Technical Buckets for a 60 Impala

Hey folks. My long term vision for my 60 Impala includes bucket seats and a center console. I want to put a metal formed center console in, with metal sliding tamber doors. I will probably keep the tree shift (auto). I am thinking something along the lines of the early Thunderbird consoles.

What I am looking for here is suggestions for possible seats. They would need to be folding, so people can get into the back seat. I am sure buckets from the early sixties Chevys are an option. Any ideas as to others to look for?

 

Please dont put high back bucket seats it

 

God no! High buckets and plywood consoles are straight out of the question! I want this to look like it was a stock option.

 

There was an optional hard-back bucket seat available in '60 but they're super incredibly expensive to buy. However, Chrysler used a really similar hard back bucket seat from about 63-66 that has the low square look you're shooting for and looks a lot like the rare factory GM units. The Plymouth/Dodge ones are different, you want some out of a New Yorker or 300. Some 4 doors had them, and they can be made to fold like the coupe seats by removing a metal tab.

Another thought is 60's Mercedes cars had nice low back squared off bucket seats, even the sedans, although I'm not sure how you make the sedan seats flip forward.

 

Yeah, that's what I'm talking about! I had to do a little repair on my current front bench, it is after all just sheet metal. I wonder if I could just mod a 60 bench? It seems like it is really hard to find period correct buckets. My price range would be about $500 for a pair...am i dreaming?

 

Don't forget the 62 and up GM buckets.

 

Corvair buckets.

 

T- birds had buckets by 1958.
Seems to be a few around and prices are not unreasonable. You could also use the console.
Torchie.

 

Sometimes the high back buckets with the headrest built in can have the headrests removed and you'd have a low back bucket. I don't have any pictures at the moment but that's what I did. I used seats from an 84 Dodge Conquest and back is below window level. Because they were reupholstered you would never know they had been high back and I get a lot of questions as to where I got them

 

Look at the seats and console in the '61-'64 Impala. I had a '63 SS and they were comfy.

 

I have '65 Impala buckets in my '59 El Camino. They very similar to the '62-'64, but the backs fold straight forward rather than at an angle in toward the center. I paid $500 for a nicely upholstered pair and $200 for a pair needing re-upholstering.

 

my 2 cents--62-64 buckets will probably be easiest to install, but one thing i hated about my 64 ss was that the buckets didn't have enough backward lean, so they were quite uncomfortable to me.

 

I do like the T-bird buckets. I think the hard back looks cool.

 

any of the gm products might fit also. should be ok but if you can find some riveara buckets or 442 the console could possibly fit too

 

FWIW, I have a 61 Caddy and I bought 65 buckets after which I learned a hard lesson about the early 60'X-frame GM cars. The seat mounts for 60 and 61 cars are quite different from those of later model GM's like the 65 buckets I have. You can't simply drill bolt holes into the floorpan to make non x-frame seats fit. One of the Impala resto part companies makes some pieces to adapt buckets into a non-bucket car but they adapt x-frame buckets....non power ones.... I don't yet have the problem solved so but I thought I would share what I have learned thus far

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The best buckets are the 58thru 61 factory gm buckets. You need to remortgage your house for a set these days. I have a pair to put in a 59 cad one day. Beautiful seats. Horrible comfort. but youll look great being uncomfortable and poor.

 

If you can't locate the GM buckets, the 66-67 Ford Fairlane/Comets had a nice low back bucket seat that was made similar. You could reupholster it to look more like a GM seat.

 

Due to the X member design and slim body profile of the 59-60 models I think the 62-65 GM buckets may sit a little high. That said, IMO they are the best looking seats ever made. My first thought were the TBirds also. Early Mustangs also had a lower profile but they were awfully uncomfortable.

 

I used a pair of first gen Granada buckets from a fordor in my '40 convert. Had to remove a bracket and make a stop to keep the backrests upright. The foam died in the seats after 100,000 miles or so and I went for some late model VW buckets.