BMW E46 bucket seat fitting HELP

[Pig benis]

Hello folks

I've been building an E46 330ci track car over the winter and it is now time for bucket seats. I decided to go second hand and to find a good seat, which I have. They are Cobra Monaco bottom-mounted seats.

After a lot of research, I still haven't found a definitive way of bolting these seats in my car. I'm not bothered about having runners, but I don't want to be sat too low for obvious reasons.

Has anyone here fitted bucket seats to an E46? If so, how?

Thanks all
PB

[mmm-five]

I believe the Monaco will do both side & bottom mounts, but I might be wrong.

There are Cobra, model-specific subframes you can get from sportseats4u or DemonTweeks...




...or there are the generic ones.

Edited by mmm-five on Wednesday 22 January 10:09

[Pig benis]

mmm-five said:

I believe the Monaco will do both side & bottom mounts, but I might be wrong.

There are Cobra, model-specific subframes you can get from sportseats4u or DemonTweeks...




...or there are the generic ones.

Edited by mmm-five on Wednesday 22 January 10:09

Top stuff, thank you.

I think I prefer side mounts, due to being able to having more adjustment in the seat height. But I don't know much about this.

The spacers you mention, would they go over the seat mount bolts to the chassis? Thus giving more lift to the seat position

PB

[iguana]

Weichers sell them for base mount seats, I've not long sold a pair of used ones.

https://www.wiechers-sport.de/en/shop/sportsitze-k...

[Pig benis]

iguana said:

Weichers sell them for base mount seats, I've not long sold a pair of used ones.

https://www.wiechers-sport.de/en/shop/sportsitze-k...

How low were the seats when mounted to these brackets? Did you have to use spacers at all?

Thanks
PB

[iguana]

Mine were actually from an e36 but I knew they did them for 46s, can't really answer the lowness as 1- I'm tall so they have to be low for me or I don't fit in with a helmet on & 2- it was a 36.

You've prob realised now but far more choices in mounts types for side mount, rather than base mount seats & easier to raise heights too.

[Olas]

It’s significantly quicker and cheaper to weld brackets to the seat or floor and throw it in on the existing runners or floor (depending which side of the equation you are on)

[mmm-five]

Pig benis said:

The spacers you mention, would they go over the seat mount bolts to the chassis? Thus giving more lift to the seat position

Different spacers suit different applications, some people just use washers to increase the height/tilt of the seat (with longer bolts of course).

My seat was too low without the thick floor mounts. Mine are Macht Schell 'lightweight competition mounts' but weigh a tonne, but I believe you can get PSDesigns, VAC Motorsport, or Rogue Engineering ones. Also means you can adjust the seat to accommodate different drivers/positions - if you're not bothering with locking slider rails (which also add about 1/2" to the height).

[E-bmw]

Confused.com

So you have bought bottom mounted seats but prefer side mounts?

How is that working out for you then?

First I stress this is an e36.

I did mine initially on the original mounts & bolted the side mounts to them after cutting off the original seats.

As I am 6ft 5 I then had to get them as low as possible & after modifying the floor I bolted the side mounts straight to the floor.

Basically, what I am saying is you may well have to try a couple of ways until you find what works for your seats & you.

How easy that is will depend on your fabrication/welding skills.

Either that or as above buy something pre-made, but then that will almost certainly end up higher than stock.

[Pig benis]

E-bmw said:

Confused.com

So you have bought bottom mounted seats but prefer side mounts?

How is that working out for you then?

First I stress this is an e36.

I did mine initially on the original mounts & bolted the side mounts to them after cutting off the original seats.

As I am 6ft 5 I then had to get them as low as possible & after modifying the floor I bolted the side mounts straight to the floor.

Basically, what I am saying is you may well have to try a couple of ways until you find what works for your seats & you.

How easy that is will depend on your fabrication/welding skills.

Either that or as above buy something pre-made, but then that will almost certainly end up higher than stock.

I haven't picked the seats up yet, but I am planning to that this evening.

My fabrication skills are next to nil, and I really don't trust myself enough to make a safe seat bracket, which is why I'm looking for a manufactured solution.

I'm now thinking of going for a side-mounted seat, because I have more control of seat height and also seat mounts are far easier to source

PB

[MrC986]

OP, your seats should have side mount holes behind the material. There are side mounts on the market specifically to fit an E46 - they will bolt straight onto the existing seat bolt points as I’ve fitted some seats in my E46 with these. Some will have various height location options.

[Rob_R]

Ideally you want a decent set of floor adapters. I have VAC in my E90. You can buy them for your specific vehicle.

See here: https://www.hackengineering.co.uk/product/vac-moto...

Personally, I'd recommend a set of sliders. Although if you have manual sliders in your car I believe these will bolt directly to your floor adapters.

Then you'll want some side mounts as well to bolt your set to the sliders or floor adapters:

https://www.hackengineering.co.uk/product/vac-moto...

I'd also recommend buying some high tensile bolts to tie everything down. You can buy the sizes you need from most hardware shops or from Amazon.

VAC stuff is pricey but it's lightweight and well made and offers lots of adjustment which can help with ease of fitting.