83turbo280zx Posted March 18, 2012 Share Posted March 18, 2012 Ok, so I finally got around to writing this for you guys. If you're wanting to explore some different seat options. Here is a great alternative. I scored some black leather seats out of a 2004 Acura RSX for $100. To start off, the two seat brackets are not that different between the 280zx, and the RSX. The only major issue is the seat bracket does not separate from the seat on the RSX seats, but the Z bracket will. So instead of a straight bracket swap, I had to drill out the rivets holding the rear-ward mounting ears to the RSX seat bracket, then drill out the rivets on the mounting ears on the Z bracket. The front-ward mounting ears are EXACTLY the same between the Z and the RSX seat brackets, so only the REAR-WARD mouting ears need to be swapped between the two seats. Swapping ears made the seat bolt right in on the right side of the seat bracket in both the front and the rear of the seat. On the left side of the bracket however, I had to turn the rearward mounting ear to a 45 degree angle to get it to line up with the mounting hole in the floor board. This was for the driver's side seat, it is the exact opposite for the passenger side seat. This is NOT recommended for anyone 6'2" or taller as 1. The new seats will sit higher which aren't friendly to the already low head clearance in the Z, and the fact that the steering column doesn't tilt. I'm only 5'6" so it worked out perfect. If you are taller, you may consider modifying your own version of the seat bracket to accommodate your height. Anywho, here is a step by step installation guide of how I got the seats to fit. First off, list of tools you will need: 12mm socket 14mm socket 16mm socket Phillips screw driver at least a 6" long extension Ratchet wrench Saw-zall or equivalent, or an air powered cutting wheel Good drill and drill bits, wd40 and plenty of patience Self-centering punch to give you a pilot to guide your drill bit 32oz hammer Chisel Overall installation time per seat was approx 2 hours with test fitting and drilling out the rivets taking up the biggest amount of time. Man they look nice (: The following pictures and instructions coincide with the passenger side seat and bracketry, for the driver's side, it is exactly the same, except the positioning is opposite of described in the following write-up. So first start off by removing your old seat and removing the factory Z seat bracket from the seat. Its four 12mm bolts that hold the seat bracket to the seat. We will come back to the Z bracket here in a second. Get your RSX seat on a workbench and get it supported so you can begin drilling out the rivets that hold on the mounting ears. Now these are VERY thick rivets. I had to start with a small 1/4" drill bit and work my way up skipping every other drill bit to get the hole big enough. Once you get up to a few sizes over 3/8", if you've kept the drill as close to center as possible, the drill will catch the rivet and actually spin it in it's bore. Once you've done this, you can remove the drill bit from the rivet, and take a chisel and hammer and start beating the head off. Once you've done this to both rivets, the mounting ear will be free. You will NOT reuse any RSX seat mounting ears, so just discard them. Next you need to take the right side seat bracket and turn it upside down. You will notice a white paint line from the factory. Take your cutting tool and cut neatly across this white line. Its as if nissan predicted we would be putting RSX seats in the Z as this is exactly the right length that needs to be cut. Once you've cut this section off, discard the factory Z seat bracket as you will no longer need it. Drill out the rivets holding the mounting ear, and discard the piece of metal that was underneath. Now, find a good set of nuts and bolts, and bolt the Z mounting ear to the RSX seat bracket. I don't trust the bolts by themselves, so I actually had a bead welded around the two pieces to make it rigid and also for safety. Now onto the left side seat bracket. You will notice there is only one rivet on this side, but there is a hole that was drilled from the factory and a weld put in. Drill out the bracket, and drill out the weld. Fortunately on the weld, you only have to drill deep enough to separate the mounting ear from the weld, unlike the rivets which you do in fact have to drill all the way out. Once you've done this you will have this end result In the picture it shows that I drilled an additional hole to have two bolts running though the mounting ear holding it to the seat bracket. Once I got it in the car, I had to remove one of the bolts to be able to rotate the mounting ear 45 degrees to get it to line up with the hole in the floor board. Once again, I also had it welded to stiffen it up, and it makes me feel safer lol. Next onto making the seat belts work. The RSX uses a smaller seat belt so the latch will not work. Take the plastic cover off of the seat belt latch on the RSX seat with a Phillips screw driver. You will notice it has a side impact air bag assembly attached to the seat belt latch. Remove this whole assembly with a 14mm socket. You can discard the seat belt latch as you won't need it. Now remove the seat belt latch from the Z seat with a 16mm socket. You will also need the 16mm bolt that came off of the 280zx seat. Take the seat belt latch, and 16mm bolt and bolt this to the RSX seat. You will now be able to retain the factory seat belts. The seats for me have great clearance and its definitely a plus being a little higher up considering I'm only 5'6" lol. It is a few more inches away from the center console and closer to the rocker panel. It does fit, its just a tight fit. Anyone who pursues this swap, beware that you are doing this AT YOUR OWN RISK AND I AM NOT RESPONSIBLE IF YOU SCREW UP AND KILL YOURSELF BECAUSE THE SEAT WASN'T MOUNTED PROPERLY, OR ANY OTHER REASON PERTAINING TO YOU TAKING ON THIS SEAT SWAP. Other than that. Good luck with it and if you have any questions, feel free to e-mail me @ sk84life1122@sbcglobal.net -Chris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mazikowski Posted April 3, 2012 Share Posted April 3, 2012 About how much higher than the stock seats do the RSX seats sit? I'm 6'3", so I can't afford to lose much headroom. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Calico Posted April 7, 2012 Share Posted April 7, 2012 interesting write up Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mazikowski Posted April 8, 2012 Share Posted April 8, 2012 About how much higher than the stock seats do the RSX seats sit? I'm 6'3", so I can't afford to lose much headroom. Just reread the write up and found my answer... darn. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
78zstyle Posted April 9, 2012 Share Posted April 9, 2012 Hey man, nice write up. Where did you score those btw? I bought a oil adapter off you once.. ugly ass Z I pulled up in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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