Seats. Ugh, the seats.
#1
Intermediate
Thread Starter
Seats. Ugh, the seats.
Hey,
My 01 sport seats have always been uncomfortable. The guy I bought the car from had pretty much ruined them.
I bought and installed one of those kits with the jute pads and foam inserts and it was better for a while, but now I'm starting to think I need a new bottom cushion. Anyone have any recommendations? I have considered taking it to an upholstery shop, but I have twin boys and wife. Saving money is prioritized over saving time and hassle. I've basically been daily driving the thing (2500+ miles since mid-March already) and it's really uncomfortable. I can feel what I believe is the metal frame mid thigh.
I don't want to replace the entire seat. The passenger bottom cushion is just fine (no one really ever sits there).
Thanks in advance.
My 01 sport seats have always been uncomfortable. The guy I bought the car from had pretty much ruined them.
I bought and installed one of those kits with the jute pads and foam inserts and it was better for a while, but now I'm starting to think I need a new bottom cushion. Anyone have any recommendations? I have considered taking it to an upholstery shop, but I have twin boys and wife. Saving money is prioritized over saving time and hassle. I've basically been daily driving the thing (2500+ miles since mid-March already) and it's really uncomfortable. I can feel what I believe is the metal frame mid thigh.
I don't want to replace the entire seat. The passenger bottom cushion is just fine (no one really ever sits there).
Thanks in advance.
The following users liked this post:
70RT440 (06-22-2019)
#3
Race Director
Member Since: May 2003
Location: Iowa
Posts: 13,995
Received 2,705 Likes
on
1,667 Posts
St. Jude Donor '03-'04-'05-'06-'07-'08-'09-'10-'11-'12-'13-'14-'15-'16'-'17-‘18-'19-'20-'21-'22-
'23-'24
https://ridies.com/Product/26248/199...or-Driver-Side
They might just sell you the bottom part, give them a call.
They might just sell you the bottom part, give them a call.
The following users liked this post:
chasboy (05-15-2019)
The following 3 users liked this post by kemosabe:
#6
#8
Burning Brakes
I’m another happy camper with the Corbeau Evo X seats. They should’ve been OEM like previously said. The look suits the C5 cabin so well. Brings the C5 handling and feel into the year 2019. Install was easy. One bracket needed a little bit of redrilling on my part (I was just impatient and didn’t want to return it and wait for another bracket so I fixed it myself), but other than that slight hole misalignment that I fixed, everything else was perfect. Only thing I miss from old crap seats was the ability to fold them towards front to place groceries and crap in the back (mines an FRC so this comes in handy). Also, getting in and getting out requires more finesse now due to the shoulder bolstering; you can’t just throw yourself into them like the stock seats.
The following users liked this post:
boostedfury (06-23-2019)
#9
Intermediate
Thread Starter
#10
The only thing I don't like about the aftermarket seats is they all look like aftermarket seats. I like the looks of the stock seats, too bad some company couldn't make some that look more like OEM seats...
The following users liked this post:
The Rabbi (05-16-2019)
#11
Burning Brakes
No, the sliding is manual. Uses double locking sliders so the engagement is super crisp and has basically zero play. I don't miss the reclining seats at all; I never reclined anyway, but I do miss a little bit the "folding seat towards the front" feature of the stock seat like I mentioned earlier. Only for grocery purposes and trunk access from inside the cabin.
#12
I’m another happy camper with the Corbeau Evo X seats. They should’ve been OEM like previously said. The look suits the C5 cabin so well. Brings the C5 handling and feel into the year 2019. Install was easy. One bracket needed a little bit of redrilling on my part (I was just impatient and didn’t want to return it and wait for another bracket so I fixed it myself), but other than that slight hole misalignment that I fixed, everything else was perfect. Only thing I miss from old crap seats was the ability to fold them towards front to place groceries and crap in the back (mines an FRC so this comes in handy). Also, getting in and getting out requires more finesse now due to the shoulder bolstering; you can’t just throw yourself into them like the stock seats.
#13
Recaro Speed V are really nice, and fit Corvettes.
https://www.recaro-automotive.com/us...s/speed-v.html
#14
Drifting
I replaced my stock seats with some Corbeau seats 6 years ago. I sold them this winter and put some seats from a low mileage C-6. I love my new seats, much more comfortable than any other seat I have had.
#15
Melting Slicks
Hey,
My 01 sport seats have always been uncomfortable. The guy I bought the car from had pretty much ruined them.
I bought and installed one of those kits with the jute pads and foam inserts and it was better for a while, but now I'm starting to think I need a new bottom cushion. Anyone have any recommendations? I have considered taking it to an upholstery shop, but I have twin boys and wife. Saving money is prioritized over saving time and hassle. I've basically been daily driving the thing (2500+ miles since mid-March already) and it's really uncomfortable. I can feel what I believe is the metal frame mid thigh.
I don't want to replace the entire seat. The passenger bottom cushion is just fine (no one really ever sits there).
Thanks in advance.
My 01 sport seats have always been uncomfortable. The guy I bought the car from had pretty much ruined them.
I bought and installed one of those kits with the jute pads and foam inserts and it was better for a while, but now I'm starting to think I need a new bottom cushion. Anyone have any recommendations? I have considered taking it to an upholstery shop, but I have twin boys and wife. Saving money is prioritized over saving time and hassle. I've basically been daily driving the thing (2500+ miles since mid-March already) and it's really uncomfortable. I can feel what I believe is the metal frame mid thigh.
I don't want to replace the entire seat. The passenger bottom cushion is just fine (no one really ever sits there).
Thanks in advance.
If you managed to wear through the jute pad then I think I'd consider double layering it and a diet.
#16
Intermediate
Thread Starter
If you installed the seat repair kit with the pads there should be no reason you are feeling metal. I'd take it apart again and see what is going on because the pad shouldn't let the foam through again. If you need to buy new seat bottom foam it is available from lots of places for under 70 bucks.
If you managed to wear through the jute pad then I think I'd consider double layering it and a diet.
If you managed to wear through the jute pad then I think I'd consider double layering it and a diet.
Your suggestion is a good one. I have to go out and pick up some zip ties to refasten everything, take the stupid seat apart and take a look. It's possible the seat foam just shifted. I couldn't get the electric seat control to line up properly and just sort of said F it, put it together as best as I could, and buttoned it up. By the time I got to the part where I was trying to line all that up, I had been in a hot garage, was sweating profusely, and had just had enough. It was okay for while, but never what I would call "good".
Of all of the complaints I have about my car (most are relatively minor), the seats are my least favorite thing. Normally, I only put 2500-3000 miles a year on her, but the wife's car is in the process of being lemon-lawed out, so I had to take her out early and use her for my daily. I've already put 2500-3000 miles on the car and the season is just starting. All of that driving is irritating my rear end, especially considering my daily is a nice, comfy, cushiony Lincoln, which I haven't driven in months (the wife and kids get to enjoy that comfortable cruiser).
I'm not sure I want to drop $400+ on an aftermarket seat, especially because I don't want to remove the perfectly good passenger seat. I looked into the C6Z seats, but those seem to only come in pairs, and I haven't seen any for less than the aftermarket seat. Maybe I'll just swap out the passenger side cushion. The only person who ever sits in my passenger seat is the wife, and when that (rarely) happens, it's usually just for a short-ish drive to dinner.
#18
Race Director
Member Since: Dec 2010
Location: Atlanta, GA
Posts: 10,426
Received 1,260 Likes
on
1,055 Posts
2020 Corvette of the Year Finalist (performance mods)
C5 of Year Winner (performance mods) 2019
Just gotta pay to play....
Recaro Speed V are really nice, and fit Corvettes.
https://www.recaro-automotive.com/us...s/speed-v.html
Recaro Speed V are really nice, and fit Corvettes.
https://www.recaro-automotive.com/us...s/speed-v.html
#19
Le Mans Master
Member Since: Jan 2000
Location: Georgetown TX
Posts: 8,424
Received 1,864 Likes
on
1,081 Posts
C5 of Year Finalist (appearance mods) 2019
I almost bought a set of Speed seats (not the "V" but essentially the same seat with all cloth upholstery) but the guy I spoke with at Recaro said they would not fit the c5 they tried to put a set in, the seat belts have a lot to do with it so switching to c6 belts definitely helps but even then he said he could not be 100% sure they would fit or slide all the way back... I tried a set of Recaros from an Evo X and they wouldn't work so I sold those... some of the Japanese Honda's get nice Recaros but they are hard to find in good shape... after a lot of searching I found a set from a DC5 ITR that appears to be in mint condition and the upholstery is a lot nicer than the regular Speed's upholstery and they cost less so I bought them and will give those a shot, only bad thing is they were in Thailand and have been sitting on a boat for about a month lol... the Japanese Evo 8 MR seats are really nice and those should fit for sure since the U.S. market Evo 8/9 seats are known to fit our cars, I looked hard for a set of those but couldn't find any
#20
Race Director
Member Since: Dec 2010
Location: Atlanta, GA
Posts: 10,426
Received 1,260 Likes
on
1,055 Posts
2020 Corvette of the Year Finalist (performance mods)
C5 of Year Winner (performance mods) 2019
a lot of the budget seats do look nice no doubt about that but the upholstery is often lacking in my opinion and I would rather have some peace of mind knowing a seat at least meets manufacturers requirements... who knows what kind of testing goes into them or how they react in a crash, hopefully none of us will find out the hard way... you are right though, it is a pita to find a quality seat that will fit but if for some reason the ones I bought don't work out I should be able to get my money back by selling them and look for something else and if they do work it will be different lol