Crazy idea: swap Nismo Recaro seats for Sport?

analogman

I'd like to ask you for your thoughts on what is probably a completely insane idea (I've had a lot of those in my life, both professionally and personally...).

I've been equivocating over buying a Nismo 370Z Nismo. I love the car, but, at 60, 6'0", and 200 lbs, I'm 'older' and 'larger', and I don't think the Recaro seats will be comfortable in the long term (my much shorter and smaller wife found them uncomfortable after 20 minutes).

What do you think of swapping out the Recaro seats for base seats out of a Sport or Touring? Does anyone happen to know if the frame rails are the same size? Would this be a straight slide-in swap? Would it totally destroy the value of the car when I go to sell it down the line? Do you think there would be any Sport or Touring owners who would be willing to trade their seats (plus some amount of cash) for a pair of Nismo Recaros? How much do you think that would be worth?

Or do I give up on my Nismo obsession and just get a Sport?

Thanks everyone!

SG4247

At 5'-11" 250 lbs I've had the same thoughts.

Hell, I barely fit the Touring seats.

Hope someone can answer....

babyzilla

Well...for what it's worth:
The recaro seats out of the nismo are REALLY expensive from the factory...and because of that you'll probably lose a lot of value if you try to the sell nismo down the road with base seats installed (lol). They go on sale here on the forums for much less from time to time, but they're still expensive. A lot of members love those seats, as they should since they're high quality. That being said, yes, I'm sure you'll be able to find people to trade you plus cash as the seats are highly sought after.
Sorry, I'm not sure if it's a direct fit, but I'm sure someone else can chime in on that. Either way, you could always sell the recaros and just buy something more comfortable.
I'm not sure what your reasons are as to purchasing a nismo over any other trim since you're saying you could just go for the sport. You should probably think about what you really want/need first.
I've heard and personally believe the base seats are comfortable, but I'd suggest looking for the touring seats as they are leather and nicer. I still think the recaros are the best though, but they're just not a fit for everyone.
My two friendly/helpful suggestions for you (not knowing what you're really looking for):
1. Look for a '14 and older model year nismo. They have the seats similar to the base.
2. OR look for an older sport-touring model, so you can have all the bells and whistles of the sport model, plus the luxuries of the touring model.

Sway

I’ll tell you what, you buy that nismo and I’ll swap your seats with mine free of charge!


It’s not crazy if that’s what you want, but it would be hard to sell it later. Maybe there’s a different aftermarket seat that you’d prefer? That wouldn’t hurt the value AS much...

__________________

RumbleFish

Beat me to it

__________________
How far, this...Utopia?
F.I. CBE V2/Stillen G3 CAI/GTM 25R OC/EcuTek tune (Specialty Z)/ KW V3's/Stillen Sway bars/SPC rear camber kit/Z1 FUCA/Mich. PSS4S 255/35-295/30

cooltoy

I did not think that the nismo seats were that comfortable either, but I only tried a juke. I am sure there would be plenty of people willing to make a switch with you plus cash.

__________________

Jmatchley86

I'm in a touring and we are about the same size, i'm looking for aftermarket seats if that tells you anything. They arn't the most comfortable when your over 6ft

KCZ

I've been debating this exact thing. I was going to buy a Nismo, but I have a back injury and the seats just don't have enough lumbar support. The sport or touring seats are much more supportive for my back. I even asked the dealer how much it would cost to put sport seats in the Nismo and it's over $5K apiece.

So I'm stuck in the quandary of buying a Nismo then buying aftermarket seats sight unseen and hoping they're good for my back. Or buying a sport to get the brakes and LSD, and having the suspension upgrades done, when I'd really prefer the touring seats anyway.

analogman

Thanks guys, I appreciate the (in)sanity check. I'm getting the picture that this idea came out of an acid flashback.

I guess I'm back to my previous dilemma of buying a Nismo vs a Sport. I'm settled on a 370Z; I want one because it's one of the last 'old school' analog sports cars (naturally aspirated engine, manual transmission) that's a dying breed. Now I just need to resolve Nismo (which is what I emotionally want) vs a Sport (which would serve my real world driving needs just fine, as well as be cheaper).

Thanks again!

twyrick

When I bought a slightly used '16 Nismo Tech earlier this year, I did so after doing lots of research online. I thought if I was going to buy one of these cars before they stop production, I wanted all the bells and whistles and the "top of the line" model with the best performance. I didn't want to pay the "Nissan tax" of what a brand new one cost though, so I went with a slightly used, low mileage, Nissan certified one instead.

I'm pretty happy with the car too... but as I've owned it for a while now, it's honestly becoming more clear to me why so many people don't keep these cars for the long haul.

I've owned a lot of sports cars over the years (currently in my mid 40's), and some were just more of a joy to drive than others. I think the Nismo is someplace in the middle of the pack for me, vs. other cars I owned. Especially on longer trips, I honestly get a little bored of driving it, if that makes any sense? It's fun for a short, spirited drive someplace. But on real road trips or those drives between cities, I really start feeling like I took the wrong vehicle for the job. I'm 5'9" and around 200lbs. and I fit in the Recaro seats ok - but it's a tight fit. That's not a bad thing as that's how these seats should feel, really. But I get the idea if I was much bigger, the side bolsters would be a little too narrow for me.

Performance-wise, I find the acceleration to be "adequate" for a sports car, but not anything exceptional. It's no wonder so many people opt for a custom tune, custom exhaust, custom intake, and often a turbo or supercharger upgrade on these. It always feels like just as many sports cars on the road are faster than you as there are slower than you.

All things considered? I think if I knew then what I know now as an owner? If I was doing this over again, I'd save a little money and go with a "Sport Tech" edition. (I do like the gadgets like the built in GPS and reverse camera and Bluetooth.) No matter what edition of these cars you get, you can easily dump another $10-15K into it to get your twin turbo or supercharged setup properly installed and tuned. Otherwise, they're all pretty close in horsepower and you can do some appearance mods to get that "edginess" of a Nismo in the looks department, should you want it. And yeah, once the "coolness factor" of having Recaros wears off -- they're probably less practical seats for most of your driving needs than the regular ones.

babyzilla

Damn...I feel like I just received a reality check lol
Thanks for sharing, especially from a recent and valid owner.

twyrick

I just got back on here and re-read my initial post, and now, I feel like maybe that sounded a bit too negative. (I might have been in one of those moods when I wrote it... dunno.)

Where I keep going back and forth with "Is Nismo worth it?" probably has to do with the frustration, on one hand, that for that $10,000-ish price premium, you barely get any real HP increase over other models. And you could probably even order all the individual parts that make it a Nismo for $1000-2000 less than you pay for the car with them on it already. So from that perspective, it's just not such a great deal.

BUT, on the other hand? There's always the fact that insurance coverage counts. You pay a lot to insure any of these cars, so it's nice that if you want to drive a Z in Nismo trim, your insurance respects it as such and will pay to replace damaged parts with the Nismo replacements. All the people who tried to save money by putting a Nismo body kit and other upgrades on a base or Sport trim 370Z will be out of luck in a collision.

Resale value counts too, and it's rare you can get much of your money back out of aftermarket upgrades or even OEM upgrades that weren't originally on the model of car you're driving.

Like I was telling one of the guys in a private message .... As I try to figure out why I felt like the car fatigues me or "bores me" on long road trips, I think it might be a whole combination of things including the lack of sound deadening/damping. I know Nissan will argue that was done to cut the weight of the vehicle down .... but when I drive on highways and here little "ping" and "plunk" sounds from every piece of gravel that hits the undercarriage, it reminds me how much misc. road noise really does get into the cabin. That tends to fatigue the driver.

nis350

very nice review....

I imagine with the tight seats and the stiffer Nismo suspension, it can be a bit uncomfortable for longer trips.

In term of overall value of the Z, it isn't an expensive car in today's market. While some people feel the design is dated, I personal like it a lot, both in and out. and that's the main reason I bought one (my third Z). Performance wise, it is just average as you stated. Mine is the touring/sport/Nav/6 spd model.

I think the real value is to get one that's 2 to 3 years old model as they tend to depreciated quite a bit.

bthomas87

Have you test driven the nismo and sport back to back?
I'm 6' 1 and I do long distance driving a few times a year. After about 8hrs or so I end up sticking some type of clothing from my bag behind my lower back to get some lumbar support. I can imagine the nismo seats would be even worse.
Personally I'd buy a USED nismo (tons of them around with low miles at a great price), get aftermarket seats, and sell the nismo seats here on the forum to someone will appreciate them.

KCZ

I test drove them back to back. The Nismo seats were worse in terms of lumbar support and general comfort.