DC5 Recaro Seats into Ep3 mods

[schumacher916]

Did anyone of you had to modify the rails to make the DC5 seats fit into the Ep3 chasis? I had to drill one of the rails on mine and add a whole bunch of washers to bottom of the drilled rail to compensate for the height and used a longer bolt with washers to make it fit. Did anyone had to do the same?

[Almost Fast]

there is a DIY for making the DC5 rails work but best of my understanding it is unsafe. I ended up ordering the ep3 rails and using those.

[EDU]

can't you just get aftermarket seat rails? im just wondering the same.

[schumacher916]

I don't know what is so unsafe about how I did it...I'll take a pic of the installed seats today and post them up later...It doesn't even move as my washers are oversize and my bolt is long enough to compensate for the washers...total cost of washers and bolt from ACE Hardware was $10...each bolt was $2.25 and each washer was $.25....I'll update later with pics..

[firmk20]

lets see.

[vicx52o]

Sound's like you had to do the same thing to mount some USDM DC5 seats into an EP3.

http://www.ephatch.com/forum/showthread.php?43129-TypeS-leather-seats&highlight=rsx+seat

[ShadowEP3]

RSX-S seats > EP seats

just saying...:mangel:



im actually in that scenario where my seats arent bolted down correctly (inside rear bolt doesnt match up) and i dont wanna buy rails (college student ftl) and its starting to scare me :tehe:

im in the process of devising some type of "U" looking bracket to bolt the seats down to make them stable without having to buy rails..stay tuned! :mwink:

[opti0n1]

can't you just get aftermarket seat rails? im just wondering the same.

i wanna know this cuz i see no way on taking off the rails off the dc5 recaros hmmmm.

[ragebomb]

I just installed JDM DC5 ITR red Recaros into my (non-seat-airbags) EP3 this weekend.

Here are a few notes:

1. The EP3 seatbelt buckles bolt right on to the DC5 seats.

2. I did not have to modify the center console in any way.

3. Only mod was to widen the inboard rear floor mount on the DC5 seats, plus add washers to make up the difference in height.

4. Since you are re-using the EP3 seatbelt buckles, the gray and yellow SRS clips under each seat re-attach just fine. No need to create resistors/jumpers/workarounds. But you may have to reset your SRS light.

5. If any parts from your DC5 seats are broken, you can try contacting one of these US Recaro dealers for a replacement.
http://www.recaro-automotive.com/us/service/online-dealer.html
I have a broken backrest tilt release lever. Griffin and Cantrell said they would be able to get them for me.


Here is my DIY. My EP3 did not have seat airbags, so the procedure may be different if you have seat airbags:

1. Clean your DC5 seats. Here's a video on the Woolite method:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g0ZwkNvnOVE
Easiest to do this in the house, take your time. The light will probably be better and it's easier to make repairs if necessary. I used a curved sewing needle and red thread to mend a hole in the passenger seat. I applied ice on a few gum stains (they were little black spots that I thought were cigarette burns at first). The ice hardens the gum and makes it easier to remove.

http://i551.photobucket.com/albums/ii455/ragebomb99/ep3/photo2.jpg

2. While your DC5 seats are drying, remove your EP3 seats from your car. Here are the steps...

3. Disconnect your car battery.

4. Remove the rear plastic covers from each of the rear seat mounts (2 per side). You won't be able to re-use these.

5. Using a socket wrench, remove each of the 4 bolts that mount the seats to the floor of the car. Slide your seat forward and backwards to access each bolt.

6. Tilt the entire seat up so you can see the underside of your seat. Now unclip the gray connector. You may want to use a small flathead screwdriver.

7. Unclip the yellow connector. This connector comes apart by pulling on the larger yellow plastic portion. You can do this with your hands, don't use a screwdriver to try and pry this connector apart.

8. Use a trim removal tool (I used a metal one) to remove the 2 plastic wire clips from the seat. Or you can just carefully cut them. You won't be able to use the clips in the DC5 seats anyway.

9. The gray and yellow connectors will be connected to the seat as well. You can slide those out of their clips to remove them. No need to pry those 2 clips out.

10. Now your EP3 seat should be completely free of your car and unattached.

11. Put a towel down on your door sill to prevent scratches.

12. Slide your seat so it is more or less right above its rails, then tilt the seat back so it is at about 80 degrees (a bit leaned forward). I found this position is the easiest for the seat to be in to lift it out of the car.

13. Remove the seat from the car. I found it easiest to put one hand in the red plastic headrest and the other hand on the cloth under the front of the seat base. Don't lift with your hand on the metal adjustment bar!

14. Do the same with the other side. Everything should be the same.

15. Once both seats are out of the car, use a socket wrench to unbolt the seatbelt buckle from each seat. It's just one bolt per seat.

16. Take the seatbelt buckles and bolt them into your DC5 seats. Tuck the wires into the frame so the connectors are under the seat.

17. Now you'll be modifying the inboard rear mounting brackets on the DC5 seats. These are the only brackets on the seats that are flat with the ground (the others are angled). It helps if you cover your nice clean DC5 seats since they can get dirty as you work on them. I used some new plastic tire bags from America's Tire Company.

18. Place the 2 rear mounts of the DC5 seat on a 2x4 or some other piece of wood to raise up the mount you'll be modifying. It gets the mount off the ground and stabilizes it.

19. Now you basically want to extend the existing mounting hole so it is moved back and slightly inboard. I did this by drilling small holes, then drilled with a bigger drill bit to widen the holes. Then I used a grinding cone-shaped bit to open and round out the new hole. You won't need to extend the hole beyond the curved outer frame of the mount.

20. Put the seat into the car and do your best to line up the mounting holes.

21. These same mounting points also sit too high off the floor of the car, so I bought a package of washers to make up the height difference. I was able to use 9 washers on each side. I also had to buy longer bolts. Here is a picture of the items I picked up at Home Depot:

http://i551.photobucket.com/albums/ii455/ragebomb99/ep3/photo22.jpg

- Bag of 25 flat washers, 1/2"
- Bag of split ring lock washers, 10mm (you only need 2)
- Two 10mm x 1.25 x 60mm bolts (50mm works too but I found it harder to get the thread started)
- Two smaller washers, 10mm (get the same size as on the OEM washer)

It helps if you take your OEM bolt to Home Depot with you for reference.

Here is a picture of the entire assembly once bolted in:

http://i551.photobucket.com/albums/ii455/ragebomb99/ep3/photo32.jpg

From top to bottom:

Bolt
split ring lock washer
smaller washer
seat mount
9 flat washers
floor of car


22. Start by lining up and threading the modified mount first. Don't tighten it all the way.

23. Thread the other 3 bolts, loosely. Don't tighten any of the bolts until after all 4 bolts have been threaded.

24. Now tighten all 4 bolts, making sure they are actually tight. Make sure none of the washers are loose -- if a washer is loose, the bolt is not properly tightened/seated. One of my OEM bolts started to get tough to tighten but the washer on it was still loose. I had to temporarily loosen a couple of the other bolts so that I could tighten that OEM bolt.

Make sure your new, longer bolt is tightened down all the way. If it is not, it will get in the way of the seat sliding action and you won't be able to slide your seat all the way back.

25. Reconnect your gray and yellow clips. You may want to zip tie them out of the way. I didn't find a good place to zip tie them to, so skipped this for now.

26. If needed, reset your SRS light. Here's a DIY.
http://forums.clubep3.com/showthread.php?t=790126

27. Reconnect your battery.

28. That's it! Enjoy your new fancy seats!

Here are a few pics of my install:

http://i551.photobucket.com/albums/ii455/ragebomb99/ep3/photo3.jpg

http://i551.photobucket.com/albums/ii455/ragebomb99/ep3/photo4.jpg

http://i551.photobucket.com/albums/ii455/ragebomb99/ep3/photo12.jpg

I really love these seats, they hug your body nice and snug. My bottom cushion feels really snug, which made me feel like a Fat American (http://cache.jalopnik.com/assets/images/12/2007/02/medium_Stig-Fat.jpg). But I'm not even that big of a guy at 5' 8" 160 pounds. I can see why some bigger dudes find these seats too narrow.

Today I had to take my wallet out of my back pocket to sit comfortably in them. Also the driver position is about 1" or so lower than stock.

Hope this is helpful to anyone wanting to do this upgrade!

[SP33D FREAK]

Did you reuse your stock EP3 Rails or use the Rails on the DC5r Recaros?

[ragebomb]

Did you reuse your stock EP3 Rails or use the Rails on the DC5r Recaros?

I used the rails that came with the DC5r Recaros. Easy-peesy. :)

BTW one of my "backrest tilt release levers" was broken. I was able to order new ones from Griffin Motorwerke in California. Great guys and an authorized Recaro dealer. They had the parts in stock, unlike every other US Recaro dealer I contacted. http://www.g-werke.com/