bpu699

Just curious... I know they are good for 5 years, then need a seat brace...

I understand the concern about weaking over time due to UV exposure... but realistically, bet most of these cars never see more than 100 hours of sunlight a year, if that.

I know the seats likely degrade over time, as does everything else. I also understand that its a legal CYA to say there is a 5 year limit, and that limit is set by the FIA. Some of the new seats apparently can go 10 years?

Ok, with that preface...

Do they test 6 year old seats? 10 year old seats? 15 year old seats?

Anyone ever see a failed FIA seat? I searched the net and couldn't find one mentioned anywhere... (I did see some Moanco seats were recalled due to faulty seat mounts a couple years ago)...

The manufacturers state that their seats often pass a 70G test... FIA requires 25G... So even with degradation, huge safety spread there. And, most folks wouldn't survive a 70G accident anyway...

Also, just curious... a 70G accident for a 70KG human is 5000KG, or about 12,000 lbs. That's about 3 regular cars...

Now, I have a really hard time imagining any FIA seat I have ever seen hold up 3 Porsche 911's or equivilant hanging off its back support...

Heck, I cant even imagine It holding 1 911 dangling off the back...

Am I misunderstanding what they mean when they say the seats will survive a 70g crash???

mark kibort

The rules are meant to protect racers from the lowest common denominator. (picture your race car, is a open racer, sitting in the back yard in the sun, 365 days a year!) 5 years is the rule, as it is for many other components. are my Belts bad after 3-5 years. The way i store them and care for them, hardly.. my helmet, never being dropped, Snell 2000, is it bad after 10 years? certainly not. I think there is a little corruption in the industry to force racers to swap out perfectly good and safe equipment after only a few years. so, we all had to buy $500+ helmets in 2010.
But, it is what it is. one of the good things they did was to say that as far as seats go, if you have an FIA Seat, after 5 years, you can indefinitely use it after 5 years, with a seat back brace. the seats ability to hold you in place is not only on the seat itself, but the belts coupled to the roll cage and floor. I was in a 100mph crash when i got hit by a lapped car. at a 45degree impact the side bolster cracked my ribs. any harder, and it might have been worse.
Now, were my belts marked "bad" by nasa, scca officals after the crash? no, i was free to use them again. THAT is something that should be checked and performed after high impact crashes. (but they are not... so a little hypocracy in the system)
sometimes its better if things fail under high force, to reduce the force on the body. Im not saying a used seat is the best way to go, but i doubt that the strength over time is weakened much at all. Ironically, the racing associations are more worried about the seats than the mounting brackets and hardware, for which in most crashes, seems to be the most common point of failure.

bpu699

Mark, appreciate the thoughtful response...

I was pondering the question as my seats are expired (look like new, yada, yada) and I plan to do lots of HPDE this year...

My understanding from a prior post, is that for HPDE, with expired seats, a seat support is NOT required...

So, now the question comes up, is it better to add one or not, as its optional. And the answer to that question is based on the integrity of the seat...

Clearly 5 years is fine. Also, clearly, the seat isn't substantially weaker 5 years and 1 day later... its an arbitrary cut off...

Watching FIA seat tests on you tube, these seats "give" a lot in a rear impact. Probably 6 inches or so... That seems like a great safety feature...

Lots of threads all over the net about whether or not putting a back brace to a seat not designed for one is a good idea... don't really want to rehash that...

What I think is curious, is the question, of what percentage of its original function does an FIA seat have at 5,10,15 years?

Like you said, I bet its pretty good. I just couldn't find even one anecdotal reference to a failed FIA seat on the internet. Figured if it happened, someone would have posted it...

Many of these seats are fiberglass/Kevlar...

Figured some educated guesses from all on the remaining strength might be fun... and educational...

Of course its better just to buy a new seat every 5 years. But one could then also argue that its even better to buy one every 2 years, and be even safer .

mark kibort

my thoughts are after 5 years of flexing without a seat back brace , the twisting forces for many cycles (some cars have more than others) creates small fractures. so, with a seat back brace , these forces are transferred to greater leverage point.. the seat back. yes, most are fiberglass/kelar and are VERY strong and are in no danger of breaking after 5 years, but with the seat back brace you remove almost all twisting forces. my seat is 18 years old now. in a DE car with no cage, you rely more on the sea back structure , than in a race car with a seat back brace. a rear crash can collapse the seat in a seat failure. with a roll cage and padded seat back brace, this cant happen. thats why there is no expiration of FIA seats with a brace in most organizations.

I think your seat is probably fine for DE . especially if it looks good and hasnt been exposed to the elements. again, I run a 18 year old seat, and it doesnt concern me at all...... just as many of the components on the car are 30 years old and have not shown signs of wear or fatique. Usually the bushings/and joints are the first thing to go. Wheels have much more chances of cracking and breaking depending on the use and design (and history) than a seat, yet some are on legally cars for the life of the car. this is a huge topic of discussion. maybe there needs to be an FIA rating for them, because some are made so strong that with out being damaged can outlast the car! others.... not so much.