Hands down the best mod I've done to the truck so far. I always hated the stock seat. As great as it looked, it was way too bouncy, had no support in hard corners, and I don't know why, but it made my legs hurt after about a half hour in it.
Sparco Torino
I picked it up used on ebay from a guy parting out his Honda Civic. I gave right around half price what it would be new. It came 3 days later, looking brand new. Rather than wait 6 weeks for the F-150 specific bracket from Sparco, I decided to see if I could get the seat to mount to the stock motorized platform. This way I can use the seat now and have power adjustments.
It was really easy to be honest. I just took the stock seat out, removed it from the motorized base, measured the distance between the Sparco's mounting points, and drilled 3 holes in the top rails of the stock motorized platform. I re-used one of the pre-existing holes that used to be for the stock seat (the one in the rear inside corner.)
I can't stress enough how much the new seat has changed my driving experience. First and foremost, it holds relentlessly. There's no more trying to stay upright during aggressive cornering. The stock seat was atrocious in this department. If you do any type of autocross or open tracking, you absolutely need an upgrade. This seat does all the work, I can relax and concentrate on steering. The thigh supports keep my legs very close together and in place as well.
This would be a good time to mention to anyone considering a sport seat that at 6'1", 200lbs, and with a 36 inch waist, I just barely fit in the Torino. If you're much bigger you will not fit in this seat. There is no give to any of the supports, they're steel framed with just a bit of padding and cloth stretched over them.
Also a godsend, the ability to be lower (the seat is all the way up in the above pics.) Even with the stock SVT seat all the way down, it was just a bit too high for my liking. I now sit about 4-5 inches lower when it's all the way down, and with my legs stretched way out. It's much better IMHO. I've got a more sports car-like feeling while driving. When the steering wheel is tilted all the way down it's perfectly in line with my arms and body (I can still see out the window over the wheel just fine.) PERFECT.
I'm going to work on getting the black plastic piece off the stock seat that holds the power seat switch and covers up the brackets when you look in. Right now the switch is just laying next to the seat and the bracketry is all visible. No big deal, but it'd be nice if I can get that part to work too.
Sparco Torino
I picked it up used on ebay from a guy parting out his Honda Civic. I gave right around half price what it would be new. It came 3 days later, looking brand new. Rather than wait 6 weeks for the F-150 specific bracket from Sparco, I decided to see if I could get the seat to mount to the stock motorized platform. This way I can use the seat now and have power adjustments.
It was really easy to be honest. I just took the stock seat out, removed it from the motorized base, measured the distance between the Sparco's mounting points, and drilled 3 holes in the top rails of the stock motorized platform. I re-used one of the pre-existing holes that used to be for the stock seat (the one in the rear inside corner.)
I can't stress enough how much the new seat has changed my driving experience. First and foremost, it holds relentlessly. There's no more trying to stay upright during aggressive cornering. The stock seat was atrocious in this department. If you do any type of autocross or open tracking, you absolutely need an upgrade. This seat does all the work, I can relax and concentrate on steering. The thigh supports keep my legs very close together and in place as well.
This would be a good time to mention to anyone considering a sport seat that at 6'1", 200lbs, and with a 36 inch waist, I just barely fit in the Torino. If you're much bigger you will not fit in this seat. There is no give to any of the supports, they're steel framed with just a bit of padding and cloth stretched over them.
Also a godsend, the ability to be lower (the seat is all the way up in the above pics.) Even with the stock SVT seat all the way down, it was just a bit too high for my liking. I now sit about 4-5 inches lower when it's all the way down, and with my legs stretched way out. It's much better IMHO. I've got a more sports car-like feeling while driving. When the steering wheel is tilted all the way down it's perfectly in line with my arms and body (I can still see out the window over the wheel just fine.) PERFECT.
I'm going to work on getting the black plastic piece off the stock seat that holds the power seat switch and covers up the brackets when you look in. Right now the switch is just laying next to the seat and the bracketry is all visible. No big deal, but it'd be nice if I can get that part to work too.
epper:
