458 Spider differences between seats (sport VS comfort)

Did you check and see if the CF seats were in their lowest position. You sit significantly lower than you do in the electric seats.

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I have electric seats in the 488 Spider and racing seats in the Pista Spider. Both seats at their lowest setting, there are at least 2" of difference. You sit very thigh in the electric seats.

I'm 181 and a helmet in the 488 is hard. Pista with CF seats, plenty of room.

On top of that, the electric seats simply do not offer enough lateral support for proper tracking. If you track even a bit, CF seats just for this reason alone. The electric seats simply do not work for track use.

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I'll be tracking it at least 2x a year and I do 'spirited driving 2x a month. So it does matter. 2" is substantial, but worth the $$$?

This week I'll upgrade to Novitec sport springs and lower it about 30mm. I'll start with this and then decide.

Thx!

 

BTW, anyone have any thoughts on these?

https://www.sparcousa.com/product/spx-special-edition#readmore



Yeah, not Ferrari, but seem like an awesome option to me, way more affordable and high quality. Heard great things about them.

 

I have not, but if you can fit the CS seats, they are much more supportive than the 458+ racing seats fwiw.

 

Sorry dustman, just need to ensure I understood you correctly:

Are you saying these Sparco CF seats are more supportive than Ferrari’s own racing / CF seats?

Or did you mean more supportive than the 458 comfort / Daytona seats?

Thx.

 

I am also curious how much lower these could sit you in the car. I would like to replace the Daytona’s for a much lower set of seats.


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My recent spirited driving foray in the Appalachian Mountains was the first time I actually wished for more supportive seats (I have Daytonas), but for this type of driving you'll want racing seats.

I'd probably do this too if I were going to run the type of roads I encountered on my fall extravaganza. Again, something I'd never previously considered. Even lowered, I believe the F would still sit higher than a Lambo Hurracan. I was stunned at the extreme low ground clearance when I peeked underneath one of them.

 

In fact, I was invited to test drive the Huracan EVO this past Saturday and that was part of the reason why I'm enquiring about the CF racing seats. The EVO had CF buckets and I sat quite a bit lower. Drove it for about 45 min and when I got back into my 458, I felt the difference big time. See pics...

BTW, this thing is a beast... I'd rather have the 458, but I must admit the Lambo was pretty awesome in pretty much every regard.


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I'm going to contact Sparco CS about it and see what they say...

 

Great idea. I need to spend some time measuring the dimensions of the stock Daytona’s to compare to Sparcos.

Please keep us posted. Cheers!


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I thought for sure I wanted the racing seats but had to pass.

At my height of 5'7" they were too lower for proper visibility and driving position.

Another problem is the upward bulge in the forward part of the bottom cushion. It hit the back of my thighs pointing my knees up in the air cutting off my circulation
in five minutes of seat time at the dealership.

I have the full electric Daytona's and I am very happy with them. I live in the mountains so I have lots of curves to negotiate. With spirited but still safe driving the bolstering is adequate. For track use I think the racing seats would be a necessity.

Definitely try them before you buy them.

 

Must try out both. It's a personal question. I don't have good back and cannot deal with buckets for too long in either porsche or Ferrari. Daytona does not look as good as carbon seats, yes, but I want to be able to drive my 458 for 5 hours without issues. so daytona works for me. You want to have a very hot girlfriend and she will do things for you at the same time. Know what I mean?

 

I believe it's just software. But usually later years production would have more kinks presumably worked out by any car manufacturer even though they may not be made public.

what year are you looking at?

 

Really, you like lambo seats? They are quite notoriously uncomfortable....

 

These ones were not to me. But I only drove it for about 45 min. Perhaps after a long trip I may have felt different.

But lots of supposedly ‘notorious’ things about Lambo have changed with this EVO.


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No response from Sparco in 2 days...


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personally i love my comfort seats, i drive my car a lot and put many miles on it, so these are just fine for me and are "comfortable"

 

Citadel and I recently installed race seats in our 458s. Number 1: FORGET trying to get a new proxy file from the dealer. Doesn’t matter who you know, you WON’T get it. Ferrari will only flash your car with the original proxy file. Lawyers got into this issue and put a stop to it. Lots of other issues to work through including wiring, plugs, mounting bolts, height, rear seat travel, excess harnesses, dead steering column(Citadel worked this out) plus a few others. I recovered mine and added heat which had a few challenges too. Final result is fantastic and very comfortable. I had to build a new rear shelf to conceal the excess harnesses that you must leave in the car. My issue with the electrics was that they rubbed against my upper thighs to the point that I was going to sell the car. Looking back I should have probably traded the car for one with race seats.
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I have the fully electric Daytona seats, but on our Appalachian mountain trek, for the first time I wished for racing seats. I was literally being tossed around in the car, and it was not just noticeable, but a real detriment to an otherwise enjoyable ride.

Now back in flat and tame FL, with winter setting in, the electric heated option is highly sought after, especially by the co-pilot. She wouldn’t do without them.

So now the dilemma - I guess for my next car, I’ll get one racing and one Daytona, LOL!

 

Having installed heat in my race seats while being recovered, I would think it is not so hard to add to a factory installed seat.

 

How did you go about accomplishing this?

 

Did you ever figure out a solution to lower them? I also find them crazy high compared to my GT3 CF buckets

 

What I love about the CF race seats beyond them behind extraordinarily comfortable and looking good, they are manufactured by SABELT and so they have real Ferrari racing DNA in them. I love SABELT!

I could not imagine track days in a 458 without the CF race seats. I would be sliding all over the place with my helmet scraping the roof.


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I gave up. Using my GT3 and new ML 600LT with senna seats instead. My 458 is the best of all, but for road and mountain passes.