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Anybody seen/tried/own a pair of cheap Ebay racing seats?
I mean I'm sure they're not the greatest option, but it's really hard to beat the prices on some of these things. The ones I'm talking about are the pairs selling in the $100-$225 range not including shipping (usually about 100-150 bucks more). Some of these mystery brands include Otto-R, Racing Dimension, EVO, Bomz, etc, etc (the list goes on).
I've been looking for a decent set of 4th gen seats for a while now, but there are only a couple of types that I'd settle for (missed a great opportunity in early January). So a pair off ebay would be a decent alternative if they're of somewhat reasonable quality.
Generally they come to about $300 shipped, so if you know of any reputable seats in this range, suggestions would certainly be appreciated too.
I'll let you know after I get mine. I ordered a set of the $83 + $155 shipping red/black ones from seller "extremdiecast" last week
I looked at the ones your are talking about. Heck I looked at all the cheaper ones, and I don't think most of them will fit our cars.
2 reasons I say this...
The bottom is too wide and the seat tilter. Some of them are uni. seats that will work on driver and/or pass side, so that means they have a tilt lever on both sides. That won't work.
We got very little room between the consol and the bottom seat belt asy.
Anything over 21" wide in front will be a very very tight fit, also anything with a tilt lever on the inside (toward consol) will be even tighter. Add both of those things together and no way it will fit, with out ditching the stock seat belts.
The ones I bought are 21" wide in the front, and has a single tilt lever on the outside
When you look at seats on ebay be sure to save the pics, then go back and zoom in on them, and look to see if the inside has a knob, lever, even a place that sticks out. If it does, mark that seat off cause it's not gonna fit with out alot of mods. Look for the sizes too, and stick to 20 or 21" wide at the front.
Just to show you the diff. I measured a set of 1984 camaro sport coupe seats. They are 19.75" wide in the front, now go look at your stock seats and look at how close they come to the consol and bottom seat belt
Thanks for the great advice, I didn't even think to check that out to be honest. Were there any other that you were considering that fit the dimensions of our cars?
If you could let me know...
1) How you like them visually
2) How they fit
3) If they are decent quality
...when they arrive I would totally appreciate it. I'm going to take a look at them right now....
Sure thing bud. When I get them, i'll take some pics and let you know all my thoughts on them.
The ones I ended up picking between all looks very close to each other.
From ebay sellers.... extremdiecast, econostore, phantomoverdrive, www.thundernolt-motorsports.com, fcdtuning, 1 diff style one from eurolite His was $157 + $ 133 shipping, has a chrome knob/lever on the side.
I also looked at the 3A racing brands at the local pep boys. I liked how the vinly one felt, but it had a knob on each side, and I knew that would hit the consol.
I looked at the APC ones too, but same deal, has a knob on both sides
All the other cheaper ones on ebay are too wide at 21.50", 22", and 22.5"
So all of those ones would work then? That's a pretty decent selection. I tried looking up extremdiecast on ebay and it came up as not registered. Then I tried extremediecast and not surprisingly he only had die cast metal Nascar models for his auction (even in the completed ones). But I'll try the other ones that you posted in order to get an idea of what's out there. Thanks for the list!
And yeah, it would be great to see some pics once you get them. We don't have a Pep Boys in Canada so I can't see 'em in person... maybe Lordco or something would stock something similar.
When it comes down to it, I don't really have room in my budget to get into the next level of seats so it'll come down to one of these pairs or 4th gens.
I know what you mean. My budget is the reason I went with these seats. I don't have the money for $800 seats, but I can get by with $235 ones. I have stuff I need to fix more than my seats. I got to get some traction bad. So that means spending close to $500 on suspension parts
Myself, I like these type seats based on the ones I sat in, and seen) better than the 4th gen ones. The 4th gen seats feel good, but there getting over played. I like to be diff.
I'm pretty sure extremdiecast, econostore is both the same person on ebay. He has two diff stores. One the econostore he sells more racing seats, but will put a few on his extremdiecast store.
That list of 6 sellers. The seats from them should all work. As you already know putting these seats in won't be a bolt and go deal, but atleast those won't be too wide to fit.
those are kinda ricery. and heavy. 28 lbs each. but if the fabric holds up better than stock im sure its a better upgrade. in january i found 2 fixed back corbeau seats black that wiegh 16 lbs each. got em for 450, no mounting brackets but you can fab up something with the old ones. theres a guy here that has tones of parts i think his user name is formulajokester? try talking to him seats.
85camaro... Not starting anything with you, but could you please tell me why you find them to be "****".
Is it cause they don't have a high dollar name stamped on them?
To me, they don't look much diff than some of the tiltable corbeaus, sparcos, etc
The are heavier than a fixed back race seat, but not much heavier than a corbeau, and they are 8 lbs each lighter than stock.
My stock non power stock seats weighs in at 36 lbs each with tracks, these sport seats weighs 28 lbs each with tracks
I have fixed back race seats in my 78 trans am drag car, but there's no way in this world I would put them in a car that I drove for more than 10 miles at one time.
These sport seats are comfy. Seat springs under the bottom, thick foam, steel tube frame, etc... They feel great to sit in, even for a cross country drive like the hot rod power tour
And last... ANY SEAT that holds up and safe will be an upgrade as far as holding driver in place, over the stock seats. I mean shoot, they don't have no more support than my stock 78 t/a seats. You would think in cars built for handling they would put some seats in them with good back, rib, and thigh support
Originally posted by bitchin85camaro those are kinda ricery. and heavy. 28 lbs each.
I just finished laying down over 50lbs of sound deadening material in my car, so I'm at the wrong end of the weight scale anyway. I'd just like something that looks good and contours a bit better than our seats do.
And I much prefer the look of these to the ****e grey tweed that I've got in there right now. I think my Grandpa had a 35 year old recliner covered in the same material. I love our cars, but jeez... between all the weird-fitting, far from modern plastic panels and simply bizarre fabric choices, our interiors are not that great.
The lacking interior styling has never reflected the completely awesome exterior styling for me. At best they're boring, at worst they're down-right ugly.
TrueBlue....... The ones from Racing Dimensions looks very close, but I think they may be a hair too wide. He says 21.5" wide at the thigh. Myself I would think thats too fite to fit good.
The ones I ordered, I went out on a limb. I have not sit in them, just a seat kind of like it at a store. But from the info I seen and got from him, they seem to be a better seat than the 3A racing ones I sat in, but are the same size, and dont have the in board tilter, just the outside one
Thanks for cathing that goof up I made on the seller name. His name is xtremediecast.
I got my ebay seats yesterday. I aint had time to do much more than take them out of the boxes, look over them real good and sit in them for a while. (been helping my dad R&R a transmission on his firebird)
They came in 2 boxes by fed ex. The boxes was banged up some, but no harm to seats.
Each seat was wrapped good in bubble wrap.
The overall reveiw.... Answers to your questions..
1) How you like them visually
Love them. They look great. Don't look "cheap" like I thought they may. Looks solid, cloth looks good, stiching looks good and cloth rolled over most of the stiching to hide it. Cloth fits on seats tight.
2) How they fit.....
Can't tell you how they fit in the car, but I fit in them just right. I'm 5' 10" 275 lbs, 38" waist, wide shoulders, big upper body. The seat bottom holds me tight, thigh supports are fit, but a good fit, good fit in the rib and shoulders too. If I was any bigger they would big too tight of a fit in all places. My dad is 5' 11" 170 lbs, 36" waist, smaller upper body and he likes the fit in them. He can move around in the seat more than I can, but it still holds him in place good.
3) If they are decent quality
Quality seems pretty good. No loose threads, strong solid feeling, good recline. The cloth feels better that most of the cheap ones. It is thicker and feels alittle like velvet on the outside and foam backed on the inside (I took out one of the plastic shoulder harness supports to cheak) Under the cloth is a thick layer of foam. Looks like one of them foam things you can put onto of your bed to make it softer. Under the seat bottom is has 3 metal rods that the cloth is hog ringed too, and 3 seat springs. The seat frame is steel, the back is a plate of steel inside the cloth and foam.
I'm shocked at how comfy they are. Firm, but yet soft. Don't press against non of your pressure points, etc. If this tells you anything.. My and my dad are talking about going in on anopther set to use in our house. His in his room and mine as a computer chair in my computer room.
I'll get pics as soon as I can. I'll also take pics of modding the seat tracks, and installing them
i ordered a set of apc seats from ebay. total came to 302. with shipping. the only think that sucks is that stupid symbol on the head rests. the only thing you need to look out for is how big of a person you are when you are buying them. make sure that they will fit your waist line. i am a size 36 and they fit nice but my friend is a size 40 and they make him fell uncomfortable (yea too much beer, need to cut down)
That's awesome, I'm glad to hear they worked out for you guys.
Definitely interested in hearring about how the installation goes. You can't use the original camaro tracks on these? My plan has had some snags (trying to find a decent rear seat to match before moving forward on the fronts), but I'm pretty much sold on getting an Ebay set.
My idea from looking at the bottoms and talking to a few other people is to use the stock tracks.
I know the ones on these seats won't work, but looks like I can make 4 "tabs" with 1 hole in each "tab". Take the stock camaro tracks off the stock seats, weld the "tabs" to the stock tracks, then bolt them to the race/sport seats, then just bolt in car like norm.
As far as a back seats... This may not be your type thing, but for my I find the rears to be a waste of space, so i'm just gonna make a rear seat delete.. Look in the thread "what to do with your back seat" I'm gonna make mine kinda like the ones posted in that thread, that can be bought off ebay.
Then i'm gonna cover it (hot glue) black speaker box carpet onto them. To carry out the red/black two tone i'll get some light weight red carpet, cut me out a big bow-tie shape, and hot glue it onto of the black carpet. I may even cut out some flames and glue down.
Also i'm gonna add hinges to the delete plate, so I can lift it up and have a place to put stuff under it
Y'know, I rarely ever use my back seats... but for some reason it's just nice knowing that they're there, just in case.
Besides, I installed 2 amps and a crossover into my current rear seat backrest (one piece style). If I can find a 4th gen set that will match the Ebay style front seats, then I won't have to redo the install 'cause the "guts" are the same for both the 3rd and 4th gen.
But that's where I've been stumbling. I just need to get a decent set of matching 4th gen rear seats and I'm off to the races.
I think incorporating the stock brackets will definitely be your best bet. Can't wait to see some pics of the seats when you've installed them if you have the time. Also, a pic of where you have to weld wouldn't hurt either. I'm curious to see what I'll be up against.
my friend bought some seats off of ebay for his toyota MR2. he says they are really nice and fit/feel well. had to make a bracket to mount them but overall, it was a good price.
Umm has anyone tested them for quality or whatever? I talked to some guys around here and they said they were junk. They said they'd never hold up in an accident, that you could practically bend some of them over your knee if you;re a big guy...
yeah about a year ago i was suppose to get some red seats from ebay. Those "cheap" seats were around $275...Lets just say the guy laughed all the way to the bank with my money.
i didnt read through the entire thread but i have a pair of the apc seats found in jegs (bought from streetbeatcustoms) and they fit just fine. you do have to be sure to check the measurements of whatever seats you get because return shipping on these wouldnt make it worth it to send them back. the apc seats i have look good and have the harness holes as well. i got them for right at $305 shipped BUT i had to get custom seats brackets made (dont remember what company) to fit the generic apc seat and camaro mounting points.......another $165 i think. trying to fit the seats without brackets will be a chore. you could make the brackets but i just didnt have the time. overall im glad i spent the money on new seats, it helps the interior tremendously. even though, like everything else ive done with this car, i do wish i waited just a little longer and went with sparco, just for the name.
oh just saw some more stuff.....the apc seats i bought arent totally cheap but could stand to be made better. the fabric might come loose if you tend to "wear" your interior more than i do. and it did in fact raise the seat height quite a bit. still fits nice and im completly used to it now but at first it was awkward. save up extra dough and get sparco.
I suppose it would be a worthwhile purchase, but Sparco seats are quite the price jump. It's not like we're talking $100 or even $200. It's really hard for me to justify...
did anybody that purchased the seats from xtremediecast mount the seats in the car yet? and how do the fit in the car? and how is the quality? I am very interested in them but I am waiting to see how they fit first!
I'll have pics for you true blue and bubba about middle of next week!!!!!
Here's one quick pic to give you the idea of the mounting bracket. One of my mount braces still aint cut, so it's too long, nothing is bolted tight, and nothing is painted... but still you'll get the idea...
I just started working on the seat mounts today. I had alot of stuff come up like helping my dad, then needed a new rad. for my car, etc. but anyways...
Mounting these seats is gonna be easy. Almost too easy. Jut playing around to see what I needed I fabbed up something real fast and it works.
I took the tracks/mounts off the race seats...
I had 2 "mending braces" left over from another project. The mending braces I bought at ace hardware. They are 12" long x 1-1/8" wide x 1/8" think zinc plated. Each brace has about 6 holes pro drilled in them.
I cut each brace into 3 pc. 4" long, bolted the mending braces to the seat (threaded holes in seats) Then had to angle the mending braces in and out. (no bending, just turned it) Straight would be like this.......
l l
l l
.... How I turned was like if you took the top of the left one and pulled it over to the right, top of right on, pulled it over to the left.. Bottom of left one pulled to the right, bottom of right one pulled to the left.
Then with the holes left in each end of the mending braces, I bolted the OEM stock seat tracks to the braces with 4 bolts, washers, and taps. The rear of the side with the slideer adjust handle needed to be shimed up some. I used a longer bolt there, and put a spacer (larger tap) inbetween the mending brace and stock track.
Then being you can move how far apart the tracks are by tilting/pulling the mending braces, you need to measure the studs in the floor pan. (13-3/8" center to center apart) now just move the braces around alittle till you get the stock sliders to measure that. Then tighten everything up...
This is for the driver's seat. I aint tried the pass. seat yet. I need to get another mending brace to cut, and ace closes at noon here on sat.
I should have the mounts made, and all painted and tracks bolted on mon. Should have them in the car tue. and pics posted on here by wed.
i got ****ed over by ebay for my seats in the elco they didnt give me my harness and quality sucked
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