After driving for 3-4 hours in my 2005 Cooper, I get lower back pain that's getting to be a real PITA (pun intended). I suspect I need seats with better lumbar support. Since I rally a lot and drive fairly aggressively (AX, no track days), racing seats seem to be the way to go.

Since both me and my wife are both large people, we need seats that are both supportive and ample. Does anybody have any recommendations?

Thanks,
Mini-Bear

 

Recaro's!

-Cody

 

Not Sparcos. I just got a pair of Evo 2s, which are wider than the standard size, and they are still tight. I have a 34" waist, 6ft and 175lbs.
You need something with not much "side" at the hip, I presume.

 

Bride Brix II in blue w/ the logos. That's what I plan to get at least.

 

My Sparco Modenas fit me perfect (34" waist, 6'3, 205lb). They offer a great balance between lateral support and improved comfort over stock. The best thing to do is to find a race shop with a number of seats to sit in before you make your purchase.

 

Like I said, a fixed-back racing seat is probably not what the OP wants, since the sides are high at the hips and narrow. The Modenas can fold forward, so there is no hip panels (basically they have kidney and thigh support, but not hip), providing a lot more room for larger drivers.

 

Keep in mind when you go to aftermarket seats you lose the air bags. There is a resistor you can put into the system that will shut down the warning light and allow the rest of the airbags to deploy but you will be losing the side bags from the stock seats. It's not the end of the world , just something to take into consideration.

 

Momo RS2GT fit us larger folks. I've driven 12+ hours at a clip in these and never felt cramped.

Howver, you should find a shop or a few shops that have seats for you and the SO to sit in and try.

 

A poster reported that at 3.3ohm resistor didn't keep the light at bay, and Randy Webb's How-To calls for a 4ohm. I am running a 3.91ohm large array of very high quality resistors (I'm talking from a $2000 crossover for a $50,000 stereo system!) and they are fooling the OBD so far. Maybe the krap from Radio Shack works just fine, but so does 10x in quality and price. BTW, although Randy says a seat swap takes 45 minutes, here in New Mexico it takes a whole lot longer...and involves a Sawzall, large diameter high-speed drill bits, Dremels, and lots of hours...
I was also told by my Dealer that getting authority from BMW to code out the airbags is harder than becoming a US Citizen. Mmmm, maybe not the best option.

 

This is true. However, I really enjoy the Recaros I installed in my MCS