A seat swivel seems like a given on any camper van conversion. We chose to install a seat swivel from Swivels R Us in our Ford Transit. Like most van build projects, this was more than a basic bolt-on job, but the results turned out great. Here’s our experience and information to get you started on your own installation.

Material & Tools

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[ebs_toggle active=”active” ocicon=”true” title=”Parts & Material” icon=”fa-gears” icontype=”fa” iconcolor=”#ffffff”]• Swivels R Us Passenger Seat Swivel – Buy Here[/ebs_toggle]
[ebs_toggle active=”active” ocicon=”true” title=”Tools” icon=”fa-wrench” icontype=”fa” iconcolor=”#ffffff”]• Torx T-40 socket – http://amzn.to/2DUUtUB
• Drill
• Drill Bits
• Jigsaw with fine tooth blade
• 7mm and 13mm sockets
• Pencil or Marker
• Flat Head Screw Driver [/ebs_toggle]
[ebs_toggle active=”active” ocicon=”true” title=”Cost & Labor” icon=”fa-clock-o” icontype=”fa” iconcolor=”#ffffff”]Total Project Cost: $374
Installation Time: 2.5 Hours[/ebs_toggle]
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Process

Step 1: Order a Swivel

For this installation, we ordered a swivel from Swivels R Us. There are only a couple of manufacturers of swivels for Ford Transit seats. Based on our research at the time, this had the best reviews and least amount of wobble.

Step 2: Disconnect the Battery

If your seat has any power connections (such as airbags, power seat controls or heated seat controls), then you’ll need to disconnect the battery as a preventative measure. This is both for safety,  preventing any un-warranted electrical shorts; and to protect the wiring, in case you accidentally cut or pinch a wire. Sometimes if you disconnect a sensor, such as an airbag, while the battery is disconnected, it will trigger an error code that will turn on one of those annoying lights on your dash. I think most of us agree we would rather prevent that.

The batteries are under the driver seat on the Ford Transit. You can access them by moving the driver seat all the way forward. You’ll need to remove 2 screws under the carpeted flap from the back of the top edge of the seat base. Then you can remove the battery door which holds down the bracket and the plastic lid. If you have the dual battery option on your van, be sure to disconnect both positive cables (red) from both batteries. Disconnecting only one will leave the van with power.

Step 3: Remove Seat

Four T-40 Torx bolts hold down the seats in the Ford Transit. There is one in each corner. You will need to move the seat forward and backwards to  access them. If you have power seats, it is best to remove the 4 bolts before fully disconnecting your battery so you can still use the seat controls. No matter which seat you have (power or manual),  raise the seat height to the highest position to allow for clearance underneath and to allow for future adjustment once you begin the actual mounting process.

With the bolts off, you can tilt the seat back (but do not completely remove it) so you can access an electrical connector clipped onto the bottom of the seat.

Then, use a 7mm socket to unscrew the bolt that holds the connector together. Once the bolt is removed, you can pull apart the connector. This allows the seat to be picked up and set aside. Keep in mind the seat belt will still be attached to the wall so you can’t go far with the seat.

Step 4: Prep and Instal Seat Swivel

Based on the instructions included in the swivel kit, you should just set the swivel in place and use the factory bolts to attach the swivel to the seat base. Then, bolt the seat to the top of the swivel using the supplied hardware with the swivel kit. This includes a bolt, two washers, and a nut. The process should be a fairly straightforward for a manual adjust seat, based on what I’ve seen before.

We had to drill two additional holes so the base could be successfully bolted to the swivel on the 10-way power seats. The holes just did not exist at all for our application. You can easily mark the holes from the underside of the seat base on to the swivel. Then create a pilot hole that’s properly centered on your mark with a small drill bit. Then follow-up with a larger and proper diameter bit to allow the factory bolt to fit through with minimal wiggle room.

Step 5: Adjustments & Final Fitting

Depending on your seat, you may have to perform some additional adjustments such as shortening the seat trim, lowering or removing the child seat anchor point, or adding a shim to the swivel or seat. The final adjustments will be unique to each seat variation and swivel manufacturer.

There  is a metal loop that traditionally is the mounting location for a child safety seat on the rear of the seat base. I’ve seen many people cut these off during the installation process but I didn’t want to remove this safety feature for potential future use. I was able to use a pair of channel locks on the metal bar and one on the base plate where the bar was connected, for stability, to bend the bar down enough that the seat swivel could clear it.

The trim on the side with the controls was very long on our 10-way power seats, and caused a conflict with using the swivel, even in the seat’s highest position. Some people will stack washers or create spacers to raise the seat so the trim clears the base. I’m not a fan of this option as it will add about half an inch to an already 1.75″ lift to the factory seat height. I decided to trim the seat trim to the appropriate length to allow the swivel to work. This required cutting approximately 1.5″ off the bottom of the trim, slightly above a molded crease in the trim panel. I taped the trim off with painter’s tape to protect the plastic and used a jigsaw to cut the plastic. I didn’t have a plastic specific blade but I had a fine tooth metal cutting blade. It worked extremely well and left a clean, smooth, cut line on the plastic. I permanently mounted the seat after picking off very few burrs. At this point, the seat would swivel completely with no rubbing or conflict with the seat base.

Our Experience

Installation Process

Overall, the installation process wasn’t horrible but was not a 30 minute bolt-on process as advertised by the manufacturer. Our application on a 10-way power seat required some minimal customization  to the swivel and the seat to make this work. I’ve seen reports of 5+ hours on swivel installs, so our 2.5 hours isn’t bad.

Performance

We’ve only had it installed for a short-period of time, but so far it performs very well. It has a slight wobble, as many swivels do, but nothing that is annoying or a cause of concern. It feels like a very solid and professional built assembly. The locking mechanism and handle are sturdy and do exactly what you’d expect it to do. We’ll report back after a few months of consistent use.

In Retrospect

We’d buy this swivel again if we had too. Even with the requirement to do some customization, we think that this is still a valuable addition to our van.

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