ADR 3/03 seats

[Modena]

Current shape MX5 do not fit in a Classic Revival, along with about 20 other small and sports cars that I have checked.

[justcobra]

Originally Posted by Modena

Current shape MX5 do not fit in a Classic Revival, along with about 20 other small and sports cars that I have checked.

I just bought a set of MX5 seats out of NA model(ebay) and which to concur that the seats will not fit my RMC Cobra which is a copy of Arntz cobra out of the States.
The MX5 seats donot have to be modified but the internal sunken floor and its configuration has to be modified by cutting and re-fibreglassing.
I bought a pair of seats on ebay for $100 which are red in color and they were fitted to a older Cobra circa 1987 which were specifically designed for a DAX cobra.
A batch of DAX cobras were imported in Victoria in the late 1980's in suburb of Brighton as advised by this gentleman who lives in Gippsland.

These seats are a modified SAAS seat specifically built for the cobra but I consider them to be too narrow for my back side.
Apparently the seats are brand new and the previous owner decided not to use them in his cobra and elected to buy a brand new seats from Tony at Classic Motor Trimmers at Eltham presumably acquired for $2200.
It is good to work in Gold Mine!
Tony has told me that his seats are NOW ADR3-03 complied and will validate.

[hp1050]

We used a set of seats out of an S2000 Honda they fit very nicely and not to high.

[beauies]

I used to have some dimensions somewhere of the seats out of the current mitsubishi colt. I think those sizes did get close, the ones i measured were the ralliart recaro version though.

[Tenrocca]

Craig, I think Sambo was just stating what fit in his harrison (width wise). nothing to do with ADR.

Do you guys have an approved seat?

Cheers

[400TT]

The smallest production seats I have seen have been in the little Euro cars. Tend to be smaller than the jap seats these days. Only problem is they will be harder to obtain 2nd hand than jap seats.

Originally Posted by Tenrocca

Craig, I think Sambo was just stating what fit in his harrison (width wise). nothing to do with ADR.

Cheers, Tenrocca. Yeah, just re-read it, maybe it was the size measurements on that SAAS seat he was talking about. I did seem strange.

[byroncobra]

Honda Beat seats fit nice and snug into a Harrison........no idea about their ADR status though.

Maybe a bit hard to find

[sambo]

Yes fellas, I was referring to the SAAS seats. Just updated my post to make it clear.

[Merv and Sharon]

Are none of the current Cobra kit suppliers making seat frames that can comply any more?

[400TT]

Merv, we already have ADR 3/03 complied GT40 seats etc.

Now working on compliant Cobra seats, but could be a reasonable time frame to availability as we just fit the work in when I have spare resources.

Seats we plan to offer:

* Authentic style steel tube frame with trampoline base.
* Authentic style fibreglass shell.
* Sports/Race modern style seat - lightweight (if we can't source one)

With or without compliant seat sliders.

The seats are customised to suit our kits and they do not use original dimensions. They have been scaled up, but still have the appearance of original seats. So may not suit other Cobra replicas as well.

From memory the seat base dimension we are working with is 500mm wide.

[Merv and Sharon]

Thanks Craig. I thought that you would be. I wonder that the other suppliers of kits do? From this thread, the builder is supposed to source their own seats. When I was building in 2008-9, I wanted an authentic looking seat and I just used the Harrison pre-approved frame and that was it! Nice seats too. However, they are no longer compliant I gather for new builds. I was thinking that there would be updates on those. Maybe there are.

If I was building now, and Warwick was fantastic to work with and has a great car, it would probably be the new Cobra you are establishing. It seems so well designed and is up there with the best US "kits" and builds.

[400TT]

Merv, I expect most suppliers will update their seat designs to be compliant.

Yes, I am certainly going all out to produce what I consider is a world competitive product. I believe we have the design and body shape that will get us there. I can't wait to show off the body shape, it is gorgeous.

Now we are working hard on the manufacturing approach and costs. We are taking a different approach to what has been done here before.

It is a different product to a Harrison etc. There is no point in producing the same product as Warwick etc. That would do more harm than good in the industry. It's all about a different product to appeal to a different market. Variety and choice will be the clear choice for people wanting to build a Cobra as we have two totally different Cobra products to offer.

More news to come soon.

[justcobra]

Hi Guys.
All the good oil is on the www.comlaw.gov.au.
My interpretation the law is that the minimum height is 800mm.
If the DAX seat with headrests meets the European Standard then the seat should pass our ADR as it is a co signatory to the legislation.
Therefore start importing !

[Zedn]

Originally Posted by justcobra

Hi Guys.
All the good oil is on the Comlaw Home.
My interpretation the law is that the minimum height is 800mm.
If the DAX seat with headrests meets the European Standard then the seat should pass our ADR as it is a co signatory to the legislation.
Therefore start importing !

Unfortunately the 800 is not from the base of the seat. It is from a reference point on a sphere that is placed on the base of the seat to simulate a hip. This makes the height approximately 850-860 from the base of the seat.

[400TT]

Zedn, it is problematic. Yes, you require a JIG to perform the ADR measurement, so in my experience engineers have just come up with a shortcut method to check the height with a tape measure.

The approved JIG we use to spec our seat heights is something along the lines of a weighted steel frame test dummy looking contraption.

Best advice just purchase a seat that is known to comply with ADR 3/03 or equivalent regulation. But finding one that fits a Cobra is the challenge.

One of our new prototype ADR 3/03 tested Cobra Seats measures 780mm from the top of seat base to the top of the headrest.

In my experience there are production seats that have been tested to ADR 3/03 that do not meet the 850-860mm measurement when using tape measure. But I have also measured seats that are 900mm+. In my experience the shorter seats have adjustable headrests, the taller seats have fixed headrests. Manufacturers are not always just concerned about regulations, but ensuring the headrest can provide adequate performance for the tallest of drivers.

[Jaydee]

Is it a requirement to have seat sliders? If not, and the seat is bolted in a permanent position, could you fit a headrest on the roll bar? I've tried mgb seats, no good. But I measure a MX5 2000 model, and the base is less then 500mm.
JD

[suthol]

No idea about SA but I got through in May under the old scheme in NSW with fixed seats.

Ultimately it is up to what your engineer tells you will pass locally

[400TT]

Sambo, yes exactly it all comes down to the certification paperwork. If it is an aftermarket seat, do not just assume an ADR 3/03 label will be suitable, you may need a copy of the test report. For production seats, you may need to prove which vehicle they have come from.

We have seen a lot of manufacturers that have parts labelled as compliant, even with compliance marks moulded into or attched to the product, yet they are unable to provide the required paperwork to back it up.

Originally Posted by Jaydee

Is it a requirement to have seat sliders? If not, and the seat is bolted in a permanent position, could you fit a headrest on the roll bar? I've tried mgb seats, no good. But I measure a MX5 2000 model, and the base is less then 500mm.
JD

JD, you could bulkhead secure the seats. Check with your engineer on the requirements, but if the seats are fixed and structurally mounted to the rear bulkhead you do not require any certification for the seats. They still need to meet the height requirements though.

Not sure how well that would work or look in a Cobra, but pretty common practice in GT40's.

[Zedn]

Originally Posted by 400TT

Zedn, it is problematic. Yes, you require a JIG to perform the ADR measurement, so in my experience engineers have just come up with a shortcut method to check the height with a tape measure.

The approved JIG we use to spec our seat heights is something along the lines of a weighted steel frame test dummy looking contraption.

Best advice just purchase a seat that is known to comply with ADR 3/03 or equivalent regulation. But finding one that fits a Cobra is the challenge.

One of our new prototype ADR 3/03 tested Cobra Seats measures 780mm from the top of seat base to the top of the headrest.

In my experience there are production seats that have been tested to ADR 3/03 that do not meet the 850-860mm measurement when using tape measure. But I have also measured seats that are 900mm+. In my experience the shorter seats have adjustable headrests, the taller seats have fixed headrests. Manufacturers are not always just concerned about regulations, but ensuring the headr est can provide adequate performance for the tallest of drivers.

Hi Craig,

Can you explain this further? I dont see how it is possible for the seat to measure 780. Is this to do with the way the lines are projected? I have seen a simplified method in one of the vsb's with a sphere placed against the seat. I think it was one of the VSB5's.

Interested to hear more about this.

Liam

[400TT]

Liam, the JIG replicates a person sitting in the seat, so the sphere you are talking about sinks into the base of the seat. The seat we are testing has a sprung base, so you would sink more so than you would on just a foamed seat base.