I've got an update! I got the Recaro Profi SPG XL, the BK side mounts (R-9062), Recaro sliders, BK adapters (R-9040), and the BK inner seat belt mount point (R-9005).
First impressions.....
- The Recaro seat is wider than the GT3 seat. I wear a 36" waist pants and though I fit in the GT3, it was snug. Not tight, but snug. In the Recaro, I fit very nicely. I'm touching on both side pretty well, but I don't feel wedged in anymore.
- To look at the GT3 seat and the SPG XL, they appear to have the exact same design for the sides of the seats. The Recaro has higher sides to the front of the seat, whereas the GT3 has more sloping sides up front.
- The Recaro will provide for much better visibility as it narrows again above the shoulder support. The GT3 is so wide up top that it block the view (think backing up). My wife didn't mind as she could just look through the hardness holes.
- Just to look at them, the Recaro seat looks lower (more later).
- The GT3 wins hands down in the ease of use category. The Recaro is a PITA to put together (more later).
- The Recaro seat is heavier than the GT3 because all the BK parts are stainless steel, whereas the GT3 side supprts appear to be aluminum.
Details:
Weights -
GT3 - 26
Recaro (w/all mounting hardware) - 36
Stock - 47.5
I decided to measure a bit more accurately this time for the height of the seat (where your butt goes). What I did was use a laser level in front of the seat pointing at the seat back. I levelled the laser level then used a tape rule to make the measurements. Here's what I found....
Measuring at the furthest rearward part of seat bottom:
Stock - 5 1/8"
GT3 - 5 7/8"
Recaro - 7 1/8"
Note: These measurements are DOWN from a fixed height, therefore, the higher the number, the lower the seat. You can see that the stock seat is the highest of the seats here by about 3/4".
Measuring 5.5" out from the back of the seat. This is where I estimated that the majority of my weight is placed on the seat, and an approximation of the lowest point of my behind in the seat. Here's the numbers"
Stock - 5"
GT3 - 4 7/8"
Recaro - 6 3/8"
Note: These measurements are DOWN from a fixed height, therefore, the higher the number, the lower the seat. You can see that the stock seat is actually lower at this point than the GT3 seat by 1/8". In my book, that makes them virtually the same. The Recaro is a whopping 1 3/8" lower than the stock seat here.
Next I subjected the Recaro to the same test I performed with the other two seats to determine how high I sat in the seat. I put the seat in the same position against the wall. I sat the same way in the seat, had my wife place a level on top of my head and mark where the bottom of the level touched the wall. I really was expecting almost no difference here. I was shocked to discover that in the Recaro I sit fully
1.5" lower than in either of the other two seats (which were identical in this test).
A couple of things here that I have to mention. The GT3 seat can be mounted directly to the floor using BK side mounts. There is no such animal for the SPG XL (at least not for the Boxster). However, I did determine that if I wanted to, I could drill the existing BK side mounts and it would bolt directly down to the floor. That would gain about an additional 3/4".
The BK R-9062 mounts have one bolt hole in the rear of the seat and three in the front. This allows you, in theory to adjust the tilt of the seat. When I initially put the seat together I put it together in the top hole which would give me the most tilt. When I tried to put the seat in the car, I had to have the seat about 8" away from the back firewall. If you care about this topic at all, it is likely that you can't give up that much leg room. I know I can't. The problem is that the Recaro seat is so tall that it hits the roll bars, limiting how far back you can put the seat if it is highly reclined. The upside is that of the three seats, it is the only one where the back of my head is actually on the seat. In an impact, my head would hit the back of the seat rather than the rollbar. Yeah!
Putting the Recaro seat together is a PITA! I initially put the side mounts on the seat, then mounted the sliders to the side mounts. Can't do it. You can't reach the rear slider bolt as it is right up against the bottom of the seat. So you have to put the sliders on the side mounts first (mount the sliders as far apart as possible - in other words, the side mounts should be in as far as they will go). Then I could mount the whole assembly to the seat. The instructions suggest mounting the adapters (R-9040) to the floor, the attaching the seat. No way. I don't think you can do it that way. I'm going to mount them to the seat, then mount the whole thing in the car.
I don't know what the hell Recaro was thinking. When they made the sliders, the bolts they included are so damn long that they come in contact with the adapter bolts. This means that you cannot slide the seat. I have to run out and get shorter bolts before I can put it in the car, which means I have to put the stock seat back in for a hardware store run.
The BK R-9005 adapters are not designed for the Boxster. The holes don't line up. They are supposed to go between the adapters and the sliders. I am going to drill a separate hole. Keep in mind that these pieces are stainless steel. Use a cobalt bit to drill them.
I don't have the seat in the car yet (see above), but I will post my impressions when I do have it in the car. Oh yeah. One more thing. By the time you buy the Recaro sliders and all of the BK parts, the Recaro SPG XL ends up costing almost exactly what the GT3 seat costs.
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