F40 Shell Seat Install

The factory seats mount on the bottom and the bottom of the seat is lower than the mounting bracket surface. I doubt if the Recaros are that low. I think you are better off with a seat made for a Ferrari that uses bottom mounts. You might try a 348 seat.

Good luck,
Rick

 

The only seat that really fits into an F40 is an OMP seat called a VID. It is no longer produced. This seat is also known as a 348 challenge seat( not to be confused with the street version that is the same as the F40 seat). The VID is a semi-reclining design and the only one that will not place the seat to high in the car. This is the only aftermarket seat that will work effectively. OMP also made the 360 challenge seat called a GRIP and it is a similar design. Call the OMP rep to verify. Use of the VID seat requires a custom nonadjustable bracket. You have to be between 5'8" to 5'10" to be able to use the bracket. The best solution is to modify the stock seat to accept the harness. All other aftermarket seats do not sit properly in the car due to the position of the seat rail braces. I have seen these removed and modified to allow more room for seat placement. On the stock F40 seats, the adjuster rails are channeled into the seat bottoms. Thats why the stock seats are lower to the floor. It is possible to use other aftermarket seats, but the seats will be too high and upright. The VID is the only one that fits properly. All of the modern ferrari CF factory seats are patterned after the 348 (street version) challenge seat so replacements are plentyful.

 

Do you know what kind of seats these are?
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Those look like the euro F40 seats. From the look of the picture they are the seats that were for sale in the ferrariads section. Those are OK but they still sit too high in the car. They are a bit upright as well. They will fit but I was not happy with them. The backs are not adjustable. The best bet is just to modify you stock seats to accept a 5 pt harness. I believe that Chris has a pair that you could demo. Also, F40 seats were available in different widths from the factory, be sure to check what size they are. I happen to like the semireclined position of the VID.

 

Those do NOT look like factory euro seats, the factory seats do not have any embossing on them.

I just took my euro F40 seats out, I tried them for 2 years but they are just too high...

Do not waste your money on any other seat, all of us have tried to find something other than a F40 seat to fit and the bottom line is that they won't.

My US factory seats are cut, the holes lined with red leather as are the seat bolsters, the rest is nomex. This is the best solution. If you are concered about cutting yours, buy a pair of used US seats and cut them, anything else you do is a waste of time and money.

I now have an extra set of F40 Euro seats and the 348 Series Speciale seats that we use as seats for my kids playstation...

 

Embossing aside, those look like euro f40 seats. I have seen many Euro F40 seats( including in cars in Europe) and there are different styles, probably changed over the years. Those seats appear rather wide as well. The OMP VID is the best seat for the job and fits like it was made for the car. I personally test fitted over 40 seats, and this was the only one that even worked. You have to make a custom bracket that is not adjustable, so it limits it's usefulness. If you are 5'11" or less and average build it will work. If you have an abnormal inseam it won't. I spent about 40 hours getting the seat positioned properly and made 4 test brackets. In the endit was worth it. The vid was about the most expensive seat made at the time a $1600 each. As I said the GRIP uses the same shell. Talk to the OMP dealer. Recaro seats are for P-cars, they are nice, but they dont fit.

 

has to be a semireclined to work

 

seats are a problem but there a couple if simple options if your height is the problem....

Just use a spacer under the front seat bolts only to recline the rigid seat to allow more headroom... this may make reach for the steering wheel hard... but a simple spacer on the wheel boss will fix this... I've gone up to 30mm wheel spacer with longer bolts quite happily.

Also or alternatively... just have the whole seat covering removed professionally by a trimmer, and have him make a lower seat cover with much less lower cushioning... it makes a huge difference and if done correctly is at least as comfortable as std, or more so. Save the original seat covers for refitting one day....

that pic is euro seats, and yes, the embossing shouldn't be there if genuine F40 seat.

 

Ok, Ok, I went to shop today, they do look like my Euro seats, but the embossing was never on a F40 seat.... so who knows, the manufacturer info should be on the bottom....?

Doug, where do you live? not the exact address, just what city state, not interested in selling these awful seats, but maybe we can get together and you can try to see if they work for you...

 

I have the US seats in the car now.

I have had the euro seats in for the last 2 years, I hated to admit that they simply were not as comfortable as the US seats. I did spend crazy money on the euro seats and I bought them new from FNA.

I am 5'11" and 200lbs (most of the time, lol) so I am not huge or small. They just sit up about an inch taller than a US seat. and they are NOT adjustable, so you cannot lean them back.

While they look great, I just do not think they are a good choice unless you are 5'4" to 5'6" and 150 to 175lbs.

You can use the stock rails, so that is a big plus, but you most likely won't use your US belts, but my US belts and that stupid mouse went into the trash long ago...

I still think you are better off cutting your US Seats.

If you insist, maybe I could send a seat to you to try, I do not want to sell them because it was bad enough paying for them, much less taking a hit on selling them!

But hey, they might work for you, at least you will know.

Oh, I have a very special tool for removing the seats, trying doing it with just an allen wrench, it can take an hour a side, or about 10 minutes with a little help from snap-on...

 

Hey Rick - Given our size, the red seats sound like they would work just fine!!

 

I just realized that instead of mounting the seat sliders under the seat, it may be possible to mount them outboard of the seat itself. This would address the height issue. A mount could then be used that would allow the OMP or Sparco side brackets to be fitted. I will check to see if there is room.

 

That would be great Jerry but as you know, If I had any legs I would be 6' tall.....

Since I think the whole idea is being missed here, and a picture is worth a 1000 words, here you go. As you can see this seat has the sliders recessed into the seat bottom. Mounting them any different is not going to get them any lower. As Chris has pointed out they seem to be too upright. They need to be reclined. I am going to try to make a wedge spacer for these because with my 5'9" body with 29" legs my head hits the roof when I sit with my back against the rear of the seat. There is less than 1/4" of clearance between the bottom of these seats and the brace that runs under the seat. You may be able to get them lower *IF* you mount them solid forward of this brace, BUT it will be very difficult to get in and out of the car unless you remove the steering wheel.
These seats are just like the ones I posted a picture of above.

Rick

And just for fun here is a picture of my Lab swimming in the pool....
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These seats have Hawk stamped on the bottom.

 

That's not true. I have Sparco Evo 2 seats with sliders in my U.S. F40. Fits fine, and with my smaller-than-OEM Sparco wheel, a 6'2 person can actually drive the car. My original U.S. seats are in storage.

 

Fit is a subjective term. I'm 5'10" and I would consider you seats to a poor fit. Lots of seats will fit, they just are not right. I would consider your seats to be too high in the car. About any seats can be mounted in the car, they are just not properly low enough. They will fit, they are just not "right". I think that is the consensus with the Euro seats. In order for a tall driver to get proper leg room, the seat has to be upright. You cannot get the same seat angle that is available by reclining the factory seat. In the end it is a matter of opinion. The Sparco seats do not offer a "proper" fit. Also, for my taste, I like the seat as close to the center of the car as possible. Since the sparco seats are wider than the factory seats, they have to be moved closer to the doors. Your seats appear to be quite a ways forward for someone that is 6'2". I machined a steering wheel adapter that uses a quick release so entering the car is easier. I completely removed the momo factory adapter.

 

Can you post some pictures of some of your mods please?

Rick

 

That may be difficult. At work we have dial-up. I'd have my admin do it but it would take forever. At home I have cable but I get home late. PM me with your address and I'll send you a picture CD.