Solution for extended front seat legroom
#1
Addict
Rennlist Member
Rennlist Member
Thread Starter
Solution for extended front seat legroom
Johzev posted about seat rail extensions he had made for his 993 awhile back. I contacted him and he offered to bring his car to the fabricator for measurements to make another set. Which he did. Really nice of him
The guy who made them is Ron Mack. Really nice guy. No affiliation, etc. Quality work.
Ron fabricated a seat rail extension bar that you bolt to the floor of the car and uses the new holes to mount the seat. Gain about 1.5 inches in seat travel.
If you're interested, Ron's contact info is R.P. Mack Motorsports. Office # 616-844-4162. Email is rpmack_427@hotmail.com.
On one of the picsl below, the red mark is where the seat is attached to the bottom of the car via the seat rails. The blue mark is the rear most mounting hole for the seats without the seat rail extensions.
Pics below:
The guy who made them is Ron Mack. Really nice guy. No affiliation, etc. Quality work.
Ron fabricated a seat rail extension bar that you bolt to the floor of the car and uses the new holes to mount the seat. Gain about 1.5 inches in seat travel.
If you're interested, Ron's contact info is R.P. Mack Motorsports. Office # 616-844-4162. Email is rpmack_427@hotmail.com.
On one of the picsl below, the red mark is where the seat is attached to the bottom of the car via the seat rails. The blue mark is the rear most mounting hole for the seats without the seat rail extensions.
Pics below:
#4
Race Car
Hey Chuck. Why would a short guy like you be interested in those?!
Chuck, if you have installed them, do you notice any improved or reduced headroom? I am fine in my car unless I wear a helmet. Haven't brought this car to the track yet, but would like to someday.
Thanks!
Chuck, if you have installed them, do you notice any improved or reduced headroom? I am fine in my car unless I wear a helmet. Haven't brought this car to the track yet, but would like to someday.
Thanks!
#5
Drifting
Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: South Bay, Los Angeles
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Further back you go, less head room you get. I'm 6'3." Ax me how I know.
On the driver's side, I have the tracks in the stock position, seat all the way back, then blipped forward just a smidge to prevent end-of-travel jamming.
In making the drive cable repair on the passenger side, I learned that the grease on the long seat screws tends to bunch up at the ends of its travel, mostly at the rear. This grease hardened to a plastic-like consistency over time, making it tough for the motor to literally pull your *** out of the muck. After cleaning it all off, I resisted the urge to put any heavy grease back on, so I think a just used some WD40 or maybe white lithium spray.
I did move the passenger seat track to the rear holes because:
1) legroom is worse over there than on driver's side
2) there's a better chance that the passenger won't leave it all the way at the end of the travel causing it to jam up again...in 13 years!
On the driver's side, I have the tracks in the stock position, seat all the way back, then blipped forward just a smidge to prevent end-of-travel jamming.
In making the drive cable repair on the passenger side, I learned that the grease on the long seat screws tends to bunch up at the ends of its travel, mostly at the rear. This grease hardened to a plastic-like consistency over time, making it tough for the motor to literally pull your *** out of the muck. After cleaning it all off, I resisted the urge to put any heavy grease back on, so I think a just used some WD40 or maybe white lithium spray.
I did move the passenger seat track to the rear holes because:
1) legroom is worse over there than on driver's side
2) there's a better chance that the passenger won't leave it all the way at the end of the travel causing it to jam up again...in 13 years!
#6
Race Car
#7
Rennlist Member
Unfortunately I don’t think there is an easy answer to the headroom problem. These cars just were not built for tall guys…. I’m 6'4 and we had to go to great extremes to get the car to fit me...
Race seat, which sits an inch lower than stock seats
No sliders, lowers another half inch
Cutout the seat mounting “towers” (the part of the chasis the seats mount to) and fabricated new lower profile ones. +1.5 inches
Remove sunroof, +1 inch
All of that and I still only have an inch or so clearance between the top of my helmet and the roof (at the highest point).. So what is that, 4 inches lower? The funny part is my wife sits in it an looks like a kid, she can’t see over the dash…
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#8
seat/headroom
Here's what worked for me (6'6")
1. removed the seat
2. turned it upside down
3. took off the spring connectors toward the rear of the seat that hold the seat springs side to side to each other
4. pulled the two or three inner springs outward or down if sitting about 1/2" - so there is a gap between the spring and foam at the butt part of the seat - I didn't want to pull too far and have the leather stretch too much.
5. reinstalled to the rear holes
Now I have enough headroom with helmet.
I tried this before a DE and an autocross last month and it worked great. I wish I had taken pictures.
1. removed the seat
2. turned it upside down
3. took off the spring connectors toward the rear of the seat that hold the seat springs side to side to each other
4. pulled the two or three inner springs outward or down if sitting about 1/2" - so there is a gap between the spring and foam at the butt part of the seat - I didn't want to pull too far and have the leather stretch too much.
5. reinstalled to the rear holes
Now I have enough headroom with helmet.
I tried this before a DE and an autocross last month and it worked great. I wish I had taken pictures.
#9
Addict
Rennlist Member
Rennlist Member
Thread Starter
Bill W-Have drivers side installed. I have a stripped bolt on the passenger side and will work on that this weekend. The difference is definitely noticeable and more comfortable. Wish I had this done for the AR drive. Ron provides all the hardware too. Better quality than the stock mounting bolts. As someone once said on here, the stock ones seem to be made of some kind of cheese.
Chuck W-Ron's a really nice guy. His work is very good quality.
Patrick-it didn't do much for headroom. I couldn't get in my car with a helmet anyway so it didn't make much difference to me. I can just fit my hand between my head and the top of the roof with the seat all the way back now. I wish I had put a level on the stock seat mounting before I did the install. It seems that the front is slightly higher than the rear but I'm not sure about that. I'll check on the other side.
Now, if I can just get my A8 seats back from the shop, I'll be all set!
chuck
Chuck W-Ron's a really nice guy. His work is very good quality.
Patrick-it didn't do much for headroom. I couldn't get in my car with a helmet anyway so it didn't make much difference to me. I can just fit my hand between my head and the top of the roof with the seat all the way back now. I wish I had put a level on the stock seat mounting before I did the install. It seems that the front is slightly higher than the rear but I'm not sure about that. I'll check on the other side.
Now, if I can just get my A8 seats back from the shop, I'll be all set!
chuck
#10
Former Vendor
Production Grade Seat Extenders
I am new to the Rennlist and see that there are many tall drivers, like me, who are searching for a solution to being tall.
I created a production grade solution 4 years ago for many other vehicles and recently have completed the 996 and 997 seat brackets.
ExtendMyseat.com fabricates DIY seat extenders that give you up to 3" in additional legroom without drilling, grinding or welding. A simple 30 minute installation. Please PM me if you have any questions.
I would appreciate any suggestions from the forum on how to spread the word to all of the Porsche drivers.
I created a production grade solution 4 years ago for many other vehicles and recently have completed the 996 and 997 seat brackets.
ExtendMyseat.com fabricates DIY seat extenders that give you up to 3" in additional legroom without drilling, grinding or welding. A simple 30 minute installation. Please PM me if you have any questions.
I would appreciate any suggestions from the forum on how to spread the word to all of the Porsche drivers.
#12
Former Vendor
dryfly57, yes! We would be very interested in completing the 993.
We were lucky enough to have a client drop his 996 off at our warehouse for a few days so we could complete the fabrication and engineering. We in exchange, gave the client a rental car and a free set of the production brackets.
If you are located in Los Angeles or know anyone in the area, we would be happy to assist in creating a solution for the 993.
Griff
We were lucky enough to have a client drop his 996 off at our warehouse for a few days so we could complete the fabrication and engineering. We in exchange, gave the client a rental car and a free set of the production brackets.
If you are located in Los Angeles or know anyone in the area, we would be happy to assist in creating a solution for the 993.
Griff