I was able to reach up inside and grab the white bushing at the end of the cable jacket,pull up and slip the cable itself out the slot. Then you can release the bottom side by pulling the metal end down and out of its slot. I tried pulling the metal end down but you cant get enough slack to get in the slot and the lower cross bar of the seat frame blocks you --probably so it wont fall out on its own if the cable gets slack enough. There is a plastic twist tie that keeps the cable up alongside the seat back frame tube and out of the mechanism itself. It will just pop open and let the cable go. Then I just let it hang till I put the seat back on.
Once I had the foam and seat cover back on the new frame I flipped it face down behind the seat offset to the center of the van to make it easy to run the cable back up curve it down,reattach the cable end at the bottom of the mechanism then pull the jacketed part with the end bushing up and put it in its slot and let it go in its hole. Make sure its routed out of the way and put the little twist tie thingy back on. Then I was able to close up the bottom of the seat,Flip it over into position,put in the bottom two bolts "stand' the seat back up and get the top two bolts in the frame. once tightened I tried out the recline,and back support mechanisim's and popped on the armrest--done !
Ill try to take some pics with the one cable and the stripped frame of how it routes and you can see how to get it out and back in.
this is the cable in question --the white bushing goes to the seatback mechanisim the black end goes to the knob in the seat base --as you can see I broke that end getting it out of the donor van


this is how it runs through the seat back


you have to reach up in there and pull the white bushing up


and then out of the slot


Then you can get the metal end out of its slot


you wil have to release the plastic tie to get the end down out of the seat


install is the reverse --but you have to do all this with the upholstry and foam on but its not hard.

my original bracket with busted stop pin


the back support mech was broken also so I am glad I got the donor frame...

ETA--oh the underseat box was butkis --yes I had to take the whole seat to get it out but it was harder to get thru the accumulated crud that the messy Mcmessersons left in the van than get the bolts off. Lets put it this way the box,its frame and a few other parts got a stop at the car wash for a high presssure soap spray and rinse to get all the ---God knows what--- off them.
Oddly enogh I did find a penny under the rear inside seat bracket but I think it just worked its way in there over time.
I DID find enough change,couple dollars worth that I effectively did not pay to get in the Pick-n-Pull !
 
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