Why The Recaro Sportster CS is a Terrible Aftermarket Option

Iammeowwwwww

The Recaro Sportster CS in the Nismo dress is a beautiful, comfortable, and functional seat. So if you're like me looking for a set or the next best thing, you've stumbled on the non Nismo edition of that seat.

You'd think it's a no brainer fitting the Sportster CS into the Z, but it's much more complicated than that. For anyone who doesn't know, the Nismo Recaro is the sportster CS, but the seat base mechanics are built by NISSAN and features an airbag. I've seen a post here of someone with a Sportster CS that featured an Airbag, but I was not able to find one stateside. That said, the Recaro edition is ALL Recaro.

Ordering from Z1Motorsports, it was recommended that I purchase the recaro Sliders and the Sparco seat bracket with the understanding that I will have to drill a couple holes to fit the Recaro slider to the bracket. The gentleman explained he had the same setup and the seat feels great. Okay, say less!

What no one tells you is that all said and done, the slider set uses 3/4 inch spacers to distance the sliders from the seat base. This is due to a lateral bar running underneath and center of the seat. You cannot physically bolt the seat directly to the bracket or the seat + sliders to the bracket without that spacer, otherwise there will be clearance issues. If not for the 1.5 inch increase in heigh with the sliders/spacers, the seating position could be okay.

All assembled, I mocked it up in the car, sat down, and realized the seating position was shifted up roughly an inch - inch 1/2. The arm rests were now too low, the steering wheel was too low and awkward in general. my knees were bent at the same angle as they would be sitting in an F150. I felt as though I'm sitting on top of the car rather than in it.

In addition, the Recaro + sliders + bracket is heavier than the stock manual seat.

As a regular track enthusiast, I'm pretty disappointed. I've not been able to find alternative seat brackets/sliders that fit the Recaro in the Z. If anyone has information regarding a working solution, please advise. I'll be looking at either modifying the seat bracket to fit the seat directly to the bracket or exchanging everything for a side mounted setup.

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cooltoy

You might want to contact this member and ask what he did:


Recaro Sportster CS heaters to OEM switches +Airbag

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AH370Z

I used wedge brackets mounts and sliders, they told me they had to install a 20mm spacer to allow the sliding clearence. After install I was not completely happy due to the increased height.(no longer felt like I was in a sportscar, rather an SUV!). I was not satisfied and after much assessment and measurements I knew it didn't need to be this high, so I took it to a workshop and had the spacer removed and replaced with a 3mm spacer. So I gained 17mm back and I couldn't be more happier and find it the perfect height. I'm 5'9

A.is the Recaro seat base frame. B is the 20mm spacer.
received_1154174558506340.jpeg

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20mm.spacer removed and replaced with 3mm one.
Screenshot_20221107-072039_Gallery.jpg

2011 Nismo#91

I use wedge sliders, with the same cut down as AH370Z. IMO it works well, the biggest annoyance is not having a working weight/passenger sensor because they are the full Recaro Nismo seats.

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danegrey

How Tall are you? I'm 6'3" and have no problem and it feels great

I had a shop install my recaros, not Mechanical incline. I had order the seats and sliders from bulletproof. Now my shop could not make the sliders they sent work. They then order from Recaro all parts and it work. (do not have the recaro part number, checked my invoice and nothing)

My suggestion is to all Recaro itself and explain the problem.

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Lots of Changes
the Z needs to be driven and driven hard for the car lives for it

Iammeowwwwww

I'm 5'11. Plenty of headroom, just sitting too high. I'll try to reach out to recaro but I think at the end of the day, I'll have to custom fabricate the bracket.

@ah370z I'll try to use a thinner spacer line you mentioned. If the seat is still too high I'll have to cut the sparco bracket and fit the seat without sliders.

Otherwise I spent the day yesterday fitting my uncle's sparco evo bucket and trying it out. It's a great seat but I think it's crossing the line of track bias when I'm trying to keep the car dual purpose. Which is why I chose the recaro in the first place. More Comfortable than stock, more functional than stock.

OptionZero

If you are looking for a lower seating position, you won't find it with reclinable seats

It's time for a fixed bucket
Depending on your height you may not be able to use sliders

as always, test fit yourself IN an actual seat before buying it

There are Recaro dealers in Norcal (Griffin Moterwerke) or Socal (Evasive, i believe)

This is for your safety to make sure the holes for the shoulder straps are in the appropriate location relative to your shoulders

I nearly bought some SPG's but a test fit showed they would kill me due to my build (Too tall for the holes)

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OptionZero Build Thread

danegrey

Just be aware of something, I have the same Recaro, and added a harness bar and six point harness. Well this year, I have found out, that some HPDE / track days told me, no hole in the seat for the submarine belt, no can use the six point harness. Some also are not approving a 4 point harness either.

Just using the factory seat belts and Recaro's I feel fine tracking it.

Just something to thing about.

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Lots of Changes
the Z needs to be driven and driven hard for the car lives for it

Iammeowwwwww

Thank you for the input. During this experience I realized, to your point, that reclining aftermarket seats do not sit low enough. I'm not quite ready for a fixed bucket yet.

The shoulder holes are definitely too low. Not that I plan to do a 4 or 6 point harness, but they definitely eat into my shoulders in the corners. I haven't decided if this is an annoyance for me yet.

I haven't heard of Griffin Moterwerke but have visited Wine Country Motorsports during my Sonoma track days. I'll pay them another visit and see if there are any seats that work for me. That said, I did modify the bracket to fit the seat without the slider.

The height and position worked out perfectly. It's the same height as the original if not slightly lower.

The seat would be perfect if not for the shoulder holes as low as they are, but it will do for now until I check out some buckets.

Btw: My images seem to rotate after upload, any idea how to fix this?

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Iammeowwwwww

Fair enough, thanks! I don't intend on using any harnesses for this seat. The main idea is that I maintain a street > track bias, so stock seatbelt with the Recaro is all good for me

cooltoy

Rotate them first in the opposite direction before the upload.

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