I am ISO a safe supportive seat for a STREET car that I autocross and I seem to be hitting a wall.


Searching finds me:

To be considered safe a fixed back seat requires a roll bar and a 5 point harness.

To be considered safe a non-fixed back seat is only considered safe with a 3 point belt and no bar.

Last year I went the route of unsafe and cheap with a set of EBay Bride seats with a non fixed back, neither safe or sturdy buy was a lot more supportive than my stock 00 civic seats. For a belt I used my factory 3 point with a belt lock (Forget the name. Seats were sold when I realized it was not my best choice.

Is a fixed back seat system ever safe in a street car?

Looking at the Recaro Speeds as my safe option in a street car. Looking at a lot of seats like the Speed I notice a lot have the provision to use a 4 point harness, but from what I read that would never be a safe option. A harness requires a roll bar and a roll bar requires a fixed back seat, correct?

As of right now I have no seats, I have sat in a SRD and they seem fine maybe a little shorter than I would like. 6-1 ~165

I do not daily the car but I do occasionally travel to meets or autocross events out of my region, so daily comfort is not my biggest concern.


I have read and read but am still torn.

Opinions/Advise?

 

"Is a fixed back seat system ever safe in a street car?"
this is going to come down to a case by case thing. Some cars from the factory have fixed position seats.
It is safe so long as it is installed correctly in my opinion.

you are correct about the harness, The best way to do it would be mounted to a harness bar
If i recall correctly you want the belts to make a 0-45* angle from where they leave the back of the seat to where they are fixed to.

for a reclinable seat in a car with a roll bar/cage I think it would mostly depend again on the specific case; seat position, main hoop design etc.

in terms of safety from what i have gathered the most important thing is having a seat you actually trust.
to me that means not cheaping out on a knock off. you mentioned that the ebay seats you bought didn't seem "sturdy" so at least you have something to use as comparison for your next purchase

Good luck, im in pretty much the same boat as you was originally gonna get a pair of knockoffs but i'd rather spend the money on one good seat i trust, i dont really aggressive when im with someone anyways

 

F1 spec makes a great reclinable racing seat!

 

F1, hahah is that a joke?
They are excatly the same as the bride seats I just sold.

 

If you plan on using your back seat you'll want reclining seats to make it much easier for you to get to or passengers to climb in. I run Corbeau TRS reclinable seats in my EF hatch and they work well. Not light weight but steel construction and strong. They are also affordable (even when new). You can find A4/TRS/CRS reclinables used if you look around long enough. Sparco also sells their Steel model line - kinda heavy but safe and known quantity.

Unless you are racing where you have a 5/6 point harness and seat back brace installed - I wouldn't consider a fixed back seat.

To me seats/belts & brakes/steering are the two critical safety areas you do not go on the cheap. You can find deals out there for cheap products that look good - but you are buying an unknown / unproven product. That is something I won't do and would not recommend (you're life should have a higher price than the cost of el cheapo seats).

 

The only thing I could really suggest would be the
1. SRD(itr recaros) and the stock seatbelts
2. Fixed back seat, 5pt harness, and a roll bar.

 

I loved my srd recaros with a 3 point sparco harness. but my old car on v710 and fast driving the seats soon didnt hold me any more.

i bought a cobra suzuka pro and love it so far but havnt been on the track yet but no doubt it will do what i want.

honestly i dont get how people say fixed backs are not safe for street? there are lots of cars that come factory with fixed backs you just have to install the seat belts properly for the belt to work properly in a crash

 

Not doubting anyone, but what cars come with fixed back seats?

 

Oh and rear seat access is not necessary, I just keep them back there to cut down on noise.

 

The porche gt3, porshe cgt, NSX-R, NSX-S, noble, exige, and so SO many more

 

Im in the same boat as you. My car came with a set of 00 si seats and they give a horrible driving position, so its spending the money on a decent daily autocross seat or settling for some oem seats with better bolstering and lower position.

The top seats iv been looking at are the lower level OMP's, Buddy Clubs, and Racetechs, used Recaro's.

The problem with seats is trying to find somewhere local to sit in them, or even finding other racers that have the seats.

Seems like alot of people I autocross with use Cobra, which is also a good option for street seats.

 

http://thmotorsports.com/recaro/reca...10.00.1351-03-

Those look great. I wonder how they attach to the base and how low they seat because I have a problem with my helmet hitting the headliner but I want to retain a reclinable seat. They look like they fit like a Speed considering the bolsters but seem like they'll sit a little lower.

 

^Check out Cobra, seems like they have some decent seats for a bit cheaper.

 

my cobra is made very very nicely i was skeptical about going with them because never getting a chance to sit in one, since i bought it i have no regrets. i have sat in lots of seats and this is recaro nice form, fit, and finish

 

Cars that are designed that way correct?

Seems that most of these cars are mid engine and 2 seat cars that are not capable of having movable seats.

On that not I am not 100% positive I will not go with a fixed back seat and intend to install a bar later.

Buddyclubs look nice but seem to fade quickly from the used ones I have seen for sale on here.

 

no most are mid because its the "best" platform.

look at this picture see how the stock seat belt goes through the seat this is how you do it with your stock seat belt and have a seat as safe if not safer than the stock seat.

http://img2.netcarshow.com/Honda-NSX...llpaper_09.jpg

 

I do have one of those Scrat racing seats (el cheapo Summit Racing) on the passenger side of my 944. However it is very securely held down to the floor and the seat back is attached to the horizontal bar on the roll cage. With a 6 point harness it is safe for passengers. I remove it when I race but needed a seat for my...width challenged students and guests so they can go along for a ride.

 

Almost all of the cars listed above that come from the factory with one-piece seats are either designed FROM THE FACTORY to accomodate that (with some kind of roll protection, like seen in the CGT, NSX, and Elise mentioned), available only in a foreign market with different safety standards, or both. I am not 100% positive, but I don't believe even the GT3 is available with the one-piece seats without also the factory installed rollbar. Just because an Elise is available that way, even if it was in the US, does not mean you can do the same thing in your Civic.

Regardless, the problem with one-piece seats and no rollover protection has nothing to do with the manner in which the seat is designed (unless it is somehow magically designed to break free of its mounts, which would just be ridiculous). The problem has to do with the occupant being held upright, and then getting squished when the car rolls. Recently in a harness thread we saw a member who rolled his CRX. Sure enough, the roof came down below where his head would have been, had it been held in place with a one-piece seat.

It is ultimately your decision, and the personal risks you choose to accept. You are (I think) only autoxing the car for the most part, so the risk of a rollover is relatively low, and even then would be pretty low speed. There are lots of autoxers who use a harness bar and harness with a one-piece seat, and it is perfectly fine and legal. On the street where anything can happen, again, that would be at your discretion.

On a big track, it would not be acceptable, regardless of what factory options the car came with; I don't know of any track organizations that would allow that, short of a few small independent ones where safety is not a priority.

 

Not trying to argue stinky but the exige/nsx/porshe etc have no other roll over protection other than the standard chassis structure. The only car not offered in the states was the nsx-r. Now if you are running a harness with no roll bar/cage that concerns me but with the factory 3 point i see no safety concern as if its available in many cars this way

 

Not a rollbar, but the chassis structure is designed LIKE a rollbar. The CGT does actually have pop-out rollhoops.

Edit: And actually, from an engineering standpoint, the cabin of those cars is also much smaller than a typical sedan/coupe, which would further contribute to rollover safety for them (no big open space to collapse).

 

so a 997 gt3 cabin is smaller than my 00 teg? you are correct on a cgt but still gt3 has no roll over protection. the nsx will flatten like a pancake in the right wreck was that the reason the nsx-r wasn't brought here no. hell there is convertible still today that have not one bit of rollover protection not even the a piller strengthened and when they flip they go flat, ie solstice

 

That's why I already addressed the GT3 specifically:
I also didn't say anything about convertibles because they aren't available with one-piece seats. I remember the NSX having a reinforced B-pillar area to stiffen the chassis, and that it would act like a rollbar. I could be mistaken on that memory though.

 

stinky you missed my points we both have are views and I honestly dont think either one of us is completely wrong or completely right. just stating the facts as you are to.

 

You are entitled to your opinion

 

How about these?



http://www.corbeau.com/products/reclining_seats/lg1/

I had my hopes up for a set of Recaro SRD's but no one replies to my PM's