Sparco Rev Plus

[StuwieP]

Since apparently everyone in the US is getting, shall we say, 'larger', Sparco has increased the width of the Rev. I know the older models fit the mx well, as they are supposedly designed for smaller drivers (like me) but the new seats come very close to the FM seating guide's dimensions, especially the shoulder wing width. The external base dimensions are almost identical to the Sprint V (1mm smaller, apparently).

I am interested in knowing if anyone has fitted the new "rev plus" to their mx, and what, if anything was necessary to get them to fit?
for reference, I drive an NA6.

Cheers
Stu

[StuwieP]

I thought I should update his post, just in case anybody is interested. Then I have more questions. Always more questions. They relate to mounting seats to the floor so for anyone totally disinterested in Rev Plus seats, please skip most of this essay I call a post.

One of my 2012 Sparco Revs ('grp-tech' on the backrest, not 'rev plus') arrived today. It's a very very small seat. I'm a 28" waist and it is very nearly snug. I would recommend this seat only for slim drivers - average size (32"+) will probably be either tight or too tight. They are very comfortable although I can't give feedback on long-distance endurance yet.

As far as space, my initial worry was that the wings would be too wide or the base would interfere with the transmission tunnel. Again, it is a tiny slip of a seat and there is actually more space either side of the seat than stock. The outside wing hits the door trim and squeaks constantly, although that is almost certainly a mounting issue.

Mounting was harder than it could (read: should) have been for reasons covered below. I bought the regular sparco side mounts (in red, because red goes faster - seats are in black though). My initial intention was to mount the brackets to the floor, using spreader plates with nuts spot welded on. This seems to be accepted and safe. Sitting lower was always the plan, for more headroom (the softtop frame is frightening), better weight distribution and to clear a planned roll-cage. Adjustibility would be achieved by the 5 different holes offered on the base of the mount. Sure, not a 30-second job any more but it'd do in a pinch. It still is the plan but as of this moment, the seat is mounted, after two hours of back and forth with small bolts and metal plates and and angle grinder to the (stock!) rails. Honestly, it's not all that confidence inspiring, and I wouldn't invite anyone to come and try it out in a hard corner or, worst case, an accident. The best part is, in return for slightly iffy safety, the seat sits higher than stock (my head now hits the roof, and I'm 5'11" with average leg-length), whch to me is no surprise, but leads to my questions.

Now for the questions:
1) As far as i have read, the rear mounting points for the stock seats are spot welded down and can be drilled out and removed. Is there any danger in doing this, and what is beneath those lumps? I presume it is the floorpan but would rather not find out otherwise the irreversibly hard way, and;
2) The front mounting point appears to be a rather thin piece of honeycombed steel, the purpose of which is to provide somewhere for the seat rail screws to go rather than through the floor. I can see the floor beneath it so i know it's removable but: dad (no experience with mx5s beyond mine, but has built his own track car. From the 70s so made from steel girders) thinks that it's a crossmember although it makes little sense to me - it's neither particularly solid, nor would it seem to be placed to resist any particular stresses the car would experience short of a side-on collision. I've also seen track cars without this (also for seat mounting purposes) and that alone suggests it's not so vital. Is this piece structural, and, if it is, can it's removal be justified in terms of achieving proper seat mounting, and rectified (if necessary) by adding similar cross-cabin bracing that doesn't interfere with my seats?
Yes it means that I can't just replace the stock seats if i want to sell but my mx is so old and with so many kms i doubt it'll ever be sold on as anything other than a fully rebuilt track car (also, i love the thing).


Cheers (if you made it this far, apologies for the thesis )

Stu

[davekmoore]

Hi Stu. Good to meet you at Sandown and great to see you've got the bug. Hopefully those who know better than I will answer your questions.

For me the Sprint V turned out to be great on the track. I was able to take the corners way quicker sitting in the Sparco compared with sitting on the slippy standard street. Shame the hot day and an overheating issue made my lap times artificial.

2 hours from Bendigo is about the furthest I could drive with the Sparco so in future it'll somehow be carried as luggage on the next trip to a track.

[PaulF]

I'm afraid I'm not much help Stu, but I thought I would show some appreciation for the write-up. The Rev is one of the seats I'm considering for my NA6, and I'll definitely be interested in seeing what you end up doing in terms of mounting.

[StuwieP]

Dave,

Carrying the seat is easy: upside down in the passenger seat. Alternatively, take the passenger seat out and just sit it in the footwell with the seatbelt around it to keep it in place.

Paul, the plan (at the moment, barring any suggestions otherwise) is to remove the rear lumps, leaving the front crossmember in place (I can still reach the pedals with the seat mounted completely behind it) and bolting the seat mounts through the floorpan using spreader plates with captive nuts on the underside of the car. If I get to it, I will definitely let you know how it goes.

Stu

[davekmoore]

Hi Stu

On one person trips to the track I might be able to get at least a couple of the rail bolts for the Sparco to match up with the (handed) holes on the passenger side. I'll have a play.

When another member of the family is coming with me to a track day I'll need to do something other than that. Might even swap the rails and let the passenger sit in the Sparco while I have the road seat on the journey there. Remove the standard seat at the track, put the Sparco on the drivers side and hey presto, lighter car into the bargain.

Also considering getting the seatbelt receivers mounted on the transmission tunnel to make all this seat swapping simpler and to save having to mess with the harness when I do use the Sparco on the road. Not an issue for you as your receivers are already there as opposed to fixed to the seats.

Have a great festive season.

[StuwieP]

More progress:

Driver's side seat fitted. Seat>mount>steel>stock points. 3mm steel angle-ground to length and bent to fit. No nose hairs left after cutting/grinding. While drilling the holes for the seat mounts and mount points, several things became apparent:
1) Steel is tough.
2) Steel splinters suck (those who have never had metal shavings digging into their fingers, they are incredibly small, hard to see and far more painful than your regular garden variety wood splinters. Be thankful.)
3) We don't have the right drillbits for cutting steel.

It took several hours due to points 1 and 3, and my general inexperience. The result is: I sit at more or less the same level as stock. Probably a fraction lower. Significantly lower than passenger side though which is good but limited adjustibility as a result (requires unbolting mount and moving it along the steel then re-attaching, but i did build them to allow that).

First impressions: more vibration, inc. engine at low revs, transmitted through the seat (i like it: i feel more connected, even though that really comes down to nice hip support). The angle between back and seat is very good but the seat needs reclining to support my legs and shoulders better. Harnesses will, when I get them, also help pull my shoulders back (less than ideal posture probably contributes to this problem but i'd rather blame the seat )

Finally, these seats are great: get them if you're small - as in narrow-waisted and with thin hips (even slim women might find them quite tight, but everybody is different. I'm definitely happy to let anyone come and try them out if they are interested, PM me - inner eastern suburbs) - and on a budget BUT:
Don't get the mounts until you get the seats and figure out what to do. Passenger side is narrow and you can't have the mounts that kick out at the bottom (a la Sparco side mounts) because they hit the transmission tunnel unless you apply the BFH. Drivers side is fine though -heaps of room. Also, if you don't have a father protesting at wanting to remove those rear seat humps, go for it because that's the only way you'll actually get these seats to sit (significantly) lower than stock using Sparco side mounts. Lower profile mounts would help shedloads, but i've got what i've got and no money. Mazda did a good job with getting their buckets low.

Cheers
Stu