Bert Peal

In August of 1995 I bought my first brand new vehicle, a 1995 Ford F-150 XL 4.9 liter fuel injected straight six with a manual 5 speed transmission. It had 34 miles on it when I signed the papers and drove it off the dealers lot. I still have it and drive it at least 3 times a week (I am disabled and on dialysis). The truck is still in awesome condition despite a couple of dings that were unavoidable but they are nor noticeable. It still runs like a top. I have replaced the alternator 4 times, the tires 3 times, and the clutch and pressure plate once (got 89,000 miles out of the factory clutch but still less than 100 thousand miles on the truck but not by much). Now it is 20 years old and I am considering trying to dress it up a little as it is starting to get a little tired looking inside. It has the standard bench seat with the two tone grey cloth seat cover. The problem is that on the drivers side, there is a large tear in the seat cover and the cushion is worn completely out from my getting in and out of the truck to go to work for 13 years everyday. I am considering replacing the bench seat with possibly van seats from a 1995 ford van and then building a wood console to go between them. How hard would this be to do, and would I be better off going with an aftermarket bucket seat. I want comfortable seats and the old bench seat is just tired. Thanks in advance for any advice

Bmp22

I'm pretty sure the 1995 van bench seat would fit in the truck with little or no drilling. The seats are normally the same. It shouldn't be too hard to switch out. But If the appearance of the seat is the only problem. I would order seat covers from saddleman.com. I just ordered one for my 92 f150. They fit on the seat like a glove, skin tight. It looks as though the seat has been reupholstered. They cost around $145 but are well worth the money. That's the route I would go if the appearance is the only problem.

jkenprice1

If you're ok with the bench seat, you might try having it professionally repaired, assuming you have an upholstery shop locally. I've had several seats repaired. I've always been happy with the outcome and the repais have been reasonably pried. You mght try getting an estimate.

broncojunkie

There are guys on here that have replaced their seats with some from later model trucks/cars/vans/suv's and it turned out great. A split bench seat, might be nice...a little more modern and plenty to chose from, since they were a popular set-up in a lot of trucks and suv's. It would probably be easier than trying to build a console from scratch, and would end up looking more factory. Or, you could swap a console and seats from something. Lots of options, depending on how much work you want to do.

My '92 xlt has the original bench seat. The truck looked like hell, when I got it...but the interior was surprisingly good...especially, the seat. If not, I would have done like Bmp22 said and re-upholster the original. You could even find a cheap used bench seat that needs upholstery, but has good foam (if your foam is that bad.)

Bert Peal

Yeah, the foam is pretty much shot on the driver's side. It feels like you are sitting in a bucket, that's how bad it is. I do have a local upholstery shop and I plan to take it in for an estimate. I am just a fan of customization on vehicles, and I am torn as to whether I really want to customize my truck or keep it stock. I really like the look and feel of a good bucket seat, but my bench seat was pretty comfortable too. Bench seats don't really look that great covered in leather or faux leather though....lol. I would like to explore getting a split bench seat also, but I couldn't find anything on if a split bench would work in a standard bench place. There are numerous salvage yards around here so finding one shouldn't be that much of a problem. Thanks for the input guys.

fltdriver

All options for this truck will fit yours with zero modification, just unbolt the bench frame from the truck (4 bolts) then remove the bench from the frame. Find a bench in good shape; whether it's 1 piece, 60/40, or 40/20/40 makes no difference as they will all bolt to the bench frame. Ford used the same frame base for every seating option on these years. I have the 40/20/40 bench and love the flip down console on the middle seat and would recommend going with it if you don't decide to use captain chairs out of a van, or bucket seats. Both have been done and would require a little modding to the frame base but it you are decent with metal work it should be simple, a little drilling and maybe a couple of welds depending on what kind a seat you find.

4wheeldevil

your best bet would be to do what i just did. i just replaced my bench with a 40/20/40 split bench from a junkyard. the 3 seats bolt to a base plate and that bolts in exactly the same way your bench does. best part the center seat folds down giving me an arm rest, cup holders and a small storage area. just be prepared to do some cleaning. i rented a rug doctor and with that some dawn and a scrub brush i went to town on those seats.

or if your near me you can just buy my bench as it is clean and has nothing wrong with it.

Chris_1

iTrader: (1)

If you can find a seat from a low mileage XLT, they usually came with much more comfortable seats than the XL.

sdmartin65

I just recently replaced the seat in my 95 xl, I was looking for the 40/20/40 seat but could not find one in decent shape. What I did find was a bench seat that is one step up from the basic bench seat. It has contoured seating driver and passenger, fold down arm rest, cup holder that clips on center front and power lumbar. It came out of another xl and is a nice upgrade.

Bert Peal

That sounds interesting. Did that seat have any kind of part number on it that I could use to research it and learn more about it? If not, could you maybe post a picture of it so I can see what it looks like? thanks a lot.