Mounting Recaro's in a 993
04-02-2009 | 07:58 PM
#61
Drifting
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From: ..."RECALCULATING"
I am one of the dummy's who used the BK brackets. Had access to a drill press so making extra holes was not a problem. Actually the brackets were never an issue for me...but I installed Sparco EVO L and the width was a bit of an issue on the tunnel side. I did use Recaro sliders...NOT SPARCO. The BK brackets are solid. I can see the car getting completely totaled and those freakin' brackets will be the only thing left standing.
04-02-2009 | 08:12 PM
#62
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Yeah, they look to be about as wide as the SPG XLs, there are 2 things that really work against me w/ these seats, the seta depth is much bigger than something like a PP, 790 vs 710mm and my long legs.
Even w/ that you'd think the venders would have fiigured out what was necessary. I'm seriously thinking of having some made now that I know what #s are necessary and their geometry.
Even w/ that you'd think the venders would have fiigured out what was necessary. I'm seriously thinking of having some made now that I know what #s are necessary and their geometry.
05-04-2009 | 08:45 AM
#63
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Late update, Sucess at last!! I fianally got the Recaro sidemounts to work w/ the SPG XL seats and GT3 sub bar, it's actually a pretty good way to do it.
Now I just need to redo it w/ the aluminum ones.
The trick is to mount the sides ~3.5cm further back than design. This means all the holes need to be redrilled
You can see how much the rear hangs off when this is done
I'm debating w/ myself whether I should lop off the overhang, it's not doing anything but getting in the way.
Now I just need to redo it w/ the aluminum ones.
The trick is to mount the sides ~3.5cm further back than design. This means all the holes need to be redrilled
You can see how much the rear hangs off when this is done
I'm debating w/ myself whether I should lop off the overhang, it's not doing anything but getting in the way.
05-04-2009 | 11:52 PM
#67
Pro
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From: West Richland, WA
Congrats Bill, glad to see you finally got something working. Are those the same universal aluminum sides, 7214263.1 and 7214263.2 , that I started with (up for sale here Here)? It'd be nice to know that they will work for some folks in a 993 
05-05-2009 | 12:14 PM
#68
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Are those the same universal aluminum sides, 7214263.1 and 7214263.2
the Recaro box says 7207000
the stickers on the mounts say 730542.1/.2 and hand written sticker says 720700
Any one know more about this?
05-05-2009 | 01:28 PM
#69
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From: Tampa
Same brackets... This is probably REALLY late but here is how I buy brackets for seats in a 911. First, you need to know that the ON CENTER width of the rails is 16"s. You need to then compare the bucket width of the seat (there are so many now hard to keep track) to this 16"s. This will tell you how far out on each side you need to go. In some cases, you may be needing a straight 90 degree flat bracket like the Recaro Universal (widers seats get turned with bolts under seat, narrower seats have the bolts to the outside). In other cases, the standard brackets may work fine. Pain in the butt (as Bill knows), but no simple way to do it unless you have done that specific seat before. Now there is an idea for a sticky on the thread, or for P-car.com with that would be required brackets for various seats.
I just did Pole Position and SPG XL, Hans Pro Racer, Sparco Circuit Pro and Evo2.....
I just did Pole Position and SPG XL, Hans Pro Racer, Sparco Circuit Pro and Evo2.....
05-05-2009 | 01:51 PM
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Same brackets... This is probably REALLY late but here is how I buy brackets for seats in a 911. First, you need to know that the ON CENTER width of the rails is 16"s. You need to then compare the bucket width of the seat (there are so many now hard to keep track) to this 16"s. This will tell you how far out on each side you need to go. In some cases, you may be needing a straight 90 degree flat bracket like the Recaro Universal (widers seats get turned with bolts under seat, narrower seats have the bolts to the outside). In other cases, the standard brackets may work fine. Pain in the butt (as Bill knows), but no simple way to do it unless you have done that specific seat before. Now there is an idea for a sticky on the thread, or for P-car.com with that would be required brackets for various seats.
I just did Pole Position and SPG XL, Hans Pro Racer, Sparco Circuit Pro and Evo2.....
I just did Pole Position and SPG XL, Hans Pro Racer, Sparco Circuit Pro and Evo2.....
Though the Recaro aluminum work, I still think that I will design something better for my use.
The Speedware aluminum are nice because they use thicker sections, 4.8 vs 4mm for Recaro al. but they are flared out at the bottom(for strength) this interferes w/ the door sill harness attachment and have base flanges that are way too wide for seat bottom clearance. The hole heights and forward/backward o/s and rake are good
the bottom hole heights on the Recaro are great for my body dimensions(head room) and seat bottom clearance, but the Recaro stockholes combined w/ the forward o/s place the seat to far forward for my long legs(34" inseam) this can be solved by redrilling all new holes 35mm further forward in the sidemounts(unless your legs are longer than mine) and lopping off 35mm from the tail end
the BK 9066 front lowest hole height is still too high for my use and caused the seat to rake back and interfere w/ the rollbar, otherwise besides the difficulty of drilling/machining the the rear hole height and forward/backward o/s are good, again for my body size.
05-05-2009 | 08:05 PM
#71
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Never use the BKs UNLESS you are installing 996 Euro GT3s in a 993 (or older). The brackets are about 17 lbs each, harder metal than most drill bits, and never fit right. I use the aluminum Recaro brackets, and Recaro sliders (NEVER USE THE SPARCO SLIDERS. EVEN IF YOU ARE INSTALLING SPARCO SEATS. YOU WILL REGRET IT.) These fit like a glove, even with the wider Recaros seats. Piece of cake.
Why don't you like the Sparco sliders? I couldn't make the Recaro sliders work properly. The shop that built my cage, a very respected place, prefers using Sparco. After installing both the Recaro Pro Racer HANS seat, as well as the Pole Position, I can see why the Sparco sliders get the nod. However, I'd be interested in getting your take on them.
I posted this explanation in a prior thread that I started:
I also just installed the Recaro Pro Racer HANS seat and Pole Position seat (nabbed on Ebay for $350!!) What an ordeal that was; nothing like just plopping my old GT3 seats into the car. I used Sparco sliders for both seats. For the Pro Racer, I stuck with the Recaro side mounts but had to drill the rear mounting points to drop the seat height a bit. It made a one hell of a difference. I’m going to put spacers (3” and 4” diameters to spread the load) in between the seat and the side mounts to compensate for the narrower seat needing to fit the wider floor pan mounting points.
For the Pole Position, I used Sparco side mounts and had to cut away part of the rear ears to clear the seat belt holes. Thankfully, I have a chop saw with a metal cutting blade. BTW, the Sparco side mounts matched up perfectly for both the Pole Position and the Pro Racer. Additionally, keep in mind that you’ll have to cut the tubular Sparco seat release bar in half and insert a steel rod to lengthen the release to mate up with the 410mm wide stock floor pan mounts that the sliders must attach to. I ended up using JB Weld for the first time and have been very impressed with it, although it’s not in a very highly stressed application. The stuff was easy to work with and looks just like the seat other seat release that Piper properly welded up.
For the Pole Position, I used Sparco side mounts and had to cut away part of the rear ears to clear the seat belt holes. Thankfully, I have a chop saw with a metal cutting blade. BTW, the Sparco side mounts matched up perfectly for both the Pole Position and the Pro Racer. Additionally, keep in mind that you’ll have to cut the tubular Sparco seat release bar in half and insert a steel rod to lengthen the release to mate up with the 410mm wide stock floor pan mounts that the sliders must attach to. I ended up using JB Weld for the first time and have been very impressed with it, although it’s not in a very highly stressed application. The stuff was easy to work with and looks just like the seat other seat release that Piper properly welded up.
Last edited by Mark in Baltimore; 05-05-2009 at 08:51 PM. Reason: clarity
05-05-2009 | 08:52 PM
#73
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From: STL, MO
The Sparco's do work. I had a recaro slider on the driver's side and a sparco on the passenger.
There's less contact surface between the sparco and the sidemounts. Even though they're also double locking, you could always notice some play from the slider.
I sold the sparco, put the recaro slider on the passenger, and bolted the driver's seat to the rails.
BTW, I feel like I'm the only person who had a good experience using BK mounts with my pole positions.
There's less contact surface between the sparco and the sidemounts. Even though they're also double locking, you could always notice some play from the slider.
I sold the sparco, put the recaro slider on the passenger, and bolted the driver's seat to the rails.
BTW, I feel like I'm the only person who had a good experience using BK mounts with my pole positions.
05-05-2009 | 08:55 PM
#74
Drifting
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From: ..."RECALCULATING"
I had both Recaro and Sparco's in my hand. For me the difference was obvious in the play on the Sparcos. It wasn't bad, just relative to the Recaros I noticed a difference.
Bill - I did exactly the same thing as you for the sub mounts.
Bill - I did exactly the same thing as you for the sub mounts.