Keep Old Seat or Get Another?

[tom_sprecher]

The wreck (actually my body) bent the mounts and the frame of the seat. The mounts can be replaced and the frame maybe straightened. I was thinking about replacing or upgrading especially since my body really slid sideways and dented the inside of the door with my shoulder.

"Road Race" seats do not seem to have a lot of lateral support when compared to oval track seats. I have seen both used and was curious as to what you guys thought of each design and what your experiences have been.

TIA

[Knestis]

I'm a huge believer in the seat being the most important piece of safety equipment we have - both in terms of it's active support during an incident, and its passive influence on car control to avoid issues in the first place. I went whole-hog and bought a RECARO Racer SPG with the head restraint ears. If you don't think something like this has a "lot of support," you haven't sat in it. :P



When I rolled at Rally TN, it was almost a comfortable ride - way easier on the bod' than most amusement park rides. I could vividly feel my noggin bouncing back and forth between the head bolsters, and the seat flexing around me, soaking up energy.

If you bent the seat, it's a tubular design - which I would personally run away from with all haste...

K

[JLawton]

I had an "oval" seat in my last car. My current one is the same as Kirk's and I agree with his statements. I will NEVER put anything else in my race cars. Night and day difference.

Now, if you're not very limber or have a "few" extra pounds you may have a little trouble getting in and out!! :P

[JimLill]

I had an "oval" seat in my last car. My current one is the same as Kirk's and I agree with his statements. I will NEVER put anything else in my race cars. Night and day difference.

Now, if you're not very limber or have a "few" extra pounds you may have a little trouble getting in and out!! :P
[/b]

My car came with a Kirkey "oval" seat, I hated it... switched to a Sparco Evo-L and love it.

[lateapex911]

Ditto. First budget priority should be good safety items. Then upgrade the brakes, then the handling....and so on.

[Greg Amy]

New seat, Chief.

Momo sells an FIA-approved seat, the Start, for a great price, at LTBMotorsport.com.

[85itccivic]

I personally run a Kirkey " oval track seat " and love the thing. I have customized the foam in the insert for it to be more comfortable . I sits in a custom made perimeter mount and is very strong. On the other hand one of my customers has a Sparco seat in her car that she loves and she hates my seat. The reason is my seat does not fit her body . The best advice I can give is to find a place that sells an assortment of seats and sit in them . Find a quality seat that gives you the fit and feel you want . Then , unless you let other people drive your, car mount it in a fixed position that puts you in the best position to drive your car.
Roger

[tom_sprecher]

Thanks for all the replies. That seat pictured has much more lateral support than my Corbeau, no doubt. Need to cover those E-switch terminals though. When I got my annual the tech told me it's a new rule?

Do you guys use a fixed mount or an adjustable rack? I may in the future run enduros with another driver (who better have a big deposit), but maybe I'll worry about an adjustable mount at that time.

The Momo START looks nice and at that price, but I think I want more support. I'll keep looking but any suggestions will be greatly appreciated as I need to start fabbibg up some mounts.

Speaking of which I understand we can not tie into the roll cage with the seat mounts, right?

[gsbaker]

Ditto. First budget priority should be good safety items. Then upgrade the brakes...[/b]

Geez Jake, if you get those brakes fixed you wouldn't have so many safety problems.

[gsbaker]

I really hate suggesting that people delay the purchase of any safety equipment, but if you don't need a new seat before next season you might want to wait because there may be an effort to develop a new standard. I doubt any new standard would be implimented before 2008 due to the timing, however.

Just a thought...

[Tom Donnelly]

I agree with Kirk on this. If you bent it in a wreck, take it out and watch TV in it.
That's what I used my old bent seat for. Its really kinda comfortable.

Tom

[Knestis]

...there may be an effort to develop a new standard. I doubt any new standard would be implimented before 2008 due to the timing, however.[/b]

Oh, freakin' goody. I can't wait to hear more about this.

K

[gsbaker]

Oh, freakin' goody. I can't wait to hear more about this.

K
[/b]

Go here and click on the left-side link labeled "Meeting Schedule". Then note the specs 39.1 and 39.2.

Yes, these are, apparently, proposed specs for stocks car seats, but these things tend to dribble over to road racing in due time. One would have to seriously doubt that the SCCA would adopt anything anytime soon, but the lateral impact issue keeps raising its ugly head.

(Yeah, I saw 38.2, but let's not get OT.)

[charrbq]

Is it my understanding that an FIA listed seat doesn't have to have a back support affixed to the cage?

[Knestis]

SFI pisses me off. It has since I first had dealings with them in the early '80s. It must be my Libertarian streak. Or maybe the inherent conflicts of interest involved in everything it does.

K

[Z3_GoCar]

Exactly,

FIA certified seats, Corbeau or my favorite Recaro, made of FRP will be allowed no matter what.

OT, spec 47.3

James

[Greg Amy]

Is it my understanding that an FIA listed seat doesn't have to have a back support affixed to the cage?
[/b]

Correct, if certified to FIA 8855-1999. Note the year; some older seats are 1992.

There's also debate as to whether the manufacturer date must be 5 years or newer. To meet the FIA specs it must; the question comes in whether SCCA is enforcing that or not (as of right now, it seems "not").

SFI pisses me off.[/b]

Ditto.

[charrbq]

Greg,
Sorry, in answering my question, you created another. If the FIA date is within five years of, say, 2006, then it's okay to use, or, do I have to replace my seat every 5 years? Sorry to be be so stupid, but some would say it comes naturally.

[Greg Amy]

If you're bored, here's some bed time reading:

http://www.fia.com/resources/documents/895...tition_seat.pdf

"The usable life of an FIA homologated seat will be 5 years from the date of manufacture indicated on the seat label."

GCR 18.1.2 only requires that the seat be "homologated to...FIA standard 8855-1999". If you want to get picky, a seat does not lose its "homologation" after five years, it simply exceeds its "useful life" and is no longer suitable for FIA competition.

If SCCA were to decide to enforce the FIA requirement (they don't, and don't on SFI-dated items such as window nets), then if your seat were manufactured in July 2002 it would automatically expire effective August 2007. At that point you'd either need to replace it or add a seat back brace.

But again, it's not enforced by SCCA. As a tech inspector, I've been told to simply verify it has the FIA 8855-1999 label. - GA

[charrbq]

Thanks. As with many things, what makes sense, in reality, makes no sense. One way or another, the cheap seat I've got came with the car and needs to be replaced. I've never liked it, but I wasn't certain what would be a good replacement that I could afford. At least I've been headed on the right path with seats and seat belts. Must be about time for the SCCA to change the rules...after I spend a bunch of money!