Jtuned posted a good looking seat in the marketplace (go check it out). It prompted me to ask a few questions on aftermarket seats. Mostly about daily driveability. Are aftermarket seats like Bride etc comfortable or are they purely race/function based. Of course you lose the heated seat element (which I love) are they more comfortable than the OEM? Less comfortable? Long trips are ok? Short trips only? I know there are huge preferences for seating, much like choosing a mattress. I know what the function of the seats are and I know you get what you pay for. I was just wondering if someone could break down the after market seat for some of us newbs. (as there are a lot of us new guys in the Mid A it seems)

Thanks Mid A.

 

No love for newb questions today.

 

No love is right.

 

I've owned Corbeau in an old race car I had and they were comfortable for short trips, however it was non-adjustable and was catered to my behind. Again most people get aftermarket seats for shows, dedicated track use, or a cheaper alternative to replacement if reupholstery is not feasible. I PERSONALLY wouldn't use aftermarket for a DD, but to each thier own.

Greg

 

cool thanks man. Thats kinda what I was figuring.

 

Fat people and Bride seats = FAIL

I don't belive that most of the are adjustable either, but I may be wrong. The stock seats seem supportive to me. Not sure why you would upgrade other than to have a full harness setup (oh.... and it looks cool too )

 

CASS!!!! Whats up brother. Yeah I like the OEM seats I was just wondering for cool factor/my leather is getting beat up pretty bad. Frost interior is FTL. Im not too fat yet HA!. It was just a general question. I guess I could just buy some OEM black ones. I dunno.

 

me and my buddy drove down to Flo rida in my fixed back sparcos with harness and it sucked major *****.

 

Driven1's lil'bro told me that my OEM seats were comfortable compared to whatever he's got in his car and I really wanted a pair of Bride's or Corbeau's.
You also need to get an exact measurement of "your" dimensions prior to ordering. I have pretty broad shoulders and was told Bride's might not be the most comfortable seat choice for me...

 

comfortable is a relative term

some people like Italian food, some people like Spanish, some people like rock, some people like rap - all sorta the same type of thing

the best thing you can do is try to attend a local meet, preferably Z, but any make will do, and maybe arrange to try a seat out there in real world conditions

In my Z, I have a set of ASM Recaro (SRIII Ltd)- they are far more comfortable than my OEM seats where, and I have driven the car as short as down the street, and as long as 13 + hours (to/from Z days) and been great

 

Bride full buckets are not comfortable for daily driving IMO. I had some in my old Integra and they were a tight fit. Full bucket I would say it's for track use or show car. I have the Bride Vorga which has low side leg bolsters and is reclinable which is comfortable for daily use. Bride offers a few models with the low bolsters. Go to tees-usa.com to get dimensions of each model.

 

Cobra Misanos, comfortable, full carbon fiber so it's light, and reclinable for a daily driver! $2.5~3k each, good luck!

Brides are made for small Japanese people.

 

Brides are not just made for small Japanese people lolol

I am not small (5'11, 190) nor Japanese, and I had Brides in my own car for 2 years...they were terrific actually. I simply swapped them out because I wanted a change

Bride makes more reclining seats than they do non reclining btw

The Cuga, Vorga, Brix, XAX, are all their fuller running reclining units

 

Jonathan you can sit in my brides and see how they feel as soon as I get them in my car

 

I wasnt necessarily set on brides. I just was looking at something a little different for my car. Those recaros look pretty cool. Again not dead set on brides.... just looking for something with a little performance with a little more comfort for longer trips.

 

As always thanks for your help Mid A. Its nice to be able ask simple questions and get good info.

 

+1 on the small Japanese peoples and Bride seats.

I have Corbeau seats (CR1 I think) and they are great for the track but about an hour is all I want to sit in them at one time. No way for long trips. They do recline so that's a plus. Generally it is the bottom seat side bolsters that make 'em rough for us old fat people. There are some that look comfortable from descriptions like the Corbeau VX2000. Accepts up to 42 inch waist. If I had bought new, I likely would have gone for those. Recaro makes some that look GT comfortable and have harness capability but have to wonder about track suitability. They're also big bucks, ~$1300 each or more depending on leather or not.

 

I've owned 2 sets of Bride seats, both were uncomfortable after like 2 hours of driving. I love recaros for overall use.

 

Seats can only be a personal preference, u get what u like, name brand isnt always better, just more expensive. Me personally, i went the cheap route DUE to comfort, i got seats that are an off brand of sparco, they look the same, cheaper, and more cofortable (more dd'able) then my buddy's real sparco seats, we both have Z's only his is a year newer, mines an 04, i know there arent many shops/stores around that actually carry car specific seats for you to try, but as far as name brand goes, look into off brands also, u might be surprised.

 

My Bride's are comfortable but can be not so good running 4+hours. Don't know all that many seats that are honestly comfortable after that amount of time anyway. lol After a while you dont want to sit anymore regardless of what seat it is. imo

I have the adjustable Brides with low side bolsters btw which are MUCH better than a fixed back higher side bolster seat (I personally hate those) and would NEVER put those in a car I drive other than to the track.

Factory is factory. If I hadn't gotten a good deal...I prob wouldn't have them honestly....well....maybe.

If you want to test seats and comfort and see what fits your frame go to OG Racing's showroom. (it's only 5 mins from F:T and right off the tool road/old ox area). They have 20+ seats and different brands for you to sit in and try. Thats the only place I know you can do that honestly.