I was thinking of getting a set of ROW (rest of world) seats from Carnewel if I could confirm the passenger airbag light stuff, and heard they are now history and indeed it looks like they are out of stock at Carnewel carbon buckets

I got a pair stateside at Porsche Ontario for a great price $11501 and they are U.S. spec. It's slightly lower at get porsche parts dot com at $11,190

With a used pair selling yesterday for $12,000 including fees on BAT auction I figure I can use these for free and save my Sofas.


There was only one pair in the USA, and in Germany there are 14 driver side and 7 passenger side. That's it.

 

Suncoast hasn't had the buckets on their website for at least 6 months now. Maybe even a year so you did good finding a set. Price is outrageous but that's how it goes with hard to find sought after things. Oddly enough, the buckets in my GTS was a detriment rather than an expensive upgrade when I had my car up for sale about a year or so ago. "Do you have the stock seats" was just about the standard first question.

The guy who bought my -09 launch C4S which came with the buckets from the factory had it all figured out though. He liked the seats but with a bad back they just didn't work for him. He bought the car anyway, sourced a set of regular stock seats (not sure which ones he ended up with) for $2,000 and then sold the buckets for $7,500 (4 years ago). So $5,500 in his pocket instead of passing on the car because of the seats like so many did with my GTS.

 

I noticed that the seats that sold on BAT didn't have the holes for the crotch belts. (My seats have them - and I use them for 5 point harness driver and passenger)
I didn't know that these seats come in "different flavors"

 

Yea I can see that. They are not comfortable to many people, and if you are a big person it may already be hard to get in and out of a 911 or Cayman. They might even give me a backache! We'll find out and if it doesn't work out no big deal. I think that with Porsche no longer making them I can sell them later if I choose. There are plenty of 911/Cayman/Boxster owners out there that would want them.

I think Suncoast still has them listed here GT2 seats

 

does that mean mine are worth more, or less?

 

Unless you're really big and/or have back issues I don't think you'll have any problems. I'm 6'3" and 192 lbs and they fit me like a glove. Very comfortable to me. Even my wife likes them. She says they feel like they hug her. We've done 300 mile road trips in them. No problems or discomfort. A little different to get in and out of for sure but you'll develop your method and it becomes a non issue in short order. You kind of have to drop into them rather than sliding into them because of the tall bolsters.

But I think my wife nailed it. Those bolsters makes it feel like the seat hugs you. Like you become part of the car rather than just sitting down in it. But if you don't like them, like you said they should be very easy to get rid of for good money. And looks like Suncoast has them back on their website. I haven't been able to find them there for quiet some time now. Only reason I was looking was to get a current price reference since believe it or not I had some people who asked if I would consider swapping my buckets for whatever they had when I had my car up for sale. They've gone up in price since the last time I saw them at Suncoast.

Oh....if you decide to keep them, get some kind of bolster protector. Those tall bolsters will show wear quickly no matter how careful you are getting in and out. Lots of options on these: https://www.google.com/search?source...w=1920&bih=938

 

This news is no bueno. I'm seeking a pair of black CBs. If anyone knows of any, please PM me.

 

Well I'm 5'7" and 148lbs.

Rather than a protector maybe I'llstash away a replacement bolster for the driver's side. A little more money ($450 retail) but then you don't worry. Bolster

 

I may be wrong on this, but aren’t many if not most Oem parts discontinued after 10 years has passed from final production? I had a friend in bmw USA corporate who told me something to that effect happening as a general practice. Could be wrong…could be that it doesn’t apply to Porsche. At least until the car is old enough to qualify as a classic…then the factory may resu,Ed parts support more comprehensively.

again, could be wrong…just wondering.

 

Won’t the 991 buckets (or folding buckets) fit the 997? It was also slightly cheaper last time I checked. Main difference seems to be in the seat back cushions 2 vs 3 piece.

 

Easily the best option if you don't mind the extra cost. I've tried three different protectors now and neither one has been a really good fit. They work but you have to keep putting them in place as they slide out of position. The worst ones were the first Recaros I bought. Quick to say that going by the pictures it looks like they have a redesigned option now that looks more "stable".

Other than that the seats should be a good fit for you. As I'm sure you know, the only adjustment for them is forward and aft. No up or down or tilting backwards or forward. But there are ways of fixing whatever you may not be happy with using washers/brackets to the seat mounts to raise them or change to whatever driving position you want.

 

This is what I did. My bolster looks ok for now, but wanted to be ready for future if something happened. Took about 4 months, but my local dealer got the stone grey one I needed. It is a made to order item from Germany. This was last summer BTW

 

Great seats, they just sit too high, otherwise I'd absolutely want a set for myself. 991 fixed back buckets (also known as the 918 seats) sit much lower. I really wanted to be able to get the 997 folding buckets to work for me though, because they transform the driving experience of the car. But I'm not willing to take an $8k risk, back when that was pricing, let alone a $12k risk on a set to try and modify them with the lowering brackets or thinner foam just to find out they don't work. At that price or just a bit more, I'm getting a set of the 997 GT3 ROW (CGT) seats.

 

The only thing I can say is that Sport Buckets were a $4k option on my car. They are probably the only bargain that PAG/VWAG offered.

 

Long shot but is it possible that the 997 buckets you sat in that felt too high felt that way because the seat mounts had been modified for someone who felt the factory configuration was too low? I say this because like you, I like to sit low and the height is just right for me in stock configuration. As I've said in previous threads on the subject, I would like a little more tilt backwards but I compensate for that by sliding a bit forward in the seat and it comes close enough rather than messing around with the seat mounts.

I've also read some posts here from shorter people who complained that there was no upward adjustment so some may have made adjustments to the seat mounts. Again, I'm 6'3" and 192 lbs. When seated, the bottom of the top of the steering wheel is right at the top edge of the tach gauge if that makes any sense.

As for the buckets transforming the driving experience of the car, worth repeating and can't be overstated. I guess that's Porsche's justification for the price they're asking for them.