Installed: 350Z Seats in my FC
01-08-10, 05:43 PM
#1
Installed: 350Z Seats in my FC
The original seats in my FC (86 GXL) have been falling apart for a while now. The leather on the bolsters were torn, the foam had come out, the stitching was all coming undone, and they were showing their age.
For a while I've been looking for a new pair of seats, but I didn't want a cheap pair of aftermarket racing seats for a few reasons - not least of which because I never found them comfortable. At 6'1" and 225, I needed something with some room. My other concern was that most seats sit higher than stock, making head (and helmet) room a serious issue.
After some searching I found a great deal on pair of black cloth seats out of a 2004 350Z, so I snatched them up and got to work.
Due to the transmission tunnel, the passenger side was going to be the hard one. Here's a pic of me test fitting the seat with the bottom removed - stock FC rails in place for reference:
As you can see, the seat is a lot wider than the stock rails, so it took a lot of bracketry to make everything fit properly. Once installed, it was a snug fit. Here you can see how close it is to the tunnel and how I was able to retain the seat's plastic shrouding including its map pocket on the side:
The Driver's side was much easier because the mounting points for the stock FC seats are pretty symetrical. Using the 350Z sliders and some heavy brackets, I was able to get the seat to fit fantastically!
The Driver's seat actually sits about 1 - 1.25" LOWER than stock now. You can see in the first two pics how low your hips sit. I had to trim all the plastic shrouding on the side of the seat to clear the raised areas of the FC floorpan... but who needs a map pocket there anyway?
All the seat adjustment controls are still accessible.
Unfortunately, the passanger seat sits slightly higher than stock, but I'm not too concerned about that, as it's not enough to be a problem.
And from the back of the car:
Overall I'm really happy with them. Not only do the hold me well, but they are comfortable and retain all the OE functions like reclining, fore and aft adjustment and seat bottom pitch adjustment on the driver's side.
For a while I've been looking for a new pair of seats, but I didn't want a cheap pair of aftermarket racing seats for a few reasons - not least of which because I never found them comfortable. At 6'1" and 225, I needed something with some room. My other concern was that most seats sit higher than stock, making head (and helmet) room a serious issue.
After some searching I found a great deal on pair of black cloth seats out of a 2004 350Z, so I snatched them up and got to work.
Due to the transmission tunnel, the passenger side was going to be the hard one. Here's a pic of me test fitting the seat with the bottom removed - stock FC rails in place for reference:
As you can see, the seat is a lot wider than the stock rails, so it took a lot of bracketry to make everything fit properly. Once installed, it was a snug fit. Here you can see how close it is to the tunnel and how I was able to retain the seat's plastic shrouding including its map pocket on the side:
The Driver's side was much easier because the mounting points for the stock FC seats are pretty symetrical. Using the 350Z sliders and some heavy brackets, I was able to get the seat to fit fantastically!
The Driver's seat actually sits about 1 - 1.25" LOWER than stock now. You can see in the first two pics how low your hips sit. I had to trim all the plastic shrouding on the side of the seat to clear the raised areas of the FC floorpan... but who needs a map pocket there anyway?
All the seat adjustment controls are still accessible.Unfortunately, the passanger seat sits slightly higher than stock, but I'm not too concerned about that, as it's not enough to be a problem.
And from the back of the car:
Overall I'm really happy with them. Not only do the hold me well, but they are comfortable and retain all the OE functions like reclining, fore and aft adjustment and seat bottom pitch adjustment on the driver's side.
01-08-10, 06:40 PM
#6
Up & Rising Star
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dude this is great!!! I have been searching for some seats, I like those, they even look like I can put some custom holes in for the harness(done by a shop of course) I'm 6'4 so I love the fact these give an inch, and they look nice too.
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01-08-10, 08:33 PM
#10
Thanks for the comments guys!
It was hardly a plug and play application, but with a bit of cutting and fab work they fit just fine.
Well, it's not perfect by any means - the dark pics hide a lot. lol I need a new carpet in the front too.
Yup. It still works, so if I need to get into the storage bins I can pull the handle and fold the seat forward. for easy access.
You can make almost any seat fit nice and low - just start with a seat that has a low profile on the bottom. Most sports cars (S2000 is another one) are good candidates. Cars like RSX's have beautiful seats, but sit higher in those cars, so they take more work to make them sit low. If you want more head room, you'll need to make brackets that mount the seat as low as possible. The passenger seat wont sit that low though.
Believe it or not, I actually like the stock wheel. Most aftermarket wheels I've tried are too small. The few I do like are expensive, and I have other go-fast stuff I need to buy for my car before a steering wheel!
It was hardly a plug and play application, but with a bit of cutting and fab work they fit just fine.
Well, it's not perfect by any means - the dark pics hide a lot. lol I need a new carpet in the front too.
Believe it or not, I actually like the stock wheel. Most aftermarket wheels I've tried are too small. The few I do like are expensive, and I have other go-fast stuff I need to buy for my car before a steering wheel!
01-09-10, 02:13 AM
#15
Awsome! Thanks for sharing your work. I wonder if my brother could fit these in his 240Z?
And +1 on ditching the bus driver wheel the only thing you interact w/ more is the seat, and thats been upgraded now. As for "go fast" its still n/a....I got a used Personal wheel AND hub off ebay for less than $100 shipped; I doubt you're gonna do a turbo swap, or get a set of tires for that much...
And +1 on ditching the bus driver wheel the only thing you interact w/ more is the seat, and thats been upgraded now. As for "go fast" its still n/a....I got a used Personal wheel AND hub off ebay for less than $100 shipped; I doubt you're gonna do a turbo swap, or get a set of tires for that much...
01-09-10, 11:55 AM
#16
Thanks guys!
So much hate for the S4 wheel! lol
If I could find one of the wheels I like for $100 - then yeah, I'd pick one up! So far though I haven't and I like the S4 wheel enough not to buy a "stopgap" wheel until I get one I want.
Yes, it's an N/A but that doesn't mean it can't be a faster N/A. I've spent a lot of money on the car this year doing things like installing a Microtech, so dropping 3 or $400 on a steering wheel - which is, what amounts to an aesthetic improvement, isn't at the top of my list. But yeah, I do keep an eye out on ebay for a bunch of things including a steering wheel just in case!
And +1 on ditching the bus driver wheel the only thing you interact w/ more is the seat, and thats been upgraded now. As for "go fast" its still n/a....I got a used Personal wheel AND hub off ebay for less than $100 shipped; I doubt you're gonna do a turbo swap, or get a set of tires for that much...
If I could find one of the wheels I like for $100 - then yeah, I'd pick one up! So far though I haven't and I like the S4 wheel enough not to buy a "stopgap" wheel until I get one I want.
Yes, it's an N/A but that doesn't mean it can't be a faster N/A. I've spent a lot of money on the car this year doing things like installing a Microtech, so dropping 3 or $400 on a steering wheel - which is, what amounts to an aesthetic improvement, isn't at the top of my list. But yeah, I do keep an eye out on ebay for a bunch of things including a steering wheel just in case!
01-09-10, 03:20 PM
#19
if you know where to look, you can get a legit 2nd hand steering wheel pretty cheap
like so
https://www.rx7club.com/west-sale-wanted-classifieds-195/random-fc-parts-881453/
like so
https://www.rx7club.com/west-sale-wanted-classifieds-195/random-fc-parts-881453/
01-09-10, 04:34 PM
#20
Drunk favors for beers
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^ Momo Monte Carlos are nice. I enjoyed mine, it was a little small though, like 320mm.
I love my new wheel, it's one of my favorite mods, and I can take it easily to any new car I get. You're holding the steering wheel 98% of the time you are driving, for me that is a pretty important piece.
I love my new wheel, it's one of my favorite mods, and I can take it easily to any new car I get. You're holding the steering wheel 98% of the time you are driving, for me that is a pretty important piece.
01-09-10, 06:18 PM
#21
if you know where to look, you can get a legit 2nd hand steering wheel pretty cheap
like so
https://www.rx7club.com/showthread.php?t=881453
like so
https://www.rx7club.com/showthread.php?t=881453
Aesthetically, it strikes me as too small for the dash and practically, you lose a lot of gauge visibility.
If you have manual steering and wider tires, the smaller diameter makes for crankier low speed maneuvering too.
01-09-10, 06:25 PM
#22
Well, you need to create them. The RX7 sliders don't match the Z's seats, and the Z's sliders don't match the mounting points of the RX. I chose to use the Z's sliders - with its mounting hardware removed - and make brackets that attached to the seat and car.
I totally agree - and that's why I wont just buy any wheel I find. Like I said before, I like the S4 wheel, so until I can find a deal on a steering wheel I like better than the stock one, I'm sticking with what I have.
When I first got the car I tried a really nice Momo that I had from an old Scirocco, but it was way too small so I went back to stock.
When I first got the car I tried a really nice Momo that I had from an old Scirocco, but it was way too small so I went back to stock.
01-10-10, 07:52 PM
#24
Visual Kei
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Wow that is pretty sick man! I was like "Wait am I reading this right?" I must say that they look great! If you could possibly do a write up that would be awesome. Some of the new "venturing out" per modifications should be documented whenever possible. I love my TII seats but on long drives my legs get tired and feel like they have no support. I've noticed w/ seats where you can adjust the angle on the bottom portion of the seats, it makes driving much more relaxed on the freeway when it's a long trip.
I've been in my TII 12 hours one way before and would've killed for something like this! haha. Thanks for sharing also!
I've been in my TII 12 hours one way before and would've killed for something like this! haha. Thanks for sharing also!
01-11-10, 01:43 AM
#25
s4 Pride
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Wow that is pretty sick man! I was like "Wait am I reading this right?" I must say that they look great! If you could possibly do a write up that would be awesome. Some of the new "venturing out" per modifications should be documented whenever possible. I love my TII seats but on long drives my legs get tired and feel like they have no support. I've noticed w/ seats where you can adjust the angle on the bottom portion of the seats, it makes driving much more relaxed on the freeway when it's a long trip.
I've been in my TII 12 hours one way before and would've killed for something like this! haha. Thanks for sharing also!
I've been in my TII 12 hours one way before and would've killed for something like this! haha. Thanks for sharing also!