C4.Ray

Greetings Gentlemen:

I'm researching the different seat designs of the C4 from 1993 - 1996 including the CE and ZR1. My question is which seat is considered the most comfortable? Comfortable as in soft but firm padding, quality materials, ample size, easy on the butt, etc.

The Bottom Line: Which is the most comfortable seat?

1993 = White Seats
1994 = Red Seats
1995 = Light Brown / Tan Seats
1996 = Black Seats (with yellow checkered arm rest)
1996 CE = Black Seats
ZR1 = Black Seats (on pavement)

Bandit's C4

Believe what you are inferring to are 'Sport' seats.

Example - the black seat in the bottom picture are the factory leather Sport (available in base - not only in ZR-1) seats during the early 90's. Note the set of buttons built in the lower pad - for lumber and bolster adjustment. The White seats in the first picture looks like a standard covering (note the lack of ribs) on the same frame. These seats are best to retain your body securely and useful in AutoX and spirited driving. The drawback is a deeper seat, not so easily to get in/out of, and not too comfy for large framed individuals.


The GM designers got the hint from many complaints regarding how narrow those seats are and came out with the standard seat like those pictured in #2, #3, and #4. That design allowed for more 'wiggle room with more width' and better in/out egress with wider side bolsters. and was available 94-96. Picture #5 is the Sport version for those years.

Ref: http://www.mamotorworks.com/corvette...seat-covers-c4

RollaMo-LT4

The '94 Red, '95 Tan, and '96 Black (with yellow checkered arm rest) in your pictures are the same "Base Seat", just different colors.
The '96 CE Black seat you pictured is the "Sport Seat", available as an option for any '94-'96 not just the CE

The Sport Seats have the air inflatable lumbar support, the base seats don't.
To say which is more comfortable would be hard, as each person might like something different.

1stVetteFinally

As a "larger framed" C4 driver (5'10" 240lbs), I can say that the seats seem to form to the drivers butt. My 92 C4 has the same seats as in the first pic. When I first got the car, the seats were very uncomfortable because of the side support. Infact, after a couple hours driving, the seats would actually start to cause pain in my thighs from how tight they were. After a few days though, I noticed the seats were starting to loosen up some. Now, after having the car for a couple weeks, the seats have almost completely formed to my butt and are pretty comfortable. I was able to go on a four hour road trip last Thursday and did not experience any discomfort.

vl5150

Wow, that's a loaded question since it's like trying on shoes. It depends on your size and what you do with the car. I have the sport seats on mine (the ones on the pavement) and you have to crawl in to them. If you're wide in the **** and back, they may not fit. The side bolsters are powered and can widen at the expense of getting into the center console. But these seats are by far the sportiest and will hold you in place well under high G loads. The sport seats I have do have quality leather and cushioning more on the firm side. I think they're great seats for a production car.

My brother has the standard seats in his and for day to day use, they are more comfortable without the bolsters easy to get in and out. Quality great as well and perfect for cruising.

If you're big and corner slow or have a tough time getting out of the car, then get flatter seats. IMO is you have a sports car, get sports seats if possible provided they fit. C4's got "softer" as they aged so the seats got flatter.

deptcruser

Just to muddy up the water, I also found that the upper seat frame differs a little by year. I bought slightly used seat leather and foam from another member to replace the seats in my 94 coupe and was unable to use the foam. My upper seat frame has wire "wings" to support the upper bolsters and my foam has little molded pockets for them to slide into. The service manual does not show these wings in the diagram, just the large upside down U frame and the cross supports. I found only one site that sells both types of replacement foam (solid bolsters vs pocket bolsters). I also found a number of posts by members who could not get the foam to fit the frame so they took it to an upolsterer. They probably cut the wings off the frame.

If your looking to change your foam, check before you order. Grab the bolster and squeeze, you should be able to feel the wing if its there. As well, new foam will make you sit up higher in the seat. I'm 6'2 and now I have to slouch alittle so I don't bang my head on the roof when going over bumps.

C4.Ray

My 93' Base Coupe are 1st image (white seats). My seats are very comfortable. I'm average height & weight: 5-9, 165 lbs.

My Question: To Experienced Guys: Base, CE and ZR1 ... Which Seat do you consider the most comfortable?

Thanks.

Bandit's C4

Tried to answer your question earlier - but here goes. There is no exact answer.

The closest defined direction is - It depends on your style and type of driving....

If you desire a leisurely Sunday cruise - look for a 94 and up seat.
If you desire working a skid pad - a 91-93 sport seat.

Disclaimer: Depends on overall condition of the hardware, foam, and leather - had 92, 93, and 94 seats in the cars.

ccrvtt

I have the '95 with the Sport Seat option. When I was shopping for this car I found out about the difference and decided that the sport seats were the best option for me. I'm 6'3" & 200#. I find the sport seats offer the most "customizability".

C4.Ray

Comfortable seats for Cruising only.

ANTI VENOM

I love my 91 sports seats. My 92 had base seats and not nearly the lateral support. 6' 185.

C4.Ray

Thx ...

I'd always questioned which year/model had the best seats. Cruising all day comfort, easy on the backside, soft, etc.

Thanks

Paul Workman

What you like, depends on your frame and the kind of driving you do. But, I can say there is an evolution between the 90 to 95 sport seats; the 90s (IMO) being a complete abomination, but the 95s (perhaps the 94s too) are a different animal: the 90s limited me to a couple hours before having to get out and walk them off. After the first couple of rest stops, the period between stops shrunk to an hour. Buy the time the day was over, I was fed up with the (90) sport seats!

To "fix" that, I opted to buy standard 94/95 seats, as did my wife for her 91 ZR-1.

We love them! For the highway driving we do, and the occasional twisties or drag racing, they're perfect for us; not looking to replace them with anything else at this time.

dizwiz24

Gm recognized a changing demographic of the corvette buyer. Gone were the young surfer types that bought c2s and enter the mid life crisis types With wider rear ends.

I also want to point out that the fighter jet seats of 84 thru 93 seem less prone to seam bust than the wider rear seats of the 94 thru 96.

Everytime i go to corvette events, i always see a beautiful 94 thru 96 c4, except with white padding busting out somewhere from the seats

USAZR1

I've owned an 85 Z51 coupe,90 ZR-1,91 ZR-1,93 40th coupe,and now a 94 ZR-1. The latter has the 94-96 Sport seats and I prefer them w/o a doubt. FWIW,I'm 5'8" 200lbs with a 36" waist.

C4.Ray

Interesting ... So you think Sport Seats offered best comfort. This Seat is my last image, the Seat is sitting on pavement with controls on the Seat itself. Ok ...

C4.Ray

Another vote for Sport Seats ... Ok.

C4.Ray

And we have a vote for Base or Standard Seats - My first image (white seats) ... Ok.

C4.Ray

The " Fighter Jet " Seats, you are referring to my first image? Base or Standard Seats, my first image, white seats?

C4.Ray

Sport Seats as in my last image? The Seats on the pavement with seat controls on the seat?