REVscene - Vancouver Automotive Forum

underscore · 04-02-2013, 11:09 PM

Ok so I've been hearing horror stories of peoples cheap/knockoff seats breaking and so I'm trying to find some info on what non-racing seats are actually tested by the manufacturer to meet or exceed OEM testing standards cause I don't assume things are good just because of the brand.

To better clarify I'm not asking about FIA certified fixed buckets, I'm asking about the non-FIA reclinable seats. ie the Corbeau Forza Sport is listed as FIA certified, however the Corbeau A4 doesn't list any kind of testing whatsoever.

edit: What I've found thus far:
Sparco USA - Only the "R700A" and "R700P" are TUV Homologated and tested/approved to ECE 17 (Europe) and FMVSS 208 (USA) standards, the rest list no testing
Bride -
Recaro - states all seats must take "20% greater load in static tests than required by law", and "at least 300% greater load in dynamic tests than required by law". They also offer aftermarket seats with side airbags (not applicable for some I know).
Yonaka - emailed about testing
OMP USA - Only the "Design 2" and "Style" are European Directive 96/37/EC compliant, the rest list no testing
Momo - Only makes FIA race seats
Status - no testing
Cobra - "Le Mans", "Misano", "Sidewinder" & "Daytona" are tested to ECE R17/FMVSS 207 and ADR 3, "Roadster 7" meets latest IVA standards, they also offer RFID tagged seats to track ownership, age and accidents.

ilvtofu · 04-03-2013, 12:25 AM

I'm sure the brand name companies keep their construction quality pretty decent.
A seat might not be FIA due to other reasons, I'm sure sending in a seat to get crash tested would increase the cost so they might sell a non-fia seat at a lower price for a different consumer. Might also be stuff like flame resistant fabric or a sub belt hole that you wouldn't need on a street seat.
I sat in a sparco fighter (non-fia) and a replica bride and they are dramatically different in sturdiness. The sparco was a lot heavier though

underscore · 04-03-2013, 07:05 AM

Sorry, but "I'm sure they're pretty decent" is all I seem to be finding on this stuff. I'm not going to pay extra for a brand just because it's assumed to be better with no actual proof, likewise there might be lesser known brands that people assume are crappy but actually test their product and therefore produce a safer seat.

Looking at those two seats I picked at random as an example, the A4 actually costs more than the FIA certified Forza Sport. Adding in the reclining feature obviously costs more than making a solid bucket, but this seems odd to me.

underscore · 04-03-2013, 07:19 AM

Ok I'm going to be digging into the seats and contacting manufacturers if needed, so if you guys know of any brands that I haven't got up top please list them.

ilvtofu · 04-03-2013, 07:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by underscore

Sorry, but "I'm sure they're pretty decent" is all I seem to be finding on this stuff. I'm not going to pay extra for a brand just because it's assumed to be better with no actual proof, likewise there might be lesser known brands that people assume are crappy but actually test their product and therefore produce a safer seat.

Looking at those two seats I picked at random as an example, the A4 actually costs more than the FIA certified Forza Sport. Adding in the reclining feature obviously costs more than making a solid bucket, but this seems odd to me.

Lol my sparco sprints are dirt cheap and FIA because of the steel tube frame. I guess it's a cheaper manufacturing cost and probably a stronger seat, same for the corbeau. Not having a reclining mechanism also would make the seats cost less, the FIA competition seats are all non-reclining IIRC.

hk20000 · 04-03-2013, 09:15 AM

If you are concerned about street safety look no further than taking reclinable seats out of cars that came stock with them. i.e. Recaros out of DC2s and EVOs and such...

then you can sleep at night knowing that these seats meet or exceed the crash standards for a production vehicle.

Grim · 04-03-2013, 09:42 AM

i had the recaro in my celiac before..
and they feel better than any aftermarket seats I've sat in

belaud · 04-03-2013, 11:46 AM

I have Recaro SPG's and are the most comfortable fixed buckets as compliments by every single person who ever sat in my car. You pay a premium for the design, and very little for the actual material itself.

For reclinables, I would be looking at the DC2 Recaro's, or Recaro Sport's, they're good for what they are. and give your interior a stock look depending on what material is purchased.

I've never sat in Sparco's but are also highly rated, they're probably a bit heavier from the tube frame, but it's a street car, you won't notice the difference.

Another brand to consider is Status racing, their line of reclinables are called "Spa". They are highly regarded as a premium brand. I think k3lv had a set of the Status Ring fixed buckets, he can probably chime in on the quality.

If you want something that looks like a fixed and of greater quality, check out the Bride GIAS/Euro/CUGA/Stradia/ETC reclinables, their reclinable bucket's quality are one of the best.

You will be sitting in this seat as much as you are driving, I would concern myself with spending more on a better design, than something cheap. I know for a fact those Corbeau's are dirt cheap, but are also very susceptible to wear & tear, as well as being extremely uncomfortable on your lower back on longer drives.

k2damax · 04-03-2013, 04:07 PM

Yeah Recaros are safe just watch this vid

dared3vil0 · 04-03-2013, 04:27 PM

Do your OEM seats have airbags? If so, i wouldn't recommend DD'ing the ones without...

underscore · 04-03-2013, 07:01 PM

^ Mine don't, but so far only Recaro offers an aftermarket seat with airbags.

Quote:

Originally Posted by hk20000

If you are concerned about street safety look no further than taking reclinable seats out of cars that came stock with them. i.e. Recaros out of DC2s and EVOs and such...

then you can sleep at night knowing that these seats meet or exceed the crash standards for a production vehicle.

That's great and all, but it limits the number of seats available and you can't buy them new. Plus you're relying on the seller to 1) sell you authentic seats and 2) not sell you seats out of a totaled car. If the seats were in a car involved in a serious accident they're worthless IMO.

Quote:

Originally Posted by belaud

Another brand to consider is Status racing, their line of reclinables are called "Spa". They are highly regarded as a premium brand. I think k3lv had a set of the Status Ring fixed buckets, he can probably chime in on the quality.

If you want something that looks like a fixed and of greater quality, check out the Bride GIAS/Euro/CUGA/Stradia/ETC reclinables, their reclinable bucket's quality are one of the best.

You will be sitting in this seat as much as you are driving, I would concern myself with spending more on a better design, than something cheap. I know for a fact those Corbeau's are dirt cheap, but are also very susceptible to wear & tear, as well as being extremely uncomfortable on your lower back on longer drives.

I'm not looking for cheap and I'm not looking to spend money on a brand just for the name, ie Status makes fairly costly seats but doesn't list any kind of testing or compliance on their site. I emailed them to see what they say, but I don't give a shit about them if they haven't tested anything they make cause the exterior fit and finish isn't the most important part of a seat. As far as a cheap, safe seat the best bang for the buck so far has been from OMP, I think they have one certified seat under $400 and another under $500.

ilvtofu · 04-03-2013, 07:52 PM

The Cobra Monaco is another affordable FIA approved seat,
If you can, sit in a few steel tube frame seats before you buy, they aren't as comfortable and in my case if I were half an inch taller my head would be up against the steel tube on my Sparco Sprints. Not an issue when you're wearing a helmet but if you were rear ended on the street and banged the rear of your head against that steel tube it has ZERO give.

Safety is not just in the structural integrity of the seat, if you get a concussion from a minor rear ender on the street that is not safe. You're welcome to sit in my Sparco Sprints if you'd like

underscore · 04-03-2013, 08:13 PM

I'm not looking at fixed buckets, finding FIA approved buckets isn't too difficult because everyone labels them as FIA approved. The tricky part has been finding tested recliners because that's what most people want in a street car, and like you said some seats that are very safe on the track can actually be more dangerous on the street. I drove a buddies Soarer with replica race buckets in it that had those side head support bits and that was extra sketchy because you couldn't shoulder check.

Cobra does make some certified reclinable seats though, I'll add them to the list. I'd love to try out the Sprints but I live in Kelowna so that would be a bit of a trek.

k3lv · 04-03-2013, 08:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by belaud

Another brand to consider is Status racing, their line of reclinables are called "Spa". They are highly regarded as a premium brand. I think k3lv had a set of the Status Ring fixed buckets, he can probably chime in on the quality.

I had the first generation of Status seats. Safety wise I have nothing to say since that's more from the manufacturers. Quality wise, not bad, I'd still rank Status under Bride and Recaro's. I've sat in SPG's and Low Max's and thoroughly enjoyed them both.

?uestlove · 04-03-2013, 08:47 PM

i would also worry about modified seat rails, the ones in my first car were gas welded together so shittyly

underscore · 04-03-2013, 10:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ?uestlove

i would also worry about modified seat rails, the ones in my first car were gas welded together so shittyly

I'm gonna be digging into those once I'm done with the seats, at least with the rails and sliders you can visually inspect them. With seats unless you tear them apart you really don't know much about the materials and structure holding it together.

hk20000 · 04-04-2013, 09:21 AM

So do you have any new news from the manufacturers about the safety of the seats you are looking at?

On the other hand, an OEM seat involved in a front end accident is probably ok as nothing has bumped into the seat (driver is thrown forward into the steering wheel)

Also for Recaro they sell a lot of their existing OEM models also as aftermarket models (EVOX seats, DC2 DC5 seats, Toyota Supra / Hilux seats, for example) then you can just buy those brand new.

underscore · 04-04-2013, 11:13 PM

Yonaka hasn't replied yet, Status emailed me back today, they do not test their reclining seats:

Quote:

Hey Jordan,

Unfortunately we don't really have any testing data on our Reclinable seats. Maybe we will in the future but as of right now we don't have anything.

Best Regards,

Michael

As far as seats in an accident, a minor front end collision would probably be fine but anything moderate to severe would have the force of the drivers body pulling on the seatbelt, which tends to have one end anchored to the seat. That one you would kinda want to check on a car-by-car basis, depending on the setup and the crash.

Good to know about the Recaro's, they say that they heavily test all of their seats as well so as long as you can be sure you're getting authentic seats you're good to go.