Seats for a tall guy

28th September 2010, 12:21

Hey all. I'm 6'3 and to be honest I find the interior of my Mk1 VTS a bit cramped.

I was wondering, if I fit sports recliners like the Corbeau Carrera for example then will then sit any lower than the standard seats or possibly even higher?

Basically my head rubs on the roof and is a bit uncomfortable. Is there anything else I can do to help or am I going to have to live with it? I do recline the back a bitas this sits me slightly lower but any further and it would be undriveable.

All suggestions welcome

28th September 2010, 12:36

remove the roof lining?

know what you mean tho, im about 6,1 and i struggle to fit in my saxo when ive got my helmet on.

ive got cobra fixed buckets and they dont really help either, if you used side mount seat it may be possible to get lower tho, maybe

28th September 2010, 13:07

If you run buckets using the standard mounting points, running the base mounts and sliders, it will probably sit about the same, maybe even higher?

Only way to go lower is to run buckets with just the base mounts, but then your going to loose access to the rear.

Sounds like its time for a new car lol

28th September 2010, 14:03

Don't say that, I only bought her a week ago!! lol......

I don't want buckets as they cripple my back (old man) so has to be recliners.

28th September 2010, 15:17

well racelands have a height thingy but doesn;t make alot oif difference, and are no good for my dwarf of a mrs so would assume they would be the same for a tall person.
my seats however slide forward and backwards further and my subframes seem to sit lower than most i;ve seen.
subframes are made by KONI if thats any help.
but i'm sure if its just a case of re drilling the gliders to go further back its easy enough as what i have to do to her seats later

28th September 2010, 18:01

You can buy ultra low seat mounts, or get custom ones fabricated. Basically you can go as low as physically possible if you want to

28th September 2010, 18:04

Ive heard of people using 106 quiksilver front seats as they sit slightly lower apparently

29th September 2010, 07:19

Sorry when I said buckets I ment recliners also.

Off the top of my head, my old recliners did sit slightly lower than my standard seats. But again I wasnt running sliders. This would add about an extra inch roughly?

29th September 2010, 07:50

'gt40' your roof lol

29th September 2010, 09:38

Hi Scott

Im 5'10, or 11 and i sometimes feel the same as you!, i dont think there is actually much you can do with the factory vtr seats, imo when i first testdrove my car (dont think i was even that interested in the car till i got it down the road) it felt small and cramped with my knees up at the steering wheel, but within a day or two you get used to it and you sit yourself into a comfortable position

I personally have my seat all the way back and reclined as far as it can go because i feel more confident in driving like that, my misses dosent like her seat like that and constantly wants it straight up at the steering wheel (tought shit, its my car.. lol)

29th September 2010, 13:34

my gti seats sit a bit lower than the standards

29th September 2010, 16:12

Thanks for the replies all.

The GTI seats look pretty nice are they taken from a 106? I'm guessing I can source them through a breakers yard or eBay? How much should I be looking at? Do they fit to the standard seat mounts?

29th September 2010, 16:31

hi mate im 6'2 and had the same problem as you when i first got the car. i had a look through all the buckets seats i could and none got that low really
so i just cut the sliders from the seats and then cut the half inch spacer from the bottom and welded the sliders to the seat frame itself saved me a whole lot of money and makes it alot better to drive and altho i only removed about half inch from the slider i think its lowerd it by about a inch in total. hope this helps and is a alternative to buckets.

29th September 2010, 16:57

I'm 6'1" and hated my head being so close to the roof.

As said above the (early non-airbagged) 106 gti seats sit lower
I used these for about 3 years

Now I've got Recaro recliners on modified omp subframes, without sliders.
Which sit even lower

29th September 2010, 17:16

Hi Simon, I want, I want!! Those seats look awesome, much more supportive than the standard seats too. Only thing, no sliders? So they are always in the same position? I'm a nightmare in terms of adjusting my seating position so I'm not sure I could live without the sliders?? Can you still get access to the rear? (oo er)....... also, how much would those seats set me back? They're exactly what I'm looking for.

29th September 2010, 17:39

Quote:

Only thing, no sliders? So they are always in the same position?
I'm a nightmare in terms of adjusting my seating position so I'm not sure I could live without the sliders??

Yes there in the same position, but I've built a small bit of adjustment in when modifying the frames.
Took a few attempts to get the position I'm happy with.
But I'm always adjusting the back

Quote:

Can you still get access to the rear?

Still got full access to the rear,
but due to the way the omp frames are designed,
there isn't much room under the seats for rear passengers feet to go.

Quote:

also, how much would those seats set me back? They're exactly what I'm looking for.

I got lucky on eBay, the seats were £102

Then it was another £100ish for the subframes.

29th September 2010, 17:46

Ok cool thanks. So when looking for sports recliners on eBay are there any size restrictions for the Saxo or will pretty much anything go in? I'd hate to fork out on a set of seats only to find they wont go in.

Also I had a look at your progress thread! Those wheels are stunning! Do you have any issues with 16"s? My wheels are 14"s so I would worry the ride would suffer badly? I was thinking of going for 16"s. Can't find your wheels in the current line up though, where did you get them from if you don't mind me asking?