How to install Hyundai Tiburon seats in a Jeep Wrangler TJ

Ok headed to pick n pull next week for Tiburon seats.

Confused on what parts of the TJ seat brackets you retained? All? Some? None?

It’s important to me that my passenger seat tumble forward to gain access to the rear.

I currently have aftermarket seats and have to reach under the seat to get it to tumble. I want to be able to still do this.

Insight?
 
Ok headed to pick n pull next week for Tiburon seats.

Confused on what parts of the TJ seat brackets you retained? All? Some? None?

It’s important to me that my passenger seat tumble forward to gain access to the rear.

I currently have aftermarket seats and have to reach under the seat to get it to tumble. I want to be able to still do this.

Insight?
The TJ brackets that bolt to the floor should be all that you need. The flip forward function is part of the floor brackets so you should be good to go. You will lose the cable that actuates the flip forward as they are part of the TJ seat. You can regain that function by attaching a pull handle/rope (think lawn mower) to the TJ floor bracket before you install the Tiburon seat. You will want to pull the rope forward into the foot well area. It will all be pretty clear when you see it.

Regarding the seat sliders, I used the ones from the Tiburon seats.
 
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Im extremely interested in doing this mod one question. Im 6'4" 280 am I still going to fit in my Jeep or am I going to lose headroom or legroom because it is tight with stock seats?
 
Im extremely interested in doing this mod one question. Im 6'4" 280 am I still going to fit in my Jeep or am I going to lose headroom or legroom because it is tight with stock seats?
You shouldn't but I don't think you'll be able to gain anything either. In my case, I tried to maintain the original dimensions. Although I can't remember the numbers, before I removed the TJ seats I measured down from the hardtop to the top of the seat bottom and from the dashboard to seat back (which is adjustable of course). With the Tiburon seats in place the dimensions were very close.

The Tiburon bottom has a knob on the side (driver's seat only) that allows for bit of adjustment up and down. The adjustment is at the back for your butt; it won't help in the thigh area.

My TJ is an '03 and my LJ is an '04 so both have the later lower seat configuration. I didn't notice any appreciable difference in head or leg room after the change. I'm sure someone has made the switch in an earlier TJ with the higher seat configuration. My guess is that they had similar results.
 
You shouldn't but I don't think you'll be able to gain anything either. In my case, I tried to maintain the original dimensions. Although I can't remember the numbers, before I removed the TJ seats I measured down from the hardtop to the top of the seat bottom and from the dashboard to seat back (which is adjustable of course). With the Tiburon seats in place the dimensions were very close.

The Tiburon bottom has a knob on the side (driver's seat only) that allows for bit of adjustment up and down. The adjustment is at the back for your butt; it won't help in the thigh area.

My TJ is an '03 and my LJ is an '04 so both have the later lower seat configuration. I didn't notice any appreciable difference in head or leg room after the change. I'm sure someone has made the switch in an earlier TJ with the higher seat configuration. My guess is that they had similar results.

Mine is an 06 so I should have the lower seat mount, thanks for the info I didn't know there were different mounts.
 
I did this mod, found seats at a Pull it Yourself for $16/piece and then I have about $40 in bar and hardware. Anyway, turned out good and I am still running the seats, but I don't like the seat, not enough lumbar support. Not sure if it was just the seats or year that I pulled but if you are someone that needs a lot of lumbar support, this may not be the best seat for you. If anyone has recommendations for seats (aftermarket or junkyard) that has a lot of lumbar, please let me know.
 
Finally got to the pick n pull today. There are only two pick n pulls in my area. Only 3 Tiburons total in both yards.

One had already lost its seats. One had full leather! But the drivers seat was shot. Completely torn up.

Then the red 2005. They came home with me. They are a lil rough but hopefully I can find a cheap seat cover.

Very comfortable. Install pics to come. I may be asking some questions.

Anyway... here’s the pics.
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Edit- Cost me $75 even out the door. Can’t beat it!
 
Finally got to the pick n pull today. There are only two pick n pulls in my area. Only 3 Tiburons total in both yards.

One had already lost its seats. One had full leather! But the drivers seat was shot. Completely torn up.

Then the red 2005. They came home with me. They are a lil rough but hopefully I can find a cheap seat cover.

Very comfortable. Install pics to come. I may be asking some questions.

Anyway... here’s the pics. View attachment 131974View attachment 131975View attachment 131976View attachment 131977

Edit- Cost me $75 even out the door. Can’t beat it!
Those are nice. I like the fabric inserts and they're pretty tough. You're going to like the "comfort". I wouldn't let the roughness bother you. If you find something you like better in the years ahead another $75 will seem cheap.
 
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Those are nice. I like the fabric inserts and they're pretty tough. You're going to like the "comfort". I wouldn't let the roughness bother you. If you find something you like better in the years ahead another $75 will seem cheap.

I agree! $75 is nothing. Easy “gamble”.

Have you ever come across a worthwhile set of seat covers for these?

My Jeep is navy blue. My current seats are a tan vinyl . And theses are red! 😂

Would be nice to find some consistency. And maybe match my front and rear seats.

Btw, thanks for doing the leg work on this swap
 
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I agree! $75 is nothing. Easy “gamble”.

Have you ever come across a worthwhile set of seat covers for these?

My Jeep is navy blue. My current seats are a tan vinyl . And theses are red! 😂

Would be nice to find some consistency. And maybe match my front and rear seats.

Btw, thanks for doing the leg work on this swap
I haven't seen seat covers for them but I imagine there's something out there that would be suitable. I have seen Tiburon seats with gray inserts and there might be others that you might like for your blue Jeep.

Thanks for the comment but I'm sure other guys probably tried this swap before I did mine. I didn't have any pics to follow but it honestly was a pretty easy job. As mentioned in the first post, I wandered around a junk yard for a while to find something I liked but I usually enjoy doing that anyway! 😊
 
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I haven't seen seat covers for them but I imagine there's something out there that would be suitable. I have seen Tiburon seats with gray inserts and there might be others that you might like for your blue Jeep.

Thanks for the comment but I'm sure other guys probably tried this swap before I did mine. I didn't have any pics to follow but it honestly was a pretty easy job. As mentioned in the first post, I wandered around a junk yard for a while to find something I liked but I usually enjoy doing that anyway! 😊

I’m gonna install tomorrow. I’m off work.

Do you have a parts list? I live 35 min from a hardware store. So I don’t wanna make two trips!

Can I pick ur brain tomorrow if I have questions?
 
I’m gonna install tomorrow. I’m off work.

Do you have a parts list? I live 35 min from a hardware store. So I don’t wanna make two trips!

Can I pick ur brain tomorrow if I have questions?
From memory, for each seat I used 1/4" x 1.5" flat bar for the 2 sides and across the front. Across the back I used 1/4" x 2" flat bar. The 2" wide pieces were needed to catch the 2 bolts on each of the rear of the sliders. Each piece of flat bar was about 18"-20" long. The hardware was all 5/16" grade 8. Most bolts were 1" long although a few might have been 1.25". You might be able to count the number of pieces of hardware from my pics.

Apart from going out to chase down some Jeep parts (Yipee!) I'll be around for most of tomorrow tiling a bathroom (ugh). Good luck. (y)
 
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Drivers seat is in. Passenger seat needs final mock up

CAB9CE7B-76F8-44A0-BFD2-21142561C066.jpeg



$75 for 2005 Tiburon seats from pick in pull

$50 for 16 ft of flat bar, nuts/bolts

$30 for new chop saw blade and drills bits

$155 total for Tiburon seat install

Cross pieces cut to 18” for the front and back of the seat

Pieces bolted to the base are 16”

I took both the front bracket and rear bracket off the tiburon slider. Makes the seat sit lower. Maybe too much so.

I used a plumb-Bob off the steering wheel to its center. Matched that to the center of the seat. This let me know where the final positioning would be.

Big thankS to @PCO6 for showing us the way.
 
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Drivers seat is in. Passenger seat needs final mock up

View attachment 132261


$75 for 2005 Tiburon seats from pick in pull

$50 for 16 ft of flat bar, nuts/bolts

$30 for new chop saw blade and drills bits

$155 total for Tiburon seat install

Cross pieces cut to 18” for the front and back of the seat

Pieces bolted to the base are 16”

I took both the front bracket and rear bracket off the tiburon slider. Makes the seat sit lower. Maybe too much so.

I used a plumb-Bob off the steering wheel to its center. Matched that to the center of the seat. This let me know where the final positioning would be.

Big thankS to @PCO6 for showing us the way.
Happy to see you doing this … and also providing some of the dimensions and costs. 👍
 
I meant to provide some pics of the seat heaters I put in. I guess I've been too busy enjoying them to do it. 😊

It was a pretty straight forward install. As mentioned earlier I used Dorman kits (2 needed). https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B002U6IL9O/?tag=tjforum-20 . They fit well, were reasonably priced and all parts were included.

I had a second set of seats so there was very little down time. I had to partially strip the upholstery which simply required locating all of the clips and using whatever tools needed to pry them off. The hog ring pliers provided with each kit aren't very good and really weren't needed. The kits came with hog rings but I was able to use most of the original ones which were better any way.

This pic shows the general fit of the bottom heater. The back heater looked pretty much the same. The pads are about 11'x11" and fit nicely. They have adhesive strips to help keep things in place while you're wrestling with the covers. You can cut a small amount off of the edges without impacting the heating coils but it wasn't necessary for this install.

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I tapped into fuse #19 behind the glove box. The fuse taps (1 for each seat) provided with the kit are a type I've never seen before and looked a bit feeble so I went with Grote ones from NAPA.

picture.jpg


I located the switches on the blank panel on the dash - pic below. Another popular place is where I have shown them in the 2nd pic below. These ones are for my glove box and console courtesy lights. The heaters have 2 settings - red (up) for full heat and green (down) for half heat. They heat up within 5 minutes and I adjust them as needed. They're great for the winter cold we have here and I can see them being good in the spring and fall when I have my half doors on & uppers off.

picture.jpg


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Passenger seat is in.

This one was tougher. I had to use spacers to clear the fold forward bracket on the passenger side

I kinda cheated because I broke out the welder. I could have gone the no weld route but this was just easier.

As you can see from the pics the seat still folds forward to allow Rear seat passengers to ingress and egress.

I am very pleased with the seats and how they feel and function.

Oh and I sold my old seats for $100 so I’m officially $55 into this swap. $25 if you don’t count consumables like cut off wheels and drill bits.

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Well I got a set of 2003 Mini cooper S seats. They we're bolted to the OEM Jeep TJ frame and clears the doors panels and center console. All the seats adjustments work and occupied the original configuration. The leather seat color matches 99% with factory interior grey color. My only complaint after a year of using the seat is my butt easily sides in the leather seat. Also I think modding at the end of day will bring the value of the Jeep TJ down on resale. Otherwise nice upgrade from stock seat.

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