2010 Exige Headroom
Discussion
) down to my local Lotus dealer, sat in the Exige S2 and couldn't get comfortable (I'm 6'3" - equal body to leg ratio).The Bandit said:
Exactly the same. Im 6'1" and have no trouble with lid on in my Elise. Did you try the Motorsport seats(with harness holes in),they *may* be different to the std ones? 
I am not sure which seats I tried - but I did try more than one.In the end, the salesman took the seat base pad out and therefore I was sitting on shell and while not comfortable, I did fit. Don't think a day at the track would be feasible but it did mean I could wear my lid and sit in the car.
The Bandit said:
Buy a soft top conversion kit,take the roof off-ta da,job done 
have a word with one of the Lotus racing boys (try Randy at Hofmann's) - I'm sure one of them has a solution for getting the seat lower. Thinking side mounts...
worldwidewebs said:
The Bandit said:
Buy a soft top conversion kit,take the roof off-ta da,job done have a word with one of the Lotus racing boys (try Randy at Hofmann's) - I'm sure one of them has a solution for getting the seat lower. Thinking side mounts...
His head wouldn't be sticking out as the rollbar sits higher than the interior of the roof
The Bandit said:
worldwidewebs said:
The Bandit said:
Buy a soft top conversion kit,take the roof off-ta da,job done have a word with one of the Lotus racing boys (try Randy at Hofmann's) - I'm sure one of them has a solution for getting the seat lower. Thinking side mounts...
His head wouldn't be sticking out as the rollbar sits higher than the interior of the roof
As a 'bum' test i offer the following comments. My 2005 car did have the Touring pack' seats fitted e.g. no harness holes and non-probax. I bought some Sport seats with the harness holes and 'probax'. There is some difference in'feel' and the seats seem higher (taller)at the back(close to the roll bar)I don't see how the seats could be any lower in the car.
Finbar Saunders comment :-) can you obtain a smaller helmet??
Finbar Saunders comment :-) can you obtain a smaller helmet??
Different lids have different heights. I ride bikes too so have a few lids and one particular Arai has venting on the top that used to clout the roof on my VXT.
However in my 2010 Exige, no problem with any of my lids. I've got the Sports seats with harness bar and holes, I'm only 5'11" though and I've got long legs (not out of proportion, just if you had to weight one end or the other, the legs win).
I also use CG-Lock seatbelt locks - even though I've bought the seats with holes and a harness bar, I've found that without changing the mounting for the driver's side inertia-reel belt catch, you can't have inertia-reel belts AND harnesses at the same time. Harnesses on the road only are IMO dangerous and in an Exige S with no rear visibility other than doing the traditional motorcyclist's 'lifesaver' over-the-shoulder look when overtaking, even more so. And it's even worse in an Exige because you're overtaking people a LOT
So the CG-Locks are an acceptable compromise for track work and blimey they're good. They hold you down firmer in the seat so you're pretty much fused with the car - the 'seat of the pants' feel is vastly improved and you *really* do feel part of the car. It's a cliché but it's true because my girlfriend says so. She's no track driver, but on our French roadtrip (south of France and back via Chamonix, D1212 and N85) she preferred to wear the CG-Lock done up snugly ALL the way, even on the motorways when she wasn't pretending to be Nicky Grist (she IS a girl, and doesn't know the names of many rally drivers let alone the co-drivers, and she's half Welsh so it sort of fits… though she wasn't exactly using Grist's skill but instead calling the hairpins on the iPhone satnav. We had a RIGHT laugh). I know how much more control I had on a sopping wet trackday at Brands on A048s with the CG-Locks, but if my passenger is choosing to wear it too because it makes them feel more safe in the car, then it's that 'feel' thing all over again. And this wasn't fear (as in Becks wearing the lock because I was scaring her with my driving) - she actually enjoyed it a hell of a lot more, because she wasn't being thrown over the place and could enjoy the corners, and also could join in the fun (with the rally co-driver lark) rather than 'enduring' me having fun whilst she's being bruised by bouncing from seat sides to the Lotus's sills (she's athletic enough to have gaps either side of her in the sports seats like me, if she was plumper then she'd be wedged in without risk of banging around… but I'll take her as she is and buy the CG-Lock, ta ).
Bit of a diversion but they pull you down into the seat at least a centimetre and both Becks and I are slim (well, I'm bloody skinny) so if you've got any extra padding on your arse then you will probably get another centimetre. If that's all it takes to clear your lid on the roof, then try a CG-Lock.
I can't think of much else you can do in an Exige except swap for full-on shell motorsport seats, or the ones out of the Club Racer Elise, but they're hardly comfortable and the 2010 Exige is more of a grand tourer than a trackslag - it's heavy, comfortable and acceptably quiet. Only my age and habit of not eating for days rendered me a bit tired last Saturday night after a 400 mile round trip in mine - no way on Earth could I have done trips like that in my S1 Super 160, even given that I was in my mid twenties when I owned it - I was in pain after 40 miles.
However in my 2010 Exige, no problem with any of my lids. I've got the Sports seats with harness bar and holes, I'm only 5'11" though and I've got long legs (not out of proportion, just if you had to weight one end or the other, the legs win).
I also use CG-Lock seatbelt locks - even though I've bought the seats with holes and a harness bar, I've found that without changing the mounting for the driver's side inertia-reel belt catch, you can't have inertia-reel belts AND harnesses at the same time. Harnesses on the road only are IMO dangerous and in an Exige S with no rear visibility other than doing the traditional motorcyclist's 'lifesaver' over-the-shoulder look when overtaking, even more so. And it's even worse in an Exige because you're overtaking people a LOT
So the CG-Locks are an acceptable compromise for track work and blimey they're good. They hold you down firmer in the seat so you're pretty much fused with the car - the 'seat of the pants' feel is vastly improved and you *really* do feel part of the car. It's a cliché but it's true because my girlfriend says so. She's no track driver, but on our French roadtrip (south of France and back via Chamonix, D1212 and N85) she preferred to wear the CG-Lock done up snugly ALL the way, even on the motorways when she wasn't pretending to be Nicky Grist (she IS a girl, and doesn't know the names of many rally drivers let alone the co-drivers, and she's half Welsh so it sort of fits… though she wasn't exactly using Grist's skill but instead calling the hairpins on the iPhone satnav. We had a RIGHT laugh). I know how much more control I had on a sopping wet trackday at Brands on A048s with the CG-Locks, but if my passenger is choosing to wear it too because it makes them feel more safe in the car, then it's that 'feel' thing all over again. And this wasn't fear (as in Becks wearing the lock because I was scaring her with my driving) - she actually enjoyed it a hell of a lot more, because she wasn't being thrown over the place and could enjoy the corners, and also could join in the fun (with the rally co-driver lark) rather than 'enduring' me having fun whilst she's being bruised by bouncing from seat sides to the Lotus's sills (she's athletic enough to have gaps either side of her in the sports seats like me, if she was plumper then she'd be wedged in without risk of banging around… but I'll take her as she is and buy the CG-Lock, ta
).Bit of a diversion but they pull you down into the seat at least a centimetre and both Becks and I are slim (well, I'm bloody skinny) so if you've got any extra padding on your arse then you will probably get another centimetre. If that's all it takes to clear your lid on the roof, then try a CG-Lock.
I can't think of much else you can do in an Exige except swap for full-on shell motorsport seats, or the ones out of the Club Racer Elise, but they're hardly comfortable and the 2010 Exige is more of a grand tourer than a trackslag - it's heavy, comfortable and acceptably quiet. Only my age and habit of not eating for days rendered me a bit tired last Saturday night after a 400 mile round trip in mine - no way on Earth could I have done trips like that in my S1 Super 160, even given that I was in my mid twenties when I owned it - I was in pain after 40 miles.
XTR2Turbo said:
Tillett make replacement seats for the Elise / Exige. Fit them without the runners (Tillett make direct fir brackets) and you will sit lower.
Thank you!The Tillett B5 Race Seat looks like a definite option
http://www.tillett.co.uk/car-racing-seat.asp
The Bandit said:
O/T. You CAN have harnesses and seatbelts as many owners(including myself)do so without issue using the MSAR Safety/H111 kit,you just CHOOSE NOT TO.
Please don't give out your personal preference as fact as it's clearly not the case.
/Anyway back on topic.
Bandit mate you've got me wrong on this one. It's not a matter of choice - I've been firmly told by Lotus that I can't have harnesses AND seatbelts without the MSAR kit (and that they will disavow my warranty even if I do this).Please don't give out your personal preference as fact as it's clearly not the case.
/Anyway back on topic.
I, however, WOULD like harnesses as an option for track work but whilst retaining the inertia-reel belts for road use, as per my old Noble M12.
The CG-Locks are a good compromise, but not as good as the real thing. I'm very aware of that.
However I *really* didn't know that it was possible, since I've been told in no uncertain terms that it's not possible - so this isn't me 'CHOOSING NOT TO' it's me not knowing how to do it properly and most importantly, safely.
It's off-topic but could you please email me with what you know and how to do it? I take offence a bit at being accused of spreading misinformation - it's entirely by accident since this is what I've been told by Lotus technicians and shown by a couple of chaps at a Brands trackday who *did* have harnesses and showed how I couldn't fit the inertia reel belts as well.
I'm not calling you a liar because I'm not a cock. You've obviously got a solution - I'm not aware of it, and I'd really rather like to know! I paid a lot for these harness-hole seats and the harness bar and I was pretty damn pissed off (though I didn't show it, because I still think they're good blokes) at Lipscomb when the technician chaps told me that I couldn't have both harnesses and inertia reel belts at the same time - because I felt that I'd been sold them on the basis that I *could* do this!!
What I'm saying is that given the limits of the information I've been told (which, being from Lotus, I'd assumed authoritative, so didn't consider the usual caveats necessary in my post), the CG-Lock is a damn decent substitute if you can't have harnesses (e.g. if I still had my old car, I probably wouldn't have saved up to buy seats and bar if I'd tried the CG-Locks). However since it appears you *can* have both at the same time - that's the best solution.
Please don't be so quick and sharp to correct me when I make mistakes, Bandit - you've done this before - not sure if it's your usual style and not directed at me personally, but I don't know everything by any means and often make mistakes. In this case, I'd been told by Lotus technicians so assumed that was authoritative information. I don't read SELOC any more so if this is knowledge I *should* know, I apologise. Please accept this apology and let me know how I can have proper harnesses without losing my inertia-reel belts, eh?
I seem to recall you live nearby anyway, so why not meet up some time and show me, I'll buy you a pint.
cyberface said:
The Bandit said:
O/T. You CAN have harnesses and seatbelts as many owners(including myself)do so without issue using the MSAR Safety/H111 kit,you just CHOOSE NOT TO.
Please don't give out your personal preference as fact as it's clearly not the case.
/Anyway back on topic.
Bandit mate you've got me wrong on this one. It's not a matter of choice - I've been firmly told by Lotus that I can't have harnesses AND seatbelts without the MSAR kit (and that they will disavow my warranty even if I do this).Please don't give out your personal preference as fact as it's clearly not the case.
/Anyway back on topic.
I, however, WOULD like harnesses as an option for track work but whilst retaining the inertia-reel belts for road use, as per my old Noble M12.
The CG-Locks are a good compromise, but not as good as the real thing. I'm very aware of that.
However I *really* didn't know that it was possible, since I've been told in no uncertain terms that it's not possible - so this isn't me 'CHOOSING NOT TO' it's me not knowing how to do it properly and most importantly, safely.
It's off-topic but could you please email me with what you know and how to do it? I take offence a bit at being accused of spreading misinformation - it's entirely by accident since this is what I've been told by Lotus technicians and shown by a couple of chaps at a Brands trackday who *did* have harnesses and showed how I couldn't fit the inertia reel belts as well.
I'm not calling you a liar because I'm not a cock. You've obviously got a solution - I'm not aware of it, and I'd really rather like to know! I paid a lot for these harness-hole seats and the harness bar and I was pretty damn pissed off (though I didn't show it, because I still think they're good blokes) at Lipscomb when the technician chaps told me that I couldn't have both harnesses and inertia reel belts at the same time - because I felt that I'd been sold them on the basis that I *could* do this!!
What I'm saying is that given the limits of the information I've been told (which, being from Lotus, I'd assumed authoritative, so didn't consider the usual caveats necessary in my post), the CG-Lock is a damn decent substitute if you can't have harnesses (e.g. if I still had my old car, I probably wouldn't have saved up to buy seats and bar if I'd tried the CG-Locks). However since it appears you *can* have both at the same time - that's the best solution.
Please don't be so quick and sharp to correct me when I make mistakes, Bandit - you've done this before - not sure if it's your usual style and not directed at me personally, but I don't know everything by any means and often make mistakes. In this case, I'd been told by Lotus technicians so assumed that was authoritative information. I don't read SELOC any more so if this is knowledge I *should* know, I apologise. Please accept this apology and let me know how I can have proper harnesses without losing my inertia-reel belts, eh?
I seem to recall you live nearby anyway, so why not meet up some time and show me, I'll buy you a pint.
They do seem to have some strange ideas down there and dish out some odd advice(they seem to be the only dealer in the country that advise that fitting a 2bular will void your warranty).They seem to like threatening people with disavowing warranties over anything at all and they dont seem to be doing too well with some of their customers either...been a few threads about that recently too,shame as Parky has a good rep,anyway i digress.
I did actually offer to come over to you and show you my MSAR kit and help you fit yours on a post a while back when you were originally thinking about it(hence the tone of my original post,sorry
)and of course the offer still stands. I wrote a Seloc Wiki page on the harness/inertia fitment with the help of MSAR Safety and have done a few now.Not to say i'm an expert by any means but at least i spoke with the supplier and took their advice before posting up my findings. http://wiki.seloc.org/a/Harness_fitting%28Schroth%...I apologise if you feel i've jumped on you(did'nt know i'd done it before though?)but I too dislike misinformation on a good product that many use being taken as fact.
Pint sounds like a good idea sir
Anyway,apologies to the OP for a huuuge drift,carry on
Lightningman said:
XTR2Turbo said:
Tillett make replacement seats for the Elise / Exige. Fit them without the runners (Tillett make direct fir brackets) and you will sit lower.
Thank you!The Tillett B5 Race Seat looks like a definite option
http://www.tillett.co.uk/car-racing-seat.asp
XTR2Turbo said:
Lightningman said:
XTR2Turbo said:
Tillett make replacement seats for the Elise / Exige. Fit them without the runners (Tillett make direct fir brackets) and you will sit lower.
Thank you!The Tillett B5 Race Seat looks like a definite option
http://www.tillett.co.uk/car-racing-seat.asp
Thanks for the heads up.
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