Anyone install a semi-truck drivers seat?

[bpu699]

I’ve gotten to the point I can drive 2-3 hours, take a break, and drive 3-4 more hours.

At that point butt-fatigue kicks in.

Seat pads don’t help.

Truckers drive 12 hours straight peeing into cups, and their butts aren’t sore…

Does a quality seem-truck air seat make the difference???

Anyone upgraded?

[twinboat]

Truckers butts are numb.

[MTranch]

I think it all depends on the individual. We are all built a little different and sometimes a better fitting seat makes a lot of difference to somebody. An air ride seat can definitely help in the comfort department if you have a bit of a rough ride. I don't know if it is okay to put a seat with fore and aft movement in a vehicle but some people really like that feature in equipment.

Are you fairly tall? Seems to me taller people frequently have most of their weight back on their pin bones. If so you might try adding some height to the front of the seat and see if that helps.

[code2e]

Air ride seats are nice. They can be set for a drivers weight and have many adjustments to suit the driver.

I think you would be taking on a big project to install one in a motorhome. Air suspension seat requires a lot of space under the seated position. You would need a flat floor with access under the floor to adequately mount seat, centered on the steering wheel and properly spaced from wheel and pedals.

I have not seen an air seat that swivels, maybe someone makes one. Getting in and out the right side would also be an issue to check.

Then, seatbelts, can you use the factory coach belt system? I wouldn't wat to end up with just a lap belt.

A lot to consider. Doubtful many shops would take this on. Too much liability.

[bpu699]

I may try to “repad” my seats. I can drive in my Toyota for hours on end… but the class A sofa seat design isn’t great.

Part of me wants to just throw in Toyota or Lexus seats, and call it a day. Seats are only $35 at the salvage yard… they charge the same for bmw, Mercedes, etc. seats. But it’s tough to get the electronics to work on those as the controls are in the door panels…

The class A sofa seats LOOK comfortable… but aren’t great.

I did already replace the dinette seats with Lexus leather seats, kids loved it. Great place to sit while driving…

[AZ RV'r]

I have an air seat.... and its awesome!

The seat alone is like sitting on a comfy Lay-Z-Boy, but the air now makes it like it's also floating on a cloud. I've done LONG days no breaks or soreness.

No idea how you could feasibly add one to a standard coach that doesn't already have one...?

Good Luck!

[l1v3fr33ord1]

bpu699-

I looked into this twice, both times semi-seriously. I concluded the problem is that there are no adapters that work to put a truck seat on a motorhome pedestal. So, if you want a truck seat you must figure out how to attach the seat and seatbelt to the motorhome structure. On my coach, that would have been difficult.

One former iRV2 member welded steel to the underside of Saturn Vue seats and then bolted them to the motorhome pedestals. I don't remember what he did for the seatbelts.

After several seasons of sore-butt, I replaced the OEM Flexsteel seats with ones from Bradd and Hall. While not Lazy-Boy comfortable, they were much better than original.

[bpu699]

I’ve got the tools/welders to fabricate an adapter…

Seatbelts seem to be attached to the mounts…

May check the salvage yard over the winter for some nice Lexus/Mercedes seats…

Hmmmmm…

[KenZ71]

Why not stop by a tour bus company and ask them if they could help?

Some run a RV service side business

Edit: the seat in my King Aire is comparable to what I had in my Escalade and Suburban. In all 3 I've done several hour trips with no soreness.

[FIRE UP]

Well,
First off, In the old days, truckers used to carry a device that looked like a giant clock. It was a timer of a sort that could be checked at any given time by a LEO. I never really did know how it worked but, it's main reason for being was, it was to help limit the amount of time a trucker would or could be behind the wheel for a given time frame. That was then.

This is now. In many cases now, truckers seat times are monitored by the company. They have GPS and other technology that tells the companies when this truck starts up and is moving and where it's at. And it also tells the companies how many hours operation are accumulated at a given time. I don't know just how many hours a driver spends in the seat at a given time in today's world but what I can tell you is, there's NO PARKING IN ABOUT 98% of the rest stops all over the western U.S. at any given time!

Anyway, we had air seats in about 90% of our fire trucks and they weren't all that complicated in mounting or operation. Just about every single floor in any form of a truck, motorhome, fire truck etc. is a FLAT floor. All you have to do is, remove the existing pedestal and you now have a flat floor to start your mounting on. If needed, you re-enforce any section that isn't already re-enforced from the factory, no big deal.

In the pic(s) below, you see my floor at the drivers area when the CEO and I were changing carpet. You see the pedestal in place. A few bolts removed and that would have been a totally flat floor. The bottom or floor of a truck cab is not all that different from a motorhome floor. Seat design and operation (raise, lower, move, tilt etc) requires a given distance from the floor to the seat height. In reality, there's almost no difference between the seat height of non-air operated seat and a normal one like in a motorhome. It's just that the cavity under the drivers bu.. is filled with an air bag and components (scissors type arrangement) with stability components. Yes the seat height of an air seat would be a bit higher but would auto lower the moment a driver sat on it.

The seats in our '04 Itasca Horizon are fairly comfortable. Like many, they tilt, lean, slide forward, the back tilts and all that, all under power. As far as re-attaching or attaching seat belts, that's no big deal either. 1/2 of the belts operation wouldn't touched anyways due to it being mounted on a structural piece located away from the seat mechanism. The other half, could or would be attached to the same spot it would be attached in a truckers air seat so it wouldn't strangle the lap as the seat traveled up and down.

Air supply, well that's a given. There's all kinds of air supply you can tap off of, as long as you don't interfere with the brake systems air supply. Speaking of air, our fire truck seats would auto adjust for the drivers weight. The lighter the driver, the less air needed for support. The heavier the driver, the more air would be needed for the same amount of support, all done automatically. There were adjustment switches for fine tuning ride height for drivers vision. I myself need a break from driving (motorhome, not fire truck) on an every-so-often basis just because why not! That is if we can find a spot in a rest stop!

I myself would think it would be a fairly easy job to do. Buy the seat complete with all necessary hardware. Fit it in place on your new flat floor. Mark what's needed for drilling or augmentation, remove the seat section from the pedestal/air system mechanism, mount it, route air line supply, re-install the seat and you're done.
Scott

[cadillac_al]

I think air ride seats are for trucks that ride like trucks. I guess some motor homes ride like trucks. Mine rides like a marshmallow. I drive with a glass of water beside me and never spill a drop. I have always wanted an air ride seat in my 4x4 truck because that beats me up. I think the air ride will soak up the bumps but not so sure it will make the butt any more comfortable.

[code2e]

Originally Posted by FIRE UP

Well,
First off, In the old days, truckers used to carry a device that looked like a giant clock. It was a timer of a sort that could be checked at any given time by a LEO. I never really did know how it worked but, it's main reason for being was, it was to help limit the amount of time a trucker would or could be behind the wheel for a given time frame. That was then.

This is now. In many cases now, truckers seat times are monitored by the company. They have GPS and other technology that tells the companies when this truck starts up and is moving and where it's at. And it also tells the companies how many hours operation are accumulated at a given time. I don't know just how many hours a driver spends in the seat at a given time in today's world but what I can tell you is, there's NO PARKING IN ABOUT 98% of the rest stops all over the western U.S. at any given time!

Scott

I think the device you are remembering is a Tachograph. It did look like a clock face. It had a locking front panel that opened to insert a round paper graph disc. Once the engine started, it recorded RPM over time. RPM showed idle time vs road time and of course how the driver accelerated. Those graphs had to be turned in with pay requests. My employer required them back in the 70's.

[hypoxia]

I have a Knoedler Air Chief with air ride, heat, cool, massage and it swivels around to face the rear. I can sit in it until my eyes gloss over hours into the day, it is extremely comfortable. It is a tall seat so Newell made a well several inches deep to put it in so it wouldn't be too tall.

https://knoedler.com/air-chief-std-and-low-rider/

The Monaco Signature I had was equipped with an air ride module that was installed between the seat and base. Those modules are no longer available but perhaps someone makes one.

[A.R.F.]

Originally Posted by bpu699

I’ve gotten to the point I can drive 2-3 hours, take a break, and drive 3-4 more hours.

At that point butt-fatigue kicks in.

Seat pads don’t help.

Truckers drive 12 hours straight peeing into cups, and their butts aren’t sore…

Does a quality seem-truck air seat make the difference???

Anyone upgraded?

We have air ride trucker style seats in our coach. The seats are from National.
They have a lot of adjustments. They even have a back massage feature and
they also swivel. I like them.

Alan