bluetick

The left side bolster on my factory driver side sport seat is down to the metal frame on my '79 911SC, so I need to do something about it. I am leaning towards getting two new front seats rather than reupholstering these.

Last weekend, I participated in my first HPDE and had a tremendous time. I am quite sure I am addicted. I am thinking my next move should be a harness bar and 5 point safety belts up front. So I need to decide what to do about seats. I am interested in a racing seat for the driver side. However, I don't want to lose access to the rear compartment (I use the car for DD and occasional touring/road trips), so I am wondering if a touring type seat that could accommodate a five point harness would be suitable for the passenger side when paired with a racing seat.

I could see myself one day moving the car more exclusively towards track use, but that would presumably be a long ways off.

Do any of you have a similar setup (race seat with a touring seat) that you are happy with? Any wisdom and guidance would be appreciated.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/25594320@N06/6970587827/

masterdave

I will speak more to the touring side of things as thats most of what i do in my Porsche's. I have a 944 with the sport seats and a 911 with the regular seats. I like both but have found the sport seats a bit irritating on long drives. They are nice but they take some getting used to. They are good to sit in but take a bit more work to get in and out of. They hold you tighter in the turns than the stock seats. If you are serious about tracking the car there are many bucket seat options you should look in to. IMO it all comes to what you find comfortable. The sport seats hold you better but if you are a wider person they can get uncomfortable. The stock seats are more generally comfortable but dont hold you as well. If you are looking in to options try and find people that have all the seats and see if you can go for a ride in there car. You will then be able to see what different seats are like under actual driving conditions, this will help you make a better decision as to what to do.

Regards
Dave

wildcat077

The best advice is to go to a shop that carries different brands and models and give it a seat of the pants test !
I settled on Sparco Evo's after sitting in some Cobras,OMP's and Recaros.I find my Evo's to be comfortable even on 200 km trips and it takes 30 seconds to remove the four allen bolts holding them to the side brackets if i need to put something large in the back seat ... although with the roll bar large things are a thing of the past for me ...

By looking at the lean of your car,i would suggest you start on the suspension first before you invest in some new seats,it will make a world of difference !

Cheers !
Phil

bluetick

Thanks for the tips. As for the lean - the second owner is a former ALMS mechanic and a GT1 R champion as a driver. He knows this car like the back of his hand, although he hasn't driven it hard in years. I'll definitely show him the photos I have from the track and get his input regarding the suspension. But afaik, there's no reason other than possibly funds that I can't address the seats and the suspension at the same time.

In the meantime, I need to explore trying out some seats. I did sit in a Sparco race seat at the aforementioned previous owner's It seemed comfortable enough, although the bolsters in the seat bottom would take some getting used to.

Regards,
Scott

Steve Weiner-Rennsport Systems

Hi Scott,

As a Recaro dealer, my best advice to people is to sit in as many seats as you can and a DE event is a good place to do that.

Everyone's "personal geometry" is different and thats why there are so many seats to choose from. I always ask for one's dimensions (height, weight, waist size & inseam) to point someone in the right direction for the best fitment.

bluetick

Thanks Steve. That's a good suggestion.

bluetick

Phil, on the suspension subject - I sent the second owner the pic and asked about the lean. His response:

"Looks as if you are trying hard. Good job. The inside front would literally be off of the ground if the rear roll stiffness was way of. That is pretty darn good for a street car."

I am hoping he'll be my instructor at a PCA DE in a couple of months, and I'll see what he thinks then.

wildcat077

You're going to love doing DE's with your car !
I'm addicted hook ,line and sinker ... lol

You don't want to know how much money i spent and how many upgrades i did
on my car since i started playing on the track with it !

Trust me,the seat of your pants will tell you if you need more suspension

Cheers !
Phil