Is it possible to add a third row rear facing seat to a 1970 flat top Cutlass Cruiser? If so, does anyone know where to find a third row seat?
My guess is that it would not be easy, at least if you stay with an Oldsmobile seat. Olds did not make a 3-seat version of the flat-top Cutlass wagons, only the Vista Cruiser, during the entire raised-roof Vista Cruiser era (1964 through 1972). So there would be no donor car from which you could take a third seat and drop it in. Also, all three-seat raised roof Vista Cruisers had forward-facing third seats. It wasn't until later in the '70s that Olds wagons had rear-facing third seats. You might take a third seat out of a Vista Cruiser, but the Vista Cruiser sat on a longer wheelbase than the Cutlass wagon, and it was also wider than the Cutlass by about 1.5 inches. It might be the case that a Vista Cruiser third seat wouldn't fit in the space between the rear wheel wells on a Cutlass wagon. I don't know for sure, though. Even if you put in a third seat, assuming it was forward-facing, you would have the problem of access. Cars with three seats had a split (1/3 - 2/3) second seat where the smaller part of the second seat folded forward to allow access to the third seat. A car without a third seat would not have a split second seat, making access to the third seat difficult. In short, if it were to work at all, forward facing or rear facing, it sounds like a significant amount of fabrication would be required as you'd be cutting metal out of the floor in the rear cargo area, fabricating and installing mounting points, and possibly even having to cut into the wheel wells to make room for it. You could, of course, go outside of Oldsmobile to other GM A-body models. For example, the Chevy Concours wagons of 1970 did come in three-seat versions. I don't know if they were rear facing, but I think they were because the third seat in the larger Kingswood, Townsman, etc. wagons was rear facing. Get hold of a car with one of these seats, and you'd have a seat that likely would fit in your car, and the car would come with the mounting points as well. Or, if all you took out of the donor car was the seat itself, if you could have a chance to look at the car it came from, you could at least see how the seat was mounted and put together something similar for your car.
The Vista Cruiser third seat will NOT fit a flattop wagon. The extended wheelbase and raised roof in the Vista are there EXACTLY to accommodate the third seat - it sits on top of the rear axle, which is why you need the extra headroom. Heck it isn't easy to convert a two-seat VC into a three-seat VC (note that the two and three seat versions had different VINs for a reason). I don't know if the Pontiac or Chevy A-body wagons were available with a rear-facing third seat or not, but if they were, that would be your only option. You'd need to buy a complete parts car to get all the pieces. Bottom line is that this is a bad idea. Sell the flattop and get a VC - it will be much cheaper.
The mid 70's A-Body wagons do have rear facing seats. As mentioned, unless you are very skilled with fabrication, this is far from a bolt-in project.
If by "mid-70s", you mean the 1973-77 cars, those are COMPLETELY DIFFERENT from the O.P.'s 1970 car. Edit: OK, I've confirmed that the 1971-72 Chevelle wagons did have an optional third seat:
I thought it might be a long shot Maybe I'll get lucky someday and find a chevelle third seat. If I do I'll see if there is a way to make it fit. I could always bolt any kind of seat to the floor of the trunk but I don't want a fixed seat. I would like to have one that will lay flat. The logistics of making that happen seem difficult at best. The Vista Cruisers cargo space looks exactly like the Cutlass Wagon cargo space and where the Vista Cruiser third seat sits looks like a seat in the same location of my wagon would also work. I know that the Vista Cruiser third seat is probably too wide but the Vista Cruiser has a pretty wide rails that the seat sits in between whereas my wagon does not have those rails. So, if I come across a third row seat someday I'll check it out and see what my options are. Welding in/ bolting in some seat supports wouldn't be too hard. I could make a flat panel that sits over the folded down seat that I would set in my garage when not in use. That would work if the seat sits lower than the current cargo deck when the seat is folded down. I don't know, I check it out if I ever come across the right seat. Thanks for input everybody. Right now I have two bucket front seats in my '70 wagon. I could put in a bench seat and that would solve my problem. With four kids and a wife I would like to be able to fit all six of us. For now I'll just let one of my kids sit in the cargo area if I'm just going to the store and back or somewhere close by. It might not be politically correct to let a kid sit back there in today's world but I got through the '70's that way so they'll be alright, until I get a ticket. So, now to try and find a front bench seat.
Very true, and this raises an interesting point. If the OP thinks that getting a ticket is all that will happen, he might want to check. When you're pulled over for someone in the car not wearing a seatbelt, the cop will give you a ticket and then insist that whoever is not buckled in do so. But what if there is no place to buckle in? I doubt very much the cop would give you a ticket, however much the fine might be, and then let you drive merrily away with the kid still riding in the cargo area and not buckled in. He might tell you that you're not allowed to leave until everyone is buckled in. If that's not possible, you might be forced to leave the kid, and maybe your wife to look after him, at the store or ice cream stand or wherever while you go home and get rid of some of the people in your car to make room or get another car that can hold everyone. Just something to be careful about. Here in New Mexico, the fine is $25 plus 2 points on your license (which can drive up your insurance rates), and there may be additional fines based on the locality.
You didn't read my first post, did you? The VC is FIVE inches longer in wheelbase to accommodate the third seat (which is NOT wider, by the way - they are all A-body cars). The roof is taller to provide headroom since the third seat sits on top of the rear axle. The second seat is split to allow access to the third seat, and the rear doors are FIVE inches longer so you can climb in. You are not going to install a forward facing third seat in a flattop wagon. It's very difficult to convert a two-seat Vista to three-seat, and that conversion doesn't even have the problems I just pointed out (again). Knock yourself out if you think you can make this work. It would be a shame to tear up a perfectly good flattop then find out halfway through that you can't do what you want.
Good points Good point about the cop not letting you go on your way without being able to buckle up. I'm in Oklahoma and the ticket here is $20. It is also a non-moving violation. But yeah, probably not the smartest idea. On the third seat issue, I miss-understood. I thought that you were saying the VC is also wider. I didn't think so but I wasn't sure. I know that they are longer and it's probably not feasible to add the third seat in the same manner that the factory would have. I was just trying to figure out a way to make it work. What I could do is buy a Ford Taurus third seat (or any number of third row seats that would fit width wise and are thin having a slim profile when folded down like the ones in the Taurus) and bolt it directly to the floor of the cargo area. That way when I lay the seat flat it would lay below the level of the cargo deck platform. Then i could make a wooden cargo platform out of plywood (I would cover it in matching floor carpet and trim it in a nice metal edge or something) that I would lay over the third seat/ cargo area when the seat was folded down and the the cargo area would still look original, pretty much, when the cargo deck was in place. When I wanted to use the seat I would remove the homemade cargo deck and store it in my garage. I think that would work but I need to look at my cargo area a little more closely to see if it would actually work. I don't want to tear up my wagon doing this but I could live with a few holes drilled through the cargo floor to accommodate bolting the seat down. Also, I might have to cut and weld some flat bolting plates to the seat to allow it bolt to a flat (relatively flat) surface but that wouldn't be a big deal. If all else fails I might just look for a front bench seat. Thanks everybody for your input. At this point I'm just brainstorming. You never know until you try, right? Btw, I've attached a pic of my ride. The picture is a little dark because the sun was going down. It's a 1970, 350 engine, disc brake conversion, freshly rebuilt TH400 tranny, factory A/C (doesn't work right now though), brand new complete tubular front end, brand new rear end, mostly new interior (headliner and rear seat vinyl are original but look brand new. The front bucket seats were just recovered to match the back seat and the carpet is new), uncut pristine dash, original AM radio, new flow master mufflers and chambered exhaust manifold and original hood off another car - not a reproduction hood. It sounds mean and drives perfect.
driveway oil pan I just thought I would mention that the oil and oil pan under the car on the driveway are there because my 2001 Chevy Silverado has a leaky rack and pinion. Not because the wagon leaks. It doesn't, at least for now.
