My cheap eBay seats finally gave it up. After just a couple passes at the track with the new M113k powerplant, the ratcheting mechanism in the driver’s seat broke and the back would no longer stay fully upright. I took this as a sign that I should upgrade to a proper set of seats!
I decided to go with the Kirkey Series 65 seats since they are lightweight, relatively inexpensive, and would bolt right to my existing home-made brackets. They are also designed to bolt to the rear brace of the roll bar, which is an NHRA requirement.
I got the 16″ size, which fit my 5’10” 200lb body snuggly but comfortably. They fit pretty well in the car too, with plenty of room between the center console and the door armrest. The shoulder bolsters just barely touch the doors when they are closed. I may wrap a ratchet-strap around the bolsters and squeeze them in about 1/2″ for better clearance.
The total weight of each seat, with the seat covers, steel brackets and mounting hardware came in at 23.5 lb, so that’s a savings of almost 40 lb per seat over the stock units. It remains to be seen how comfortable they are on long trips, but my first few drives around town have been just fine. They are, however, quite a pain to get in and out of.
Hey John, I post most of my shorter updates on my Facebook page and tend to do the more detailed writeups here. You can join the page at https://www.facebook.com/StumptownBenz if you want more frequent updates.
Joe,
Awesome to see it all coming together. I assume you completed the swap since you made some passes. I would love to hear your impression since the swap and get an update.
Cheers,
John