What helmets are you guys running?
 

Curious what everyone is wearing out on the track in FDs as headroom is always an issue in them.... (regardless of interior, seats, cage, etc..)
Also looking to see what is still approved while also being as "low profile" as possible.

got me a Simpson Super Bandit...best helmet i've owned

not to mention the added bonus that the Stig uses the same one LOL

I've got a normal HJC full-face helmet, and it just brushes the roof when I'm driving. I'm 6' with a Recaro racing seat and no sun roof
Sure glad I'm not 6'1"

Damn you for this.

I AM 6'1" and im convinced i wouldnt fit with a helmet

Lol I'm 6'1" with a sunroof... (dun dun duuuuuh) :banghead: :banghead: lol F word.

Not sure about helmets designed specifically for cars. But when I was looking for one for my motorcycle I wanted one that wasn't made in China. That left only Shoei and Arai which are made in Japan. There may be others that I missed.

I went with Shoei RF1100 and am very happy with it. I have about one inch of clearance wearing it in the FD with Recaro SPG seats - I am 6'3" and have a non sunroof car.

I bought an MSR motorcycle helmet for autocrossing. It was only about $100. I'm 5' 11", and long waisted. My car has a sunroof. I dont fit well at all with the helmet on. I have to recline too much, so I am too close to the pedals to be close enough to the steering wheel. My head is still up against the roof. If I were road racing, this would not work. For autocrossing, I can put up with it for short runs. I dont think the helmet is at fault.

Some aftermarket seats with side mount may help you, Adam.

^ But Adam C. is a cheap bastard. He wont be buying aftermarket seats. :lol:

Bell GTX, with Sparco EVO fix-mounted touching the floor. But I'm only 5'9". But my head is several inches from the headliner, and mine is a sunroof car.

The key is getting that seat low.

Yep, flat bottom seat like Sparco evo or Recaro spg slammed to the floor of the car with custom no sliding rails. Anything that allows adj or sliding will cost you some head room.

Interestingly this proved to contain far more info on seats - I just posted a thread asking that very question (if you can get a lower seat) and didn't get nearly as much good info.


Thanks guys. - it's the only thing I don't love about my RX-7, I feel cramped in it.

You got that right!!! :lol:

So what's the best choice for getting a lower seat, but still having F-R adjustability?

What are our options?

...I've never looked into aftermarket seats OR wheels before - now I'm seriously considering both.

The first option is to remove some of the foam padding from your stock seat. The process has been discussed on the form ages ago. It won't do any wonders for your resale value or your comfort, but it can gain you an inch or so of head clearance.

If you don't want fix-position race seats, MemoryFab used to sell "super low" side-mount seat brackets that worked with their seats as well as Sparco and some others that still have sliders. These will get you a ton of headroom with the appropriate seat. The only problem is they're single-locking so that really puts the whole weight of the seat+driver on one rail in the event of catastrophic failure. With properly attached harnesses and a seat-back brace this is probably slightly less of an issue but still should be considered for a track car.

That's helpful thanks man.


Their site is HORRIBLE though lol.

I have a bad feeling this will end in A) tears, B) Jspec Recaros or C) Both

Yeah it's kind of a PITA that our cars were made to fly around a track and feel so at home, but can't A) fit aftermarket seats too easily and B) fit very well with helmets. It's the sacrifice of having an amazing looking body lined car I suppose.... Lol well worth it.

I just bought the sparco ring steering wheel and while it gives ample leg room, it covers the cluster a bit. I bought some bride vios III with the lowmax system. I am yet to install those but I hope it helps. I'll post up when they get here and I get time to put them in.

But back to the point- after these, I will still need a helmet. And I want a low profile one because well, let's face it.... Every 1/4" counts........just ask your wives. Lol

i am 6'-1" and fit (with Helmet) into my R1 w/recaro's without a problem.

What helmet?

I've got a G-Force open face (G-Force Open Face Helmets - G-Force Pro Phenom Open Face Helmet- SA2010 Rating)

5' 11" running a RZ with no issues, worth noting though the RZ has a bubbled roof.

^Any SA2010 rated helmet will work. I have a RaceQuip. Each person has his/her own personal preferences and you should go and try some on before buying. Just make sure you get an FIA approved unit and you will be good to go anywhere. This does not mean DOT, it means the SA2010 rating.

I too have asked a ton of questions about lowering the seat position with a helmet as I do not fit with my stock seats. Very uncomfortable with your head hitting and with the seat leaned too far back.

What I have found is you can use the Bride Low Max (Bride Super Seat), Nagisa Super Low (Nagisa Auto Super Low Seat Rail Leftside Mazda RX7 FD3S 93-02), or the Memfab units (Super Low Position Seat Rail Universal All Cars interior : Memoryfab) with a race seat and in theory, lower the position. Note I say in theory as I haven't tried it out yet but will very soon.

You should also get rails that are double lock units like mentioned above. Memfab does offer a double lock, you have to ask and pay more for it. I think the Bride and Nagisa units are double lock but verify this.

Finally, my racing seats of choice (to fit the FD and to be FIA approved) are the Recaro Profi/SPa units or the Sparco EVO seats. Both should fit and lower your position. FYI, the FD Spirit Recaros are not FIA approved.

I will report back soon on this.

David - I think you should just move to Ontario and modify my FD for me. Just my personal opinion, but...

They all have the bubble at least w/o the sunroof

Unless you are going to be using a harness every time you get in the car I do not recommend an aftermarket wheel without an airbag. With that being said, I'm guilty of doing it, but I know the consequences in the event of a front end collision. IMO 350mm wheels are the perfect size and it makes a world of a difference in how the car feels.

I'm 5'7" and my car has a sunroof. I have the HCJ AR-10 which is SA2005 rated and cost me around $300 a few years ago. The SA2005 rating is good for 10 years assuming you don't drop the helmet accidentally, so I'm good until 2015. The new SA2015 rated helmets are coming out soon so I'm betting some of the older helmets will be going on sale in the near future.

Unless you plan on racing competitively in top level motorsports it's not likely you need a FIA approved helmet. The majority of car clubs (I'm assuming you're doing HPDE) only require a SNELL SA (Sports application) or M (motorcycle) rated helmet. If you want to spend the extra money for a FIA approved helmet that's entirely up to you, but it is likely not required... If you were racing at that level I doubt you'd be on here asking for helmet advice anyway.

As far as seats go, my seat of choice is the Bride VIOS III with the low max rails which slide. This gave me plenty of head room even with a helmet on, but I'm also just a little guy at 5'7" ;). As stated above the selection of seats that fit in the FD is a small one, but the VIOS fit great, though I did have to modify the rails very slightly. My seats are not FIA approved either, but again it's not required for the type of events I attend. They're very comfortable even on long road trips of 8 hours plus.

-Dan

Awesome info. Thanks Dan!!

Yep, should have left out the FIA part of what I said about the helmets. Looking at FIA seats and my brain is getting fuzzy. FIA helmets are crazy pricey and not needed for most of us. I did say "Snell" or SA and that is what most need. When I went to VIR I had the rude surprise of learning my HJC was not Snell approved. So DOT means nothing, but look for Snell or SA.

Regarding the seats, it seems to me that one can get FIA specs for about the same as non-FIA so why not? Bride's are really nice so maybe the Bride Zeta IIIs? They are around $900 per seat or the same as the VIOS seats and according to the thread on seats that fit, no mods are required.

I use a pyrotect airflow. Its $200 and SA2010. The breathability and weight are great. I also have an issue with head room. Any seat suggestions for a large framed guy?

Here is the list of Bride FIA seats that are approved to fit in the FD using the Low Max seat rail system.

Low Max rails-
RH: R039LF
LH: R040LF

New Bride Japan style-
Vios III part # F42NNZ (not not old Bride Vios III)
Zeig III R part # F67NNZ
Vios III R part # F41NNZ

R models have a little different profile with a higher side at the hip.

Old Bride style as sold through Tees USA
Maxis III

??Note new Bride Japan site does not list Maxis III as fitting FD with Low Max option and old Tees USA does??

oh nice! I didn't realize the Japan edition seats were FIA approved. I was looking into ordering a pair but they're too rich for blood. The Japan edition seats look great!

There's absolutely no downside to ordering FIA approved seats. As stated above they can usually be had for about the same price as non certified seats and give you that extra piece of mind. But the FIA certification is only good for five years after the manufacture date. That certification can be extended an additional two years I believe if you return the seat to the manufacture to verify the seats integrity. Again, unless you're racing competitively no one will be checking the certification date.

-Dan

FWIW I also had a Pyrotect full-face (SA2000) that I was happy with for Autox. Inexpensive, light enough, fit my fat face well and had decent ventilation even on hot days sitting on the grid. I'm only 5'8", so I had no clearance issues. Hope to get back to some solo events this spring, so I'll need something new. Following this for any other brands to try on before Christmas time.

I forgot the mention that it comes pre-drilled for HANS device / neck restraint. The visor opens are also good (polarized, tinted, etc.)

Damn those Simpsons are pricey!!!!

^ Bill Simpson has a great reputation in the industry. He's now involved with football helmets.

Back to the OP headroom is an issue but not solved by helmet selection but seating. Any real Snell SA-2010 or FIA rated helmet will have substantial crush space above your head, as we are in closed cars avoidance of open wheel formula helmets may save you’re an 1/8 inch as thee type helmets typically have some aero spoilers on the top. Now the higher end helmets may come in two shell sizes, one for smaller heads other for larger previous standards only permitted one shell size, so smaller heads had thicker padding in a big egg.

I buy my helmets from Saferacer, good reputation and decent prices with occasional sales.
Personally I used the Bell open face Sport Mag 5 CF helmets for auto crossing (no longer made, only the FG version now) and now the Sparco WTX-7 Air CF for road racing.

That said the G-Force CFG is a great buy at $350; yes its got the China thing, but my last set of belts and firesuit were G-force… they see to impose some quality control whereas I don’t know where HJC is coming from.

Headroom is a problem and rather than compromise body with too much tilt back I seem to drive with a kinked/tilted head even with FIA seats. Probably not good for visual orientation.

I found a video of Julian back in the opened face helmet days.....

My Arai rx7 corsair =-)
http://i804.photobucket.com/albums/y...g?t=1304235477
http://i804.photobucket.com/albums/y...g?t=1304235505

I told my mom to never post that!

Does anyone know the rules and regulations as far as open face goes?

Open face is ok in closed top cars fo SCCA and NASA Just need SA2010 and in some events, goggles

Good to know. I've seen that they are a good amount cheaper..
But now that opens up a whole new discussion lol... are there goggle requirements? Or just any old goggle?

(As far as those classes go)

*also, I'm not trying to be annoying. Just figure this all might be good knowledge for someone to be able to search and find easily*

How much is your head worth to you? Don't go cheap on a helmet. You can get a very good SA2010 helmet for a very good price. I would recommend the Bell M4:

Bell M4 SA2010 Auto Racing Helmet - SafeRacer

It's already prepped for HANS should you ever decide to purchase a head/neck restraint system. It's extremely light and ventilated very well. It's one of the best helmets you can get for the money.

I've heard some claim open face visablity is better for autox than full face, but I've worn both and didn't feel that was true.
IF you never plan to go to the track and only autocross, then HANS ready versions are probably overkill. For some reason that link above isn't working for me, but IIRC BELL makes a less expensive version full-face version that isn't HANS ready...although you can go back later and add the anchors if you want.

Truth. If you have a $100 head, get a $100 helmet. Some of the best advice I ever got :) Lots of good advice in this thread. Don't skimp on the safety equipment! If you have a shop close by, go in and try a bunch of different helmets on. Different brands have different fits and everyone's head is shaped differently. Also, some full face helmets have a better field of view than others, etc, etc, etc... Find what works best for you that's in your price range.

Couldn't agree more. I originally posted this thread for my own knowledge but quickly realized how this could really help a lot of people in the future.. There are a lot of very knowledgable people on this forum.
All your input is very appreciated!! :icon_tup:

Shoei XR-1000.

I used it 2 Times with my car.

Motorbike helmet but id very confortable.

Wore my buddies HJC (C-15?) in my car, and it was against the roof, causing my head to be pushed to the side.
Noteworthy: I'm running bride VIOS III seat with modified lowmaxx rails. I think I may be screwed. :(

Oh and no my seats don't hit the doors. ;)

^ try removing the bottom cushions. That is what I did with my Sparcos and I can fit. Just like you though with the bottom cushion in.

Can you post up a pic of the seat and how it fits?