There's quite a few options on who to contact for installations, and the selection can seem daunting. Do you call the dealership? A car audio shop? A body shop? What about DIY?
Any of these options are fantastic, but selecting the right one is important.
DIY Installations - Most Cases
92% of our sales we suggest DIY installation. Our representatives will be happy to give you some general guidance to make sure you're prepared for your installation. Click Here to read more on DIY Seat Swaps.
Dealership Installations - Almost Never
Unfortunately more often than not the dealer will give you incorrect information regarding seat swaps. Often times they will say it's not possible or that it's ludicrously expensive. We have had many Chevy dealers tell customers they can't swap their SUV's second row bench seat with bucket seats when in reality it's a 100% direct plug and play swap. At the end of the day the dealer is there to make money on parts and if you're bringing your own they really just don't want to deal with you. Often times they will quote ludicrous amounts or decline the job and claim it's for liability when it's mostly just laziness.
Dealers can only handle plug-and-play replacements however they're typically more expensive than the other options who will do the same quality work. We highly advise against using the dealership for almost any seat swap unless you have an in with the service department. One of our customers get quoted almost $9,000 to install powered seats in his Focus. The dealer wanted to replace the entire interior harness and control modules. That customer then contacted a car audio shop - he was in and out in under 90 minutes and paid $120. All that was needed for the install was one additional power wire.
Body Shop - DIY Alternative
If you're not familiar with mechanical work but the swap is an easy one we would recommend a body shop. The most amount of electrical work we suggest giving to body shops would be adding simple power/ground circuits. Body shops are also great for the rare occasion when you need mounting points drilled or fabricated. Installing 2016 style F250 seats in a '99-'07 Style F-250 is a great example of a body shop appropriate job. Click here to read more.
Car Audio Shop - Electrical Specialists
These shops are great for the more in-depth swaps that require heavy electrical work. If you're adding a lot of functions, especially those like heating or cooling, you want to have a car audio shop install your seats. Click Here to see details on one swap that would be appropriate to send to a Car Audio shop if DIY wasn't an option.