Swivel seats help optimizing the precious space in a campervan conversion or in a work van. The Ford Transit, Sprinter van, and Ram ProMaster can be ordered with factory swivels (with some limitations), but installing an aftermarket adapter is often cheaper and it’s actually quite a simple task. In this article, we’ll go through the installation process of swivel seat (passenger & driver) into our Ford Transit van. Let’s get into it!
Table Of Content
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1. Swivel we recommend
We had the opportunity to try a few different swivels during our first years of full time Vanlife: Scopema, Amazing Auto, SwivelsRus and DiscountVanTruck. Our comparison criterias for selecting the best swivel to buy are: height, weight, installation, operation, wobble and squeaking. You can read more in our Swivel Seat Review & Comparison.
Too long didn’t read: Scopema is the swivel we preferred and we recommend!
Scopema Swivel Seat Adapter
(Ford Transit, Sprinter Van, Ram ProMaster)
Get 5% Discount with “FarOutRide” Coupon at Checkout
2. Benefits of installing swivel seats
A swivel seat is a bit like the swiss army knife of your van interior layout; it adds versatility and create extra space in your campervan or your work van. Indeed, you can unlock the full potential of those single-purpose cabin seats and turn them into so much more:
Dining
3. Good to know
3.1. Factory swivels
The Ford Transit can be ordered with factory swivel seats (for more info on all options to consider: Ford Transit Order Guide for Campervan Conversion). Let’s see the pros and cons:
Pros
- No installation.
- Shorter base (better driving posture).
Cons
- Not offset (like most aftermarket options). To complete a 180° rotation you need to play with the seat settings (fwd/rear) in order to clear the steering wheel, the center console and the door panel.
- Only available with 4-way manual seat.
- Safety alarm constantly on when key is in the ignition and the swivel is not facing forward. (we were told you can simply unplug the speaker wire under the seat to turn off the alarm!).
- Can’t start the engine when a seat is not locked in forward position.
- Costs more than aftermarket.
3.2. 10-way power seats
Scopema swivel can be added with the 10-way power seats. Note that you will have cut the lower part of the outside trim piece that houses the seat controls (see this example on the Ford Transit USA Forum) AND raise the seat with a few spacers so the motor doesn’t catch. Amazing Auto has swivels specifically for the 10-way power seats, so that no trim is required (at the detriment of the height and driving posture). Because the seat has to be moved forward/back during the rotation, some people have reported that the power seat makes it a bit irritating if you have to swivel often (e.g. full time Vanlife). Indeed, the forward/back motion is quite slow because of the motor.
3.3. Dual AGM batteries
Yes, an aftermarket swivel can be added on the driver side with the dual AGM batteries option. This is actually what we have in our van, so keep reading to find out!
3.4. E-brake (emergency brake/parking brake)
In 2020 Ford introduced an electric e-brake to replace the standard hand e-brake. This is a very welcomed change, otherwise the hand brake has to be lowered for the seat to clear the hand brake during the rotation. Please note that not all Ford Transit models includes the electric e-brake: only the single rear wheel axle with 9,500lb (or less) payload:
Our new 2021 Ford Transit has the electric parking brake:
Our 2016 Transit had the manual hand brake in between the seats; we have the procedure to lower the hand brake (Section 6) for those of you who need it.
3.5. Espar/Webasto heater
You can install an aftermarket swivel seat in a Transit van with a Espar/Webasto (gasoline/diesel) heater installed under the passenger seat. This is actually the configuration we had in our 2016 Transit van! We do have an extensive Espar/Webasto Air Heater Guide which covers the theory (installation requirements, choosing the correct size, effect of altitude, etc.), the installation (ALL of it!) and our long-term feedback (issues we had and how we fixed them).
4. Passenger swivel installation
Time
1 hour
Cost
$399 USD
Weight
30 lbs
Material
Item | Description | Buy Link |
---|---|---|
Scopema Swivel (passenger side) | Added between the seat base and the seat | The Swivel Shop |
Rust-Oleum | To touch up the trimmed baby seat anchor | Amazon |
Tools
Item | Description | Buy Link |
---|---|---|
7mm, 10mm & 13mm Hex Socket | To disconnect/connect the electrical harness, uninstall/install seat | Amazon |
Adjustable Wrench (or 13mm wrench) | To install the seat on the Scopema swivel plate | Amazon |
5mm Hex Bit (or 5mm Allen key, same thing) | To install the Scopema plate on the seat base | Amazon |
Mini Hack Saw | To trim the baby seat anchor | Amazon |
Sand Paper | To smooth the sharp edges after trimming the baby seat | Amazon |
Banana | Required for Step 4.6 |
4.1. Remove the Ford Transit factory seat
4.1.1. Slide the seat backward and remove the screw (7mm hex socket) to disconnect the electrical harness under the seat:
4.1.5. Put the seat aside, get into the seat base, and hand-pull the 2 clips to detach the electrical harness from the seat base. This is to give the electrical harness some slack during the rotation:
Keep it up!
4.2. Trim the Seat Rails (Optional)
4.3. Install the swivel adapter
Place the Scopema swivel on the seat base, route the electrical harness in the center, and install the 4 screws (5mm hex bit or 5mm Allen key). The holes might not be perfectly aligned, that’s OK. Start by installing each screw with just a few threads in, then once all 4 are fitted, torque them all the way in.
4.4. Reinstall the Ford Transit factory seat
4.5. Trim The Baby Seat Anchor
The baby seat anchor interfere with the rotation and has to be trimmed.
4.6. Swivel check
For the very first rotation, slowly swivel the seat and make sure the electrical harness is not catching. All good? Sweet, you can go crazy with it now!
Video
And now let’s do it again for the camera!
That’s it for the passenger swivel!
5. Driver swivel installation
Time
1 hour
Cost
$399 USD
Weight
30 lbs
Material
Item | Description | Buy Link |
---|---|---|
Scopema Swivel (driver side) | Added between the seat base and the seat | The Swivel Shop |
Tools
Item | Description | Buy Link |
---|---|---|
7mm, 8mm, 10mm & 13mm Hex Socket | To disconnect/connect the electrical harness, remove/put back the metal plate, uninstall/install seat | Amazon |
Adjustable Wrench (or 13mm wrench) | To install the seat on the Scopema swivel plate | Amazon |
5mm Hex Bit (or 5mm Allen key, same thing) | To install the Scopema plate on the seat base | Amazon |
5/8″ Spade Bit (or drill bit) | To make hole in battery box cover | Amazon |
Dremel with Cutting Wheel | To make cutout in battery box cover | Amazon |
5.1. Remove the Driver seat
Removing the driver seat is the exact same procedure as for the passenger seat (refer to Section 4.1 for the photos):
- Disconnect and unclip the electrical harness (7mm hex socket).
- Remove the 4 screws (10mm hex socket).
- Optional: Trim the seat rails to prevent damaging the door (hack saw or Dremel).
5.2. Reroute the electrical harness
The Scopema swivel plate sits completely flush with the seat base, so there’s no more room for the electrical harness. In the following steps, we will reroute the harness inside the battery box:
Removing the battery box cover exposes the battery terminals. Be very careful not to create a short between the positive terminals and the van chassis (e.g. with the metal plate or tools).
5.2.4. Remove the metal plate and the battery box plastic cover, then reroute the electrical wiring harness as follows:
There is a pre-cut slot in the battery box (nice!). Route the harness through it and slide the rubber grommet in.
We secured the harness with a cable tie, otherwise it would chafe against the sharp edge of the battery terminal (vibration + chafing = danger).
Route the harness between the two batteries.
This is where the harness will exit the battery box (next steps).
5.3. Install the swivel adapter
Place the Scopema swivel on the seat base, route the electrical harness in the center, and install the 4 screws (5mm hex bit or 5mm Allen key). The holes might not be perfectly aligned, that’s OK. Start by installing each screw with just a few threads in, then once all 4 are fitted, torque them all the way in.
5.4. Reinstall the driver seat
Reinstalling the driver seat is the exact same procedure as for the passenger seat (refer to Section 4.3 for the photos as needed):
- Install the 4 screws, washers & nuts (13mm hex socket and wrench).
- Connect the electrical harness (7mm hex socket)
5.5. Swivel check
For the very first rotation, slowly swivel the seat and make sure the electrical harness is not catching. All good? Sweeeet!
We’re done with the driver swivel!
6. How To Lower The E-Brake On The Ford Transit (Optional)
If you have a Scopema swivel and the manual hand brake (e-brake) on your Transit, it must be lowered to create clearance for the rotation. Here is how we did it on our first van conversion (Ford Transit 2016)! Note that we didn’t have the Scopema Relocation Bracket at the time, so today, it should be a bit easier.
6.3. Here is the idea of this modification: we take the 3 existing attachment points (start of arrow) and re-locate them lower in other existing holes (end of arrow). Not clear? Keep reading!
6.5. All the batteries posts can be detached. The two batteries are “linked” together with this small tube (to locate in the picture, follow the arrow head). It looks like it is a venting tube. It can be detached (and re-attached later, no problem) to remove each battery individually (unless you’re much stronger than me).
6.7. You can now remove the 3 screws that attach the e-brake from inside of the seat base (we have no picture, but you’ll see, it’s pretty obvious). The e-brake is not yet free! Remove the 4 nuts that attach the metal plate to the seat base and trim the plate as shown to be able to remove it:
6.9. The nut below is welded. We need to remove it, because we will use the hole that is under the nut.
6.11. We’re about to lower the e-brake, but doing so makes the cable housing rub with the sheet metal. Indeed, it off-centers the cable housing through the cutout (the rubbing happens below the van, not shown here).
6.13. We will now lower the e-brake. The back screw fits nicely, the front screw “fits” in the large cutout (where the e-brake switch wire grommet was). The cutout is way too big, but adding a fender washer will make everything secure! The third screw (the lower one) is no longer used… (but we feel that it is strong enough with only 2 screws):
6.15. We’re not done just yet! See, the airbag control module is located just forward of the e-brake. The metal bracket that we removed previously was acting as a shield, since the module is supposed to be pressure-sensitive.
6.17. Re-connect the e-brake electrical wire previously disconnected and put everything back in place!
Unfortunately, the two plastic parts that we first removed do not fit anymore, but this is only aesthetic. We still have to do something about that… trim them or something.
We’re done!
7. Long Term Review
Back in 2016, on our first Ford Transit van conversion, we installed cheaper swivels to save a few bucks. After a few years of full time Vanlife, we upgraded for the Scopema and we didn’t look back. At the time of writing these lines, we’re building our second van and choosing Scopema again was a no brainer. They do cost more, but the driving ergonomics is much better and they operate soooo smoothly. In our opinion, it’s worth paying a little extra for something we will use almost everyday and for a long time. For more: Swivel Seats Review and Comparison.
8. Conclusion
If you’re reading this, there’s a pretty good chance you’re just about to start your own van conversion and you’re a bit stressed out about it. It’s totally normal! Starting your build with the swivels is a good way to break the ice: it’ll boost your confidence and get you going.
That’s it for now. Hope we could help 🙂
#SwivelLife ON