Installing a ford transit swivel seat base will be probably the individual biggest "bang for your buck" upgrade you can do when converting the van. If you've spent any period whatsoever living or perhaps traveling in a van, you know that space is the a single thing you're constantly fighting for. You can have the most costly lithium battery set up and the fanciest cedar ceiling, but if you feel like you're living in a narrow hall, the novelty wears off pretty quick.
The particular front cab of a Ford Transit is actually quite large, yet under normal conditions, those seats are only useful when you're driving. Once you park up intended for the night, they will just sit presently there, facing the windshield, taking up about 25% of your total floor strategy. By adding the swivel base, you're basically "unlocking" that will square footage plus turning your motorist and passenger seats into comfortable armchairs for your lifestyle room.
The reason why it's an overall total game-changer for your layout
Let's end up being real: sitting for the edge of a bed or a narrow bench in order to eat dinner will get old after about two days. When you pop in the ford transit swivel seat base , the entire vibe from the interior changes. Abruptly, you have a place to sit that actually offers back support plus armrests. If you're working from the road, the passenger seat becomes the perfect office seat. You can established up a small Lagun table, swing the seat around, plus you've got a workspace that's better than most offices.
It also the actual van feel less like the vehicle and more such as a tiny house. When the seats are turned about, the "driving" component of the vehicle disappears. You aren't looking at a steering wheel and also a dash; you're taking a look at your own kitchen or your lounge area. This opens up the particular sightlines, letting more light through the particular cab windows into the back, and generally makes the whole space experience less claustrophobic.
The struggle along with the handbrake
If you're looking into getting a swivel for the driver's side, you've probably already heard the horror tales about the handbrake. On many Ford Transit models, the particular handbrake sits right in the route of the seat's rotation. If you just bolt the swivel base on and attempt to turn the particular seat, you're likely to hit the brake handle.
This is exactly where things get a little bit "DIY. " Most reputable swivel manufacturers sell the handbrake lowering package. It's basically the bracket that shifts the entire assembly down an inch or two so the seat can clear it. It isn't a huge project, but it's some thing you definitely wish to know about before a person possess the seat unbolted and realize a person can't finish the particular job. Some people select to only the actual passenger side to avoid this headache, but honestly, having each seats swivel is worth the extra hour of tinkering with the brake.
Choosing the correct brand for your build
Presently there are a several big names within the world associated with ford transit swivel seat base options, plus they aren't all created similar. You've probably noticed brands like Scopema, Sportscraft, and CTA mentioned in every van life forum on the internet.
Scopema is often considered the particular gold standard since they're incredibly low key. One of the biggest complaints people have after setting up a swivel is it raises the seat height. If you're already tall, including two inches for your seat height means your head might be brushing the particular headliner, or your own legs might experience cramped beneath the steerage wheel. Scopema facets are thin, which helps keep the particular factory driving place feeling natural.
On the other hand, a few of the more budget-friendly options could be a bit "tall" or, worse, they might squeak. Generally there is nothing more annoying than generating down a ripped dirt road and hearing a metal-on-metal chirp coming from right under your bottom. Investing in a high-quality base usually takes care of in the particular form of quiet and a smoother turn.
The installation process (It's simpler than you think)
If a person can use a socket wrench, a person can probably set up a ford transit swivel seat base yourself. You don't need to be a get better at mechanic. Essentially, you're just unbolting the particular seat from your manufacturer pedestal, sliding the swivel base on to that pedestal, and then bolting the particular seat onto the very best of the swivel.
However, presently there is one thing that will catches people off guard: the wiring. Modern Ford Transit seats are loaded with electronics. You've got airbags, seatbelt sensors, and sometimes even heated chairs. All those cables run through a yellow plug below the seat. Whenever you install the swivel, you have to make certain there's enough slack in those cables so they don't get pinched or even yanked out when you spin the seat around. Most swivels possess a gap in the middle for the cables to pass through, but you'll want to be careful plus maybe then add protecting loom to help keep things from fraying more than time.
Dealing with the "offset" rotation
Something nobody tells you until you actually try to spin the particular seat is that will it's not the simple 180-degree change. Because the Ford Transit cabin is tight near the particular B-pillar and the doors, you have to slide the particular seat forward, point the backrest, and maybe even open the door a crack to get it to clean everything.
Many high-end ford transit swivel seat base designs are "offset, " meaning the turns point isn't specifically within the center. This particular helps the seat swing inward toward the center associated with the van as it rotates, which usually prevents it from slamming into the doorway panel. It will take a little bit associated with a "dance" in order to get it turned—slide forward, rotate midway, slide back, finish the rotation—but once you do it the few times, it becomes second nature.
Safety and seat height considerations
I mentioned the seat height earlier, but it's worth doubling down on. The Ford Transit already has the pretty "commanding" generating position. In case you add a thick swivel base, you may find that your see out the car windows is slightly obscured by the sunlight visor or the particular top of the window frame. When you're over six feet tall, certainly look for the thinnest base possible.
Safety is definitely the other large one. You wish to create sure the base you buy is crash-tested. Inside a collision, the just thing keeping your seat mounted on the floor is that will swivel mechanism. Purchasing a cheap, unbranded base from a random site might save you $100, yet it's not worthy of the risk in case it hasn't already been tested to withstand the particular forces of the incident. Stick to the brands that offer TUV or similar safety certifications.
Is it well worth the investment?
At the end of the day time, a ford transit swivel seat base usually expenses somewhere between $250 and $450 with respect to the brand and to buy it. To get a piece of steel, that may seem a bit steep. But when you think about it when it comes to "cost per rectangle foot" of living area, it's actually the least expensive renovation you may do.
Instead of creating a massive, complicated van with a set dinette that takes up all your ground space, you can maintain the layout open and just use the particular cab seats. It makes the vehicle feel like a studio apartment instead of a storage space unit. If you're on the wall, just do the particular passenger side first. I guarantee as soon as you see just how much it opens things up, you'll end up being ordering the driver's side base prior to the week is definitely over.
Van life is definitely about flexibility, and nothing gives you more flexibility compared to being able to flip your environment around in 30 seconds. Whether you're hiding from the rain, eating a bowl of cereal, or just having a break from a long stint behind the wheel, having that swivel makes all the difference in the particular world. It's one of those rare upgrades that will you'll use each day, and you'll possibly wonder how a person ever managed without it.