To recaro or not to recaro that is the question
 

Hey Coupe-ers, right now my order has regular cloth sport seats spec'd but I am trying to figure out if I want recaros.

Unfortunately no cars at the dealer have those seats spec'd.

Do any of you coupe people know if the recaros sit higher than the standard sport seats? I sat in a coupe spec'd with sport seats with my helmet on, and I have about 1/2-1in space. My concern is that the recaro can't sit a low as the standard sport seats then it would be a huge waste of cash.

Also as an added bonus if any of you coupe owners that spec'd recaros live in Santa Clara county/ peninsula area I would like to briefly meet up to sit in your car with recaros.

Almost 2800 bux is a lot for an option and I want to be sure.

Back in 2013 they wouldn't build a roadster with them. Are you sure they are putting them in now. If they are I'd get them. But the cloth seats with the checkered pattern and red stitching are nice. That's what I have. I added the lumbar support.

The Recaros in my GP sit at least as low as the sport seats in my fiancee's base R56.

I sure wish I had them in mine. I would add them if ordering a new one, mine was purchased odd the lot. In June of this year I picked up a leftover 2013 JCW Coupe. I will likely just have my sport seats redone with a Katskin or Roadwire kit.

Argh... I just wish I could try them. I'm so close to updating my build. I have a production number, but it's still waiting. My sales guy said to get my decision soon.

You ordered the JCW. The JCW body and the Recaro's are the two most important things for me. Unfortunately they killed the Recaro's on me.

I studied the pictures closely and it seems like the sport seats and recaros share the same structure. The recaros are more opulent and seem to have better bolstering but now I am questioning whether the 2750 or whatever is worth it.

Yes they do share the same structure. Somewhere on here they have a break down but I don't remember where. Try to google mini Recaro's and see if you can find it.

I have the JCW standard sport seats in black with red stitch and they are very comfortable (far better than my 2011 Infiniti what says a lot). I would be very reluctant to spend mostly 3K for this upgrade.

I drove a 2014 HT S with this option for about 2 weeks in July 2014. I am not impressed.

Yes, the factory-fit 'Recaro sports seats' option is for Recaro foam and upholstery on the standard Mini seat frame shared by all seats. These Recaro-specific parts are shown in the diagram below (item 2 is a foam block that turns the headrest into a fixed high-back seat).

http://www.realoem.com/bmw/diagrams/i/e/407.png
I ordered these seats for my early Roadster and they got cancelled by the problem (with the soft top ripping out the seat belt guide, I believe), so I ended up with standard sports seats. I did try the factory Recaro sports seats in a delaer's showroom, but not on the move.

I don't find the sports seats sporty enough (it's just padding not actual support) so I bought a pair of used dealer-fit JCW Recaro seats - these are genuine Recaro buckets marginally customised for a Mini. Sadly they couldn't be used in the Roadster (too high and the Roadster cannot be coded for them, so they cause an airbag fault), but of significance, I sold them to an owner of a GP2 which comes with the factory Recaro sports seats as he found they were not supportive enough for track driving.

The factory Recaro goes as low as the standard Mini seat, as it is really just a standard Mini seat. You may have read about Recaro height problems but those will be about the (mainly European) dealer JCW Recaro seats.

I concluded that the factory Recaro option is a bit of a rip-off, as different foam and upholstery doesn't cost that much - that is a very, very expensive Recaro badge that is set into the seats.....

Pictures say all,,,,,,,,,,,cheap and not worth the money.

It is just my opinion.

Overall, the Mini is also a basic car no matter the package or accessories added on.

I like the JCW Euro Recaros and after seeing them, they look awesome and feel great. Good luck on what ever you choose.

https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...-question.html

http://www.norfolkcars.co.uk/images/...g_0890-jpg.jpg

http://www.boutique-mini.com/img/p/590-1149-large.jpg

Hey, they certainly look nice but are they comfortable or are they torture chairs LOL.

I understand they are racing seats and not for daily driving.

Those seats are hot. Wanna give me a fat discount? Haha.

Honestly though do those airbags work properly with US cars?

Fjork,

Currently no discounts on those ;) . We are the few that carry them. Never hurts to ask. And they look even better in person. The best looking seat for a MINI . Follow the link above, which has a link to the install in the thread.


dube53,

Sat in the Euro Recaros before, they feel as good ( if not better ) as the new F56 sport seats. Which I drove in for a long time. Then I went back to the R56 regular sport seats and was like , wow we should had them a long time ago. Like Gen1 MINIs. :)


Thanks.

If you want more support for racing I would just install a harness bar and harnesses.

That is what I did in my Coupe and you don't move anywhere.

Get Recaros, you won't regret it

I have a 2012 JCW Coupe with the Recaros before they were removed as an option for 2013 and absolutely love them. If you can get them from the factory I would definately tick that box as I was on the fence when I ordered.

The euro Recaros are very nice. US Recaros are right behind them in line with the GP2 version. :)

The sport seats in leather are $1500. Recaros are about $2700, so that's a $1200 premium (plus $100 tax) minus whatever the package that heats the seats is (they are heated). I think that's several hundred dollars. Considering you use the seats every time you drive the car that's not horrible. As for looks they may share the same underlying frame, but nothing that you see, look at, or sit on is the same as my R56 sport seats. And the surfaces are different too. It is like a totally different seat, even the shape. If nothing else I'm good at rationalizing my expenditures! But seriously when I saw them I thought they were great looking.

Well....... your car has all the options of the catalog, it is a very nice one.

Because the roof of the Coupe is lower than the HT, I suspect the seats could be different but it is pure speculation from my side.

no difference at all :) well except the strap for the belt :)

Actually it doesn't have several options I had on my 2007 MCS, comfort access, auto AC/lights. The Recaros are the most expensive option by far.