Series Land Rover Seats

The original low back vinyl seats.

One of the charming things about restoring an old Series Land Rover is the endless string of small decisions that somehow feel monumental—especially when it comes to the interior. Recently, I faced one of those choices: stick with the original low-back seats, or upgrade to something more comfortable?

The factory Series seats have a certain nostalgic appeal. The low-profile back sits flush with the top of the doors, which looks fantastic—particularly with the roof off. I’d seen a few people restore them by hand, and part of me was keen to have a crack at it myself. There’s no denying they lack support, which you could argue ties in well with the noise, smell and heavy steering of driving a Series Land Rover, but I figured it might be nice to have some creature comforts.

Land Rover County seats

That’s when I started looking into County and early Defender seats. They bolt straight into the Series seat box (later Defender variants have slightly different bolt patterns) and offer an upgrade in terms of comfort and ergonomics. I’d always like the Moorland cloth used on the seats in the County Land Rovers— it is a brown and cream tweed like check pattern that I think suits the Land Rover’s English roots.

The challenge? Finding a set in good condition. County seats are hard to come by, especially with unstained fabric and minimal wear.

By sheer luck, I stumbled across a pair on Facebook Marketplace—just 20 minutes from home. They were in excellent condition, with great upholstery and only light rust on the frames. I picked them up that week, stripped the frames back, and gave them a coat of black paint.

Driver and passenger County seats bolt straight on to the Series seatbox.

Centre seat vs centre console

Most Series Land Rovers were fitted with three seats across the front—driver, passenger, and a narrow “occasional” seat in the middle. I say occasional because, with the gear stick sitting between your knees, it’s not exactly first class. Still, I liked the idea of keeping the original layout for simplicity, and the occasional seat can be handy on short trips or with kids.

I had two options: fit a centre console, which is a great mod and adds some desperately needed storage space, or go all-in and try to source a matching County centre seat. But finding one in good condition? That’s another story.

I put the word out on Facebook, and the responses were… mixed. One person told me, “I’ve got one, but you’re not having it.” Another said, “Good luck, they’re like hens' teeth.” Not exactly encouraging.

But then two leads came through—one from a bloke in the Netherlands who had some NOS (new old stock) seat covers, and another from someone in Victoria who had a genuine County centre seat that had been sitting in his garage for years. He agreed to part with it, and when it arrived, I was absolutely stoked—it was in near-new condition.

Fitting the seats

Fitting the seats was simple. The outer seats bolted straight into the Series seat box using the existing holes, and the centre seat slotted in between them like it belonged there all along. The overall look? Spot on. The brown trim pairs well with the Land Rover’s Export Sand paint, giving the cabin a subtle factory-upgraded look without losing any vintage charm. They stick up a bit but with the hardtop on you barely notice. If I decide to drive with the roof off I can remove the headrests to give it more of a stock look.

I don't have a good picture of the final installed middle seat. This one is courtesy of Google.

I’m so glad I went the extra mile to find the full set. Not only do the seats look great, but they’ll make the driving experience more bearable—especially on longer trips. They are so nice that I may end up putting seat covers on them for regular driving.

For anyone else restoring a Series and tossing up between originality and comfort, I’d say this: if you can find a set of County seats, grab them. And if you stumble across a matching middle seat—well, consider yourself very lucky.

The County seats match nicely with the Export Sand paint.