AudiOn19s

Something to think about when figuring cost.

The factory Recaros come with direct bolt-in sliders, side mounts and floor mounts. They literally bolt in just like your factory units. Their price seems high but when you realize you're getting the whole solution in one package it's not AS bad of a deal anymore. (esp if you're picking up a pair of second hand factory seats)

With the Corvette units, at minimum you'll have to get different floor mounts to get them to work in your car adding to their cost.

I think you can buy Leather Recaro pole positions for less money than those corvette seats though. Same bucket as the GT3 seat just not the big "ears" at the top of the seat plus you're certain it's an FIA certified unit. Or you could even go cloth, I think the cloth Pole Positions are like $800 per....but again you need sliders and floor mounts so it all adds up in the end.

If you're OK with non-certified seats (everyone has a different comfort level here) there are much more reasonably priced solutions, some which bolt right in to your GT3 like the factory seats would. I think the Maxspeed replica euro seats were like $1700-1800 a pair in "leather" with sliders, side mounts and floor mounts included.

LVDell

Excellent point that I think most of us forgot to figure in as well. So now the replicas are roughly the same price as the real deal seats. Makes that decision easy

joeycannoli

Tell me about it... I paid more for a used set

CT03911

I just got an email back from the owner John. They do not have any safety data and there wasn't a lot of clarity responding to my question regagrding mounting hardware for a GT3 at the same price.
Pretty much puts that to bed for me.

Serge944

Just wait for a set of used OE seats to come up for $2500.

cfjan

Dennis, is there a reason why your friend must have the Porsche seats? No Recaro / Sparco / etc. for him?

Rob S

After a six month search for used cloth, GT3 Club Sport seats, I recently purchased a pair of Sparco Evo seats, with the appropriate side mounts, sliders and seat brackets. Though the factory seats have a nice "ring" to them, upon a closer look, I felt that they didn't provide as much support as I had originally thought. And given the uptick in the price for used the factory seats, plus my nearly exclusive focus on the track, it made sense to buy these new for more than $1000 less than a pair of used factory seats.

I considered the Pole Postions as well, but the holes for the shoulder harness were too low in the seat for a proper fit (for me) -- and I'm not all that tall. I hear that's a common complaint with that seat. In the Recaro line, the standard Profi SPG (which is equivalent to the Sparco Evo) was better in that regard. Of course the SPG XL is designed for still larger and taller drivers, as is the Sparco Evo 2. My understanding is that the factory GT3 Club Sport seats have a fit that is about halfway between the standard and larger Recaro/Sparco line seats.

Rob

911SLOW

Rob please make sure that the sliders you bought if not Porsche/Recaro OEM are suitable for mounting the seat belt to the side mounts.
FYI the Recaro standard double sliders are not.

CT03911

Cfjan, the guys I know who are looking like the leather GT3 seats best.
They rarely come up used anymore so I was looking around when I heard about Caravaggio.
I know there are some nice looking and good performing cloth options out there and priced right.

Rob S

In my case, the lap belts do not load the sliders (which are made by Sparco by the way) or the side mounts. The belts clip to ears on a substantial, custom steel seat frame that's bolted directly to the floor at the factory location. The sliders are then bolted to the top to that frame. Now... whether that steel frame and belt attachment ears are up to the belt load carrying task or not, I'm not sure, and I may investigate further now that you raise the issue, but that bracket was built for that very purpose. I always have the option of attaching the seat belt to the factory seat belt locations as well.

Thanks for raising the question, though. I'll check it out.

Rob

911SLOW

You are welcome, it was one of the issues I recently faced installing the new seats.

My target was to mount them using the recaro sliders which although are not on par with the oem ones are indeed thinner and allow the seat to be positioned closer to the floor as they don't have the handle protruding like the oem handle does.

If you have sliders then in order to have the lap belts correctly positioned for all heights of drivers and all seat's positions then they should move together with the seat.
That only means using the side mounts above the rails as attachment points for the lap belts .
Then Recaro told me that this is not allowed as the recaro sliders can't handle the load / are not tested..

So I dropped them and decided to put the seats in the floor directly. Then I had again a million problems with some Brey brackets that I bought that needed a lot of work in order to fit properly..

But no complaints.. Once you come out of the reservation of tested factory products you should be prepared to mod the mods you buy.. I like playing with tools. All I need now is more time : )

Rob S

John,

I can understand why this might be true for a truly optimized fit, but isn't the original 3-point harness in the GT3 (and most other cars) anchored to the floor such that it does not move with the seat? That's what I've usually seen for aftermarket six-point harness installations too. Do you feel it's really necessary to have the lap belt attached such that it moves with the seat?

I'll likely be the only driver of my car anyway, so as long as it fits me properly in my seating position, I'll be okay. But regardless of fit, it's important that the anchor point, on the floor or elsewhere, be strong enough to carry the potential belt load.

Apologies to the OP for taking this thread a bit off topic for some good discussion about seats and mounting.

Rob

911SLOW

In the GT cars with bucket seats from the factory the 3p or 6p belts are mounted on the seat's side mounts not on the pillar..




Also from Shroth's instructions re lap belts:

"Lap Belt Routing (applies to all restraint types)

To achieve optimal restraining function – lap belt strap length must be as short as possible. This requirement can be achieved by following the instructions set forth below:

· Distance between the lap belt anchor points should not be greater than the width of occupant’s pelvis or the outer width of the occupant’s bucket seat. The distance of approximately 400 mm [16”] is recommended. If there are choices of several anchor points choose those that come the closest to these recommendations.

· Lap belt straps must be routed over the pelvic bone to stay firmly and tightly in the crest between the pelvic bone and the upper thigh.

· Lap belt downward angle should be approximately 60° measured from the horizontal, passing through the occupant’s hip joint. This is the suggested angle for upright seating [15-20° backrest declination]. A higher backrest declination, e.g. 30° – 40°, as is common in open wheel race cars, requires a belt angle of 70° – 80°.

· Make sure there are no sharp edges [seat structure, seat mounts, chassis] that may tear or cut the lap belt webbing."




For an average height driver using the b pillar as a mounting point for one of the lap belts and with a sleeve or spacer allowing the lap belt to pivot would be ok, but there is a chance a shorter person, driving with the seat in a forward position, or a tall person driving with the seat in a custom aft position, would exceed the above mentioned guidelines.

Also I don't know what is the impact of having one lap belt considerably shorter than the other..

food for thought..