Hi Folks,

Any recommendations on comfortable race seats? Comfort being a little softer than a Kirkey and a little more supportive in the lumbar than a Corbeau? I was looking at the Sparco's and they seem to have a little more foam padding than other brands....

The seats need to mount to the stock rails or at least be adjustable, my wife and I share the car.

Any suggestions?

Thanks,

Bill P.

Get the Kirkey and buy some foam that you can add where you need it.

LOL I second the Kirkey, you can get NASA foam and fill in the hot spots

Choosing seats from a catalog or online shop is pretty much impossible

You have to go sit in 'em to see how they fit you (and Doris)
Also make sure the seat provides enough leg support just above the knee

Get a FIA approved fiberglass shell seat, don't waste your money on t-frame seats (even though some of those are FIA approved as well)
Lots of brands and types to choose from; Recaro (more expensive), OMP, Sparco, Momo, Corbeau, Cobra

Although the padding may seem thin, they're a lot more comfy that they look since a f/g seat supports you better

Mounting those to a slider will/may require some mods to the floor, since the f/g seats are all have side mounts
Most brands have a generic slider available (about $40) or get some VW sliders at the junkjard

I may be wrong, but I don't think Kirkey seats have shoulder supports
Those help quite a bit as side supports and add some safety in case of a side impact
For a track only car like yours, you might even consider a seat with headsupports

Kirkey makes a nice aluminum road race seat with shoulder support, and no rib protectors. Other companies also make similar products.
Metal seats offer the best support and protection IMO.
Also they are easier to mount, especially on sliders, without sitting up to high.
If you wanted a really custom fit you could get a seat just a little too big and use 2 part foam to create custom inserts for both drivers.

Hmmm...customer inserts...now that's a great idea....one for the wifey...one for me...

I guess I'll need to find a place where I can sit in these things. When Frey racing went away, I lost the one place I could touch all of this stuff. I'll be in Pomona, CA next weekend...any race shops that carry seats down there?

Bill P.

Werks II in Burbank has a bunch of seats, mostly Sparco, but it will give you a start. Burbank's not close to Pomona but if you're coming south on the 5 they're right off the freeway.

I agree with Chris and Andrew knows how to mold a seat to your complete body that then fits inside the Kirkey.

Andrew, where are you? Need your input.

Another option that is cheap and might help is the small velcro-fastened lumbar pads. Sparco makes 'em and others might as well. They are basically fabric-covered discs (or hexagons or whatever) that are foam filled and you can attach them to the points where you want a bit more support.

FWIW I got the Cobra Suzuka seats not too long ago and like 'em a lot; however, they are very tight and anybody much over 185lbs (or looking for streetable comfort) would need the GT/larger version. They are FIA-tagged kevlar shell seats; very strong and light.

Any of these race seats will be a challenge to mount on slidable rails and still have decent headroom AND race-acceptable strength; however, if you are happy w/ your Corbeau mounting currently then you should be fine w/ different seats of similar dimensions.

There is an inflatable lumbar support option for the Forzas - have you tried that?

Fiid.

I've got a Sparco seat in the race car. I have found it to be very comfortable. That is the seat that was in the car when I did the week long 2000+ mile cruise for the 914 O.A. Tour 2000. The next time I am in the market for a seat, I will look at the Sparco models first.

Bill - do any of the sanctioning bodies you are planning on running with require an additional seat back brace? I have seen some 2 driver cars that have a nifty set up that is permanetly attached to the seat and then has a pin system so that it can be quickly adjusted when the seat is moved forward for Doris to drive.

I was thinking of using foam to make custom seats for myself.... I saw a thing where they covered the person in a bag, and had them sit in the seat, with some foam pads, then put expanding foam in it and let it expand to your body, then get out, file/carve down the excess, and you have a seat molded to ya... But I lost time/intrest... lol


Iffin you do have a plan on sellin those seats... I have a needy car (iffin the price is right)... lol

Wow! Thanks guys Lotsa info.

Trying to find a seat that fits both Doris and I was a challenge. Believe it or not, the Corbeau Forza's fit us very well...they just don't give us lumbar support and I usually end up with a very stiff back on track days. Auto-x's are okay as we're in and out of the car alot.

The Sparco's look comfy, but maybe the Corbeaus with an upgraded model would be okay....man, I've got to find a place that has these things to try and sit in.

Thanks Everyone, and keep it coming!

Bill and Doris P.

Bill,
Wine Country Motorsports at Infineon, has several different seats you can sit in right in the store. Call them and ask what they have.

The Racer's Group may have some as well.

KT

Thanks Trekkor, I'll give them a call.

Bill P.

The most comfortable seat I've ever sat in, race car wise...
was the EVO and 2nd was the EVOII (slightly larger)

I've mounted them in a 944TS but never in a teener

brant

Hi Brant,

I've heard the EVO's are nice. Did it have it's own braces to mount to the car or did you fab your own?

Bill P.

Hey Bill, IO Port is where I got my Kirkeys, aren't they near you SF guys?
They are very comfy, even made an office chair out of one. Sat in that chair everyday for over three years now!

I like 'em lots, and multiple sizes are great. They'll help you measure yourself to get the right size, too!

Hi Sean,

Thanks for the tip. I didn't know I/O port was close to me. With all of the info I have, I now will go about putting my rear end into some seats.

I'll make some calls today.

Bill P.

yup, here it is:

In this 944T, my buddy bought an adaptor from paragon to mount them onto stock adjustable rails....

Oh.. one more thought (hope I'm not hijacking)
I was reading the club racing proposed rule changes last week....

The wording on one of their proposed rules was about seat back braces and it said: "On any metal or composite shelled seat"

I actually wanted clarification myself as in the past I have used a tube frame corbeau in my teener and it is not a "metal or composite shelled seat"

I never wrote national for clarification as I just bought a different seat for my new car, but it occured to me that PCA club racing may not accept any more tube framed seats in the future.....

something you may want to clarify with them if you end up going with a corbeau and give a damn about PCA club racings regs.....

(I had a sweat, and adjustable seat back brace when I used the corbeau that wrapped all the way around both sides of my old corbeau and was adjustable through the engine fire wall with a pin... but it weighed a ton, so I deleted it on my new car)

brant