Seats Wanted

[wddfour]

Looking for seats for S3 chassis. Headrest models preferred. Thanks!

[IamScotticus]

@wddfour  Any luck?

Edited July 31, 2025 by IamScotticus

[IamScotticus]

To hijack a little, but still relevant,  does anyone know what the seats that came in the BDR are called and who made them? They're not S types. I have a set and can't find any identifiers on them.

These:

 

 

 

[wddfour]

No luck so far @IamScotticus. Still looking!

[IamScotticus]

Is this something to consider?

https://www.cobraseats.com/seats.html?pid=44&cid=2

Or

https://www.cobraseats.com/seats.html?pid=20&cid=2

[IamScotticus]

If I can get the Cobra seats in black piping, anyone interested?

[wddfour]

I’ve looked briefly at the Cobras as well, but haven’t gone so far as to see if any would fit. The low back options could be very attractive. My preference would be Caterham seats, but these could be a great alternative. Has anyone had any experience with the Cobra Classic seats?

[IamScotticus]

I spoke with the Cobra seats dealer in California yesterday.  I may have called him earlier.  He says he never had any demand for them and doesn't believe the costs would allow this seat to be a viable option.  I suggested a ten seat order, which he flat dismissed.  I don't know the prices,  but I'm guessing for him to be this opposed, prices might be over $800 per seat.  That would price most out.  Need to call the Florida dealer.

Somebody here needs to make a run of seats.

@wddfour what is your chassis year, spec, and floor chassis tube spacing?

[Outbound]

On 8/2/2025 at 2:28 PM, IamScotticus said:

I spoke with the Cobra seats dealer in California yesterday.  I may have called him earlier.  He says he never had any demand for them and doesn't believe the costs would allow this seat to be a viable option.  I suggested a ten seat order, which he flat dismissed.  I don't know the prices,  but I'm guessing for him to be this opposed, prices might be over $800 per seat.  That would price most out.  Need to call the Florida dealer.

Somebody here needs to make a run of seats.

@wddfour what is your chassis year, spec, and floor chassis tube spacing?

Its easy to order directly from Cobra themselves from the UK. Shipping will be expensive, but so will ordering from a US dealer as they’ll pass those costs along to you anyways.

[Razomatic]

Maybe you've found your replacement seats, but FWIW my BDR has the very same seats and they are the same leather seats I've seen fitted to all 7s of the era (mine is 1986) that didn't use a bench. Mine were very worn and I purchased a better used set from another owner (1987) who was moving up to racing seats.

[IamScotticus]

I contacted Oxted Trimming and asked if they supplied the BDR seats.  They said it wasn't theirs but suggested they were sourced from "Rimmer Bros", who "were no longer in business".

We all know the English parts vendor Rimmer Bros. is very much in business.  I contacted the current Rimmer Bros.  The one who replied didn't understand the question. When I clarified that it would have been a seat supplied to Caterham,  I received no response.

Perhaps Martin Phipps will know?

Edited November 8, 2025 by IamScotticus

[IamScotticus]

@wddfour

find anything?

[wddfour]

No luck so far.

[Razomatic]

Wddfour, have you tried Redline?

https://redlinecomponents.co.uk

 

Chris is an incredible resource and may know how to obtain the seats.

 

The Caterham part number is 77624 for the seat you want. Described as “non-reclining individual seat, leather.” it was also available in Nylon under a different part number.

 

This was an optional seat for all Caterhams until 1990. The headrest was added at some point after 1986 and has part number 77657. Headrests won’t work with the FIA rollbar of the era, if you have that fitted.

[IamScotticus]

Fern on seats

[pethier]

On 11/7/2025 at 8:18 PM, IamScotticus said:

 "Rimmer Bros", who "were no longer in business".

We all know the English parts vendor Rimmer Bros. is very much in business. 

They sure are.  They have shipped me a fuel pump which is supposed to arrive Tuesday.

[IamScotticus]

I wonder how much of Rimmer is Rimmer after the merger with Moss?

Edited Sunday at 06:14 AM by IamScotticus

[wddfour]

Does anyone have any experience with these seats?
https://www.kitcardirect.co.uk/products/fibreglass-high-back-seat-shell

 

[pethier]

4 hours ago, wddfour said:

Does anyone have any experience with these seats?
https://www.kitcardirect.co.uk/products/fibreglass-high-back-seat-shell

 

A six-pound seat. 

 

I'd like to lighten it a bit by making the lap-belt ports larger.  Caterham lap belts are pull-ups and the adjusters tend to not play well with the ports.

[Razomatic]

@wddfour are you looking for something more traditional or more racer? That fiberglass seat looks unforgiving, is unpadded, and you better not eat too many bonbons. If you want original seats for your car you can always get from Caterham if it’s a recent year, and possibly Redline if it’s an older model (like mine). I needed new seats so I started watching the Caterham parts-for-sale group and within a few weeks a pair of reasonable used seats appeared. I paid $500 with shipping. Seats are bulky and heavy so shipping is always going to hurt. Using a non-Caterham seat is also a challenge because of the way the seats are mounted to the frame rails, not the floor. Non-standard seats will require fiddling for safety and correct height. Finally, if your old seats are just knackered, you might try bringing them to a reputable auto upholstery shop. A talented shop will be able to remake those seats probably for $400-600 each. But you can choose the color, texture, and even adjust the design a little. Plus you know they’ll fit.