Macca

Eduardo. What can I say. The brackets in the picture of Orthjoe and my picture are different no??

Ill find a picture of mine but they wont be good as I didnt take any specifically. They are the same as my 993 ones (aftermarket) however so will post picture of those also so you get the idea. The bold head comes out (transmission tunnel side you need to use small spanner and be careful, drop seat forward and tighten. Wasn't a big job about 15 mins labour charge each side? Thats how I believe the rake was changed on mine but to be honest was done after I left the car at the dealer for shipment to NZ and I never checked it when in NZ clearing the car on arrival (dont live in NZ so cant confirm right now)....

Macca

Ok Eduardo.

Firstly apologies to you and Orthojoe. I found a picture of my 991 GT3 seats. They are indeed the same as the 997 Spyder/GT2 ones for the side mounts.

I think I had confused myself with the side mounts on my 993 (also below in grey).

I then looked for my electronic invoice for the work done on the car in Zurich before shipping which included the fitment of 6 point hardness for driver side. Actually its in German. My wife translated it and it does not mention the seats being adjusted for rake even though this was requested so Im guessing it was not done.

Looking at Orthojoe picture I do wonder however if you couldnt just unbolt that front bolt lower the seat to the next "slot" and then tigten to reduce the rake (which is what I wanted done on mine not increase the rake - I have long legs and wanted more room for my Knees). There seems no reason you could not. Its effectively what the arrangement on my 993 is. Just an idea. If you want to increase rake it appears you need to use washers and perhaps a longer bold undher the front of the rails...

Anyway hoe that tidies that up. Essentially the seat it identical as far as we know to the style used in the 997 gen cars. The (incomplete) PET for GT3 would indicate by parts number the backs at least are the same. It also has page on the mystery "one piece bucket" seats but I dont know if you can determine if they are adjustable from this...

Z356

No problem, Macca! Once you adjust the rake of your gt2 type 'sport bucket seat' on your 991 gt3, let's revisit the issue of rake adjustability to see if it could be helpful to others at Rennlist with similar seats!

They better be...or it might not be acceptable to US DOT! If anyone here at Rennlist can check the PET for the seat of 918 Spyder (there are two similar seats: one for base and one - slightly lighter - for Weissach Package) to see if they are similar or the same. We know that the 918 Spyder drivers seat does adjust electrically up/down (perhaps tilt too!). In ROW (and hopefully North America soon), there is an option for the passenger 918 Spyder seat to adjust electrically as well. But even if the passenger seat is not adjustable due to placement of passenger side dash-mounted airbag, it's vital for the driver's seat to be adjustable on the fly (you would think to satisfy US DOT and National Highway Traffic Safety Administration)! We will know for sure as soon as PCNA tells us if this 918 type 'sport bucket seat' has been approved for the MY2015 gt3 RS and perhaps will be offered as optional seats for other 991/981 models sold by Porsche in the US!

Saludos,
Eduardo
Carmel



.

JasonAndreas

Happy Victoria Day!

Z356

Thanks, mate!

re: PET diagrams. A version of the sport bucket seats (driver's side) adjust electrically on the 918 Spyder. The passenger seat on the 918 is non-adjustable for height (standard) or, if you choose the option, electrically adjusted for height too! At least in ROW! We know the 918 seats adjust driver's side 'height' electrically because the 918 manual tells us so. Also because I adjusted mine that way during my 918 test drive at The Thermal Club in November of 2013!

In the 991 gt3 version of the 918-type 'sport bucket seat', the PET page does NOT mention anything 'electrically' related to the bucket seat's function! We know the gt3 version of the 918 sport bucket seats adjust back & forth (which is common to all sport bucket seats), including those in the expensive 918 Spyder. But does the 991 version offer a 'manual' adjustment for height/tilt, up & down? I don't see that 'ability' in the PET diagram Macca has supplied us with. Does anyone else interpret both of these PET diagrams (918 & 991 gt3) differently?

Saludos,
Eduardo
Carmel, CA

.

Macca

Eduardo is it just me or has PET become very vague with difficult to understand diagrams in the latest generation. It seems very incomplete in parts too. Maybe Im just to used to 14 years of 993 PET or the version we are looking at are missing information or maybe its a function of the fact that in the new cars many things are complete assemblies and in the old cars you can order just about every part of any assembly individually?

On the one piece bucket seat question - I would not be surprised if the GT3 has a non electric seat for ROW. In true terms a pukka sport bucket seat (think Recaro, Halo etc) should be light and sturdy and easily adjustable in the case of power failure and exit. The electrics will add weight, complexity and the chance of failure. I know in friends 7.2 RS they have fixed buckets with nomex covering as its supposed to be a serious track car. Just thinking aloud although I appreciate with legislative changes the US may require the adjustability...

I for one was very pleased with the folding buckets. I have full one piece lightweight CF buckets in my 993 for the last 20,000 miles and they are great but the folding allows me to get my gear bags in the back of the GT3 with the half cage which is really difficult in the 993 with its Heigo half cage.

reidry

Eduardo,

Have you made any inquiries to see if these are becoming available for MY2015 GT3s in North America? I have an email into Melissa, but have not received a response.

Ryan

Z356

Ryan: Here is what I think. The question of if & when PCNA will be able to offer a US DOT compliant 'sport bucket seat' in our market is a closely guarded secret! So is the decision as to what 991/981 models this 918-type 'sport bucket seat' will be allowed to be ordered in...assuming the new 'sport buckets' get final US DOT approval!

All we know now is that it's scheduled to appear on the MY2015 gt3 RS according to several sources, including conversations I had with Detlev von Platen in Stuttgart in April of 2013. Even if it appears on that model in a few months time, there is no guaranty that it will be made available on MY2015 base gt3's. PAG/PCNA might decide to keep these 'sport buckets' proprietary to the RS for one model year (2015) to highlight the RS's purported race track orientation!

Questions: Will these seats be allowed on later production US MY2015 base gt3's? Will it be offered in the future on the face lifted US .2 991 'gts' in MY2016? Will it be offered on the upcoming US .2 981 Cayman gt4 or Spyder RS? The answer to all of these questions is: 'We don't yet know!' What we appear to know is that PAG is getting ready to offer the 918-type 'sport bucket seat' in the European/ROW gt3 base starting in calendar year 2014. It appears to be fixed, so it doesn't tilt forward like the gt2-type seat. And we don't yet know if this 'sport bucket seat' adjusts up & down or tilt via manual or electrical means. That is all we know to date...very little.

My gut feeling is that neither PAG nor PCNA is presently willing to discuss this subject in public right now. We don't know even if US DOT has approved the new 918-type 'sport bucket seat' for the 991 gt3 RS or any other Porsche model...besides the 918 Spyder! So I don't expect Melissa to tell you or us anything concrete on the subject at this time. If they decide to go public with news of the 'sport buckets' for the US, I think the announcement will be made by someone like Detlev von Platen at an important US event...like the PCA Parade in Monterey in a few week's time! Lord only knows the question will be put to him by several people, including yours truly. And I wouldn't be surprise if they still play coy and give a generic 'wait until we are ready to announce it' kind of reply! Until the fog is lifted, PCNA doesn't want anyone considering a gt3 or gt3 RS to delay ordering or taking delivery of a car because that customer wants to wait until the 'sport bucket seats' are available. So their likely strategy is to keep things pretty 'foggy' until the cat is out of the bag...and they know for sure what they plan to do with this bucket seat re: the North American market. My dos centavos, for what it's worth.

Saludos,
Eduardo
Carmel, CA

Z356

As I mentioned at another thread on this forum, the latest news on the 'sport bucket seat' is that US DOT has not yet approved the height adjustable passenger version for early production '918 Spyders'*. Let me state clearly that we don't know if that has any impact on a similar-looking 'sport bucket seats' that we (or at least I am!) are expecting to see on the US market 991 gt3 RS when that model is finally announced! That is where & when I hope to see the 918-type 'sport bucket seat' first offered on a US model from Porsche. If those 918-type 'sport bucket seats' get approval for the MY2015 gt3 RS in the US, it's just a question of time before you will see them offered in other 'sport' oriented 991's like the gt3 and upcoming 'gts' models!

The hang-up with US DOT re: the optional to the 918 Spyder's height adjustable 'sport bucket seat' on the passenger side (according to my analysis) is related to the 'coverage' of the dash-mounted airbag on that model. It obviously works as the US authorities would like in a fixed position. But it throws them a curve when that seat can be adjusted up or down or tilted, as the optional height adjustable passenger 'sport bucket seat' would be able to do!

That could easily be US DOT's problem too with 'safety envelope' of either the 991 or 981 cabin as it relates to this 918-type of 'sport bucket seat'. But if it is just that, PAG could offer us the same solution: adjustable 'sport bucket' on driver's side and fixed 'sport bucket' on passenger's side. We just don't know at the moment anything - including if even the driver's 'sport bucket seat' is approved for any 991 by US DOT authorities!

From a practical point of view, it doesn't matter with regards its availability as an 'option' to the US MY2015 gt3. It appears that PCNA has made the decision to offer the 918-type 'sport bucket seat' (if approved) first on the MY2015 gt3 RS, then make the 'sport bucket seats' available in other models like the 991 gt3, 991 gts, 981 gts, etc. So it doesn't seem likely that these 'sport bucket seats' -- which have just been announced as an option in European MY2015 991 gt3's -- will be offered on the US MY2015 gt3's expected to be built this Fall, even if you assume the seats have already been DOT approved.

Saludos,
Eduardo
Carmel

*I am hopeful this could change, but PCNA is less optimistic than I am. In emails to 918 customers, they have been saying something like 'we will not have the adjustable passenger seat at any point in the US'. That sounds pretty definitive.

Jon70

The lack of the gt2 seats resulted in my passing on the 2014 gt3 which was fortuitous given the engine issues. I have since switched to trying for an RS. If the seats aren't in the US RS I'm definitely going to pass again.

There are once piece buckets in the 650S offered as an option and the huracan as well. I'm hopeful the 918 seats will be in the GT variants soon.

JasonAndreas

Is PAG applying for some sort of waiver? The DOT/NHTSA does not approve seats or anything else (brake lines, tires, etc.) for that matter. They write performance standards and the manufacturer certifies a specific automobile containing that part, to the various FMVSS. Those certifications would have taken place long before the 918 went into production. And for the most part Porsche would have known back when the seat was designed...


see above...

You can always order the seats separately and have them installed post-delivery.

Jon70

That's what I did on my 997.1 RS. I don't want to go through the process of spending that kind of money on seats again and storing the originals. I can't imagine what a set of 918 seats will cost, but I'm guessing at least 20k.

Mike in CA

Good grief, I hope not. I'm sure they will be spendy, but please, not that much....

JasonAndreas

The seats are in the price list but I don't see any prices.

918.521.905.00 (L)
918.521.906.01 (R) I560

rijowysock

i would kill for those or the folding carbon ones from 997.

wow those are so sexy

$50 says we'll never get either