# Racing seats and seat rails for the GT-R R35 Harness mounting for track.



## matthewk (Aug 22, 2013)

I am 100% clueless as to how this works, I have no idea if you need a seat bracket made for the GT-R or if you can just buy universal seat brackets off the shelf.

I am looking to get a racing seat for track use, I will be wearing a 4 point harness although I will move to 6 point in the future.

If you have a race seat fitted in your GT-R can you please post pictures in here along with what you did regarding seat rail, fitting etc.

Bonus points for anyone who can tell me how you fit the crotch straps on a 6 point harness.

I sat in this seat and it felt perfect for my height and was nice and snug, can anyone tell me more about this Recaro seat?










I posted the long thread title as gtr.co.uk isn't ranking very well for these queries on Google so hopefully this thread can help people searching for info in the future.

Also if anyone knows of any good threads that I have missed can you please link them for additional info.

Thanks
Matthew


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## terry lloyd (Feb 12, 2014)

Hi Matthew - not sure if this helps but i have been looking at changing the seats to bucket seats and have come across these runners that bolt direct to the floor and side mounted bucket seats

M2 NISSAN SKYLINE GTR GT-R R35 SEAT RAIL SLIDER UK DRIVER EU PASSENGER Y2466 | eBay


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## barry P. (May 9, 2010)

Matt, try PMing Goldy, he swapped over his seats to race ones.


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## grahamc (Oct 1, 2006)

barry P. said:


> Matt, try PMing Goldy, he swapped over his seats to race ones.


What the Tillet ones got too much?


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## Evo9lution (Aug 24, 2013)

grahamc said:


> What the Tillet ones got too much?


Still has that one (at least he did at the last track day). Think Barry meant swapped to this from OEM?


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## grahamc (Oct 1, 2006)

Evo9lution said:


> Still has that one (at least he did at the last track day). Think Barry meant swapped to this from OEM?


Ahh, still dont see how they can be comfortable..... love the Sprint V seats I have in my MX5


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## Evo9lution (Aug 24, 2013)

Seems to be quite comfortable but breathing / sweat seems to be the biggest issue.


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## matthewk (Aug 22, 2013)

The wife is buying me a race seat for Christmas and a harness for my birthday on the 30th, ill be going to a few seat shops tommorow to try some out and buy one, I will be using a harness bar, harness, race seat and hans device.


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## TomS (Mar 21, 2012)

matthewk said:


> The wife is buying me a race seat for Christmas and a harness for my birthday on the 30th, ill be going to a few seat shops tommorow to try some out and buy one, I will be using a harness bar, harness, race seat and hans device.


Speak to Motordrive in Leyland. They'll tailor a seat to fit you.


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## lightspeed (Jul 11, 2002)

That seat in the pic is not a genuine Recaro from the looks of it.


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## 5star (Nov 17, 2014)

I'm in the same situation. I've decided to get the following:

1. 4 point bolt-in roll cage with removable harness bar. (Currently deciding which one to get - _*any traders/importers please PM me with your options*_). I don't want one that requires drilling or cutting. My primary aim here is to get the correct height harness bar. I'm keeping the OE seats, so I'm really concerned about the angle of the shoulder belts if I use the rear OE mount points, hence I want a harness bar for safety. I also want to use HANS which means the rear OE seat points would be too low and too far away. I want a removable bar because I do a lot of long drives, and sometimes want to recline the seat at services for a quick nap. A roll cage will mean no passengers in the rear, as the risk of hitting head on the roll cage would be too great. I'm not going for a full roll cage because I don't want metal bars near my head without a helmet. I haven't decided whether ChroMoly or Mild Steel would be better. ChroMoly is slightly lighter, but read some reports that ChroMoly may shatter more easily than Steel - but this is unsubstantiated at the moment.

2. Schroth 4-point harness with ASM. I'm going with a 4 point to begin with as I intend to keep the OE seats. 3" shoulder and 2" lap. 2" lap is supposed to be more comfortable, easier to tighten, and safer (source: Schroth). 3" shoulder works with or without HANS. As I'm keeping the OE seats and don't want to drill the floor, I'm limited to 4-point. The ASM device seems like a good idea, certainly no less safe than the OE 3 point with regards to submarining. Schroth and Takata are the only 4-points with ASM that I know of, but the green Takata colour would clash with my interior. I also preferred the feel of the Schroth release mechanism. I'm going with the Schroth flexi belt because I'm unsure whether I'd prefer pull-up or pull-down tightening, and it may well change if I get a race seat in the future. The cost difference is negligible. I intend to remove the harness when not in use, so will be getting the clip-in mounts for the lap portion. I'm not bothering with a road legal harness as the only difference seems to be an inferior release (red push button rather than twist) - I presume so emergency services know how to release you.

3. Hans device.

I'm keeping the OE seat for now as I think it is comfortable and safe enough for my use case, although I will likely upgrade to race seats in the future. When I do, I intend to swap the seats only for track days, as race seats may disable the air bags (to be confirmed?). I'm not comfortable driving on the road with a 3 point harness and no air bags. I think it is quite straightforward to swap seats, but if anybody has direct experience I'd be interested to hear.

I looked at the Sparco Evo harness only bar but it doesn't seem to be available anymore. It also seems to be a compromise to fit as it rubs on the rear seat cushion.

Potential bolt-in roll cages I'm looking at are:

Forged
http://www.forgedperformance.com/?p=1189&option=com_wordpress&Itemid=159

Titan
Titan Motorsports R35 GTR Roll Bar

Heigo
http://www.heigo.de/ASP/index.asp?PID=&ACT=102&WKA=1222&WKC=1&CAT=3&SCAT=Nissan

ACG
ACG Automotive | Performance | Maintenance | Service | Perfection : ACG R35 GT-R Roll Bar RHD
(This seems to be available in RHD or LHD variants - not sure what the difference is). Also this one requires cutting plastic, drilling through the floor, and removing the rear seats - but I'm not sure what the benefit of this is over the simple bolt-in types.

Cusco
Roll Cage - Product Information

It seems quite difficult to determine the difference between them, so unless I can see a difference, it is going to come down to availability in the UK, lead time, price, etc.

Does anybody have any comments on the above, or any other products I should consider?


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## matthewk (Aug 22, 2013)

To add to what 5star posted, this is why hans is important with a harness, I think I read that a 45 mph front impact was enough to be fatal when wearing a harness without hans.


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## matthewk (Aug 22, 2013)

terry lloyd said:


> Hi Matthew - not sure if this helps but i have been looking at changing the seats to bucket seats and have come across these runners that bolt direct to the floor and side mounted bucket seats
> 
> M2 NISSAN SKYLINE GTR GT-R R35 SEAT RAIL SLIDER UK DRIVER EU PASSENGER Y2466 | eBay


Thanks Terry I have ordered this to go with my Cobra seat.


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## matthewk (Aug 22, 2013)

Picked this seat up today along with a new helmet and hans device.

I am still undecided on what to do to support the harness, its either going to be one of the half cage/roll cage's as posted by 5star above or the Sparco Harness bar.


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## erol_h (Jun 13, 2008)

matthewk said:


> To add to what 5star posted, this is why hans is important with a harness, I think I read that a 45 mph front impact was enough to be fatal when wearing a harness without hans.


My god what a difference the hans device makes that must of really hurt for the driver


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## mindlessoath (Nov 30, 2007)

if your serious about safety don't get a bolt in. that will surely fail depending on the accident. I can understand the want to be able to remove it. it might help in a slow speed accident, but if you plan to be going fast you want your life to be safe. there have been a lot of high impact serious damage crashes where a full welded in cage has saved lives in r35s.

I won't argue the simplicity of a bolt in. I care that people do the right thing so they don't die. I guess you could say a bolt in can be better than no cage, but if it sheers off at the bolts and puts you in a comma, what then?


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## matthewk (Aug 22, 2013)

Would love a weld in cage but its just a little too hardcore for me, look at Vernons GT-R, its great and all but it needs to be towed to the track, I'm looking for something in between that and a road setup, I need to be able to drive to the track and I need to be able to remove the cage every so often for family trips.


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## Wouter (Jul 30, 2011)

We can offer the full range of Cusco cages to fit your needs, for example: Cusco R35 4 Point roll cage with X brace and harness bar - PartBox Performance and Tuning Parts 

Also able to supply BRIDE / CUSCO seats, either reclining or full bucket in various materials, with matching BRIDE seat rails (with or without FIA approval). 

Obviously, various harnesses available, from Takata to Sparco. 

Contact us at 0121 661 62 63 and ask for Richard Parker.


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## 5star (Nov 17, 2014)

I'm chatting to Richard about this via email. Just waiting on clarification on whether the Cusco Safety 21 4-point cage requires any drilling of trim or chassis, and whether the adjustable bolt-in harness bar requires cutting and/or welding to fit. Providing it doesn't require cutting or drilling, it is my preferred choice and I'll order one.


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## Wouter (Jul 30, 2011)

It will require drilling the holes in the chassis to bolt the cage in, regardless of the model or make. You can choose to weld it in aswell, that's up to you, but it's designed to be bolted in. 

If you look at the link I posted, it shows you the harness bar going through the subwoofer, but allows you to keep the panels and subwoofer in. On picture number two you can see all pipe work is bolted to the cage itself, so you could potentially take the harness bar out to allow some people to sit in the back. BUT! I would strongly recommend not to put any other people in even if you wrap the cage in padding. Too dangerous if someone bumps their head. 

I hope this helps, you're in good hands with Richard


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## matthewk (Aug 22, 2013)

I need to be able to remove the cage, I don't mind spending 5-6 hours doing it but occasionally I will be going on road trips with kids in the back.

The Forged bar looks like a really good option, Heigo also emailed me back, its £200 delivery and available end of Jan.


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## 5star (Nov 17, 2014)

Wouter said:


> If you look at the link I posted


I'm looking at a different one. The one you link I think is the D1 ChroMoly version as it is standard in blue, although the text mentions Safety21 so it is a bit ambiguous. The one I would want is the Safety21 4 point without X-Member, I think this one: Cusco Safety21 Nissan GTR-R35 4PT Black Roll Cage - PartBox Performance and Tuning Parts

The reason I wanted to clarify whether that particular Cusco part required chassis drilling or trim cutting is because the Titan, Forged and potentially Heigo bolt to existing OE seatbelt points, so no drilling or cutting required.


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## matthewk (Aug 22, 2013)

terry lloyd said:


> Hi Matthew - not sure if this helps but i have been looking at changing the seats to bucket seats and have come across these runners that bolt direct to the floor and side mounted bucket seats
> 
> M2 NISSAN SKYLINE GTR GT-R R35 SEAT RAIL SLIDER UK DRIVER EU PASSENGER Y2466 | eBay


I don't recommend these seat runners, I've just fitted them and they feel cheap and are really difficult to install, I think it would be better to pay the extra and get the AMS brackets.


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## terry lloyd (Feb 12, 2014)

matthewk said:


> I don't recommend these seat runners, I've just fitted them and they feel cheap and are really difficult to install, I think it would be better to pay the extra and get the AMS brackets.


Sorry Mathew i had no idea of the quality was just trying to help out with the link


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## matthewk (Aug 22, 2013)

Sorry Terry I wasn't trying to imply it was you're fault, I appreciate the link and I would of ended up buying these seat brackets anyway, I'm just posting here for anyone else who is going down this road.

The brackets do work, they do the job, the seats fit, they're just not very well built and they feel low quality.

My hands are all cut up after spending hours fitting the seats.

Also I'm not sure I can recommend the Cobra Evolution Seat either, it feels too big for the car and its causing some issues with the OEM belts that I haven't figured out yet.


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## matthewk (Aug 22, 2013)

I've just been for a spirited drive after installing the bucket seat, I used the OEM seat belts on the road but the extra feedback from the seat was brilliant, it feels like a big improvement in the corners as I'm not having to brace myself.

It really isn't practical though, luckily for me it isn't a daily driver any more so I can suffer through the pain of having to climb in and out the seat occasionally.


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## ants101 (Feb 28, 2013)

matthewk said:


> I don't recommend these seat runners, I've just fitted them and they feel cheap and are really difficult to install, I think it would be better to pay the extra and get the AMS brackets.


Matt,

I had the AMS Runners...IMO...shit.....I binned them and just welded the bracket to the AMS base...too much movement in the runners for my liking....


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## Steve (Sep 21, 2001)

Mat

You need another GTR to strip and make it into a real proper track animal as halfway measures just don't cut it - I know I have been there for 20 odd years of modifying and track abuse !!!


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## matthewk (Aug 22, 2013)

I'm Happy with the route I'm going down, a half cage, harness and race seats, mild power (stage 4) and good track tyres, that keeps me happy on track.


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## mindlessoath (Nov 30, 2007)

Roll bars.......don't go buy one just yet. - R35 GT-R - Nissan GT-R Heritage


david just made a post about his new project.


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## FRRACER (Jun 23, 2013)

matthewk said:


> To add to what 5star posted, this is why hans is important with a harness, I think I read that a 45 mph front impact was enough to be fatal when wearing a harness without hans.


Can cause base of skull fracture. They have been used in motor racing for more than a decade and under MSA regulations they have been made compulsory for MSA sanctioned events in the Uk.

Most likely need a 10/20 degree version.


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## matthewk (Aug 22, 2013)

mindlessoath said:


> Roll bars.......don't go buy one just yet. - R35 GT-R - Nissan GT-R Heritage
> 
> 
> david just made a post about his new project.


Thankyou very much, I will hold off on the roll bar and see how that progresses.


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## matthewk (Aug 22, 2013)

FRRACER said:


> Can cause base of skull fracture. They have been used in motor racing for more than a decade and under MSA regulations they have been made compulsory for MSA sanctioned events in the Uk.
> 
> Most likely need a 10/20 degree version.


I picked up a hans sport 2 from demon tweeks, I will be using one on track days from now on.


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## mindlessoath (Nov 30, 2007)

Trying Necksgen Rev (Hans alternative) - Road Racing - Nissan GT-R Heritage

this might be of interest too


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## TomS (Mar 21, 2012)

I tried a Simpson Hybrid a few weeks ago, much more comfortable than HANS and FIA approved so still as safe.

NASCAR Safety | Simpson | Car Racing Safety Belts, Restraints


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