97 explorer rear seat....question

[capt kirk]

Hello all. new member, long time explorer driver. When we purchased our 97 Explorer Sport 2 dr, there was just me and my wife. Then we had child #1. we soon realized you can't disable the airbag on the passenger side. so into the back, all good. THEN we had twins, and now we realize the back only has 2 seatbelts, so no chance of three in the back.

my question: can you buy a 4dr explorer rear bench type seat with 3 seatbelts, and bolt it straight into a sport model? i know thats a stretch but i thought i'd try , as we live in the mountains and love our explorer for dirt roads etc, but do not want to purchase a new one.
we really just want to make our good ol 2 dr sport work with our 5 person family. even a shut off for the front airbag would be a help....thanks very much in advance for any help or advice...

 

[rabbit91]

i think you can pull a fuse to disable the front airbag but im not entirely sure.

 

[colintrax]

Pretty sure you can't fit the 4-door seat back there. I'd suggest trading it for a 4-door. And while you're at it, get the v8 and awd.
You could do some fabrication though, and get the seat to work since it should fit dimensionally. Good luck

 

[Joe Dirt]

Won't fit. The seats in a sport are between the wheel wells, the 4 door seats are in front of it. They'll be too wide. It'll be like trying to fit 10 pounds of replacement parts into a 5 pound Chevy.