Aftermarket seats
 

Is anyone using these seats you see advertised in the ricer mags? I know you can get them at Pep Boys too. I think the brand is APC. Anyway, I saw a set in my new Summit catalog that were black/carbon fiber. Would look sweet in my ride. Quality seems okay from what I've seen from the ones I butt tested at Pep Boys, and they're only $200 a piece, but I'm wondering about comfort for daily driving and fitment issues. They look like a cheaper alternative to Sparco or Corbeau. Thoughts?

Summit also has all black or tan or gray fake leather seats. They look like factory sport seats and they are 4 point harness ready. I think they are a little higher class looking than the rice seats.
http://store.summitracing.com/defaul...+leather+seats

Yeah I saw those in the catalog. That's pretty much what I was asking about. They're the ricer seats without the logo. Anyone used something like this?

OK, I was thinking about ordering them but I want to find a set of boxster seats for a reasonable price. They are a tempting option though. :D

$200 a piece is a very good price. I had thought about junkyard seats, and I still might, but around here, most of the junkyards pull the glass out first. So unless you get them when they first come in, the interior is pretty much trashed. And shipping seats from eBay is about $100 a seat. At least Summit only charges $60 a seat. The only reason I'd thought about the ricer seats was because the local Pep Boys keeps them in stock (no shipping). The Summit seats look really nice, but I still worry about quality. They also sell Procar for around 350. How's the quality with those?

If you are trying tobuy new seats from an ebay store they make there money on the shipping usually charging $160... Most people who are selling their own used seats charge around $60 to $80 shipping for both seats. I have seen the procar seats first hand but never actually sat in them so I can't say how they felt as far as comfort goes. They look pretty good and I'm sure someone else will pipe in with some more personal experiance. :D

I have a pair of the Summit leather look seats in my BMW. They are a good deal for the $$$. I have made 2 long trips in that car (2500 mi each). Very supportive and comfortable.

You can see them in my website- www.e21motorsports.com/kendanielson they are in the '82 bmw section
ken

Thanks Ken, I was hoping someone could give me a personal experience with them. I've pretty much decided to get them anyway, but it's nice to know they are comfy!

Sweet!! :D

was in a Pep Boys the other day and notice they have this same exact seat. price was $200, no shipping charges. down side is it has a "3A Racing" logo embossed on it. :bawling: they also have a Recarro knock off for $150. same deal with the logo though. may just have to get a custom "VKG" patch made to cover it up. :D

I'm still thinking about those Pep Boys seats. I went to the local junk yard today and spied a couple of nice candidates, but nothing that wouldn't require some reupholstering. And at $75 a seat, plus whatever it would cost to recover them.. I think the aftermarket seats would be best.

I might just redo the stocker's for now though.

http://auto.consumerguide.com/auto/u...92812111990614

These are the other seats I looked at. Opinions?

look to be nice seats. i have never sat in them though. i have been having the same issues of considering junk yard or used finds, but they almost always require recovering which is costly. so i too am thinking aftermarket for the ghia, but don't want race seats in the bus. so not sure what i will do there.

Something else I noticed while at Pep Boys today, those 3A Racing seats don't pop forward. Definitely limiting back seat access!!

i believe their catalog had both those and the versions that do, but not sure. i've looked at too many recently. agree that that is a must for me too.

I have the APC seats in mine. My stock ones were practically pushing me out the door so then i got Rabbit GTI seats and had the bracket modified to make fit on the stock rails. Got sick of those being red (These i will give away to anyone whos local to the SF bay area if you want em) i couldnt move em back all the way to get enough leg room. (I'm 6'3) So i got the new JEG's catalog and saw the APC seats in there.. they were in my color scheme black/blue and were 149.99 with free shipping and of course no sales tax. To mount em i ordered brackets from Wedge Engineering. Those went on perfectly and perfectly into the rails with lots o legroom!! They are a little high up but i can deal with that. The seat is very comfortable and feels like a race seat my friend has in his camaro! Very solid! The only bad is that the shoulder bolster is a little wide.. so getting em past that pillar next to the window is kinda a PITA but im sure i can bend em or move that bolster in a little bit to make it work. But as my dad says.. a car isnt a car untill you get some seats in there..and my car is 100% more comfortable now with the new ones in there. I have a pic of the drivers seat in my profile as i was finishing the interior. Due to some shipping probs i didnt get the passenger seat till 2 weeks later. JEG's is excellent with customer service by the way! Now i just cant wait to drive it.
New seats make a world of difference no matter who makes em you will be glad new ones are in there!
Good luck!
- Scott

another nice alternative is Suzuki Swift GT seats they come ready for 4 point harness and can be had relativly cheap.

http://www.teamswift.net/files/pict0024_123.jpg

Well, I went back to the junkyard and decided against the seats I was looking at. Wrong color, wasn't as enamored with the style as I thought. I guess I am going to go aftermarket, but I've decided to stay stock for now. I'll just wait for a good deal to come by. I wish I was closer to SF, I'd come get those Rabbit seats.

The only thing I don't like about the APC or the 3A Racing seats is the logo. Heck, I don't even like that on the Sparco models. Just doesn't fit the clean look I'm going for. Maybe I'll just have to go with a set where the logo isn't so obvious.

i don't mind a logo. i just mind the 3A Racing or APC logo (my personal opinion). i am still thinking of going with the 3A Racing Recarro knock-off in black (hoping the logo is black but doubting it) and having a VKG patch made to cover the logo. patches are cheap. the sim leather seat like the APC scott has has an embossed logo, but at least it is seat color. i just like the look of a Recarro in a Ghia.

Seats...
 

Hey Scott,

You still have those Rabbit seats?

I live in Oakland and would willing to pick em up!

Thanks,

--Cat

Yep!!!! Got em in the garage..
I must warn you tho they arent perfect. And they are red.
If you now how to recover em or know a place that does it im sure they would turn out great. Ill attach a picture of em so you can see what they look like.
Oh and my car is a 74 made in 11/73 so it has the 3 post mounting.. 2 sliders in back and 1 anchor with a bolt in the front.
Lemme know if your still interested.
-Scott

...
 

I have an early Super 73... would these fit (early 73 has 3-bolt struts right?)

Either way, I will take em off you hands. you can PM me or email me an address and a day (sometime next week) for a good pickup..

Thank you very much,

--Cat

doh!
I tried the pm and the email thing and it says you dont have em allowed.
email me at scottiencali@yahoo.com or scottsolin@hotmail.com
And ill send directions.
Thanks!
- Scott

Got some "ricer" seats from ebay...The guy was local so I just picked them up...$100 per...They weren't perfect but for $100 they were pretty good and a huge step up from stock ( my bro-in-law came along and got a pair too )
No sliding around in these. Had a retired machinist neighbor cut some aircraft angles to attach the seats to the stock frames for no-hassle fitment...

Rustbucket and Zen,

What did you two find on your searches? I'm in the planning stages of my interior, and I'm trying to find options. I don't want to just buy a bunch of stuff and throw it in my car, it has to have a theme. Either way, I don't have a huge budget, but I'd like them to be 4 point compatible. and if at all possible $200-300 a seat. or lower, but sometimes if you buy something real cheap, you get what you paid for. :rolleyes:
I personaly don't like the Logo's either, especialy APC. I don't hate it, it's just not my cup of tea. I'd rather have no logo, or take an Idea from Zen and put a patch over it. like "Mike's seats" jk :laugh:
Also, they're for a Ghia.

Aftermarket seats
 

My friend and I put 1995 saturn seats in his bug.They have the perfect mounts to adapt to the bug seat rails. We got them from the local car recycler. He has hundreds of sets of seats. They cost us $25 for the pair.

Mike,

Mikey,

Well for now, I've decided to go back with stock. I was always going to restore the stock seats anyway, so I'm going to put them back in for now, and decide later.

I missed a sweet pair of Eclipse seats for $125 on eBay. They were even close by. But right now, all my $$ are going into getting it running. It is really adding up, and I'm trying to slow that down. So seats will have to wait. But the Summit ones look like the best deal.

no decisions here yet. just been too busy on the bug and the vanagon just started pissing fluids. will let you know when i decide, but thinking that the Ghia will need to have vinyl or leatherette to look right. that will limit my options some.

I remember Sport Compact Car magazine once did a seat test where they compared all the seats from Sparco, Recaro, Corbeau, and even APC. The test covered things like comfort, support, weight, etc. Anyway, I remembered that they hated the APC seat for various reasons. Then again, like Scott said, any seat would be an improvement in a VW. The APC seat, though it could be considered a downgrade in a modern car, could be both an inexpensive and nice upgrade in a VW.

eventually i'd like to get the corbeau a4. it's light, narrow, good colors, and with their brackets a bolt in install.

any of you guys consider putting mazda miata seats in? they should make for a great fit, have to do a little fab work for the brackets though.

i haven't looked at other marques seats yet. was just considering the lazy and cheap way out. if i found the right set of seats in good condition though, i would go for it. i really would prefer 911 seats, but not exactly in the same price range that we are talking about in this thread. i take we are really talking low budget options is why APC and such are being discussed. miata seats should be a good cheap find i would think.