which Recaro seat?

[ckmaggie]

I am 6' 3" and my head touches the headliner (enough to be annoying) so I am considering a replacement seat. thinking Recaro is best bet but I need to make certain I will sit lower.

- Any suggestions on model?
- Recommendations of retailers welcomed as well.

Thanks

[rdane]

Ricaro Pole Position bolted directly to the rails works for me at 6'1" and a long back in a sunroof coupe with a helmet.

I think Don911 is a few inches taller than I and is using a PP also.

[ckmaggie]

Where did you purchase the seat? I did not find the Recaro website user friendly.

[tomt]

I'm almost 6'3" and went with Recaro SRD's on Recaro rails in my 85 Targa.

I picked up 1.5" of headroom on the conversion, and with my Arai helmet (lowest profile, I'm told), I'm in good shape at the track.

I bought both the seats and rails at Speedware (local for me).

[rdane]

It really depends on your body size which seats fit or not. Best thing to do is try them out if you have a retailer close.

A search here for "pole position/seats/ricaro/sparco" should get you a number of opinions as what are the better seats.

I bought mine here.
http://www.schatzmotorsport.com/Merchant2/index.mv?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=78650&Product_Code=52100366&Category_Code=356

Speedware:
http://www.speedwaremotorsports.com/seat/pole04.asp

[Rufblackbird]

I love my Recaro Pole Position, especially through the 8,000 cross country miles I drove two months ago. Lots of headroom, though I'm 5'11" and it's in a targa. I drove Brian's (SoCal911SC) 911SC with Recaro SRD's and though very supportive, you don't sit as low.

[911teo]

I just finished installing a pair of Recaro Pole Positions in my 911. I used Recaro mounting brackets and sliders. I am 6'2" and I must say that I had to position the seat on the lowest possible setting for me to fit in it comfortably.
With my helmet on I think there is less than 1 inch clearence between the sunroof and the top of the helmet.
I am about to consider bolting the brackets directly to the car rails. I will take a picture of my current set up and post it tomorrow.
As a general statement the PP look great. I went for the leather ones and they just make the interior of my car look like a million dollars.
Good luck!

[Rich76_911s]

Just saw these Pole Positions on Ebay
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=7936171210&category=33701&sspagename=WDVW

[rdane]

I used the Porsche OEM sliders on the passenger side (doubled the latchs) with Speedware side mounts and then bolted the drivers directly to the tub rails with Speedware mounts and no sliders. I believe the Ricaro stuff is higher. I also use a Arai helmet which is small in comparison to somehting like a Bell.

Length of your back in relation to your height is very important in how the seat fits for height. You can also give yourself a bit more head room by adding a little backwards rake to the seat. Many of us are using one notch back of vertical on seat position which helps on entry and exit and gives a little more head clearence.

[911teo]

U see I didn't think about this before purchasing the Recaro side mounts. And I went for the alluminum one.. so I am out $165 for the mounts.
I didn't unterstand the backward rake observation. I will post a pic tomorrow of my setup. I think it's fine now... just a little tilted towards the back....

[911teo]

driver's side


and the passenger's side... Note the highest setting on the p-side as opposed to the d-side.


PS
I am thinking of selling my stock seats... What do u think they are worth? They are in good shape with no tears... Still mine is a daily driver with 125k on the clock... so they are not pristine...

[rdane]

No picture but to give you an idea of mounting differences my driver's side seat mounting screw is below the door sill level in back and are level with it in the front. The OEM sliders add .85" to that.

[Moses]

Beautiful seats! Could you post a picture of the headrests? Is the recaro logo sewn in or embossed? I'd prefer no logo at all, but I don't think that's an option. Thanks!

[rdane]

Logo is lightly embossed and has dissappeared on mine over the last year or so of use.

[djmcmath]

Related question that I've been considering: all of these threads focus on the question of relatively large people. Does anyone have recommendations for smaller people's seats? I'm 5'9, 150lbs, athletic build. The seat that fits a 6'4 240lb guy isn't going to work too well for me, no? (sigh) Open to suggestions; tia.

Dan

[rdane]

Ricaro SPG, same seat, 2" narrower.
Jack Olsen and Tyson also use the PP I think.

My wife is 120# and 5'7" and loves the PP however.

[911teo]

Here is a pic where you can see the logo. I apologize for the low quality but the light was low and I didnt spend too much time adjusting the shutter speed.




Dane
the OEM sliders are not an option for me. On my 88 they included the motors for the seat height adjustment. I am considering bolting the Recaro side mounts directly to the frame. But then they cannot be adjusted backwards and fwds... Right now I found an ok compromise.

As per the size I am 6'2" and 190lbs. I am quite sure the PPs will be ok for a 5'9" and 150lb person. For me the PPs were the only option coz I wanted leather in order to maintain the apperance of the car.
I sat in some Sparco Evo (slightly narrower than the PPs) and they were great. Covering the Sparco with leather didn't make it worthwhile vs the PPs.

Here is a pic of my OEM seats. What should I ask for them? I was thinking $950... Am I out of my mind?

[rdane]

the OEM sliders are not an option for me. On my 88 they included the motors for the seat height adjustment.

Just a thought, but normal Porsche sliders can be bought cheaply at DART or other used Porsche parts houses. I used two rails with l/r slide locks, one from a right seat and the other from a left seat to make my seats more secure. A pair of sliders was $40 shipped from DART.

Speedware side mounts and the sliders were $140 total.

[djmcmath]

RDane and 911Teo, thanks for the info. Looks like I'll be making a trip over to SpeedWare sometime to take a look at Recaro seats.

Dan

[911-32]

Originally posted by djmcmath
Related question that I've been considering: all of these threads focus on the question of relatively large people. Does anyone have recommendations for smaller people's seats? I'm 5'9, 150lbs, athletic build. The seat that fits a 6'4 240lb guy isn't going to work too well for me, no? (sigh) Open to suggestions; tia.

Dan

I am the same size as you and I love the PPs. I have them in fire resistant cloth not leather so that helps, but they basically just support so well that I don't even notice I am in them in the track. They just keep me in the right place and let me focus on driving. By way of comparison, I was in a GT3RS on track recently and the seats in that car were not as supportive in the side/shoulder area. I have also found that I slide around in the 964RS seats which are theoretically the same size as the PPs but in leather trim.

HTH
Richard