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Hi Everyone! I recently purchased and installed one of the new Marrad ST3 seats in cloth from Mark at Marrad Industries. I am generally not a fan of leather seats and took the opportunity to install what I think will breathe better, look different and ultimately be more durable.
I purchased complete with the Marrad ultra-low seat mounts with slider, which arrived assembled to help with installation. I opted for the adjustable lumber support know the car is getting mixed touring and track use. Luckily, my car is a 2011 1LT Grand Sport convertible so it only required a few simulators from Vetteworks to avoid any airbag lights, etc.
There is an excellent install thread by another member that I utilized in setting up the seat: Marrad Seat Installation
OK, now on to the fitment details: I am 6' 7" and 240LBs with a 36" waist. The seat fitment is great and provides a lot more support on my shoulders, neck and head. The back of the stock seats only came half way up my neck so the ST3 provides much more in terms of overall safety. With the lower seat cushion removed it sits several inches lower (I gained approx. 2 1/2" of headroom) and forward from the position utilized in the stock seats....even with lower cushions installed I sit 1"+ lower and a couple inches forward from the stock seating position. This is key as I am planning on installing an RPM roll bar and need the room behind the seats. Anyone over a 36" waist may have a tight fit on the hips as the seat does have high bolsters as shown in the pictures below. View of side bolsters and seat belt assembly installed. View of space gained for roll bar comparative to stock seats.
Top w/lower cushions removed, middle w/cushions installed and bottom is the stock seat position.
Now onto the fit, finish and overall quality of the seat and cloth option! The seat construction and mounts are very durable and come finished in black (glossy seat back shell and matte finish on mount and slider). The seat itself weighs 10lbs+ less than the factory seat, which is also a night side benefit. The cloth option, which looks somewhat race inspired, almost looks like suede from a few feet away which was a nice surprise. The material is very high quality, providing a smooth finish and should be easy to maintain. I went with blue double stitching in hopes that it matched the 4lt interior components I had swapped over and it is in fact extremely close as shown below. Overall, the quality of the seat is fantastic and the stitching in consistent throughout the entire cover. Blue stitching comparison to factory 4lt. Close up of side bolster and stitching. Side by side comparison of Marrad vs. stock. Seat contrast to Supersonic Blue and blue convertible top.
I hope the above information helps anyone thinking about going with aftermarket seats. I highly recommend Marrad as an option to explore as I am super happy with the seat and customer service provided by Mark!
Feel free to let me know if you need any additional pictures or if you have any questions!
How much were they and did you need the vette works seat position sensor? Mark makes a nice seat and sliders I ran them on my recaros on my first c6z.
The cloth seats with hardware come in just over 10% cheaper than the faux leather option and $300+ per seat cheaper than leather. I just did the vetteworks airbag sims and everything worked fine with no cpu issues.
For those who prefer a seat with easier entry and exit, we have modified the ST3 with a lower bolster and the mold should be started soon. I will have brackets to attach it to the oem tracks for those who do not need a lot more headroom than stock and/or the ulra low brackets and sliders that will sit 2" - 3" lower.
For those who still want a reclining seat, we also can now make a direct replacement back for the C5 or C6, upholstered to order with a matching bottom cover. I will have better pictures when the bottom cover is installed.
Beautiful! Will the first seat accommodate a 3 pt oem seat belt like the recaro pole position abe?
The seat belts will come right over the top of the bolsters on the lower version, similar to the Cobra Nogaro. Our ST3 has the ABE style holes but the lower version is below the top of the hole so a belt coming over the top ends up in the same position.
The seat belts will come right over the top of the bolsters on the lower version, similar to the Cobra Nogaro. Our ST3 has the ABE style holes but the lower version is below the top of the hole so a belt coming over the top ends up in the same position.
Here are the first pictures of the lower bolster ST3 seat. I should have a picture in black cloth in a week or two. They will be added to the site soon.
10-01-2020, 11:45 AM
Product Review: Marrad ST3 Cloth Seats
