David 23

I need a drivers suit, and wondered what others were buying, and their thoughts on them. I'm in Texas, and it will be hot for much of the season. I tried a few on, and the high dollar suits sure felt lighter, and I am told are cooler as they breathe better. Do most people spring for the high end, or try to bargin hunt? Thoughts?

Mark in Baltimore

I have a Sparco Top 5 suit that is a very light, very nice off-the-shelf version. I believe the only one better is the Sparco X Lite suit which is even lighter and thinner. However, I was told by a number of Sparco dealers that the liner is very fragile and that they recommend not tying it around your waist or working on the car while wearing it. This made the X Lite far too fussy for me. I've been very happy with the Top 5 and recommend not cheaping out on your suit, as you will keep it for a while.

You're gonna sweat your butt off no matter what!

mooty

mark, thanx for the tip. i was about to buy xlight. but i also have heard it being fragile.

anyone else got rec?

kary993

Mark is right about the Xlite, you need to be careful with them. If any of you guys are interested in suit please check out my offering and pricing.

DJF1

I LOVE my Xtralight and I'm not so gentle with it... makes a huge difference to the point that at Sebring I felt cold in the car!
In the TX heat the Xtralight is for sure a great suit. Now working on the car etc, I would not do it with any suit. Who wants grease stains? Its so easy to get a pair of full light overalls and put them on top of your suit when you work on the carif you dont want to put on and off the suit. Plus you need with any suit knee pads to put on top as any suit do not have good relationship with the ground anyway.
I ordered a custom cheap suit, it was heavy, uncomfortable and extremely warm. I used it for a day and it will go on ebay. Waste of my money. I just feel the benefits of the xtra light in a warm climate like TX far outweight any cons or any extra care that you need to pay attention. For reference I also wear a Sparco Porshce Supercup suit that I got from the factory 4 years ago. Its a great suit but its warmer and heavier than the Xtra light. The cheap one I ordered was to save the supercup suit for race days, but having gone now to the Xtra light, there is no turning back.

David 23

Kary, if you have concerns about the fragilitiy of the Xtra lite, what is your rec? Is the Tech 5 still pretty light and cool? How does it compare/differ from the Top 5? Other suggestions? I am very concerned about the Texas heat, so coolness is a big factor. Your site offers a nice selection, rennlist member discount on a suit?

mooty

kary,

i went on your web site and sparco site as well. the descriptions of pro4, tech 5 etc are VAGUE at best. what exactly are the differenced b/n the various sparco suits that are above $1k?

thanks.

carreracup21

Sparco Xtralight is worth it, and mine seems to be holding up very well with gentle machine washings with woolight and hang drying. I have not found it very fragile and tie it around my waist all the time. Just go easy on the zipper and be gentle taking it off and on.

Ben L.

I am looking for a driving suit as well. Do Sparco offer custom fitting for the Tech 5 suit?

David 23

Perhaps I am over analyzing this, but the more research I do on different suits from various makers, the more confusing it gets. Sabelt offers a suit that is advertised as very lightweight, at about 60% the cost of the Sparco Xtralite. Alpinestar also offers a suit that touts new materials to make it very lightweight. It is hard to find a local vendor who supplies anything other than Sparco, so how does one evaluate the other brands? Northstar Motorsports seems to offer a wide selection of brands, I think I will call them and discuss their opinion. Gloves seem just as problematic. Perhaps a Rennlist sponsor could give some suggestions.

OGRacing

Sparco does offer custom fitting on the Tech 5. The upcharge is $175.00 and can be ordered through any of the authorized SparcoUSa distributors or dealers. At This time of year expect at least a 10 week delivery time frame. If you wait until Jan. then expect at least 12-14 weels for delivery. As long as a Sparco suit is purchased through a authorized by SparcoUSA dealer it will carry the usual warranty. If a Sparco suit is purchased through a "Grey Market" dealer, you are on your own if there are any problems with the suit. If you have any questions call or email us.

Bill Love

Juan Lopez

My experience, I have an OMP 3 layer which I bought some 9 years ago, is used frequently and washed (gentle cycle, woolite and hung dry). Still looks brand new but its a bit on the warm side.

I just got a GForce 3 layer (model 545) which I got for a fraction of my OMP, don't know about longevity yet but its really well built (stitches look much higher quality than my OMP), its very comfortable and inexpensive in racing supply terms.

With the savings in the suit you can go get yourself a fancy FAST or coolshirt system if you want to be cool.

FYI, You can get great deals at gforceoutlet.com

OGRacing

David
You will find that most of the European suit manufacturers are offering a"Light Weight" suit these days. I have looked and touched them all. They are all great products. Some will fit a little different then others. If you fall into the "average" size then they will all fit you fairly well. If you don't fit into an avarage size and want to go the custom route then look for a brand that is going to get a custom suit right the first time. In the 10+ years that I have been selling Sparco suits I have had only 2 that were not right the first time. And one of those was made to the measurements supplied but the customer had put on 15+ lbs after giving us the measurements. I feel that Sparco is the best product available in both product and support after the sale.

As far as the durability of the Sparco X-Light 300, we have found with proper care they are a great suit. As with any suit they should not be worn while working on a car. A driving suit is designed with one thing in mind. To protect the wearer in the event of fire. Don't ask it to be your coveralls as you slide under the car to fix an oil leak or change a half-shaft.

Gloves are almost harder to fit then suits. The best recommendation I can give on that is to try them on. Even within the same manufacturer, one style may fit you differently from another. The same holds true for helmets which are all changed every 5 years when we get the new Snell rating change.
If you have any questions email or call us.

Bill Love

A930Rocket

Not to hijack, but where can embroidery be done in the southeast? I want to have "Porsche" done on the back of my suit between the shoulders along with some other stuff.

OGRacing

Embroidery work can be done by the same places that do school team wear. Check your local yellow pages. They may have a source for Nomex. If in the Carolina area check with CV products in Thomasville. #336.472.2242.

Bill Love