A new seat for us. Really good in Verts.
 

Hey guys,

I have a 98 Vert, and am a big guy, 6'2" 240 lbs.

I had a bear of a time finding a good seat that looked good from all angles with the top down, was big enough to fit me, and small enough to fit in my car. All while not spending several grand.

I took a risk in Bimarco Futura racing seats.

A was a risk well taken.

They look fantastic from all angles and in the car.

they have a great line that matches the curves of our cars, and the back is painted in a glossy piano black that is well finished.

The only hang up, is that they are side mount seats, so I had the choice of fabricating some brackets, or hard mounting them to the car. I didn't want to change the stock seat mounting bolts so I made a simple but very strong fixed bracket from some steel construction ties at home depot and some extra strong # 8 bolts and washers.

I was able to keep the seats very low even mounting the side mount brackets to my custom bracket in the car, and keep the original mounting points in the car. Cost about $30 and 2 hours to make the brackets.

I used a Simpson Strong Tie, ESR 2523, MST27. These are rated to hold over 10,000 lbs each so they are strong enough for the job when two are used for each seat.

Here is a teaser pic, more to come in a bit.

They fit very well in the car, and fit my body size with just the right amount of snugness.

Best of all, they are actually a FIA approved seat that is extra safe and can be used in HPDE's and Time Trial events etc.

My car is a daily driver, but I love the canyon runs, and this seat is perfect both visually and performance wise. Will be doing Autox and HPDE's and some Corvette Challenge runs.

Don't know if I would recommend them for coupes unless you are flexible, as ingress and egress in is a bit tight with my roof up because of the higher side bolsters at the hips, but then again I'm big.

Only real problem is that I'm gunna have to spring for coilovers and even stiffer sways than my Hotchkis now, as I can feel everything that the car is doing in curves much better now lol

http://i1249.photobucket.com/albums/...ps9f8fb97e.jpg
http://i1249.photobucket.com/albums/...ps0c5509fe.jpg

These seats start at $300!

I think I paid an extra $100 for the leather option.

They are better quality than the comparable Corbeue or Sparco's I looked at, and look better too.





more pics to follow

Looking forward to seeing a picture of them in the car.

I've been driving around with just the one seat in to make sure I liked them as a DD seat.

I do, the other seat will go in in a bit and will post pics this afternoon ;-)

In for more pics :thumbs:

Not Bad. :thumbs:

That front looks really high. Does that move down to make the seat more flat on the bottom? Cause if that's not adjustable, I can see that just killing you with pressure on your sciatic nerve. It looks really deep.

In my opinion that seat looks very uncomfortable. I don't think I would like it at all.

Here's the owner's opinion:


I've driving around with just the one seat in to make sure I liked them as a DD seat.

I do, the other seat will go in in a bit and will post pics this afternoon ;-)

Not sure I would be comfortable with that high front lip to the seat - seems like your legs would never be able to be stretched out. After you've had them for a while and have driven a bit, let us know your feelings then.

My poor back hurts looking at them, I am happy that you like them but not my style . I need to stretch out . They are probably good for the track . Keep us informed .:thumbs:

The fixed seat is not an option and frankly I dont want the hassle. :nono:
I want a bolt in option.

I made it a bolt in option by fabing some brackets, cost $30, and two hours with nothing but a saw, a drill, a grinder, and some paint....and will hold about 20,000 lbs so is strong :thumbs:

that high front section is all medium density foam and squishes down when sitting on it.

http://i1249.photobucket.com/albums/...ps547706a2.jpg
http://i1249.photobucket.com/albums/...ps7217a897.jpg

I like the way the line of the seat flows with the lines of the car:

http://i1249.photobucket.com/albums/...ps4fdbab86.jpg

http://i1249.photobucket.com/albums/...ps000fad0d.jpg
http://i1249.photobucket.com/albums/...psda9ed95a.jpg
http://i1249.photobucket.com/albums/...ps5b98d7c9.jpg
http://i1249.photobucket.com/albums/...ps70b39128.jpg
http://i1249.photobucket.com/albums/...psd9d82401.jpg
http://i1249.photobucket.com/albums/...psb50c64d6.jpg
http://i1249.photobucket.com/albums/...ps9ea3629b.jpg
http://i1249.photobucket.com/albums/...pse33296d2.jpg

They look good and match your car perfectly!

Yeah...only been a couple days

if I had a Coupe or Z/FRC I'd probably get sick of them quick, as getting in and out with the top is like getting into a Lotus Elise...gotta fold yourself lol

took about an hour to get use to them because they conform to your body so well and hold you firm, ya kinda naturally hold yourself stiff in response which is uncomforatable, but then when you learn to relax in the seat its very comfortable for a performance seat.

my interior is a work in progress....I'll have that torch red welt cord around the radio bezel going around all the air vents and the seam in the door below the grab handle....and my instrument bezel behind the steering wheel will be torch red soon as well.

Will all tie in nicely I think....and is kinda unique, not a lot of other vettes with interiors quite like mine will be, with the chrome bits, torch red stuff, and black it ties in with the exterior theme hopefully:

Yeah, they are a FIA approved racing seat, so good for track, very solid and rigid with a good fit for my body size.

Not for everyone....but I like curvy roads, so they are good for me....and are suprisingly comfortable once you learn to relax in them. They hold you in a great driving position with good padding and are nice and snug without being uncomfortable.

They kind of cocoon you and make you feel a part of the car.

not for everybody, but I thought I would present them because when I was searching for a good performance seat i found many threads on many forums including this one, where bigger guys were having trouble finding a seat that was big enough for them but small enough to fit in the car....thought I'd let folks know about this one.

did you sit in a recaro pole position before you got those? it's a very similar seat but ortho correct and fits your spine perfectly. to date i have not found a more comfy fixed back seat

Its a medium density foam that squishes down when sitting in them, without being uncomfortable.

I'll have to take your word that they are comfortable! The support looks REALLY good. Now if only you could figure out a way for them to be adjustable!
Good looking seat with a good price tag! :thumbs:

Yeah, I tried the Recaro Pole Position, its very good.

I also sat in the FX1 and the Sparco seat

The Futura is better than the FX1 and Sparco seats, very close to as good as the Pole Positions.

But I personally think these look better than the Recaro's

And they were a third of the price.



These are just another viable option I thought I'd put out there since I don't think anyone has tried them in a C5 before. ;-)

good color options too, and they will custom embroider anything on them

I thought about mounting them on sliders, can be done but would be sitting kinda high for me.

I may try to fabricate an adaptor that will allow the side mount brackets to hook up with a shaved height Corbeue double locking slider or similar. Will update when I try it.

The seats and brackets together weight 25 lbs each

my old setup was 44 lbs per seat

saved almost 40 lbs ;-)

one more question, were you able to find a dealer where you were able to sit in the seats ahead of time, or did you just roll the dice and hope they worked?

Thanks

I definately took a chance.

But I got the measurements and sat in a seat the same size to make sureit would fit me.

And I did some detailed measuring of the car based on the seat measurement specs.

I knew it would fit me, but the measurements came up VERY CLOSE for fitting in the car...I rolled the dice because they looked so d**n good and the price was great.

At the bottom the just barely fit where the seatbelt cover and the floor meets, literally like a millimeter clearance but nothing needs cut. I was worried they would touch at the door up top at the shoulder supports, because the way I measured it I thought it was barely going to fit, but I have a good inch to inch and a half clearance their with no touching.

As with most things on this car, I researched and researched until I got a good gut feeling lol


Hard to find a retailer in the US to try the seats, they are popular across Europe and are made in Poland. Took over a month to get them, but were worth the wait for me.

I've talking to a few guys from Poland

Tyrns out that when it comes to making stuff they are more like Germans than Russians regarding quality without the USSR over them, I think you might see Poland become like a mini cheaper Germany at some point.

The construction quality and fiberglass work and finish it great.

The seats in my 4th gen Fbody are very similar in shape, obviously not as supportive. Mine have an adjustable piece where you've got those foam parts we discussed. Mine can be raised and lowered, and of course then the seats are inflatable in all the wrong places too. No matter where I put that piece though, I have a hole to sit in much like that seat appears. Mine isn't soft foam though, it's fairly firm. It might just be my frame, I'm tall and thin, not much natural padding. But I was never thrilled with that shape. It holds you in better than my Vette seats, but it tends to put pressure at the backs of my legs which isn't good for long distances. Yours looks easier to compress which will be a good thing.

I'll be curious to hear an update after a week or two. If you still feel the same way, that would make me more comfortable about the seat. Regardless, I'd still want to sit in a seat before buying.

They look great in your car, and if you're happy, I'm happy for ya. :thumbs:

Nice seats. You mind posting a link to where you bought them at? Thanks.

They mostly sell them in Europe and don't have much of a presence in the USA.

The email for the main US distributor is BimarcoUSA@Gmail.com

he mostly sells them on Ebay

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Bimarco-Futu...sories&vxp=mtr

not a fan of ebay, but things worked out alright with my order, I just emailed them and asked for the specific customizations that I wanted and they handled it....very responsive customer service.

Nice Pep Boys SW cover. :ack:

Okay, I'll bite...whats an SW cover?




haha, never mind, my slow brain figured it out lol


yeah, thats a surprisingly useful performance mod, not an appearance mod lol

that things padded and makes a much bigger and better "contact point"...when I have time to have the car outa commission for a few weeks I'll have that SW sent in to be thickened up and padded out right.

Sure thing ;-)

Nice looking seats. I have been having my eye on the Corbeau A4 seats, but I think these might be a good alternative, and a little cheaper to boot.

The A4 is a completely differant seat...Apples and Oranges.


The A4 will not have nearly the support or performance of this seat, but may be more amenable in a DD for most...personally I like the performance...

Also keep in mind that you will have to either fab some adaptor brackets between the side mount brackets and the floor mount bolts, or hard mount these to the car floor.

Worth it to me though.

curves are so much better now :-)

I need new seats and am not impressed with the stock vette seats. I am not a racer and although the Corbeau A4 seem to find favour with many here, it may not fit my needs. I was looking through their models and was wondering if the Corbeau Sport Seat was any good and at 22 inches wide at the bottom, would it fit in a C5 vert.

those won't fit...its also more of a comfort seat and won't provide much support if that matters to you.

I like my car, I like my seats and see no need to invest in aftermarket "stuff" to make the vehicle worth less than a car with original equipment. Glad this works 4u

lol...I have guys offer much more than I paid for my car regularly...

Having said that...If you love your car as is good for you, they are fantastic right outa the box

but

for very little money (compared to the high end european sports cars) you can mod these cars into world class performance machines.

My build challenge for this car is to build a car with less than $40,000 total investment that will look on par with, and perform on par with the $150,000 to $250,000 euro sports cars


nothing wrong with spending a few bucks to make it into a supercar ;-)

its a great bang for the buck platform....the best in my opinion

plus, I can honestly say, that there is no other vette in the world that looks just like mine, its a one off

That's exactly what I thought after first glance as well.

stock cars suck.

:yesnod:

:iagree:

Until you've modded and personalized it you don't really own it; it's just a loaner car.

I just found these and am pretty happy about it!

http://www.marradind.com/proddetail.asp?prod=C56MBRWS

Hey Bro,

I just saw these at a website where I found sliders for racing seats...these seats are very similar to the Corbeue Sport Seats you saw but will fit a corvette:

http://www.marradind.com/proddetail.asp?prod=VR1

:D::thumbs::rock:

very nice:thumbs:

I looked at fixed bucket seats but my skinny ass needs more padding. I have the Corbeau A4's in leather and they are much more comfortable than the stockers and provide much more support. :thumbs:

http://i54.photobucket.com/albums/g93/WKMCD/seats2.jpg

Ya know I considered back and forth a lot on this...but so far everything I've done on the car leaves me craving more handling, feel, and control, whereas most people crave always more power as they mod up.

I put a NOS kit on and loved it, but it didn't leave me craving more power like I crave more handling feel and control with every upgrade in that area.

For example, I have the Hotchkis Sport adjustable sways, but now want something even stiffer etc.

So I figured I'd just go right into the fixed back seat...this, like the Recaro Pole Position, contour ergonomically to your spine and is very comfortable, but not as comfortable as an A4 or similar.

That was the debate, a comfort seat thats sporty, or a sporty seat thats more comfy than average....I chose the latter based on my ongoing craving for more handling and control versus power.

I think most guys would probably prefer the A4 though as a daily driver.

I don't ever really take my car on a casual cruise though, even trips to the grocery store I bend it around every single curve lol

plus, this car responds really well to weight reduction, and these were lighter

I'm running about 180 lbs lighter than I use to and the car feels much more responsive and agile, so for me that was a consideration too.

:thumbs: sweet thanks

They look nice

Peace
Chip

I was wondering where you get the red trim cord you have around the radio bezel etc???Custom made??

Dunno, looks more like a gaming seat the kids use.

Haha..thats because they model those gaming seats after racing seats ;-)

this is a FIA aprroved racing seat.

they have it at Mid America Motorworks website in all colors.

http://www.mamotorworks.com/corvette...1-54-7808.html

I ordered another 12 ft to use in the door panels and around the air vents.

They sell welt cord for much cheaper if your google and find online upholstry supply places, but I didn't want to take a chance of the color not being right, MAMo has it color matched to all the vette colors.

Looks good.

Thanks CCW, 540i, and the rest.

here's a few more pics.

http://i1249.photobucket.com/albums/...ps688d426d.jpg
http://i1249.photobucket.com/albums/...psbe463127.jpg
http://i1249.photobucket.com/albums/...psb218833c.jpg

http://i1249.photobucket.com/albums/...ps7b2b9077.jpg
http://i1249.photobucket.com/albums/...psf0882600.jpg

Thanks for showing me these fit a vette! Now to order for my FRC

They don't look comfortable too me. Looks like you're sitting in a hole. I wouldn't even want them in a race car. You must be a young man to be able to pull yourself out of those. I'd have to have some one help me out of them.