Hey everyone I'm picking up a set of 68 442 buckets 2morrow like in the picture. I'm looking for info and tips on how to install in my 69 Delta 88. I appreciate any input. Thanks!

 

You sure you dont want something with head rests, 69s?

You will need the inner aftermarket bucket seat floor brackets, weld to the floor.
These are A body brackets but they may work with some fab?
https://www.legendaryautointeriors.c...46763903910177

The seat belts will need to be monkeyed with to remove the middle belt you'll see what I mean when you remove the center. Remove the crud and rust proofing from the bolts in the trans tunnel before you try to remove them. If not you risk stripping the bolt.

 

Awesome! Appreciate!
I prefer the no headrest.

 

Be aware that you should add gussets if you drill holes in the floor board when fastening the seats and seat belts to the floor.

 

May try and locate a set of floor rails specifically for the Delta 88. Not easy to find, but they were made. Bucket seats were an option in 1967 and 1968, and I think even in 1969. Would be most common in the Delta Custom coupes. Most of the Delta Custom coupes with bucket seats also had a center console. The seat would fit on those rails.

 

This is easy. The seat frames are the same on the A, B, and E body cars, only the floor brackets and tracks differ. Impala floor brackets and tracks are available repro and work just fine. I used them in my 67 Delta. Your 1969 floor pan is the same. I got tracks from Hubbards Impala Parts.

https://www.impalaparts.com/6669bst/

Hubbards lists these brackets for 1965, but they work for 66-70 also. All the Chevy vendors sell them, so shop for the best price.

https://www.impalaparts.com/65BSMB/

 

Just to chime in pretty late here. I put Classic Industries 69 Chevelle seats into my ‘66 Starfire with headrests and the safety seat locks.

Worked just fine, but I did have to add longer bolts, fiddle around with the seat angle and put a bunch of wide wide washers underneath so I feel confident that they will be safe in an accident.

I used 82 or so Camaro 6 way seat mechanisms underneath since they’re much lower profile than the 60’s-70’s stuff, but even then, I had to slice a bit out of the seat mounts to get them low enough in the ‘66 big cars. If you go manual, this may not be a problem for you.

Chris

 

Chris, if you 66 had factory bucket seats, the frames should have bolted right up to you existing seat tracks. If it was a bench seat car (like my 67 D88), the repro B-body floor mounts and tracks would have done the same thing.

 

Quite right on the bolt up. That's why I chose the latter day safer seatback lock & headrest-equipped reproductions.

Greedy me wanted 6 way power bucket seats. I don't think GM did those in the 60's - buckets were manual or 4 way only, some with the reclining feature. There in lay the bolting complexity.

What I learned is that the 60's 4-way and 6 way seat mechanisms are fairly tall. Even all the way at the low end of their travel. Like so tall that even my 5'10" head was just below the headliner. So that approach was a no go.

But the early 80's Camaro/Firebird seat mechanisms did the same work, with a lot less height and the seats wound up at just about the right height. It's still a tick too tall, but I didn't want to cut too much from the seat frames. I sliced a 2 recess-slots into the bottoms of the repro seat frames to get the mechanism tops to sit up in the seat, not on top. That worked, but I acquired a healthy fear of angle grinders.

The last detail I've never fixed is that the passenger side switch is reversed - forward move the seat backward, down is up, etc. Lazy.

Cheers
Chris