I've been doing some research on all three items. I would only like to get one of the following though. I thought I'd ask for some advice from the ITR peeps.

1. Switch out my current Tein HR coilovers(too bouncy) and try the Koni/GC set-up. I started a couple threads in the suspension section and that's where the Koni/GC set-up came highly recommended. The adjustable dampening would be a nice touch for my soon-to-be dual purpose car.

2. JDM Recaros: A race bucket shell is out of the question because of my fat-*** and ease of getting in and out. I have many friends with Sparco, Mugen, Buddy Club, OMP, etc. seats and I feel it just wouldn't work for a daily driver. However the adjustable Recaros are a nice blend of comfort and "snugness". A great addition to a dual purpose car IMO. I hate sliding around in my seat during a corner.

3. AME 4 point weld-in roll bar w/ removable harness bar. First concern is safety, of course, but chassis rigidity comes in at a close second(probably a tie actually). Many local peeps recommended a weld-in over a bolt-in for various reasons. As I mentioned before, I will be hitting the track plenty next year so it isn't all for looks

Each item has their benefit and each is in the same price catagory(with install).

All suggestions, comments and opinions welcome

TIA.
-Chris

 

1) Swap your front springs out for your rear springs

2) They make seats in an extra tall: size Canadian?

3) I feel way way more safe since I've had the weld in, in. Not only the safety aspect but look at how much the chasis will stiffen up as well. Win/win situation here.

 

If you had to choose only one of the following items you listed....

I would go for the seat.... the stock USDM R seat is a joke. In Japan those same seats were offered in some automatic "girl version" integra....I forget the trim level.... but it's totally obvious it's not a "performance seat."

Dunno how tall you are but just make sure you get the super low sliders for the JDM Recaro....

Seat and rollbar if you can swing it....

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by RagingAngel &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Dunno how tall you are but... </TD></TR></TABLE>

Lets just say if he wanted too, the front driver seat could be removed and he could sit in the back seat and still drive the car.

 

My humble opinion is this: If you are going to do a seat, harnesses and rollbar I'd do them all at the same time. We know it's not such a good idea to have a fixed back seat (You sure you can't find a Sparco EVO 3 or 4 to fit you?), as well it's not ideal to have harnesses without said seat or said rollbar. And it's also not ideal to have a rollbar even padded properly if you are not strapped into the drivers seat upright with no possibility of slipping out and bashing your noggin.

So, I'd do all of the safety at the same time or I'd stay completely stock in that sense.

Then you're back to the suspension, which is not what I started with but in your case if you feel is a part of the equation that does not fit or work properly and or is holding you back, in this case is what I'd fix first.

Best of luck and let us know what you choose.

 

I'm definately leaning towards the roll bar. It would be fully padded and I would get a harness as well.

I feel I really need to "test" my current suspension on a closed course situation to get a really good idea as to what I may or may not need. I may not need to fix anything. Also swapping the front springs to the rear and vice versa, as Brando mentioned, has been suggested before by others as well. Which also would be cheaper than re-doing everything.

Thanx for the replies so far

 

USDM ITR seat is not too bad for me.. it still hugs me enough and i hate being all tight all the time when i drive.. drives me crazy

get the cage incase you roll your car when u go track events.

safety first

 

I'd get the JDM Recaros first. They're pricey, but well worth it. I didn't realize how much I liked them until I went back to driving in a stock seat for a short while and was getting throw against the door around every turn. It really affected my driving ability when I needed to brace myself with the dead-pedal and fight to stay upright in a good driving position.

 

Just get Recaro SR3 that works the same anyway. It's pretty hard to find a set of JDM Recaro in good shape nowadays. Man some of them are off from 96spec! Some of these seats are gonna be 10yrs old.

Did you ever thought of ordering a softer sets of springs? I think u can order some softer springs from GC as long as u prove the length & ID details. So u don't have to waste another grand(or almost) on new Koni+GC kit.

Since u have some TEIN already, I would go for:
1.Seats with super low rails(like RA suggested)
2.Roll bar
3.Suspension(I would use it until there's oil leaks but it's just me)

I would suggest tires & brakes too but depends on what kinda driving u do.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by itr1244 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">safety first</TD></TR></TABLE>

i agree.

 

-Order seat + super low rails + harness (cuz it usually takes the longest to get )
-Order rollbar + install
-whip it together and evaluate Tein HRs on closed course.



A little advice from us, a little advice from yourself....

 

My vote is also for the rollbar first, then seats, then see what's going on with the suspension. I'm assuming we don't need to preach the use of a PROPER harness, even if you're using a reclinable seat, right?

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by sscguy &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">My vote is also for the rollbar first, then seats, then see what's going on with the suspension. I'm assuming we don't need to preach the use of a PROPER harness, even if you're using a reclinable seat, right? </TD></TR></TABLE>

I agree.

1st: Roll bar
2nd: Seats
3rd: After you know exactly what aspects and handling characteristics of the suspension you wish to change, then change the setup.

 

Glad to see my thinking wasn't too far off. Roll bar and harness first. The "proper harness" question was one I was going to ask actually. I'm guessing the seat I will be runnning for now(stock) will require a different style of harness? Or set-up a certain way?

 

A 6-point would work best, with the two sub-belts bolted to the front seat bolt locations. You'd then pull them over the front of the seat. That's not ideal, but for use with a reclinable seat that doesn't have a hole for a sub-belt, that's about as good as it will get. 5-points can be made to work, but the sub would need to be pretty long to stretch that far.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by white rocket &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Glad to see my thinking wasn't too far off. Roll bar and harness first. The "proper harness" question was one I was going to ask actually. I'm guessing the seat I will be runnning for now(stock) will require a different style of harness? Or set-up a certain way?</TD></TR></TABLE>

I would get the roll bar w/harness bar first, but wait on the actual harness until you get the seats. In the mean time, use the harness bar as a camera mount.

 

That's also a good idea. Using stock seat + stock seatbelt + rollbar isn't too bad, as long as you have reasonable clearance for your head with respect to the main hoop. But then, even if you don't, a harness won't help you This is unrelated to the order in which you should get things, but when you get the bar put in (if you're as tall as Brandon is letting on), make sure the main hoop will be behind your seat, as opposed to directly over it. You REALLY don't ever want to hit your head on that in an accident, even if it's padded.

 

I'm looking at a basic 4 point weld-in with a removable harness bar. I'll be heading to the shop probably Monday to talk with the installer, take some measurements and evaluate the whole situation.

Thanx everyone so far for your suggestions

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by sscguy &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">That's also a good idea. Using stock seat + stock seatbelt + rollbar isn't too bad, as long as you have reasonable clearance for your head with respect to the main hoop. But then, even if you don't, a harness won't help you This is unrelated to the order in which you should get things, but when you get the bar put in (if you're as tall as Brandon is letting on), make sure the main hoop will be behind your seat, as opposed to directly over it. You REALLY don't ever want to hit your head on that in an accident, even if it's padded.</TD></TR></TABLE>

One of my many questions will be about the actual angle of the main hoop. I'm hoping it it can be angled towards the rear to avoid what your talking about.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by spoonek4 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Just get Recaro SR3</TD></TR></TABLE>

Never heard of this seat. Do you mean the SRD? Care to elaborate?

 

I've recently installed the Autopower rollbar. I would consider a bolt in option because your car may go through more changes in the future. This gives you the ability to remove the unit or add on to it to build a full cage.

With the combination of my SRD, Vision Low seat brackets, and the bar, there isn't a concern for head-to-bar contact. Reason being is because I sit in a close position to the steering wheel and usually more upright. But the case may differ w/ you but I don't remember you being much taller then I.

Don't change the suspension yet unless you're convinced that you need another option to support your caR. With the installation of the bar in my car I have noticed a much stiffer chassis as well as a larger tendency to oversteet....Not fun when you get the snap oversteer on a onramp outside of Van city. B.C. onramps = long sweeping-higher speed onramps.

Glad to see that you're getting serious about tracking your R.

 

I am going to try to swing a set of black JDM Recaros AND the roll bar. The harness will come when the job is complete. Right around Xmas too, I'm so selfish

Quick question about the seats. I'm guessing the only difference between the SRD's and the JDM ones is the alcantara blosters? Correct?

I'll make the trip down to the shop to get this under way this week. Basically the bar comes as a pre-bent main hoop and everything else is bulk tubing. Having said that, I'll be able to have it custom fabricated to accommodate the reclinable seats. I would want the main hoop to be angled towards the rear of the car to prevent banging my head. The harness bar will be removable.

Anyway, just thought I'd keep y'all up to date with my happenings.

 

The main difference between SRD & SR3 as far as I know, is the dimension. SRD is the ones that are sold in N.America, which the dimensions are bigger for the bigger guys here. And the SR3 are smaller, and usually comes in a different pattern.

JDM ITR Recaros are SR2.

A pic of the SR3:


SR4 off from DC5R:

 

A little update: Ordered a 6 point OMP roll cage(same as Big Phat R). There are some pics on here of his set-up if your wondering what it looks like. Should be in by the beginning of Jan. Still deciding on a seat. Perhaps an OMP Grip or a Buddy Club L.

That's it so far.

 

I recommend you get the buddy club seats, they hug you on every turn, you don't slide at all
But you have to get the wider version of those seats otherwise you won't fit them


I don't know if u remember me from the ITR meet, but you seen them in my car, those seats will look good in your car too