Replacement Seats

[robertverhey]

I personally am quite a short skinny arse (5'9 / 30 inch waste) the misses would be a problem though.

Mate. you are a brave, brave man!

[Jaybee]

Hi further on the seat theme . I'm sure this will horrify some members but I aim to replace the seats in my +2 ,there I've said it! The trim is completely shot which I aim to have reupholstered however the standard seats are to big for the car and are complete rubbish(sorry) . Has anybody utilised seats from another car MX5, Smart etc.
John......

[vernon.taylor]

Salut Jaybee

If you search the forum you'll find lots of references and some photos of MX-5 seats - lots are happy with them and they are probably the easiest and cheapest to find and in a wide choice of materials. Spyder apparently use XJS seats but they really are a tight squeeze - I tried them for size. I was going to fit X1/9 seats (old 1300 model) and they looked a good fit but I found some +2 fed seats - I was after a neck/head rest. I've seen (in photos) Elite/Eclat seats in a +2 and they look a good match style-wise if you're also after headrests (but be careful they might make access to the back seats (more) difficult). Think somebody fitted MGB seats, too. Then there are all the new offerings - just check the width.

@+

Vernon

[elanman999]

John,
I've seen a few +2's with MX5 seats and they look OK, I have fitted S1 Elise seats to my +2. They are a bit thin on padding but are a very good shape also access to the rear seats is restricted.
Cheers
John

[peterako]

Hi Jaybee,

Have Jaguar XJS Seats in my +2 at the moment.

Bit of a tight fit width wise in the car, but fine.

Not as comfortable as my original Lotus (1973) seats though they do provide a small amount of lateral support and do have headrests.





Pics from 2009. Car is now a different colour and seats have blended in very well.

Peter

[vernon.taylor]

Salut

If you have short legs the door pulls will foul the side of XJS seats. The ones I tried for size were black leather which made a good match - also I'm told the cabriolet seats are slightly thinner if legroom in the back is a concern. The rake handle can be turned 90? - it won't be accessible if you leave it horizontal.

Look good in your car, Peter.

@+

Vernon

[c42]

I had wondered if MGB seats would fit, they are a similar size and there is a very similar vinyl material to my +2 seats with spare parts being readily available - but - never having tried sitting in a "B" seat I am not going to commit yet!

Regards
John

[vernon.taylor]

Salut

Refurbed and replaced original seats with fed-style:

Frames were in good nick so just needed a paint. Looks like the neck-rest is just an add-on to the original seat. Covers were OK, too - a local bike seat specialist put in new foam.

I'm pleased with the comfort and I think they look good - sportier than the original S-type grandpa seats.

@+

Vernon

[foojamme]

Hi Everyone,

I'm bumping this one back up the thread as I have a couple of Cobra Cub 038 seats that are narrower than the OP's proposed replacements @ 45cm. I'm going to be fitting them whilst I refurb my original seats with some new vinyl and a sewing machine (yes, wish me luck please)!

The seats come with the standard seat runners. Before I visit my car in storage and pull the old ones out, has anyone tried the Cobra seats since the questions posed on here? If anyone knows the dimensions/spacing of the mountings on the Elan +2 so I can fettle the Cobra runners, then I can pull one out and fit the reserve seats in at the same visit to storage, I'd be forever grateful!

Cheers

[greg40green]

Just noticed this thread regards seats.
I read the original posting , my question being ,are people looking for a suitable replacement seat for the 2 seater Elan or are owners looking for the original re-fabricated and correctly upholstered Elan seats?

I believe that the Elan seats are being re-fabricated and correctly upholstered to original specification ,being made to order for S1 -S4 and Sprint models.
I'm told that they are not cheap at around ?1,400.00 - ?1,500.00 a pair ready to fit .

Is this considered expensive considering that I have seen a pair of new covers advertised at ?850.00 on Ebay?

[foojamme]

I think the price you have seen is the typical price rather than the one you have been told. It's really poor value IMO in consideration of the price you can pay for other marques, especially considering it's vinyl, not leather.

I did see (and bid) on an original cover from Germany in good condition that just went out of my ballpark over the weekend.

Having now bought all the bits to refurb my seats and carpets for just over ?100 and with that as well as some hit and miss sewing, there seems more fun and much better value to be had than blowing even more money on my car for "ready made".

There pics some members have posted of seats they have refurbed themselves I've seen and I'm impressed with the work

Just now need the spare seats to fit in while I do it myself.

[bill308]

Hi Guys,

I currently looking for a pair of seats for my 26 project. If anyone has an available OEM set, please let me know.

I talked to Ken Grey at DBE last week and he said he didn't know of any that were available. He did point me to:

classiccarseats.com in CA, USA.

I spoke to Stefan, who I believe is the owner of the company, and asked him what he recommended. Stephan is an Europa owner but is familiar with Elans. He says in the past he has offered his LeMans and Nurburgring seats, both of which have multiple options.

Stephan went on to say he was in the process of recreating the Elan seats and expected the frame jig to be available by the end of September, and the first production seats available in the December 2017-January 2018 time frame. The seats will have a different mounting system as he is concerned with safety/liability issues, but otherwise thinks they will be the same as OEM but with options. Price is expected to be under $1000, again depending on options, presumably fabric, with or without head rests, seat belt harness compatibility, and perhaps others.

For my street car build, I like the basket weave fabric in vinyl, as a DHC can get rained on. Head rests and harness compatibility might be useful options.

Bill

[pharriso]

Just some general info so we can find info in 1 thread regarding replacement seat covers.

Correct, no one is currently supplying seat frames or complete seats.

For Elan S1 / S2 Seat covers, Famous Frank makes / sells them on eBay

If you're after regular Elan S3 / S4 seat covers, they can be bought from Aldridge Trim, Paul West (eBay) & Sue Miller.

And finally if you're after Elan S4 Federal seat covers (with head rests) I have had a batch made up in the UK with the correct basket weave centers.

Sorry, but I do not know of anyone supplying Plus 2 seat covers.

[greg40green]

Hi Phil .
Someone is definitely supplying new original spec seat frames fully upholstered for the S1-S4 - Sprint , I've seen a pair ready to be fitted .
If anyone is interested I try to get information and contact details for 'genuinely interested parties'.

Just some general info so we can find info in 1 thread regarding replacement seat covers.

Correct, no one is currently supplying seat frames or complete seats.

For Elan S1 / S2 Seat covers, Famous Frank makes / sells them on eBay

If you're after regular Elan S3 / S4 seat covers, they can be bought from Aldridge Trim, Paul West (eBay) & Sue Miller.

And finally if you're after Elan S4 Federal seat covers (with head rests) I have had a batch made up in the UK with the correct basket weave centers.

Sorry, but I do not know of anyone supplying Plus 2 seat covers.

[pharriso]

I'd love to know...