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Front seats reupholstered, now my head rubs.....

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Old Nov 2, 2017 | 12:55 PM
  #1  
haps's Avatar
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From: St. Louis
Car: 91 Z28
Engine: 350 TPI
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Front seats reupholstered, now my head rubs.....

Power drivers seat, new foam, new covers. Installed, looks good, get in and my head rubs the headliner. The seat appears to be lowered as far down as possible, yet my head rubs. I'm thinking the seat buns are the issue. Anyone else experienced this? TIA.
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Old Nov 2, 2017 | 05:29 PM
  #2  
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Car: '87 IROC
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Re: Front seats reupholstered, now my head rubs.....

I'm 6'6" I experience this on a daily basis... Seriously though I would guess that the new buns are to blame. More then likely they were aftermarket and not NOS pieces, so they might not be totally correct shape wise. In time they should settle in along with the seat upholstery stretching with use.
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Old Nov 3, 2017 | 09:21 AM
  #3  
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From: Atlanta
Car: '02 T/A WS6, '91 T/A, '91 Camaro RS
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Transmission: T56, 700R4, 700R4
Axle/Gears: 4.10 10 bolt, 2.73 10 bolts
Re: Front seats reupholstered, now my head rubs.....

More than likely they have too much foam in them. Happens frequently here at work when we get seats recovered and OEM foam is not used.
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Old Nov 7, 2017 | 03:49 PM
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From: St. Louis
Car: 91 Z28
Engine: 350 TPI
Transmission: 700R4
Axle/Gears: Stock
Re: Front seats reupholstered, now my head rubs.....

I'm 6' and I can sit in the passenger seat and I have a little more clearance. Weird. For future purchasers, these are the seat buns I used.
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Old Nov 7, 2017 | 08:59 PM
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From: Phoenix, AZ
Car: 1991 Z28 5spd
Re: Front seats reupholstered, now my head rubs.....

I just put a new upholstery kit in my 91. I had to replace just the drivers seat foam. I used the same foam you did. At first it felt like I was sitting higher. But after a few weeks it seems to be settling in.
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Old Nov 8, 2017 | 06:52 AM
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Re: Front seats reupholstered, now my head rubs.....

fourth gen seat tracks will lower the seat some (and provide more adjustability)... may or may not be a good option for power seats.

several years after re-covering and my seat foam still remains a bit stiff.
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Old Feb 3, 2018 | 10:57 PM
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Car: Teal 92 Z28
Engine: 5.7
Transmission: 700r4
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Re: Front seats reupholstered, now my head rubs.....

I need to get that done for ours, my son is almost 5'8 and I'm 5'9 so we could use the boost!
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Old Feb 3, 2018 | 11:13 PM
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Re: Front seats reupholstered, now my head rubs.....

Originally Posted by rushtk
I need to get that done for ours, my son is almost 5'8 and I'm 5'9 so we could use the boost!
Haha yeah IMA hafta look into that I'm 5'8
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Old Feb 4, 2018 | 10:05 PM
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Re: Front seats reupholstered, now my head rubs.....

Same situation here on the driver's seat and I used the same seat buns. The original foam looked to me to be formed around the seat frame, almost molded, so I'm not sure where you'd get NOS GM seat foam from nowadays (plus the fact that it would still be 25+ years old).

Mine was crumbling yellow dust on the carpet and the bottom of the seat was so sunken-in it was extremely uncomfortable - when I took the seat apart, all of the wire stays with the plastic tubes on them were broken.

After replacing the foam and the stays I have maybe an inch and a bit between my head and the roof (I'm 6' and it's a convertible, which may be worse). However, it's now a lot easier to get in and out of and its very comfortable, so I'm hoping it just settles in a little.
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