Seeking armrest solution for a front bench seat

I

Ident

Member
Hi all. We have a T6.1 with the standard bench passenger seat and it isnt terribly comfortable

I have removed the bulkhead and also tilted the seat back very slightly but it still isnt great

We are going to be doing some touring next year and covering a lot of distance so any ideas on how to make this more comfortable would be really helpful I dont really want to change the seat out for a single one and we won't be rotating either of the seats as we are using this as more of a ' luxury van ' than a camper

It seems to me that some sort of arm rest would be a good idea that fits in the middle seat or a better one on the door maybe. It seems like there really should be a solution to this as it must be a common problem

I may even get one made if only to try and see what a difference it makes. It would be good to have some extra storage for bits also Thanks in advance
 
You can get a reclining bracket if that would help (from Vankraft, I think).
 
Bav said:
You can get a reclining bracket if that would help (from Vankraft, I think).
Click to expand...
I have seen that in other threads and it gets mixed reviews, some say it reclines a bit too much I have tried the ' washer mod ' yesterday and that has made positive difference. I did an assessment and I think it is a bit of the upright back to the seat but also the fact that it is very flat both the base and the back so the passenger isnt sitting in the seat more sitting on it if that makes sense.

I think I am going to look for an arm rest either on line or have one made so that it gives the seat a bit of definition. I think it will as a minimum be better than what there is now and it will be removable also if it doesnt work out
 
Yes, makes sense - though I've got twin captain seats, so no personal experience of the root causes the discomfort.
 
I've updated your thread title - may help attract further responses.
 
Bav said:
Yes, makes sense - though I've got twin captain seats, so no personal experience of the root causes the discomfort.
Click to expand...
I think that the dual single seats is the real way to go but this was the only van I could find that had the specification / miles / price that I had in mind The bench can be useful sometimes too in an emergency and has handy storage in it Previous few vans were Vito's and their bench seats seemed more comfortable. The ' washer trick ' does make a big difference though
 
We use the van raft folding back rest bracket with the lowered base as we have the kiravans seat swivel and use a Rampage universal truck bench seat console from Amazon
We use a strap fastened to the underside of the console that loops around the seat base. SWMBO finds it a lot more comfortable than standard.

IMG_1988.png

IMG_1989.jpeg
 
DJHJKH said:
We use the van raft folding back rest bracket with the lowered base as we have the kiravans seat swivel and use a Rampage universal truck bench seat console from Amazon
We use a strap fastened to the underside of the console that loops around the seat base. SWMBO finds it a lot more comfortable than standard.

View attachment 249792

View attachment 249793
Click to expand...
That looks like just the sort of thing we need thank you for that. We have done around 6 hours of driving in the van over the last 2 days and have found that both seats are not massively comfortable so the hunt is on for some improvements before any more longer journeys ! Sadly I also have found that I should have added insulation under the floor as now with the bulkhead removed I can hear it moving as we go over bumps also !
 
Ident said:
Hi all. We have a T6.1 with the standard bench passenger seat and it isnt terribly comfortable

I have removed the bulkhead and also tilted the seat back very slightly but it still isnt great

We are going to be doing some touring next year and covering a lot of distance so any ideas on how to make this more comfortable would be really helpful I dont really want to change the seat out for a single one and we won't be rotating either of the seats as we are using this as more of a ' luxury van ' than a camper

It seems to me that some sort of arm rest would be a good idea that fits in the middle seat or a better one on the door maybe. It seems like there really should be a solution to this as it must be a common problem

I may even get one made if only to try and see what a difference it makes. It would be good to have some extra storage for bits also Thanks in advance
Click to expand...
might not help you very much with the seat comfort issue, but there is a version of the twin seat that exists with a built in armrest. I don't think they're very common though and have never seen one for sale.

www.t6forum.com

Returnofthemac DIYish Build Thread (up for all suggestions and pointers)

Here we go…after years of looking.. we bought a van!! Fairly blank canvas ready to build a camper for our family, including two young children and two dogs. This is our base ☺️
www.t6forum.com www.t6forum.com
 
I saw a Transporter HQ video of an armrest they have produced for t6 seats without armrests. Might be worth a look.
 
Ayjay said:
Westy, Good job there, well done. I actually bought mine from Seatshelf (SeatShelf (Anthracite grey) T6 Swivel Bench seat) and it's also very good but it was only after I received it that I realised how simple it would have been to DIY (I've said on here a number of time that I'm a mechanical and electrical moron but my woodworking skills aren't bad!). In my case, I added a box which provides some much needed storage space for smaller stuff and also an arm rest for the passenger (again, much needed!).
View attachment 69792
Click to expand...
This was my solution but since the above post, I’ve made (and covered) another box which is slightly larger all round an all the better for it.
 
TeeCeeJay said:
might not help you very much with the seat comfort issue, but there is a version of the twin seat that exists with a built in armrest. I don't think they're very common though and have never seen one for sale.

www.t6forum.com

Returnofthemac DIYish Build Thread (up for all suggestions and pointers)

Here we go…after years of looking.. we bought a van!! Fairly blank canvas ready to build a camper for our family, including two young children and two dogs. This is our base ☺️
www.t6forum.com www.t6forum.com
Click to expand...
Before I bought my van I looked for one with either twin single seats or a bench with the arm rest and couldn't find either so had to go for the van I bought. It was the right specification other than the seat so I ( foolishly ! ) thought it would be an easy fix ! I am reliably informed though that after a couple of longish trips last week the bulkhead delete and ' washer mod ' have made the bend seat a lot more comfortable now :)
 
Ayjay said:
This was my solution but since the above post, I’ve made (and covered) another box which is slightly larger all round an all the better for it.
Click to expand...
Yes that is my thought also that it seems like it may be the way to go I can get the cloth to match the seats so I may get one made or buy one and then recover it to match the seats
 
Hi all.

Im after some car seat covers but I have an armrest/cupholder integrated into the front bench seat.

My question is.. would you recommend slicing up my new covers to access the armrest or does anyone know a place online that provides such covers. I've searched everywhere.

I'd like to keep the functionality of the armrest and also protect the seats from wear and tear (kids)

Any advice would be hugely appreciated. Thanks.

Screenshot_20240801_120252_eBay.jpg
 
TBH, I can't imagine that butchering the cover would end well.
 
I do have a twin seat with the built in armrest, I have sent you a message if that works for you?
I took the twin out for a single.
 
I already have the twin seats already but the new covers I've bought need cutting so I can use the armrest if that makes sense
 
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