Bucket seats in a '55 Chevy...Which ones?

Just got some '64 Tbird seats off Craigslist today. Buckets and a back seat. So I'm kind of collecting parts for a future '55 project. Hopefully the very near future, but I'm still looking for the right one.

Anyhow, I also have the opportunity to get my hands on some '64 Grand Prix seats. I'm trying to decide which ones to hang on to.

So whose got pictures of '55's with 60's bucket seats? Impala, Riviera, Tbird or whatever looks good. The more chrome, the better. Trying to get an idea of which ones "fit" the size of the car best.

 

In the early 80's my 56 chevy had Tbird seats in it when i bought it. The buckets fit good with a 4 speed. The rear wrap around seat was cool as hell in it. The center divider we had removable and would hide our beer in the trunk for easy access.

 

early Impala with the big chrome band around it....

 

68 -69 camaro look right at home, but when I was a kid I remember corvair buckets in a lot of tri fives

 

Ford Granada seats fit well...they are wide enuff to look good...IMHO T-Bird seats are too narrow and small looking.

R-

 

i like the 63-65's IMPALA SS seats pretty well,...i think they are a great fit...

 

Gotta agree with Boones and Butt on this one.
I have NEVER liked buckets in tri 5 chevy's, BUT.......
The interior on Butt's 56 is PERFECT and has changed my thought's on it..
If i was to ever go with buckets, those would be the one's..
The chrome trim looks perfect and the hight is just right..

 

Corvair buckets also look very cool.

 

I have some Van buckets that came out of a '74 Van... they look ok, but are more racy looking than the wider, Impala ones.

I'd like to put a bench seat back in it... but sheesh, they're EXPENSIVE!
(but I never see guys selling them at those inflated prices)

Sam.

 

I have 64 pontiac buckets in my 55, they look just like the ones in the pic above, and fit the style of the interior very well.

 

I"m concerned about the Tbird seats being too small. They look really cool, and are in great shape. I'm just not sure they'd fit the car. I'm tempted to build a car around them. Maybe a '60 Chevy or Pontiac, or even another '58....

Okay, stay focused.

Are the 64 Impala seats identical to the Pontiac and Olds seats? Seems like the shape of the bottoms are a little different. I know the chrome and the tops look the same.

Do the Covair's have the chrome trim over the top? Or just on the sides?

Fatlucky's mention Covair seats as well. And I know where there are a bunch for fairly cheap.

I'll check out some Granada seats, as well.

Any pics of your interior, Squirrel?

Thanks for the help, guys.

 

here you go...they're from a 64 catalina. It was a bit of a pain to make the mounting brackets, but the seats are very comfy, and are about the only buckets that look "right" to me in these cars.

 

I think mine are late 60s Chevelle/GTO.

 

I always liked the corvair or any 60's gm seats. I think they were petty much the same seat , just the chrome and patterns were different. I always like the stock seat but hate the shifter wraping around it.

 

Butt, i love your ride...

 

If it's a rod, put a '55 Buick or Olds bench in it, or anything that has the right width... once it's done in tuck 'n' roll, no one will know the difference. I'd probably run a split bench out of a late 70's-80's car and just have it redone in more traditional uhpolstery, ditch the headrests while I was at it -

 

My 57 Safari had 63 Grand Prix buckets in it when it was first built(seats were brand new then) and they looked great! Unfortunately when the car was sold,Jerry installed some bastard bench seat.I'm STILL looking for a good set of them to re-install.I vote for the Pontiac seats.

 

The GM mid-60's Pontiac, Chevy, Olds and Corvair seats are the same...mounting brackets may be different and the Corvair seats didn't have as much chrome...

These buckets are mid-70's GM swivel, in my radical chopped '57 hardtop...note console running full length...these fit well into '55-'57 Chevies but note I've chopped the headrests off of them...available in mid size GM's : Pontiac, Olds Cutlass, Monte Carlo...

R-

 

Absolutely right! GM 58-65, even Corvair works (as dirty2 said), can't go wrong with those...

 

Another vote for the full size GM buckets from the early/mid sixties...

They just have the right proportions. Almost everything else just looks too small.

Olson

 

I was going to put a 68-69 camaro bench seat in my 55 gasser but wouldn't fit after the roll bar was installed. I still think that would be killer and there not as rare as you would think and the fact seat covers are available...... if you never seen a set just think of the buckets with a common lower seat.

 

I've got 66 T-Bird's in mine. Fit perfect !! Gary

 

If a set could be found, 58 to 60 Pontiac or Cadillac would be perfect. They are around the same size and shape as the later GM buckets used through 65. The chrome band around the seat backs looks the same or similar, but instead of being upholstered, the rear of the seat back is a metal pan with a depression about 12 inches square in the center.
Pull out your old Rod & Custom magazines from around September or October 63. In one of them there is a feature on a semi custom 60 Impala convertible owned by a Barris Kustoms employee. Full length hand made console, hand made rear buckets (I think the article describes them as wooden framed), and 58 Bonneville buckets, black tuck and rolled, with the the seat backs chrome plated and the seat back depression upholstered in a tuck and roll pattern matching the centers of the seat faces. Even now, 43 years later, the car is absolutely stunning and the use of these bucket seats set it off perfectly.
Might be too much or too luxurious for a tri five, but if you're going for tastful with max chrome in a seat that fits the scale of the car, here's your answer.

 

Thanks for all the input, guys. Guess I'll hedge as long as I can until I get the car. Good news is that I have the Tbird and the GM available. And I can get some Corvairs.

I'll check out the 58-60 Pontiac as well. Don't recall seeing any with buckets.

 

i had 67-68 camaro, no head rests in one 55 that i had