C6 Seats into a C6 Z06
Discussion
Happy new year chas.
May I ask why? (yes, I know that it's not an answer to your question, but it's an unusual request)
Did you ever find tyres for those enourmous wheels?
I think that you'd very lucky to find any seats in the uk; It's more likely that there are Z06 seats going spare if they have been replaced with more supportive items.
Presumaeably you have already tried Bauer Millett and Wavendon.
James
e.t.a. I presume you are looking for a pair to retrim and fit??
May I ask why? (yes, I know that it's not an answer to your question, but it's an unusual request)
Did you ever find tyres for those enourmous wheels?
I think that you'd very lucky to find any seats in the uk; It's more likely that there are Z06 seats going spare if they have been replaced with more supportive items.
Presumaeably you have already tried Bauer Millett and Wavendon.
James
e.t.a. I presume you are looking for a pair to retrim and fit??
Hi James,
Thanks for reply. The reason for the planned seat change is that we came out of a Tuscan into a Corvette because my partner was getting a lot of probs with her back. She tried a C6 and thought the Corvette had the most comfortable seats she had tried in any car.
So the plan was to buy a C6 - but we were seduced by the C6 Z06. She has put up with the less comfy passenger seat in this for a couple of years. But her back became a prob again last year, so I am trying to sort a pair of C6 seats to help her get comfy again.
I have had a really helpful dialogue with a guy in the States who has carried out the conversion for exactly the same reason, and I therefore know the seat switch is possible. He has also steered me towards another forum member in the USA who has a pair of seats for sale - but it is an expensive issue to get them over from California. Hence my post here yesterday.
To answer your question, I have not tried Mitch at Bauer Millett yet, nor any other professional company yet. I thought I would first see if any C6 owner had a pair stashed in the garage after fitting some Caravaggios, Recaros or whatever !
To change the subject slightly, you also asked whether I had found tyres for the 20" 360 Forged alloys that are on our C6 Z06. We do now have 285 Pirelli Neros on the front and 345 Pirelli Rossos on the rear, which I sourced through a Jaguar conversion specialist company in Germany.
It may be interesting for some of the Z06 owners to have some feedback on fitting non runflats like these. I don't know what Michelin Pilot Sports ot Nittos (non E-rated) would have been like, because I couldn't source any from the States or Europe last July. But I am very happy with the Pirellis - although they do show that the Goodyear Runflats are pretty damn good in the dry and only very slightly louder than the Pirellis. Where the Pirellis score is when the rain starts coming down. (These were the prevailing conditions which led me to question the Goodyear Runflats' wet weather attributes when climbing the Stelvio Pass in 2006 and again on soaking wet Autoroutes in France in 2007).
Had to carry out the real wet weather "sign off trial" on the Pirellis in Austria last August ! Returning from the Grossglockner Pass we could see we were approaching a serious thunderstorm, with sheet lightning turning the sky lilac and purple above the mountains every 15 seconds. Awesome, very beautiful and indicative of imminent dangerous conditions !! So it seemed prudent to come out of "Competitive Driving Mode" and to select "Full Traction Control and Active Handling" ! And then the rain really began to hammer down. Which was when I was gobsmacked. The wipers on full speed kept the screen full visual and the car was just flowing through the bends. The steering felt gorgeous and I knew exactly what was happening at both ends of the car. At this point, curving through the Austrian mountains, it seemed appropriate to slot in that CD which goes "On Days Like This...." and select it to repeat. Drive lasted another 40 minutes. Damn near as good as sex..... Won't ever forget that trip....
Happy New Year to Everyone, Chas.
Thanks for reply. The reason for the planned seat change is that we came out of a Tuscan into a Corvette because my partner was getting a lot of probs with her back. She tried a C6 and thought the Corvette had the most comfortable seats she had tried in any car.
So the plan was to buy a C6 - but we were seduced by the C6 Z06. She has put up with the less comfy passenger seat in this for a couple of years. But her back became a prob again last year, so I am trying to sort a pair of C6 seats to help her get comfy again.
I have had a really helpful dialogue with a guy in the States who has carried out the conversion for exactly the same reason, and I therefore know the seat switch is possible. He has also steered me towards another forum member in the USA who has a pair of seats for sale - but it is an expensive issue to get them over from California. Hence my post here yesterday.
To answer your question, I have not tried Mitch at Bauer Millett yet, nor any other professional company yet. I thought I would first see if any C6 owner had a pair stashed in the garage after fitting some Caravaggios, Recaros or whatever !
To change the subject slightly, you also asked whether I had found tyres for the 20" 360 Forged alloys that are on our C6 Z06. We do now have 285 Pirelli Neros on the front and 345 Pirelli Rossos on the rear, which I sourced through a Jaguar conversion specialist company in Germany.
It may be interesting for some of the Z06 owners to have some feedback on fitting non runflats like these. I don't know what Michelin Pilot Sports ot Nittos (non E-rated) would have been like, because I couldn't source any from the States or Europe last July. But I am very happy with the Pirellis - although they do show that the Goodyear Runflats are pretty damn good in the dry and only very slightly louder than the Pirellis. Where the Pirellis score is when the rain starts coming down. (These were the prevailing conditions which led me to question the Goodyear Runflats' wet weather attributes when climbing the Stelvio Pass in 2006 and again on soaking wet Autoroutes in France in 2007).
Had to carry out the real wet weather "sign off trial" on the Pirellis in Austria last August ! Returning from the Grossglockner Pass we could see we were approaching a serious thunderstorm, with sheet lightning turning the sky lilac and purple above the mountains every 15 seconds. Awesome, very beautiful and indicative of imminent dangerous conditions !! So it seemed prudent to come out of "Competitive Driving Mode" and to select "Full Traction Control and Active Handling" ! And then the rain really began to hammer down. Which was when I was gobsmacked. The wipers on full speed kept the screen full visual and the car was just flowing through the bends. The steering felt gorgeous and I knew exactly what was happening at both ends of the car. At this point, curving through the Austrian mountains, it seemed appropriate to slot in that CD which goes "On Days Like This...." and select it to repeat. Drive lasted another 40 minutes. Damn near as good as sex..... Won't ever forget that trip....
Happy New Year to Everyone, Chas.
Hi Chas, Happy New Year to you too!
Can't help you with the seat issue, but I think shipping one over from the States is going to be your only option. Surely you only need one though? You're a sprightly chap and the standard Z06 seats are comfy enough!
Although comfy, the Z06 seats are useless on track. I refuse to buy a ZR1 until a decent (and reasonably priced) alternative chair can be found. The Pratt and Miller C6.RS seats are lovely, but colossally expensive.
With the adventures you've had in your car, may I suggest you record them for posterity on www.auto-journals.com?
We'd love to see a piece about your Europe trips and the trials and tribulations of fitting 20" dubs on your ride!
Can't help you with the seat issue, but I think shipping one over from the States is going to be your only option. Surely you only need one though? You're a sprightly chap and the standard Z06 seats are comfy enough!
Although comfy, the Z06 seats are useless on track. I refuse to buy a ZR1 until a decent (and reasonably priced) alternative chair can be found. The Pratt and Miller C6.RS seats are lovely, but colossally expensive.
With the adventures you've had in your car, may I suggest you record them for posterity on www.auto-journals.com?
We'd love to see a piece about your Europe trips and the trials and tribulations of fitting 20" dubs on your ride!
Hi David,
Happy New Year to you and the Big Black Bad Beastie !
Nope sirree, we need 2 seats, not just one. Dee also drives the Z06 (and, as she used to race, she's a lot quicker than me !). However, we are both getting more and more decrepit and she has also been finding the gearchange a prob for her right shoulder. Probably won't help, but that's why I have an MGW shortshifter on order from the States.
I have been following this on the US Corvette forums and it seems that George at MGW has been addressing the dreaded gearbox sound transmission over this Xmas break. Probably why it hasn't arrived yet ! And when it does, it'll probably be harder for Dee to use !! And if it is, we'll probably offer it to you David !!!
Just as a matter of interest, have you been monitoring the price of C6 Z06s in the States recently ? I saw two for sale yesterday - one with 700 miles and one with 2700 miles (IIRC), fully specc'd, 2008 models for under $60K ! When the $ /£ exchange was 1.98 they would have been under £30K - plus about 25% to get one shipped to and SVA'd in England. So, you would have had a virtually brand new Z06 for under £40K !! The maths doesn't work now with the $ / £ virtually at parity. Don't know if it'll come right again when you want your ZR1 David !
So you want me to write words for Auto Journal ? My days are normally too busy to do nice things like that. The only reason I'm gabbling on at the moment is that I am confined to barracks with Shingles. Thought it had left me after 4 weeks, but the b.....d is having another go at me ! And that, Vet Guru, is why GTO 2 UFO wasn't on the run to Claremont Corvettes ! And, as I have temporarily forgotten the password for "GTO 2 UFO" on this website, that is the reason I am writing this as "Jagman"...... Doh !!!
Best Regards to All, Chas
Happy New Year to you and the Big Black Bad Beastie !
Nope sirree, we need 2 seats, not just one. Dee also drives the Z06 (and, as she used to race, she's a lot quicker than me !). However, we are both getting more and more decrepit and she has also been finding the gearchange a prob for her right shoulder. Probably won't help, but that's why I have an MGW shortshifter on order from the States.
I have been following this on the US Corvette forums and it seems that George at MGW has been addressing the dreaded gearbox sound transmission over this Xmas break. Probably why it hasn't arrived yet ! And when it does, it'll probably be harder for Dee to use !! And if it is, we'll probably offer it to you David !!!
Just as a matter of interest, have you been monitoring the price of C6 Z06s in the States recently ? I saw two for sale yesterday - one with 700 miles and one with 2700 miles (IIRC), fully specc'd, 2008 models for under $60K ! When the $ /£ exchange was 1.98 they would have been under £30K - plus about 25% to get one shipped to and SVA'd in England. So, you would have had a virtually brand new Z06 for under £40K !! The maths doesn't work now with the $ / £ virtually at parity. Don't know if it'll come right again when you want your ZR1 David !
So you want me to write words for Auto Journal ? My days are normally too busy to do nice things like that. The only reason I'm gabbling on at the moment is that I am confined to barracks with Shingles. Thought it had left me after 4 weeks, but the b.....d is having another go at me ! And that, Vet Guru, is why GTO 2 UFO wasn't on the run to Claremont Corvettes ! And, as I have temporarily forgotten the password for "GTO 2 UFO" on this website, that is the reason I am writing this as "Jagman"...... Doh !!!
Best Regards to All, Chas
Sounds like a stock C6 paddle-shifter could solve all your problems in one go!
Seriously, if the seats are an easy fit your best bet might be to track down a C6 owner in UK (matching interior) who will do you a straight swap. There must be someone out there who would feel 10 mph faster sitting on a Z06 seat!
Seriously, if the seats are an easy fit your best bet might be to track down a C6 owner in UK (matching interior) who will do you a straight swap. There must be someone out there who would feel 10 mph faster sitting on a Z06 seat!
I remember having a conversation about this with Bob Lutz when he came over to open our showroom two years ago. I'd just got my first Z06 and whilst I loved it I was disappointed with the seats. I'm 6'3" and just over 11 stone so the bolsters just don't catch me when cornering. I made the point that whilst they'd removed all the lumber and bolster adjustment to make the car lighter, you were in fact slowing it's potential pace by robbing the driver of the necessary control to drive it to its true potential. In truth the Z06 seat doesn't do anything better than the standard seat and I'm glad they've put them back in the ZR1.
Sadly Chas they're something that never come out of a Corvette and the cost of building them up would be extreme. You could buy a whole seat, you'd have to order it in component form, then assemble it, which including the airbags and programming I can only imagine would be a nightmare. May I suggest a re-trim and have the necessary bolstering worked into the passenger seat for you wife at the same time? It'll be alot cheaper and you could potentially have better leather quality too. Just a thought.
Sadly Chas they're something that never come out of a Corvette and the cost of building them up would be extreme. You could buy a whole seat, you'd have to order it in component form, then assemble it, which including the airbags and programming I can only imagine would be a nightmare. May I suggest a re-trim and have the necessary bolstering worked into the passenger seat for you wife at the same time? It'll be alot cheaper and you could potentially have better leather quality too. Just a thought.
Hi Mitch,
Thanks very much for your post; I was confident you would reply if I temped you ! 6' 3" and 11 stone, you say. Wish I was !!
Very good point you make about Corvette compromising the Z06 for lack of driver support. I read your response to her and Dee says she could not agree more. She also says she would still like the electics in the pax seat and for it to be higher off the floor, so a retrim would help but might not tick all the boxes. Very interesting that you can only buy the seats in component form, which would make them crazy money as you suggest.
I have found a pair of 2006 C6 seats available in the States at affordable money. They apparently have all the gizmos and another American, who has fitted C6 seats to his Z06 says they will be fine and not too difficult to install. A couple of other guys have done the job and written it up in detail. I have a tame trimmer too who should be able to make them look a lot more interesting than standard as well. Provided the freight bill is not ridiculous, this may be the route we take. If UPS / Fedex etc want too much, I guess we'll revert to your proposed Z06 seat retrim route.
Hope to meet up with you at a track a bit further south than Manchester sometime this year. I guess you are racing again in 2009 ? If so, in what series and in what car ?
Have a nice weekend,
Best Regards, Chas
Thanks very much for your post; I was confident you would reply if I temped you ! 6' 3" and 11 stone, you say. Wish I was !!
Very good point you make about Corvette compromising the Z06 for lack of driver support. I read your response to her and Dee says she could not agree more. She also says she would still like the electics in the pax seat and for it to be higher off the floor, so a retrim would help but might not tick all the boxes. Very interesting that you can only buy the seats in component form, which would make them crazy money as you suggest.
I have found a pair of 2006 C6 seats available in the States at affordable money. They apparently have all the gizmos and another American, who has fitted C6 seats to his Z06 says they will be fine and not too difficult to install. A couple of other guys have done the job and written it up in detail. I have a tame trimmer too who should be able to make them look a lot more interesting than standard as well. Provided the freight bill is not ridiculous, this may be the route we take. If UPS / Fedex etc want too much, I guess we'll revert to your proposed Z06 seat retrim route.
Hope to meet up with you at a track a bit further south than Manchester sometime this year. I guess you are racing again in 2009 ? If so, in what series and in what car ?
Have a nice weekend,
Best Regards, Chas
Not a problem at all Chas. I was going to say if you've found some in the U.S. be very careful with freight costs. They're absolutely ludicrous and some smaller parts, if dispatched on their own, can often have a greater freight bill than their value.
Bob's reply to my point was that if they made the seats really tight big fat yanks wouldn't buy 'em. Still doesn't quite deal with my point about just leaving the adjustment in though...........
We'll be racing again this year, though probably not committing to a championship. The vette still needs the development finishing as we're on for in excess of 700bhp and weight is now down to about 1150kgs. Hopefully we'll do a couple of rounds of Dutch Supercar, some Britcar rounds and possibly a 24 Hour......we'll just have to see. Do you guys still speak to Phil Keen much?
If I can be of further service don't hesitate to ask!
Bob's reply to my point was that if they made the seats really tight big fat yanks wouldn't buy 'em. Still doesn't quite deal with my point about just leaving the adjustment in though...........
We'll be racing again this year, though probably not committing to a championship. The vette still needs the development finishing as we're on for in excess of 700bhp and weight is now down to about 1150kgs. Hopefully we'll do a couple of rounds of Dutch Supercar, some Britcar rounds and possibly a 24 Hour......we'll just have to see. Do you guys still speak to Phil Keen much?
If I can be of further service don't hesitate to ask!
jagman said:
Hi Mitch,
Thanks for the second reply !
I am sure I'll find you're right about the freight costs for a pair of seats from the States. We'll know the answer on Monday.
I'll touch on other aspects with you "Off Topic".
Best Regards
Chas
Chas if the standard couriers try to take the proverbial on costs, try EricTheBrave from here as he runs a shipping company specifically to bring parts over from the States.Thanks for the second reply !
I am sure I'll find you're right about the freight costs for a pair of seats from the States. We'll know the answer on Monday.
I'll touch on other aspects with you "Off Topic".
Best Regards
Chas
Mitch, not having driven a stock C6, would you say the seats were substantially better than the Z06's at lateral support because of the adjustable side bolsters?
Sadly most reviews say not...
The bolsters aren't as big on the standard C6 seat as the Z06 but for me it's irrelevant. By the time I reach the bolsters I'm not sat down anymore, I'm wedged into the door. The standard seats are a kind of improvement, even though the bolsters aren't big enough, at least I can make the tight enough.
If I were to buy a ZR1 in the future and wanted seats better suited to such a world-beating supercar, would you recommend sending them to Pratt and Miller to make them or is there an outfit in the UK capable of doing similar work?
$7.5k plus two way shipping costs (assuming I buy a Euro/UK ZR1 ) does seem a bit extreme...
$7.5k plus two way shipping costs (assuming I buy a Euro/UK ZR1
) does seem a bit extreme... Ironically, considering the cost of the car, they are the seats from the base C6 I believe, i.e. with the lumbar and adjustable side bolsters that are not even an option on the Z06.
Why couldn't they homologate the gorgeous Recaros available on the CTS-V that costs half the price of a ZR1?
Once the die-hard Vette fans have bought their ZR1s, sales are going to struggle as they won't be making many conquest sales from other supercar brands...
Why couldn't they homologate the gorgeous Recaros available on the CTS-V that costs half the price of a ZR1?
Once the die-hard Vette fans have bought their ZR1s, sales are going to struggle as they won't be making many conquest sales from other supercar brands...
Godzilla said:
Ironically, considering the cost of the car, they are the seats from the base C6 I believe, i.e. with the lumbar and adjustable side bolsters that are not even an option on the Z06.
Why couldn't they homologate the gorgeous Recaros available on the CTS-V that costs half the price of a ZR1?
Once the die-hard Vette fans have bought their ZR1s, sales are going to struggle as they won't be making many conquest sales from other supercar brands...
The Recaro seat base is probably too high and I wouldn't be surprised if it was too big anyhow.Why couldn't they homologate the gorgeous Recaros available on the CTS-V that costs half the price of a ZR1?
Once the die-hard Vette fans have bought their ZR1s, sales are going to struggle as they won't be making many conquest sales from other supercar brands...
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