Wakeup Posted February 12, 2014 Report Posted February 12, 2014 I would love to have bucket seats in my plane and wanted to know if I can you put buckets seats from a car in a plane ?? Quote
scottfromiowa Posted February 12, 2014 Report Posted February 12, 2014 You can, but you may not. 4 Quote
David Mazer Posted February 12, 2014 Report Posted February 12, 2014 You may but it will be, even if it wasn't before, and experimental airplane. 1 Quote
carusoam Posted February 12, 2014 Report Posted February 12, 2014 You can put Toyota head rests in your existing seats... If that will make you feel more comfortable.... New foam will cushion the back side better... Chances are, any commercially available seat wouldn't fit without huge modifications. The seats in my old firebird are gigantic compared to what's in my O. Having your existing seats updated can work a small miracle if you are improving the interior. Think new leather on top of new foam with repairs to broken structure. Unfortunately the FAA doesn't allow for swapping out the parts that are critical to flight... For an example of why.... Cessna had a problem with seat rails and accidents caused by the pilot sliding backwards during take off... Picture not being able to control the airplane during something as critical as take-off.... What did you have in mind? Best regards, -a- Quote
Wakeup Posted February 12, 2014 Author Report Posted February 12, 2014 LOL. I know it was a loaded question but I guess you have to jump thru the government hoops... Quote
John Pleisse Posted February 12, 2014 Report Posted February 12, 2014 Where there is a will, there is a way. Seat rail work is involved and a major alteration. You would need to cover with flame tested materials...and on....and on.... Â Practically speaking, no. Maybe find some late model 201 seats salvage? Quote
Wakeup Posted February 12, 2014 Author Report Posted February 12, 2014 All true... My current passenger seat has a bolt that I hit almost every time when I lower the Johnson bar. Anyone have any old seats let me know Thanks Troy Quote
chrisk Posted February 12, 2014 Report Posted February 12, 2014 I think the practical answer is no. However, it's fun to play with this. Assuming it is the back seats: Can you fly the plane legally with out the backseats in the plane? I think so. If you don't bolt the new seats to the floor, would they technically be cargo? And would it be legal for a passenger to sit on cargo? Quote
carusoam Posted February 12, 2014 Report Posted February 12, 2014 Passengers probably wouldn't like to be secured via a cargo net... Best regards, -a- Quote
Chris Strube Posted February 12, 2014 Report Posted February 12, 2014 Mooney seats are infinitely renewable.  I did mine with hard foam inserts to form to my backside, then 3 layers(different densities)  of memory-foam, covered with leather.  They are very comfortable, but I wish I had more thigh support, as the seat bottoms are too short. Quote
mooniac15u Posted February 12, 2014 Report Posted February 12, 2014 I think the practical answer is no. However, it's fun to play with this. Assuming it is the back seats: Can you fly the plane legally with out the backseats in the plane? I think so. If you don't bolt the new seats to the floor, would they technically be cargo? And would it be legal for a passenger to sit on cargo?  According to FAR 91.107 your passengers need "an approved seat or berth with a safety belt."  Unless they are skydivers... Quote
fantom Posted February 12, 2014 Report Posted February 12, 2014 OEM car seats are also very, very heavy. I recently had the front seats of my SAAB out and they weigh something like 65 pounds each! Admittedly they are leather and powered in every direction and heated, but still.   Who helped you lift them  Heck, we can't even drill an extra set of holes in our rails, much less put some car seats in a Mooney Quote
KSMooniac Posted February 12, 2014 Report Posted February 12, 2014 Your best bet is to rebuild what you have, or other Mooney seats if you can find any for sale. Â It needn't cost a fortune either. Â You can easily remove them yourself and work with a local hotrod shop to completely rebuild them to your specifications, and custom contoured to your backside if you wish. Â The modern memory foams are wonderful, and you have a near-infinite range of materials to choose from between real leather, ultraleather, wool, generic fabric, etc. Â The foam can be stacked, cut and arranged to give you very good support and comfort, and still weigh a lot less than any car seat you might find. Â (another shameless plug, I have some leather hides (grey, tan, olive green) and some very light colored ultraleather for sale if anyone wants to renew their seats with some great material!) Â Check out Bennett's custom seats, built on his 201 seat frames: http://mooneyspace.com/gallery/image/32782-current-configuration-of-interior/ Quote
cliffy Posted February 13, 2014 Report Posted February 13, 2014 The short and long answer is NO, you can't use car seats anywhere in a certified airplane as a replacement seat (unless it has an STC or other approval). Seats meet certain certification criteria and are approved by the FAA upon certification of the airplane they go in. Rebuilding your seat is the best answer as long as you stay within the guidelines (read rules) for fire treatment of all the materials involved (foam, cloth and coverings). You can have an auto upholstery shop do the sewing if you want, Make sure you have the correct burn certificates for all the materials for the log book entry. Quote
jetdriven Posted February 13, 2014 Report Posted February 13, 2014 Who helped you lift them  Heck, we can't even drill an extra set of holes in our rails, much less put some car seats in a Mooney I have the drawings and drilled the 7th hole in my seat rails. It's cool. Quote
DonMuncy Posted February 13, 2014 Report Posted February 13, 2014 Byron, Is the extra hole nearer the panel or further back. Quote
jetdriven Posted February 13, 2014 Report Posted February 13, 2014 It's an extra hole at the rear of the seat track. Basically you have one more hole to click the seat in before the long throw to the rear stop. Quote
aviatoreb Posted February 13, 2014 Report Posted February 13, 2014 I have the drawings and drilled the 7th hole in my seat rails. It's cool. Â Oooh - I want an extra hole. Â Can you pm me drawings please? Quote
HRM Posted February 13, 2014 Report Posted February 13, 2014 OEM car seats are also very, very heavy. I recently had the front seats of my SAAB out and they weigh something like 65 pounds each! Admittedly they are leather and powered in every direction and heated, but still.   I was going to point this out. Every time I pull the seats from my E I am amazed at how light they are. Just a bad move to put an automotive seat in an airplane. A better plan is to modify the airplane seat to be more like a car.  With a Johnson bar you can pretty much forget a wide-flanged seat cushion. Quote
jetdriven Posted February 13, 2014 Report Posted February 13, 2014 Oooh - I want an extra hole. Can you pm me drawings please? email sent to your .edu. Holler if you dont get it. Drill holes and rocket on! 1 Quote
KSMooniac Posted February 13, 2014 Report Posted February 13, 2014 I'd be interested in the drawing as well, because an extra hole is less weight and more useful load! Â Quote
mooniac15u Posted February 13, 2014 Report Posted February 13, 2014 I would love to have bucket seats in my plane and wanted to know if I can you put buckets seats from a car in a plane ??  What about Terrafugia seats? Are those car seats or airplane seats? Quote
carusoam Posted February 13, 2014 Report Posted February 13, 2014 The ones made from unobtanium??? -a- Quote
rob Posted February 13, 2014 Report Posted February 13, 2014 OEM car seats are also very, very heavy. I recently had the front seats of my SAAB out and they weigh something like 65 pounds each! Admittedly they are leather and powered in every direction and heated, but still.   Your Saab is a pig! My seats weigh 19lbs, If I recall correctly! Quote
fantom Posted February 13, 2014 Report Posted February 13, 2014 email sent to your .edu. Holler if you dont get it. Drill holes and rocket on! Â If those drawings make 'my friends' holes legal, I'd like a copy also, Byron. Quote
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.