How to Increase the Height of a Car Seat

(Updated June 2026: Added safer child-seat guidance, clarified seat and airbag positioning, expanded cushion options, and added important precautions for seat removal and spacer installation.)

Have you ever been on a road trip and just couldn’t get comfortable in the seat? You’re forced to sit in an awkward position or you’re sitting on a stack of towels to raise you up a little bit so you have a more comfortable driving position, but this is a temporary fix. If you want to increase the height of your car seat, you came to the right place.

Quick Answer: How Can You Increase the Height of a Car Seat?

Start with the seat’s built-in height adjustment. Manual seats may use a pump-style lever, while power seats usually have a switch that raises or lowers the seat base.

If the factory adjustment is not enough, try a secure automotive seat cushion. A flat cushion mainly adds height, while a wedge cushion raises the driver and changes the seating angle, which may improve forward visibility and thigh support.

A vehicle-specific seat-lift kit is the more permanent option, but changing the seat mounting height can affect seatbelt fit, airbag position, wiring, and crash performance. Professionally engineered kits and qualified installation are strongly preferred over homemade spacers.

The easiest solution is to use the built-in adjustment on your seat. You can change the height, distance, lumbar, and angle of your seat. If that doesn’t work, consider adding a seat cushion and backrest cushion to raise you up and push you forward. Otherwise, a vehicle-specific engineered seat-lift kit may provide a permanent height increase, but altering the seat mounts requires careful attention to airbags, seatbelts, sensors, hardware, and crash safety.

I put together this ultimate guide for raising your car seat’s height. I’ll go over some small details and give you quick solutions in the beginning. In the end, I have a long step-by-step DIY guide that tells you what is involved in installing a permanent seat lift and why the correct kit and installation matter.

What Determines the Height of a Car Seat?

The actual height of your seat will depend on a few things:

• The vehicle’s seating position: What matters inside the cabin is the seat’s H-point, dashboard height, roofline, and outward visibility. A taller vehicle often has a more upright seating position, but ground clearance alone does not determine how high you sit relative to the dashboard.
• The height of the cushion. The seat itself will also determine the height. Thicker seat cushions will result in a higher car seat.
• The position of the seat. Modern cars have inches worth of adjustment when it comes to the final height of the seat. Through a series of buttons, levers, and bars, you can customize the position of your seat.

Changing the Height of a Child’s Car Seat

If you mean a child safety seat, do not place a blanket, towel, cushion, or other unapproved padding underneath or behind the child to raise them. Extra material can interfere with the harness fit and may not have been tested with that car seat.

Use only inserts supplied or specifically approved by the car-seat manufacturer. If your child has reached the seat’s height or weight limit, check the manual and move to the correct next-stage restraint for their age, height, and weight.

The rest of this article covers the factory driver and passenger seats used by adults.

Why Would You Change the Height of a Car Seat?

There are a lot of reasons why you might want to change the height of your car seat. I’ll go through solutions to all of these issues, but I want to start by addressing each of them.

More Comfortable Driving Position

A car seat comes with a lot of adjustabilities, but there might not be enough. For shorter drivers, sitting in a standard seat can be pretty uncomfortable. The backrest isn’t supporting you correctly and the cushion of the seat isn’t giving you the boost that you need.

Better Visibility

Even if your driving stance is fine, you might want even better visibility. For compact cars, drivers can opt to raise their seats to better see the road around them.

A higher driving position and better visibility are partially why people love trucks so much, so why not recreate a truck seat in your car?

See Over the Dashboard

For very short drivers, a standard car seat might not allow them to see over the dashboard fully. To compensate, they might strain their neck or choose an awkward driving position. Don’t do either of these options. I’ll tell you how to fix this later, so just stay tuned.

Do Not Sit Too Close to the Airbag

Raising or moving the seat forward may improve visibility, but it can also put you too close to the steering-wheel airbag.

Try to maintain about 10 inches between the center of your chest and the center of the steering wheel. Adjust the steering wheel, seatback, and seat height before moving the entire seat too far forward.

If you still cannot reach the pedals safely, speak with a certified driver rehabilitation specialist or qualified mobility-equipment installer about vehicle-specific adaptive equipment. Do not rely on random universal pedal blocks or homemade extensions.

Make the Seatbelt More Comfortable

Some people will find that their seatbelt crosses them in an uncomfortably high position. If a seatbelt rests on your neck or face, you need to immediately change the height of your seat before driving. Getting into an accident with a seatbelt on your neck could potentially kill you.

Is it Legal to Change a Car Seat’s Height?

Whether you can legally modify a car seat mount depends on your location and the type of modification. Laws and inspection requirements vary, but legality is only part of the issue. Laws and inspection rules vary by location, but legality is only part of the issue. A modification can still be unsafe or affect insurance, inspection, airbags, seatbelts, or warranty coverage even if no specific law expressly bans it.

Things to Avoid Doing

Before getting into the things you should do, I want to highlight some pitfalls to avoid. Doing these can result in unsafe driving and might not even raise your seat the way you want to.

Don’t Skip Steps on the Alteration

Later in this guide, I’m going to walk through an 11-step process on how to permanently change the height of your seat. I urge you to carefully read each step and not just skip through it.

If you miss a small detail, your car seat might not be structurally sound after. Even worse, the seat might not be correctly fastened and could move while you’re driving.

Don’t Sit on Junk

Your first thought might be to just pile up towels or clothes under you while you drive. Although I commend your DIY way of thinking, this isn’t a good long-term solution. The pile can shift or you can slide off of it after braking too hard.

While it might temporarily put you in a good driving position, the pile will compress over time and cause you to sink down.

To put it simply: it might work for a little bit, but it’s not a long-term solution.

Don’t Take “the Easy Route”

It’s possible to use washers from the hardware store or plastic cylinders to create a higher mounting point. Although this is technically true, it’s very unsafe.

If you look at the physics at play when you do this, you’re putting a lot of stress on just the bolts. The rails under your seat won’t be in full contact with the floor under it.

There’s a chance that the bolts will shear or bend as you’re driving. There’s an even better chance that you’ll feel your seat shift and bounce too much whenever you take a turn or hit a bump in the road.

In an accident, there might not be enough support to keep your seat in place. That means that your seat can come detached from your floor and you can be thrown into the side or front of your cabin.

Don’t Commit to an Awkward Driving Position

Some people might be tempted to just suck it up and commit to an awkward driving position. This could mean slouching your back or leaning way too far forward. In either of these driving positions, your health could take a toll.

Human backs are surprisingly sensitive. Driving for too long in either of these positions could lead you to a chiropractor’s office.

If you get rear-ended while sitting in either of these stances, your seat won’t be able to support you. You might pull out your back and suffer lasting injuries.

1. Adjust the Height

If you didn’t know, most cars come with an option to change the height of the seat. There is no need to take things apart, this adjustment is built into the seat.

On your driver’s seat, look at the left plastic trim at the base. If you see a handle or button, it might be used to adjust the height. The lever might be located in the front of the seat also.

The lever will either be something you need to crank or a button that you press and hold. Manual seats usually use a pump-style lever. Power seats use a switch and may work with the ignition on or in accessory mode, depending on the vehicle.

If you’re not sure, take a look at your owner’s manual. It should clearly spell out how to make this adjustment.

If the vehicle has memory seats, save the corrected driving position so it is easy to restore after another person uses the car.

2. Change the Lumbar Setting

Another adjustment that your driver’s seat has controls the bottom portion of the backrest. If this area is too far back, then you might feel the need to increase the height of your seat.

Instead, move the lumbar forward and see if that clears things up. Doing this will push you further forward in the seat, raising your sitting position.

3. Move Your Seat Closer

If your legs feel like they’re too far away, you can simply move your seat closer. Again, this eliminates the need to DIY a seat-raising project.

If your seat is all the way forward and you’re still not crazy about the position, keep going through this guide.

Moving your seat backward and forward follows the same step as adjusting the height. There is either a bar at the front base of the seat or a lever along the side. Pull and hold it while scooting yourself forward in order to move your seat forward.

4. Move the Steering Wheel Towards You

Some drivers are looking to raise their seats because they don’t like how far away the steering wheel is. Well, there’s another adjustment that car manufacturers make just for you. It’s called a telescoping steering wheel, and it’s pretty common on modern cars.

There’s a latch near the base of your steering wheel. Unlatch it and your steering wheel should be able to articulate and telescope. Move it around and pull it towards you, and the steering wheel should go to a more comfortable position.

If you don’t have this feature or the wheel won’t adjust to a comfortable spot, then your problem isn’t fixed yet.

5. Raise the Seatbelt

What about people who want to sit higher so the seatbelt isn’t going across their neck or face? Luckily, there’s also a way to adjust the height of your seatbelt instead.

Take a look at the plastic part along the wall of your cabin that the seatbelt is fed through. In most cases, this piece runs up and down along a track.

There should be a button somewhere on the plastic piece that unlocks it, allowing you to move it until the shoulder belt crosses the middle of your collarbone and shoulder. It should not rest against your neck or slide off the edge of your shoulder. This will cause your seatbelt to go across your chest instead of your neck.

Not only is this more comfortable, but it’s also much safer. If the belt still does not fit correctly after adjusting the anchor and seat position, learn more about whether seat belt extenders improve safety and comfort and when they should be avoided.

6. Add a Seat Cushion

You can find aftermarket seat cushion raisers options that go on top of your car’s seat. This addition will add height to your seat while still giving you a comfortable surface to sit on.

Purple Gel Seat Cushion for Long Sitting – Back, Sciatica, Hip, Tailbone Pain Relief Cushion

Consider trying one of these seat cushions before going through more drastic measures. With the increased thickness, you’ll be sitting higher in your seat.

Flat Cushion vs. Wedge Cushion

A flat cushion mainly raises your entire seated position. A wedge cushion raises the rear or front at an angle, depending on its design, and can change pelvic position, thigh support, and the view over the dashboard.

Choose a cushion made for automotive use with a non-slip base or secure attachment. It should not slide during braking or push you so high or far forward that the seatbelt, head restraint, steering wheel, or airbag no longer lines up properly.

Do not place loose stacks of towels or household pillows under the driver.

7. Change the Backrest

The same aftermarket options can be found for the backrest of your seat. A backrest cushion will push you forward in the seat, resulting in a higher driving position.

SOFTaCARE Seat Cushion Coccyx Orthopedic Memory Foam and Lumbar Support Pillow, 2-Set

You can couple a backrest and seat cushion together if you want to maximize driving comfort while boosting your driving position.

8. Get New Seats

If a cushion isn’t cutting it, you can buy aftermarket seats for your car. This should only be done on a car that you own, not lease. It’s very common for high-quality car seats to offer a higher driving position.

Doing this will cost you some money unless you use a junkyard for the seat. Installation difficulty varies considerably. Modern seats may contain side airbags, occupancy sensors, seatbelt buckles, pretensioners, heating elements, and powered controls. The replacement seat, rails, brackets, wiring, and belt mounting must all be compatible with the vehicle.

If the change affects an airbag, occupancy sensor, or seatbelt anchor, professional installation is the safer choice.

Before You Start: The Seat Is a Crash-Safety Component

Raising a factory seat changes more than comfort. It can affect seatbelt geometry, head-restraint position, airbag distance, wiring, occupancy sensors, and the forces carried by the seat rails and floor mounts during a crash.

A professionally engineered lift kit made for your exact vehicle is strongly preferred over homemade spacers. Do not treat generic aluminum blocks, washers, plastic cylinders, or hardware-store bolts as substitutes for a tested vehicle-specific system.

If the seat contains a side airbag, seatbelt pretensioner, buckle sensor, or occupancy-classification system, follow the vehicle’s service procedure exactly. If you cannot verify the correct kit, mounting hardware, wiring procedure, thread engagement, and torque specifications, stop and use a qualified installer.

Preface: How Vehicle-Specific Seat-Lift Kits Work

A seat-lift kit adds a carefully designed spacer or bracket between the factory seat rail and its mounting point. The amount of lift depends on the kit, and some products raise only the front of the seat while others raise the entire assembly.

Use a kit designed for your exact vehicle whenever possible. A vehicle-specific kit should include correctly shaped spacers or brackets, compatible mounting hardware, and installation instructions. Do not drill your own spacers, enlarge mounting holes, or substitute generic blocks simply because they appear to fit.

The Desert Does It and Ohio Diesel Parts products shown here are examples made for specific vehicles. A kit designed for a Toyota Tacoma or Dodge Ram should not be assumed safe or compatible with another make or model.

Before purchasing anything, confirm the exact year, make, model, seat position, and whether the kit works with your vehicle’s factory airbags, sensors, wiring, rails, and seatbelt mounting arrangement.

Desert Does It 1.25 in. Front Seat Jackers – Seat Spacers Lift Front of Front seat – Compatible with Toyota Tacoma, 4Runner, FJ, and Lexus GX

Step 1: Gather Your Tools

Like any car project, you want to start by getting your tools together. For this project, you’ll need:

• Socket set and ratchet wrench
• Tape measure
• A good flashlight
• Spare towels or clothes to sit on to find the perfect height
• Vehicle-specific engineered seat-lift kit
• Manufacturer-specified mounting hardware
• Installation instructions or factory service information
• A friend to help lift the seat
• Torque wrench capable of the specified mounting torque

Step 2: Park Your Car in a Flat Spot

It all starts with parking in the right place. You want the ground to be level and paved so you can get the best results. This process will entail swinging your door fully open, so make sure you have plenty of room around your car.

The best option would be to use your driveway or an open area of a parking lot.

Once your car is safely parked, then you can move on with the rest of this guide.

Step 3: Find Out the Right Height

Before you start adding spacers, you need to understand how much height you want to add. There’s no perfect way to do this, but here’s what I’ve done in the past:

Grab a stack of towels to sit on. Position one at a time on the bottom cushion of your seat. Sit on the towel and assess if the height is right for you. When you find a comfortable position, get out of the car, and don’t touch the towels.

Use this only to estimate whether sitting slightly higher improves comfort and visibility. Do not use the towel measurement by itself to choose spacer thickness. Any permanent lift must stay within the limits of a vehicle-specific kit and maintain correct airbag distance, headroom, head-restraint position, pedal reach, and seatbelt fit.

Use a tape measure and measure the towels exactly how they’re sitting on the seat. In other words, don’t remove them and then measure them somewhere else. You want to do it right after you get out of the car with the towels still in the seat because they’ll compress, and the overall height will change from their fluffed state.

This measurement gives you a rough idea of whether a higher position feels better. Compare it with the available lift offered by compatible vehicle-specific kits, but do not exceed a kit’s intended adjustment range or use the towel measurement as a fabrication specification.

Step 4: Take a Look at the Mounting Configuration

Every car is going to have a different configuration when it comes to mounting. Take some time to familiarize yourself with what your car offers.

Even though the specifics are going to vary, the overall idea is the same. Underneath your chair, there’s probably a pair of rails and some bolts holding it all together.

The rail will guide your seat as you move it forward and backward. The bolts will keep the rails parallel and keep your seat firmly attached to the framework of your car.

In every car I’ve worked on, there have been a pair of bolts in the front and a pair at the very rear of the rail assembly. Take time to locate each of these bolts and determine if there are other obstacles that are getting in the way.

Also, take a set of sockets to see which tool size you’ll need to remove these bolts.

Disconnect Power Before Unplugging the Seat

Modern front seats commonly have electrical connectors for airbags, pretensioners, occupancy sensors, heaters, and power controls.

Before unplugging anything:

1. Turn off the ignition and remove the key.
2. Disconnect the battery according to the vehicle’s service procedure.
3. Wait for the exact time specified by the manufacturer before touching airbag or pretensioner connectors.
4. Never test an airbag circuit with an ordinary multimeter or powered test light.
5. If you cannot identify every connector, stop and get professional help.

Simply unplugging a live seat connector can set an airbag fault, disable part of the restraint system, or create a deployment risk.

Step 5: Remove Rear Mounting Bolts

Once you’re familiar with how your seat is mounted, you can start removing it. Personally, I like to start with the rear mounting bolts first. Before you try to remove them, move your seat all the way to its most forward position. This will give you access to the rear bolts.

You’re going to remove the bolts that connect the chair assembly to the floor of your car. They’re likely located within the rails or just outside of them.

To loosen them, you can just throw your socket bit on a ratchet wrench. Remember, lefty loosey, so you’ll want to rotate these bolts counterclockwise.

Fully remove all of the rear mounting bolts. Keep them somewhere handy so you don’t lose them. I like using a magnetic part tray so I don’t drop the bolts and lose them forever.

Titan 11061 Mini Magnetic Parts Tray, 4.25 in. Round

That’s all you’re doing for this step.

Step 6: Remove Front Mounting Bolts

Now, move your seat all the way to the rear-most position. You’ll want to do this carefully since the rails are only half-installed. That just means that you shouldn’t slam the seat backward.

With the seat in this position, you should have free access to the front bolts keeping your seat in place.

Repeat step 5 on these front bolts, completely removing them and putting them somewhere safe.

Step 7: Install the Kit Without Fully Removing the Seat

Some vehicle-specific seat-lift kits can be installed without taking the seat completely out of the vehicle. Others require full removal, so check the kit instructions before starting.

If the kit allows an in-place installation, carefully tilt or lift the seat only as much as necessary to access the factory mounting points. Do not force the seat upward or stretch, pinch, or pull any wiring underneath.

Ohio Diesel Parts Adjustable Front Seat Spacer Lift Kit Compatible with Dodge Ram 4th Gen 1500 2500 3500 – 2007-2018 and up

Position the supplied spacers or brackets beneath the correct mounting points exactly as shown in the kit instructions. Make sure every spacer, bracket, and mounting hole is properly aligned before installing any hardware.

Do not use generic spacers or assume that a kit designed for one vehicle will fit another. If the seat cannot be moved safely or the supplied parts do not align correctly, stop and follow the full-removal procedure in the next step or use a qualified installer.

Step 8: Remove the Seat if Required

Before lifting the seat out, confirm that all wiring connectors have been disconnected according to the service manual and that no harnesses remain clipped to the seat frame.

Do not pull the seat by its wiring, buckle, or airbag harness. Protect the door opening and interior trim because the rails can have sharp edges.

If your car seat has too many obstacles, it’s positioned oddly, or the rails are getting in the way, you might have to remove the seat from your car. These things can be heavy, so you’ll want to employ help from a friend.

The car seat will be free to move at this point. Take it out of your vehicle and put it down nearby.

Once the seat is safely removed, position the kit’s supplied brackets or spacers at the factory mounting points exactly as shown in the instructions. Do not separate the seat from its rails unless the kit or service procedure specifically requires it.

Step 9: Install the Kit’s Mounting Hardware

Use only the mounting hardware supplied with the seat-lift kit or explicitly specified by its manufacturer. Do not select replacement bolts by simply adding the spacer thickness to the length of the original bolts.

Seat-mounting hardware must have the correct diameter, thread pitch, strength grade, head style, washer arrangement, corrosion protection, and thread engagement. A bolt can appear to fit while still being unsuitable for the forces placed on the seat during a crash.

Desert Does It – Adjustable Rear Seat Jackers – Seat Spacers Lift Rear of Front seat – Compatible with Toyota Tacoma, 4Runner, FJ, and Lexus GX

Position the supplied brackets or spacers exactly as shown in the instructions. Start each mounting bolt by hand to avoid cross-threading, but do not fully tighten anything until all mounting points are correctly aligned and seated.

Install the hardware in the sequence required by the kit instructions. If the seat must be moved forward or backward to access different mounting points, do so carefully and avoid pulling or pinching any wiring underneath.

If the supplied hardware does not match the vehicle, the bolts will not start smoothly by hand, or the brackets do not sit flat against the factory mounting points, stop and contact the kit manufacturer or a qualified installer.

Step 10: Check the Alignment Before Tightening

Before sitting in the seat, inspect every mounting point and confirm that the supplied spacers or brackets sit flat against the factory mounting surfaces.

Make sure each bolt has started smoothly by hand, the seat rails are correctly positioned, and no wiring is stretched, trapped, or pinched underneath.

Move the seat carefully through its adjustment range only if the kit instructions require this for access. Do not sit in, rock, or place your full weight on the seat while the mounting hardware is still hand-tight.

If the parts do not align correctly or the seat cannot move without pulling on the wiring, stop and review the kit instructions or contact the manufacturer.

Step 11: Torque Down All Bolts

If you like the adjusted height, you can fully torque down every bolt. You want to tighten the bolts with a tool, so they don’t come loose as you’re driving.

LEXIVON .5 in. Drive Click Torque Wrench 10-150 Ft-Lb, 13.6-203.5 Nm – LX-183

Be sure to tighten all of the bolts and double-check that they’re tight. Use a torque wrench to tighten every mounting bolt to the specification provided by the vehicle manufacturer or seat-lift kit instructions.

After installation, confirm that the seat locks securely at every fore-aft position, the belt fits correctly, all electrical features work, and no airbag warning light remains illuminated. Have the installation inspected professionally before regular use.

If the airbag warning light remains on, do not drive the vehicle until the fault has been diagnosed and corrected.

FAQs

How do I raise the height of my driver’s seat?

Use the built-in manual lever or power-seat switch first. If it is already at maximum height, an automotive cushion is the simplest next step. A vehicle-specific seat-lift kit is the more permanent option.

Why does my car seat feel so low?

The seat design, dashboard height, roofline, seating H-point, and amount of factory adjustment all affect how low you feel. Low-slung sedans and sports cars often place the driver lower than SUVs or trucks.

Are seat cushions safe to use while driving?

A secure automotive cushion can be suitable if it does not slide, interfere with the seatbelt or head restraint, or place you too close to the steering-wheel airbag. Avoid loose household pillows and stacked towels.

Is it safe to install seat spacers or risers?

Vehicle-specific engineered risers are preferable to homemade spacers. Raising the seat changes the loads on its mounts and can affect seatbelts, airbags, sensors, and driving position. Professional installation is recommended.

How can a short driver see over the dashboard?

Raise the factory seat, adjust the seatback and steering wheel, and try a secure wedge cushion. Maintain proper seatbelt fit and adequate distance from the steering-wheel airbag.

Can I raise a child inside a car safety seat with a blanket?

No. Do not place unapproved padding under or behind the child. Use only manufacturer-approved inserts and move to the correct next-stage seat when the child reaches the current seat’s limits.

Choose the Safest Height Adjustment That Works

Start with the adjustments your vehicle already provides. A factory height control, steering-wheel adjustment, properly positioned seatbelt, or secure automotive cushion may solve the problem without modifying the seat mounts.

If you need a permanent lift, use a vehicle-specific engineered kit and treat the installation as safety-critical work. The seat, seatbelt, airbag, head restraint, sensors, rails, and floor mounts all need to keep working together.

The goal is not simply to sit higher. It is to improve visibility and comfort while maintaining a stable driving position and the protection the vehicle was designed to provide.

If you want to read more detailed DIY guides, explore my blog. Leave a comment below and let me know if my solutions helped you. Also, take a look at my list of recommended car products that can make your life a little easier.

Related Posts

The Ultimate Hard Battery Reset Guide How To Remove Salvage From Car Title How to Check the Health of Your Tires: A Beginner’s Guide How to Change a Flat Tire