Lotus V-8 Seats

[McQueen]

I just bought a 1999 V-8 with 7,000 miles. It has the original leather seats which I find uncomfortable and unsupportive for spirited motoring. My owner's manual said that there was a sport seat option.

Does anyone know about this. Where would I find? Also, has anyone found any aftermarket seats that would fit in thsi car? Thanks, McQueen

[Skerd]

I asked this exact same question a few months ago. You will (slowly) get use to the seats. The sport seat option was not available on US cars. VERY expensive if you want them and they are not adjustable. Somebody mentioned Sparco has a seat that fits. I do not know the name of it. I thought about going to a leather upholstery shop and have additional padding installed, but never did.

[superdave]

I've just bought a 1990 Turbo with the seats in poor conditon. The driver's seat had completely dropped on one side and the leather was really worn. Iam not a mechanic but decided to strip out my interior to see what the problem was. I was very surprise how easy the seat is made up and how easy it is to dismantle and reassemble. Point is that you can add more padding in the right places if you want. The only slightly tricky thing was getting the seat out. There are four bolts underneath the car which are prone to corrosion. I didn't have any ramps or a garage to work from but managed ok. The other option is to get someone to do this for you.

[lotusguy]

superdave said: I've just bought a 1990 Turbo with the seats in poor conditon. The driver's seat had completely dropped on one side and the leather was really worn. Iam not a mechanic but decided to strip out my interior to see what the problem was. I was very surprise how easy the seat is made up and how easy it is to dismantle and reassemble. Point is that you can add more padding in the right places if you want. The only slightly tricky thing was getting the seat out. There are four bolts underneath the car which are prone to corrosion. I didn't have any ramps or a garage to work from but managed ok. The other option is to get someone to do this for you.

Hi,

I installed the V-8 seats in my '85 Turbo last summer and while they are not as good (read: supportive) as the true one-piece bucket which was original, I find they are more comfortable, especially for long drives.

One thing which helped, was the installation of some nylon thrust washers on the front mounting lugs which tilt the seat slightly to the rear which offers much more thigh bolstering. There is sufficient length to the lug to add 4 washers, effectively raising the thigh bolster about an inch. It also has the benefit of exposing less of the lug to the elements through the car's underside. Hope this helps...Happy Motoring...Jim '85TE

[d didit]

The seat that fits perfectly in an Esprit is the Sparco 951 Roadster. If people want this seat, I can fabricate the brackets that I used for mine, I have them on a CAD file so that remanufacture will be simle. For the the cost, it is lees than a grand for both seats. If anyone wants this, I will help them get the seats and make the brackets for them. cheers. I will have pics for people that want to see the brackets.