The 24 Hours of Lemons Forums → Lemons Newcomers → Racing seat question
I sold the complete interior in my car and need to find a seat. I got my eye lined up on a torn up old bride race seat, but I want to make sure everything is going to pass tech.
I scanned the rules and tech info, If i use a race seat with a 5 pt harness (mounted on the rail 6" behind the seat I believe it was) and the seat doesnt wiggle or anything, will it pass?
Will this pep boys apc seat pass tech if mounted properly with a 5 pt harness?
No. Lemons no longer allows 2 piece adjustable/reclining seats.
Real race seats are one piece buckets, with two holes for shoulder harness entry.
Like so:
Actually, that Corbeau pic'ed above is one of the best seats for the money. FX1 priced under $400.
Actually, that Corbeau pic'ed above is one of the best seats for the money. FX1 priced under $400.
We got the Sparco cheap seat for under 400 as well. IDK about now, but a while back Corbeau lost their FIA certs on their seats for some reason. I believe they got it back but not sure. Either way that corbeau or a momo, sparco, kerkley or something designed to contain your body in a crash.
The seat is your contact with the car and if your going to spend 2 hours at a time in it, you want it to be comfy. I believe some of the corbeau's come in wider widths for the same $. Others charge for XL seats and don't offer them in the low end (sub $400 price range).
We got the sparco sprint, http://www.sparcousa.com/product/sprint and its reasonably comfortable tho I wish it had more head containment (taller/wider sides around the head)
We are just starting to look at seats now as well. Anyone else have a seat they like and would recommend? We don't want to spend a ton if we can help it, but we also would very much like NOT dying...
We got the Corbeau FX1 and its nice and comfy and passes tech.
I would suggest if possible finding a race shop in your area that has seats and go and try them out
Find the one that works best for your drivers. If you have any tall drivers make sure it goes high enough up. You basically want the seat that your biggest driver barely fits in. Tighter is safer.
If safety is a high priority, then a halo seat and a Hans is pretty much the state of the art right now. I don't think a Hans provides very much side impact protection. The halo seat will provide that.
I don't think a Hans provides very much side impact protection.
It doesn't, which is why you should buy a Necksgen instead. 
(Not a shill, only a happy Necksgen owner)
thanks guys. After having a corbeau in a different vehicle, I think Ill shoot for the forza. this $500 race car project is gonna be pushing $3k after all the safety gear lol.
Do you have to run the quick disconnect and/or the HAANS too?
thanks guys. After having a corbeau in a different vehicle, I think Ill shoot for the forza. this $500 race car project is gonna be pushing $3k after all the safety gear lol.
Do you have to run the quick disconnect and/or the HAANS too?
Trust me, you haven't even started the spending...
Didn't anyone tell you that it is going to cost you about $5000 to get that $500 car legal, safe, and reliable enough for a weekend?
thanks guys. After having a corbeau in a different vehicle, I think Ill shoot for the forza. this $500 race car project is gonna be pushing $3k after all the safety gear lol.
Do you have to run the quick disconnect and/or the HAANS too?
HA... HAHAHAHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH
You've barely scratched the surface.
<----- Owner of a "$300" VW Fox that has had almost 2 times its ORIGINAL MSRP spent on it doing this crap
Didn't anyone tell you that it is going to cost you about $5000 to get that $500 car legal, safe, and reliable enough for a weekend?
Not seat related but this has been helpful to our fledgling team. We have every member contribute $200 per month into a joint account which we buy all the parts, etc, This way when race time comes we use the debit card, and we don't have to ask for a lot more money right then.and there.
We use the Ultrashield pro rally seat. It fits in a small car and is super comfy!
It is also less than $400.00
Rob R.
rodknox2 wrote:I don't think a Hans provides very much side impact protection.
It doesn't, which is why you should buy a Necksgen instead.
(Not a shill, only a happy Necksgen owner)
A halo seat is far, far superior for side impact protection. I've had one moderate shunt in the side with a non-halo seat and I will never again get in a car that doesn't have one.
Are seats subject to being out of date and/or used seats being illegal?
I know this is an older thread, figured I'd ask here rather than start a new one...
Are seats subject to being out of date and/or used seats being illegal?
I know this is an older thread, figured I'd ask here rather than start a new one...
No and No. Just make absolutely sure the seat meets the tech requirements and also check around using the search function for some counterfeits that are apparently common in certain markets.
We use this Corbeau. Passes inspection and the least expensive I could find. Also I've had no comfort complaints from drivers. FYI- while the seats do not expire the harness does, I believe 5 years for Lemons but 2 years in NJ.
http://www.racing-seats-usa.com/29101.html
A counterfeit seat! That would be a bummer! Okay cool. Thanks Meyers, $240 is more in my price range for sure.
Going to go see the Sonoma Raceway Lemons in December. Start seeing all this in person, I bet it'll all start to make sense.
I'd get the double locking slider with it too. Just make sure when the short guy is in its still close enough to the cage
We use this Corbeau. Passes inspection and the least expensive I could find. Also I've had no comfort complaints from drivers. FYI- while the seats do not expire the harness does, I believe 5 years for Lemons but 2 years in NJ.
I have two Corbeau Forzas (one for the driver and one for the passenger for track days). I bought them both for $100-120 locally via Craigslist and one came with a car specific bracket that I later sold off on the enthusiast site to further lower my acquisition costs. It doesn't matter from a Lemons budget standpoint but every bit does help from a total annual racing budget standpoint.
Comments:
* Even after selling of $1500 from my tbird, I still spent $4-5K prepping the tbird for our first race. You have to pay to play but it helped to bring a larger team (6ppl) for my first race to reduce costs.
* You do sit a little low - one of the Corbeaus came with a pad that raises the seat position a bit. Since both seats are the same dimensions (one was just slightly newer), we just use that pad with the driver's seat. Before we had the pad, we just had a pillow for our shorter drivers to sit on.
* You will probably need a back brace since a) this is a tube frame and not a fiberglass shell seat and b) if any person will be seated beyond a certain distance from the cage bracing (I think it's 6"). For safety's sake, I'd have one anyway. EGR built one for us as part of the cage price but you can buy one from IO PORT
http://www.ioportracing.com/Merchant2/m … Code=SBB15
* Our driver's side belts were getting old and we wanted a proper harness for the passenger so I went ahead and bought a camlock GFORCE setup ($150) instead of the cheapest latch&link setup ($70). CAMLOCK is SO much nicer and IMO are well worth the premium.
- It's a LOT easier to get in/out with camlock belts. If you have drivers of different widths, you will spend a lot less time messing around getting friendly with their junk while you are adjusting/buckling them in. Even if fiddling with their junk is your thing, you can always do that later when the track is cold and you won't be wasting on-track time that you (and your fellow drivers) have already paid for.
- Since GFORCE charges $60-75 to reweb & recertify belts, this procedure is only cost effective to re-web camlock belts (and not L&L sets).
- PULL UP lap belts are a LOT easier for the driver to get himself tighter than PULL DOWN belts.
* I have one vote AGAINST the double locking slider. Somehow, one side of the slider worked itself out of the track and we ended up forcing our long driver to drive in the "up close" position for his stint. I later had to remove the entire seat and remove the rails from the brace before I could get the slider in the right position so lifting up would release BOTH tracks. That was highly annoying. The single locking corbeau slider never gave me this problem. If you have OEM manual seat tracks on your stock seats, I'd see if you could mod them to fit the Corbeau seat first before giving them money for a slider that doesn't fit very well. That would be my first choice.
I'm probably going to buy a HANS setup for my team. Even if the Necksgen Rev does look lighter and more convenient,
a) these amount of forward movement allowed by the Rev scares me a bit
b) I actually emailed them TWICE for a response (even -- oh the test settings were different probably would have sufficed). They never replied with SQUAT to me so I'm voting with my dollars.
Necks Gen Rev - note: uploaded by Necksgen's president so I doubt this is a guerrilla marketing hatchet job.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RFlmJHP2o90
Hans
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bFOprqPmgqQ
Either option would be better than being this guy
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NSaiZuzNMSY
or real world
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g40YatgE_CE
I am not a fan of the slider if you have a limited height to deal with. Even with the extremely low profile or out Volvo 240 sliders, unless you are welding the slide to the floor, you are adding and inch. If you MUST use a slider, make sure to add at least 2" of ramp over 6" of travel.
"Custom" but and/or back pads are quicker, easier and 90% as effective. Your taller drivers can splay their knees but you shorter driver need to be able to turn the wheel to 210 degrees AND mash the brake pedal to the floor when the fluid boils.
I am not opposed to latch link if your whole team gets it and the extra approx 30-45 sec it takes to belt a driver in IF you have two people belting in the driver and the driver just holding up his hands. At tracks that require the use of a hot pits and a reliable, non-oil-burning car it is a nuisance.
Heck, for the cost of shipping, will give you a set with 18 months still left on them.
"Custom" but and/or back pads are quicker, easier and 90% as effective.
...except they're 90% less safe. A pad will compress quite a lot in a collision, allowing the driver to flop all over the place, possibly even falling out of his harness.
"Custom" but and/or back pads are quicker, easier and 90% as effective.
...except they're 90% less safe. A pad will compress quite a lot in a collision, allowing the driver to flop all over the place, possibly even falling out of his harness.
I hate blanket statements like this so I will give you a caveat "as applied in most LeMon's teams". Take the the olive branch. Our team has been guilty of it too.
This is the method used to create custom inserts for profession racing seats in powerboats for a reason. Correctly created, closed cell, two component foam of the correct rating and density IS less likely to compress than the 1/2" of low density foam built into a seat pad.
Just a pet peeve and I realize my statement could lead teams to grab a chunk of foam from JoAnnes used for your couch and use it for a spacer. For a more clear definition:
If you use Upholstery foam used no more than 1.5" of HIGH denistiy foam. If you can get your foam from a Marine supply store that guarantees closed cell, high density foam or even better "ultra high density" foam, consider 2" but, still try to stay to 1.5". If you can afford the two component , 2' x 3' pads (for the back) or the 1' x 1' (for the base) consider this ideal. They are not simple to come by especially in a foam that with not sustain a fire (often incorrectly labeled as fire blocker). Making a pillow case out of fire retardant cottoh is wise.
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