Thread: FAQ: Reasons for not installing anything underneath the seats.

I have my full range amp mounted under my drivers seat hooked to a 20 amp OEM circuit, grounds and all. I have to disagree with it being a bad spot to mount electronics if it is done right. The best (and most obvious) advantage to mounting under a seat is its virtually theft proof. The only possible way to remove that amp is removing the entire drivers seat which is quite heavy and requires specialty tools. I have a sliding seat but i mounted the amp in such a way that everything clears and its not possible to kick from the back. In fact you can only see a very small portion from the side on the drivers side, and only about 1" of wires if I lift the carpet flap up (shown in pic) I agree with turboCAD and think it has more to do with how the install is approached and executed rather than just stereotyping that area as a poor electronics mounting location. It also has a lot to do with the model of car, mine worked out perfect due to the low mounted sports car seats. My amp has been fine there since I bought the car, but I really don't eat in my car and spill food and garbage everywhere. I keep my car detailed inside and out as much as possible.

Originally Posted by RedGTiVR6

a plexi case will not keep water out any more than any other case.

points of entry for wires and the back plate for the motherboard will still let water in.

if you can make it small enough to fit under a seat you can make it small enough to fit elsewhere.

I still firmly stand by my original statement: Mounting electonic equipment under the seats is NOT a good idea.

There is a reason that it's frowned upon by install shops and ALL major retail chains. There are too many risks involved and too many issues with mounting hardware under the seat.

actually the custom plexi case i am making is completely waterproof up to about 1.5 inches off the ground. i have made watercoolers and waterbongs out of plexiglass, its not easy but very possible to make it VERY waterproof.
especially when you can use real electronic connectors, not just run wire through holes.

i dont think i trust 98% of the install shops out there to touch my car, let alone take electrical advice from them.

I agree. The one time I let a shop install a radio I bought from them it came out absolutely terrible. They offered 'free' installation with purchase. I was sorry I took them on the offer. Poor wiring, loose mounting and they put a big scratch in the detachable face and claimed I did it when I took delivery and pointed it out to them even though I barely touched it yet. I ended up redoing it all myself anyway. Put a sour taste in my mouth also as this was the nicer shop in the area. Anyway I learned from that lesson when I was 16 to never let someone else do the install unless you can stand sloppy half @$$ work. I'm sure there are some good shops out there and this might have been an isolated incident, but I prefer knowing its done correct by doing it myself.

mines under the seat. no problems whatsoever! :-p

I mounted my laptop under the drivers seat. I made a bracket out of an angle iron and a bit of pressboard. The bracket bolts to the seat rail mounting bolts in my WRX, holding the laptop about 1" off the floor to avoid water and snow during the winter, and the seat moves back and forth just fine. Also, the angle iron blocks the back of the computer from being kicked. The install does not require a ground at the install location, so that is not of concern.

i think more people disagree with this than agree maybe the title should be why i don't install things under my seat rather than a faq

Mine is installed under the driver's (my) seat. And yes, it moves. But I have a custom made metal enclosure that will avoid people messing with it, things ending in it and the like. Plus, cables are fixed in a way they can't be pulled by the seat moving. And if done right, bolts under the seat can be a good ground, too.
So, although I agree when you say that placing a carputer under your seat is not the best option, I must say:
1) it's difficult, but not impossible to put a computer there and protect it from curious friends, dust, etc. Furthermore, the metal enclosure is covered with the same material that covers the car floor, so if one doesn't know, he won't think it's a computer.
2) in many cases, as in mine, putting it under my *** is the only option. No place anywhere else to put it.

So maybe we can write another FAQ on how to do it right to put a carputer under the seat

I have to say that mounting under the seat is ok in some cars/trucks but not all.
I have my PC mounted under the seat of my celica and wanna hear something crazy? I even have it powered off of the stock radio harness (OH MY!) connected with a 3ft custom harness I built. (I can disconnect the carpc in about 3 seconds and install a regular radio back into the car in about 4 min total) Each car is different, so for some it might not work while others are perfect. The 90-93 celica came with the option of system 10 wich included a 220w amplifier under the passenger seat with a simple t harness to power it from the car radio harness (no other power source and it was rated to draw about 30a) My little Jetway with the M1-ATX doesn't draw near that not does my Super monitor and after cutting the carpet a little under the passenger seat the PC case fits right in without hitting the seat!. I have been running it this way for months now with no ill effects.
So my point, not every car has the same solution and under seat mounting may be optimum for some.

I installed car electronics professionally from 1994-2001 and again from 2003-2005. So about 9 years roughly. Ive done basic radio installs to full on competition (SQ & SPL) systems. Im glad I finally got out of the game, lol.

I respect the opinion that its not good to mount things under a seat. But I think its ok to mount items under the seat as long as you take the things mentioned into consideration.

*Use common sense

*If it dont fit dont force it

*Plan on running ground out to another location

*Plan on keeping the car clean and removing the seat as often as necessary to clean the area underneath

*Dont eat messy foods in the car. Its ok to go inside McDonalds and sit down to eat. Thats what they have those tables in there for..

*Be sure it will be inaccessable to passengers (wether intentional or accidental)

*Be sure it fits well enough that the seat can move its full travel in all directions with a passenger sitting in it

*If you take your truck (or car for that matter) mudding or across rivers, find a higher location

*Verify there is nothing in the way if you plan to drill. Ive seen gas tanks and air bag modules with screws through them.

*If its raining keep the windows rolled up, duh

*Fart all you want its not gonna hurt a thing plus it feels good

Every situation is different. I tried to slide my laptop under the seat but it wouldnt fit.