It can be possible.........So....I called the parts department of a MINI dealer in the UK to see about getting a pair of Recaro's like the EUR GP's had. I gave him my VIN....he came back with this:
1. he would also need my chassis number BUT
2. anything he can get is for right hand drive anyway
3. the price would be at least $1,500 pounds IF he could get them for me and assuming they would install in a US delivered GP

Further; if I am serious I would need to get a VIN & chassis number for a left hand drive GP. Assuming I can get that AND I want to pay the price I could get them and have a friend arrange shipment. In any case it sounds like it could be more than a couple thousand USD total. Hmmmm...

Does anyone even know if they will install and will the wiring connections (air bags, seat heater etc) all be compatible?

 

You might want to eliminate the RHD/LHD issue by contacting a German Mini dealer. From what you have said so far, it sounds like the cost/benefit ratio will make it hard to justify.

 

The seats will bolt right in. The only thing you will have to do is get a bypass for the passenger side air bag switch. I checked about 8 months ago with a GP owner in Germany and total cost to purchase and ship was close to 6000.00. So 1500.00 (I assume each) is a better deal. As far as the bypass harness check with a Recaro dealer and they have them, found a shop in Kansas that had them in stock.

 

I think that 1500 pounds is about equal to $3000 or damned close to it

 

i have the same seats as UK GP, i live in Australia, there are no GP's here, and they were a factory option! Crazy huh...

 

the bypass harness is just resistors. It's a $40 part from Recaro or $1 at Radio Shack.

One thing that is critical that needs to be dealt with is the passenger side weight mat or OC3 system on '06 models. This is a weight sensor that controls the passenger airbag (in case a small child is up front or the seat is empty). It's easy enough to retrofit if you have one (it has to be cut out...it's molded in the stock seat foam - find a donor at a junkyard)

 

I'm currently exploring same path. Price in UK seems to be between 1,400 and 1,500 GBP. The good news is that the $ is much stronger against the pound these days so its roughly 1.5 dollar per GBP, which makes purchase price is around $2,200 give or take plus shipping to get them over here.

Not cheap but doable and a nice touch is you can get them with the heat option which should be a plug and play assuming you already have heated seats.

The next trick i would like to pull off is getting GP gauge faces

 

You could always just buy the seats from Recaro without the GP logo couldn't you?

 

I don't recall any Recaro seats with a GP logo on the GPs I saw at MU '07. I think they are regular Recaro seats...
At the GP delivery MINI tech told me that to keep the cost of the GP down MINI decided to have the US GPs w/o the Recaro seats. In EU rules about the passenger airbag are not as strict as they are in US.

 

I've never heard of the cost issue, but the lack of airbags has always been the reason, AFAIK.

Same reason that MINIUSA won't sell the JCW seats. MINIUSA sure can be even more **** retentive than some of us owners!

It's silly really... all they have to do is stick a nice big warning label on the JCW (or GP) seats, just like we have on mattresses, that also say "ONLY TO BE REMOVED BY OWNER". Then sell us the damn things, even though they don't have airbags in them.

 

or, sell us Recaro's that DO have airbags in them. The EVO X has Recaro's with airbags

 

I'd imagine our friends at the NHTSA are the biggest stumbling block in all this. Probably would want MINI to crash a few more cars with the different seat in order to certify for US. Warning or no warning label. After all without the ability to protect us from ourselves the agency has no reason to exist.

 

Ralph Nader says you're wrong

 

[quote=Edge;2598777]I was at the NJ delivery Hamish, you weren't . In order to meet the high standards of USA safety: cost is an issue.


While MINIs sell very well in US the profits for BMW are not that high. In EU MINIs are much more expensive and the transportation costs are less not to mention the EPA regulations ...
MINI USA is the stepchild of MINI GERMANY.

 

I'm looking at different options right now for the seats.

1. Somebody might be able to sell me a used pair from Europe.

2. getting the Recaro Sporsters here in the US. $1600/each in leather. They make them with airbags now. They look good too but not originals.

3. I contacted a French dealer and is willing to sell me a pair. I travel there next week and I'm going to meet with him to discuss price and shipping. We'll see.

I really want them. I can't stand the US standard seats.

 

I opted for the Sparco version; these are JCW's panther black leather version.

IMO both the Sparco and Ricardo are much more befitting of the gal

Takes care

Shadowman