- Joined
- Jan 22, 2012
- Messages
- 655
My 02 ZO6 is a dual purpose vehicle, both street and HPDE track days. The stock seats do not give enough support on the track so I have been on the hunt for a new seat. I am older so getting in and out is a concern so a fixed back race seat with fixed mounts just didn't make sense to me. While doing research I found a seat sold by Cipher that has suede inserts which would be a big help for sticking in the seat when on the track.
I have a well equipped shop so buying mounts wasn't an option for me. I started by mocking up the seat position using wood spacers to determine the seat angle and height. I piece of 1/4" plywood stood in for the future steel plate.
To get the seat far enough back for my legs I found there were 2 pinch points. One being the upper seat belt reel and the other was the inside tunnel where it flares out. I located the bolt locations for the seat tracks with the seat in the optimum position.
All the pieces are 3/16" steel, the main plate cut out using my plasma torch and the end mounts cut and bent using my press brake.
Next I milled slots in the main plate. I also cutout some areas to remove excess weight. A better solution would be to laser cut the profile including the slots but this time around I am designing as I go so did it the hard way.
Mounts are tacked in place and checked for fit. I am 6' and 225 lbs so I needed the seat to be as far back as possible with this seat and as low as I could make it so I had helmet clearance.
I wanted to use the stock trim piece that covers the front bolts so I fabbed up some L shaped brackets and welded them on. That and some drilled holes did the trick.
Next I fabbed a small tab and stud for the inner seat belt mounts. Several plastic washers were turned for spacers but I didn't get any pics of that. Here's the finished mount.
One down, next I duplicated the design for the passenger side. It's a mirror image so just rinse and repeat.
Some primer and black trim paint and the mounts are done.
I modified the plastic trim panels to clear the seat adjust mechanism. This was a real pain to figure out requiring many test fits as I didn't want to cut too much. I also used a heat gun to form a recess to clean the seat back. In my case this is all hidden when the seat is in position.
Both seats are in and look great. I have enough leg room and plenty of room for my helmet. Now if the rain would only stop for awhile I could try them out on the road.
I have a well equipped shop so buying mounts wasn't an option for me. I started by mocking up the seat position using wood spacers to determine the seat angle and height. I piece of 1/4" plywood stood in for the future steel plate.
To get the seat far enough back for my legs I found there were 2 pinch points. One being the upper seat belt reel and the other was the inside tunnel where it flares out. I located the bolt locations for the seat tracks with the seat in the optimum position.
All the pieces are 3/16" steel, the main plate cut out using my plasma torch and the end mounts cut and bent using my press brake.
Next I milled slots in the main plate. I also cutout some areas to remove excess weight. A better solution would be to laser cut the profile including the slots but this time around I am designing as I go so did it the hard way.
Mounts are tacked in place and checked for fit. I am 6' and 225 lbs so I needed the seat to be as far back as possible with this seat and as low as I could make it so I had helmet clearance.
I wanted to use the stock trim piece that covers the front bolts so I fabbed up some L shaped brackets and welded them on. That and some drilled holes did the trick.
Next I fabbed a small tab and stud for the inner seat belt mounts. Several plastic washers were turned for spacers but I didn't get any pics of that. Here's the finished mount.
One down, next I duplicated the design for the passenger side. It's a mirror image so just rinse and repeat.
Some primer and black trim paint and the mounts are done.
I modified the plastic trim panels to clear the seat adjust mechanism. This was a real pain to figure out requiring many test fits as I didn't want to cut too much. I also used a heat gun to form a recess to clean the seat back. In my case this is all hidden when the seat is in position.
Both seats are in and look great. I have enough leg room and plenty of room for my helmet. Now if the rain would only stop for awhile I could try them out on the road.