812 GTS racing seats, to be or not to be, that is the question!

Seat lifter is a must.
Problem with racing seat is that the bottom can not be tilted so the leg is up in the air sort of and knee hurts with long drive.
I chose racing seat for the fear of rattles from normal ones that I had in 812sf.
3-4 hour long drive will be a problem with racing seats for sure. It was a problem before and still is for the ferrari racing seats due to flat bottom.


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I don’t agree that the lifter is a must. If you’re tall like me, not having it is advantage because it gives you a little more height; the seat sits lower due to no lifting mechanism. Obviously only relevant when roof is up!

I agree that the racing seats aren’t very comfortable. My lower back hurts after 2 hours or so. Fiddling with the back adjustment helps somewhat. Nevertheless, I chose the racing seats because they look better and I don’t fit in the car with the standard seats (lack of headroom)

 

For the GTS maybe heated seats are important , so stay with standard. Plus the lack of height adjustment for the passenger seat can be an issue. I have the racing seat , and have had in various, and for longer than 3 hours it starts to become too much. If you do track days race seats are great, plus they look fantastic. All you can do is try them, as it could be a big mistake otherwise, and it would ruin your experience of the GTS.

 

It is such an individual thing. I find myself snug as a bug in a rug in the racing seats. The firmness is of no issue, as they really fit me well. This means they provide me with evenly distributed support, and that's very comfortable. By comparison, the F12 comfort seats for instance, have me moving about trying to stay comfy after 30 mins. After an hour I'm no longer comfortable in the F12 comfort seats.

Isn't the seat lifter a mandatory option now?

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It isn’t mand

The lifter is optional (at least in the UK). My incoming GTS does not have it.

 

It is crazy that people spec racing seats that:

1. Add siginificant cost
2. Are uncomfortable to most especially on long journeys
3. Can't really be seen when driving!

I actually think the 812 standard seat is the best looking standard seat they've made for many years.

 

Not sure it's as black and white as you put it.

Yes they are very expensive, but if that's the measure of how we determine options, then what can we choose? Have you ordered Apple car play in a Ferrari recently? Any CF options? Using the seat price as a reasoning for not getting them, is a moot point. If anything I'll say this. For the price they actually offers a significant weight reduction - it's massive. It's in the 70 kg range. Electric seats are ridiculously expensive,
Then there's the fact that if you track your car, they are a must. You slip and slide around the electric seats when you start to really lay into the car.
As far as comfort goes, we really need to remember that it's not most. It's some, we don't know how many. To say "Are uncomfortable to most" is simply a personal assumption. I reckon I know as many who find them more comfy than electric seats as I do who prefers electric seats.
You may not be able to see them while driving, and? Can you see your wheels? Can you see the shields or the CF exterior bits? That's not a reason that makes a lot of sense. They are probably the single most important visual item in the car when you look inside the car. They are as much a part of how the car looks, as the wheels are to the outside.

There are a few reasons why they make sense though.
The weight savings as mentioned.
The ability to keep you seated when pushing the car - especially on track.
The fact that the electric seats have a tendency to place you way too high in the car, which in the open top cars have several disadvantages. You look at the top frame instead of out of the middle of the window. You are more exposed to wind. You might have trouble fitting with a helmet. When you sit that high, it simply looks cartoonish. Granted, I'm not sure yet how bad this is in the 812, but a 458, 488 or F8 Spider does not work without racing seats as you end up sitting "on" the car, instead of "in" the car.

We all have our preferences, but it's not as straight forward as you say.

 

I'd have to agree with Il Co-Pilota on this one as well.
You could substitute any number of vehicle options here and your 3 points would be equally applicable--namely the external paint of the car and external carbon, or other engine components in the bay, or leather/alcantara in the boot or passenger display. You can't see the paint that well either when you drive and can add lots of cost, though isn't uncomfortable!

Much of the enjoyment is the portrait of the vehicle though. I love looking at my cars from afar or in the garage and that enjoyment can't be matched. When you look at it and see the racing seats, they do look beautiful. Nothing wrong with getting the other basic/standard ones, but an open door shot of the cockpit with the racing seats looks fantastic. That alone is beauty. A single piece of formed shell just looks the business. I think depending on body habitus and medical ailments the seats can be comfortable, but that's the way it goes I suppose. It is humorous to consider the cost upgrade of the seat when people talk about adding thousands of dollars for a shield or more for painted shields, or wheel options. It's all on the same level I think.

 

I think the racing seats are a must have. They look amazing and when fitted properly are super comfortable. I love mine. I have them in the speciale and had them in the 458 spider. I ordered them on my 812 GTS.

 

It really depends on you and also how you will use the car. In my case, I ordered the standard seats on my SF and I would order them again on the GTS if I were so inclined to order. I see the cars as super GT cars rather than outright sports cars. I do agree you make more connection with the car with the race seats. However, whereas the standard seats on past models didnt have the best support/ put you considerably higher in the car, I think the standard seats with the 488, Lusso, 812 (basically the current generation cars) are all actually very good. I see the GTS as a little less sporty than the SF due to added weight and likely slightly less rigidity due to the open nature of the car, I would do the standard seats for their greater comfort. I can imagine having the top down on a cool day and enjoying a heated seat, so that is a bonus as well. But its no more crazy to order the race seats on this than in the F8 Spider. The good news is you are in a position where the choice is yours.


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In my 2016 F12, I did the full electric seats standard style, for a 6k upcharge I believe. They included heated and memory. I didn’t like the fact that the various bolsters and lumbers were electric, imagining expensive repairs. Additionally I had no need for heated seats, as I only use the cars in good weather, and the climate control in a small cabin is excellent. For my new and heavily optioned 812 Superfast, I opted to forgo the option, use the standard power seats that offer standard adjustments. I then added the Daytona seat option, which is more form fitted, and thus a hybrid of the racing seat, a Goldilocks choice. I’m in good shape 215 lbs and 6’2.

For the 812 GTS that I’m building next week at the NYC atelier, I’m going to go with the same option. About 4K for the Daytona’s, but without the full power. I miss the power steering wheel, but have acclimated to manual control. Additionally the loss of memory seat wasn’t a bother, as only seldom does my wife take the wheel. All in all a personal choice, but a good option for my own shape and size...
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I had a really tough time with this one. I basically put every single option on the GTS minus carbon engine bay. I stuck with the standard seats in Daytona with the semi-aniline upgraded leather and black Daytona inserts to pay respect to the great grand touring cars of yesterday.
I sat in both for about an hour and I found I found the racing seats although gorgeous pinched me at the hips. Of course every body shape is different.
I plan to ship this car to the best roads in Canada and the USA as this is a wicked GT car suited to long twisty drives for getting a cappuccino in my opinion. Long drives plus open top on cool days also needs heated seats to stay comfortable.
Bottom line on this one, form follows function.

 

I think as 6'3", it really comes down to if your torso is longer than the legs. My legs is longer than my torso, so if the seat is without lifter, my legs will hang and it is uncomfortable. But if I sit in a seat that is too high, I could see the edge of the windshield in a convertible. So it depends on the car as well as your body configuration. This was the main reason I could not get a performante spider as half of my scalp is above the windshield.

 

That's the thing about the Huracan Spider models. Who exactly did they have in mind when they designed that? I'm 181 cm and of regular north European proportions, and my dome sticks out too or hit the roof. There needs to be a Razzie for the dumbest car design.

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How tall are you?, as I have the same issue.

I am 1,93cms = 6.4 foot, and on the GTS was planing to go for the racing seats to allow more headroom, but I was also planing on installing the lifting. You recommend no lifting?, do you know the difference in cms/inches between lifting or not?

In the Speciale I have racing with no lifting and I just fit; in the 812 I have racing with lifting and great fit

Thanks

Best

Luis

 

I think the racing seats look great but that's the end of it. As Harry said, they aren't comfortable on long drives and are too low without a lifter. So if one adjustment is needed, more would be better but then they wouldn't be racing seats anymore. We had the Recaro on the AMG GTC roadster and they were great looking and when you first sat in them they felt good but it only took about 10 minutes for them to be uncomfortable and they were adjustable. They ended up feeling like a wooden chair.

I have been happy with the full electric Daytona that I spec'ed in the SF. I had them in my 488 Spider and since I had the top down most of the time, they weren't an issue but with the top up, I had very little headroom. If I was at the track, I had to sit in an awkward position to wear the helmet. I didn't buy the car to drive it at the track so to me, racing seats make no sense for a car I want to enjoy driving. Now if I just want to look at it and take pictures of it, maybe they make sense.

It's a subjective choice as the responses here indicate. I am 6'3" so probably the racing seats would give me more room in the 488 but it's not necessary in the SF. I don't know about the headroom in the GTS though. I also have a skinny butt so I prefer a padded seat as I don't carry padding around with me.

 

I had the standard seats in my 488 and missed the racing seats. I tried both seat options but for me 6-0 and 178 lbs, the racing seats in large were perfect. I would not take our word for this important selection, try both and you will know which way to go upon ordering. The lifter back in December 2019 was required for selecting the racing seats.