Racing Seats

I have the factory racing seats, but have never tracked the car. I have driven both standard and racing seats. I picked the racing seats over the standard, and love them!

 

I dont track my car but have the race seats on my spider. They are imo a must and I would wait for a spec to pop up with them. I have daytonas on my f12 and much prefer the race seats

 

yes, same here, they are very comfortable and nicer for me (big frame) than standard seats. I waited to find a car with them along with other options I wanted. Look around, I'm sure there's a good number of cars available with them.

 

Hi Justin.
Like roaches coming out in the dark, people will get hot about which seat is better and start coming out of the woodwork to discuss which is better. I will only say something relevant to your post.
While I do have the race seats in my spider and like them more than my old Italia daytona trim seats, what should concern you even more is head clearance with the standard seat.
If you are going to track the car, the race seat sits lower AND the head rest is set further back to allow for the helmet. Depending on your body morphology you may not be able to find a comfortable position with the standard seat once your helmet is on.
I would suggest you sit in a standard seat car with your helmet and see if you are good. THEN you can decide if the race seat is a must or just a "choice".
Best

 

I would not buy a 458 without racing seats. For me they truly improve the car. I appreciate the additional feel they give.

 

My Italia had Daytona and my Speciale race. Prefer the race but honestly neither held great on track compared to race in the 650 or 675. Ferrari race seat is more looks than function. 458trofeo went real race seats and in my limited spirited driving in his car, those are great seats for real driving.

 

+1. The "Racing Seats" look great and, for my wife and I, have proven to be the most comfortable for the several long trips we've taken. FWIW the FF seats (similar to the 458 standard seats) are great for long distances for most people.

Neither are great track seats IMHO, though the race seats are better suited. I would suggest getting the seats that work best for the majority of your driving.

I will say I'm a bit of a maniac about track driving and safety; to the point that I think any OEM safety system (seat, airbags and 3 point belt) is definitely "iffy" when you're at 120mph+.

 

Personally, wouldn't touch a car that didn't have racing seats. I had them first in my 2012 458 spider and by far the most comfortable seats I've had in any car. I think the only reason i might change is if i had a bad back or lots of different people drove my Ferraris in which case maybe electric seats may make sense. Its a very personal thing so my suggestion is try different styles if you can - what I love you may not.

 

Racing seats make you sit with a hunched spine, as opposed to having a straight spine as are in pro racing seats. Probably what you're used to, posture wise.

 

Your answer will tell you whether it deserves race seats! After market seats? I wonder if they affect resale. Even if one plans on owning the car forever, 'purity' matters. Keep it a 'thorough breed.'

 

Totally agree. I'm all about purity, bumper to bumper.

 

Heated seats are nice though

Ray

 

racing seats for comfort and resale. Also less hassle in aftermarket seat installations

 

Fellow Dustman means this thread: http://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/458-italia-488/487888-458-challenge-seat-project-2.html

And I must say: I like it !

 

Had standard seats in my 12 Italia and put 10k miles on her. The seats were uncomfortable and I slid all over during spirited driving. Racing seats on the Speciale, Speciale A and 08 Scud. They are more comfortable and a better option IMVHO. I think changing seats might get a bit expensive. Should be enough used 458's out there to find one you like with CF racing seats.

 

Racing seats - much more comfy. If you are tall, it will give you a little more headroom for your helmet. But as others have said, not the best for tracking.

Are you local?

 

The 458 I just purchased has full electric seats. I'm really interested to see how I like them, once the car is delivered (later this week).

I sat in another 458, which I almost purchased, and it had the racing seats. I liked how they held you in, but I thought they were a bit uncomfortable at the bolsters and lacked any sort of real adjustments. The main thing which rubbed me the wrong way about the racing seats was that your elbows seemed to constantly be making contact with the bolster area, unless you kept your arms just in the right position. I also sat in a car which had the half electric seat option and felt those seats were a bit more comfortable than the racing seats and provided a bit more relaxing - which might be helpful on longer road trips.

Maybe I'm getting older, but for a road car, I tend to prefer a bit of extra comfort these days over out-and-out performance. Like I say, I'm very interested to see how I like the full electric option on this car that is coming. Ferrari seats normally are a bit uncomfortable, so hopefully these will be better due to the additional adjustability.

The racing seats might work for someone larger - or for the track - since they do seem to sit lower in the car. I'm 5'8 so the racing seats seemed almost too low to me. I believe most people probably order the large size racing seats, so that might also be a negative factor influencing my decision here.

Once my car with the full electric seats arrives, and I've had a chance to drive it, I'll report back. I'm curious about the seat topic as well.

Ray

 

You may find the standard seats perfect for the job Ray !

We don't track our cars weeks and weeks imo (NOT me you are looking at; I just took this photo ...)
Image Unavailable, Please Login