I am a 6 foot leather seat and sunroof owner. Yeah, I know, but the car was pretty. All is good until track day. Helmet is a bitch.

Today the seat came out. Now the back of the seat is 7/8" lower. Overall head position looks to be down at least 5/8", maybe more. I need to get out there with a helmet. Right now too tired.

The good news is I think there is a lot easier way to do it than what I went through, and only taking the seat out one time in less than 2 hours. I know there are several out there over the years that have asked, but no real answer. My car did not have the two piece foam seat some have referenced. There is a total of $5 in parts from autozone involved, and a few good whacks with a hammer.

I have pics for the hard way, but I would not do it that way. I will share what it is supposed to look like when you are done when I edit this post. Too freaking tired now. Hopefully someone can verify the easy way and DIY that. Stupid seat is heavy and I think I had it in and out 10 times.

Details?

The back of the seat pan is held up by two brackets that are part of the power seat height adjuster system. The brackets go under the seat pan. If you slide the carpet piece at the back over, you can see them. The bolts go through from the bottom into a threaded piece welded to the top of the seat pan.

The idea is to take out the bolts, swing the brackets out of the way, put the brackets above the seat pan, add a spacer, and then bolt it all back together. You CANNOT just use the same inserts. The welds will not hold. You need to bolt through them and add a fender washer [edited, used to say bolt, not washer] on the bottom of the pan.

Along the way you will run into a sensor under the seat that seems to keep track of where the seat is. The seat pan will hit it if you lower it. There is an indentation in the pan for the sensor, just make it bigger. I have a wonderful little 2lb sledge for jobs like this. I was able to hit it when the seat was all the way out, and in pieces. I think you could use a short steel bar and a hammer to reshape the pan around the sensor if you were careful. That will save a TON of work. You get to the bolts that hold the front of the seat pan in through all the controls and side plastic pieces.

The only other metal bending is to bend down the edges to allow the bracket to fit in the rear corners. I am not sure if this is really needed with the spacers I ended up going with (6 5/16" washers taped together, real high tech). I had already bent it to try without the spacers first. You may be good without it.

The attached picture is what it would look like when done. Notice the fender washer I added. I have no idea how much support the bracket provided, and wanted to make sure things stayed in place. [edit, the pictures are with the seat in the garage, rotated 90 degrees. If the seat is in stalled, it will look like the picture rotated 90 degrees counter clock wise]

I think you could pull the seat, expand the recess around the sensor, swing the braces out of the way, add the spacers and put it all back together. I was just so happy to get it all back together that I did not want to pull it apart again. I did get the spacers in without taking the front loose (had to drive to autozone for parts). I just did not test the full process.

One other thing I did is reach in and pull the insulation out from between the top of the cross member and the carpet. Clearance is kind of close in here.

Other notes:
White connector sucks to get apart.
Be careful with seat, it has airbags in it, would suck if it exploded.
Bolts were M8-1.24 x 30mm, Nuts were M8-1.25 flanged. washers were 5/16ths.

Picture of what it should look like:

162812

[UPDATE]
Folks have done this mode, with the seats in the car, without disconnecting wires and without needing to worry about bending metal around the sensor thing.
Basic process is to: raise the seat all the way, pull back the cloth at the back, undo the bolts, flip the brackets, use the longer bolt and spacer, with a large fender washer, and then put it back together. There are some pointers in the following posts. I also did the passenger side this way, and it worked well. Thanks everyone who helped work the easy way.

For parts, from SebtownRX8:
If you go to Lowes its on Isle 16 in the pull out doors mustard yellow labled MM 0.8-1.25 bolt/nut/washers

Wow - I'm 6'1" and the same setup - helmet is a biatch on the track. Wish I had the zombas to do this...

:eek:

Sorry, old man here. "Zombas"??

this is so awesome ... most useful DIY on here IMHO

nads :rollingla

Might not be a problem. The easy way may be the way to go. Just wait for someone to try it and post. Or see if there are some other tall members in the area... You are likely as far from Florida as you can get.

So your ass is riding on a thin sheet of metal?

All our asses are, it is just covered by the foam in the seat. The foam is still there, just lower. Feels the same, and should.

i never knew the power seats didn't go down. now i do. good idea for the too talls.

They go down, just not far enough. Problem is made worse by the fact that most of the leather interiors come with a sun roof.

6' 5" here. Will be checking this out first chance I get.

subscribing. I need to do this mod.

Yeah same here, 6'3" and I usually ride with my head tilted a little to the side cause of the little extra space the sun roof gives. I'm got some vacation time comming up and will use it to try this out. So I've got plenty of time and not have to worry about getting everything together quickly.

How much extra head room do you feel you gained? If I can just get it low enough so my spikes don't hit the roof that'd be awesome.

All our asses are, it is just covered by the foam in the seat. The foam is still there, just lower. Feels the same, and should.

I know that!


What I meant is the pictures suck.

It looks like your using then sheet metal to hold you in place and not a bracket.

How much extra head room do you feel you gained? If I can just get it low enough so my spikes don't hit the roof that'd be awesome.

Overall head position looks to be down at least 5/8", maybe more. Or roughly 16mm.

I undertand the math, I was more interested in that fact that does it really feel like you gained extra head room. If your only 6" and the helment lets say adds an inch, so now your looking at a 6'1" person and if you're still touching the roof, even if only slightly, then it's not going to do much for me to do this mod. Let alone if I tryed to wear a helmet. I'm almost pushing 6'3" so I'm more or less wondering if it's even going to be worth my time. I suppose anything would make it a little more confortable. Also do you still have total fuctionality of your power seats?

First question
It looks like your using then sheet metal to hold you in place and not a bracket.

That is why there is a big ass fender washer. It has about the same surface area as the bracket. It is hanging from a bolt attached to the bracket, so it should have the same support. An ME could tell me how this is not as strong as the original configuration, mostly from how the loads are passed through the bracket, but on paper it does not look like much of a loss. Remember, the metal pan keeps the two brackets tied together, so the load is still vertical.

Think of it as a new longer bracket, that involves a bolt.

So far so good.

I undertand the math, I was more interested in that fact that does it really feel like you gained extra head room. If your only 6" and the helment lets say adds an inch, so now your looking at a 6'1" person and if you're still touching the roof, even if only slightly, then it's not going to do much for me to do this mod. Let alone if I tryed to wear a helmet. I'm almost pushing 6'3" so I'm more or less wondering if it's even going to be worth my time. I suppose anything would make it a little more confortable. Also do you still have total fuctionality of your power seats?

It makes a big difference for me. I could not drive around with a ball cap on. The little metal button on the top would hit the sun roof rim if I hit a bump and that really hurt. It felt like it was punching into my head. No worries now.

There is a more complex piece. My butt is lower, which means my legs are at a different angle, which changes a little where my knees are, which changes how close to the dash they are. Also, with my butt down, my shoulders are down, and that makes them a little closer to the steering wheel. Then I recline my seat back a little. That changes the angle of my upper body (reclined) and makes me a little shorter. Also, my head being back gets me to a part of the roof that is a little higher. All those little bits add up. Your arms are likely longer than mine, which makes you seat further back, which gets you to a different place on the roof as well.

Here is a thought. I THINK you can remove the bolts, and swing the brackets out of the way with the seat in the car, I can do mine, but I crimped the pan. If you can, put a block of wood under it that lets it drop 3/4". Then test.

As for full functionality, I pulled the insulation out from under the carpet to get more clearance over the cross member. I also moved the wires away from the lowest part of the seat pan. It gets close but I do not think it hits all the way forward with the seat all the way down. Where it would hit is half way up, so the drop there is less, and the wires cleared before.

Best I got man, sorry.

Ok thanks for the updated diagram, everything makes sense to me as to what you actually did now. I dont think I'd have to worry about support loss, I suffer from what they call scrawny white boy syndrom so I wouldn't be putting much weight on it anyways.

Hey works for me, I'll see what I can figure out in a few weeks when I get the time to try it out. No one has room to complain considering no one else has tryed to do it let alone do a DIY on it. Yeah it never dawned on me that my knees would change possition with the seat lowered. Some scientist I turned out to be lol. I'm thinking that it will not only give me a bit more knee room, but i can actually recline the seat some more becuase my arms will reach better. The problem I've always had is when I recline for the head room, my arm reach is longer which makes it a pain on steering.

I'll see what I can figure out and I'll post pictures of everything.

wow this is cool, any ideas to make me taller Im 5' 6" :(

Damn, I was hoping to get my lowered seat mod done but its going to be pushed back awhile. Good chance I'm relocating so my free time for play is all gone. Someone else should try this and mabe we all can figure out a good and easy way to get this done and post it on the DIY section.

Wish this mod had been posted before I bought my car. Because of headroom issues, I resorted to buying a base mode (manual seat, no sunroof).

Damn, now I need to start looking for another car....

I've just completed this mod (with seat left in place). It went very quickly but In looking under the seat I don't see a sensor that I'd need to bang the seat pan to give clearance to? Attached picture from another thread. Can someone point out the area needing reshaping from this?

Thanks

I did this mod about 3 weeks ago. Easy to do with the seat left in place (no need to hammer anything).
Works great and the extra 1/2-1 inch headroom is nice.

If it worked, great! The sensor I was worried about was on the outside rail, and looked like it stopped the seat track from going too far. I could not get the seat back together without dimpling the seat pan.. However, I could not tell if it was needed if you did not take the seat apart.

Here is a picture. I seem to have forgotten how to embed it.


http://lh5.ggpht.com/_YotTAsOuMrI/TORX_LVkZkI/AAAAAAAABW8/TSyMxEutkK0/s288/car%20_03796.JPG

Looks like this one is confirmed. Thanks. Glad it worked, and glad there is an easy way.

Mike

wow this is cool, any ideas to make me taller Im 5' 6" :(

PILLOW?:yesnod:

Bump. Comments after living with this mod for awhile? Anyone with additional experience here?

I've just completed this mod (with seat left in place). It went very quickly but In looking under the seat I don't see a sensor that I'd need to bang the seat pan to give clearance to? Attached picture from another thread. Can someone point out the area needing reshaping from this?

Thanks

By 'with seat left in place' do you mean without taking the seat out or without taking it off the track? I guess the to take out the seat I just need to take the bolts holding the track to the frame?

The seat was left installed and the mod was completed with out removing it. No problems to date and I appreciate the extra head/helmet room.

By 'with seat left in place' do you mean without taking the seat out or without taking it off the track? I guess the to take out the seat I just need to take the bolts holding the track to the frame?

The seat was left installed and the mod was completed with out removing it. No problems to date and I appreciate the extra head/helmet room.

Nice! Sounds like it's about 2-3 hours of work?

Just did this mod, works great! Pix are fine, just would have helped if mention had been made that they need to be rotated one quarter turn counterclockwise. Other than that the write-up is perfect! Thanks so much for the great idea!

Picture of what it should look like:

162727

Updated picture, with some notes, some were confused...

162812

If it works, take better pictures than I did. I took the whole thing apart, then put it back together this way. I really think you can do it without taking it apart, just be careful around the sensor.[/QUOTE]

A gentle reminder: it's a very good idea to disconnect the battery before messing with anything related to the airbags ... poof!!

No need to get anywhere near any wires. Mod can totally be done while the seat is still in place. Took me about 20 minutes!

A gentle reminder: it's a very good idea to disconnect the battery before messing with anything related to the airbags ... poof!!

I combined all the updates here and edited the detailed post on the first page. Thanks everyone for the easy way.

Just Did... Well worth it for a 6"3 or 6'4 with shoes person.... Funny thing no one mentioned that OEM bolt is 12mm. And you need you seat raised all the way in order to flip the bracket... would of been a big saver lol, almost thought it was not going to work the i raised seat and BAM, bracket flips like a pro. helps for a closed ratcheting wrench. or just a open or closed wrench will work.
and the new ones you need are going to be 1/2" or 13mm. as for washers kinds depends on what type you choose i chose "fattys" (aka the fattest washer so you dont have to use many) only needed 4.

If you go to Lowes its on Isle 16 in the pull out doors mustard yellow labled MM 0.8-1.25 bolt/nut/washers

one stop shop. so it cost 1.78 per seat..... hell if you are short i'd do it just as kindness for passengers...
Thanks for Everything my head doesn't have to be tilted anymore...

I just completed mine, well worth the 1/2 hour of my time. I went with two M8-1.25 x 40 bolts and four nuts. Using the threads on the (now) lower seat pan, and the nuts to hold the bracket in place, I figure it gives me a little room for adjustments.

As long as there is a big washer under the pan, you are good to go. I cannot tell from the picture. If not, I am not sure the 3 little welds on the original threaded piece will hold in tension.

Hmm I have been thinking using a 40mm bolt as well. It seems there are some space left using 30. Have to be careful not to crush any wires tho.

I finally got around to doing this myself, after a few strong words at the foam I just couldn't seem to keep out of my way I got everything done. And yes a ratcheting wrench would have made this a lot easier, to bad I didn't have any.

Haven't gotten in the car yet to drive around to see how it feels (it started to rain just as I was finishing) but I think I tightened the nut on top of the bracket to tight for my taste so when the weather clears I'll drop the seat down a little more.

I give this DIY difficulty a 2 out of 10, because it's hard to see what you're doing unless you sorta put your head upside down in the floorboard.

lol i do remember putting my head upside down on the floorboard

Is the mod the same for the Series 2?

Anyone have a vid? I'm pretty bad when it comes to working these things out.

Just did this and had success with a 35mm bolt. Got around an even Inch of extra room.

If I had a few more washers might have been able to get another 1/8th...

Nice I'm 6'7" 280 lbs can't wait to drop that seat.. Am I the tallest owner? 04 gt winning blue 6speed. Mabe a new thread tallest rx8 owners. Lol

^^ wow

6' 5" here. Will be checking this out first chance I get.

Ditto, I'm 6.4, but have never had an issue in my 8. Probly cause I've got standard seats and no sunroof (wonder if that gets me more space?) Anyways I'm usually riding with the seat quite tilted back (cause I want to). But If I do have it all they way straight up, then I do feel cramped. Might do this, bet it works on a standard seat as well.

Ditto, I'm 6.4, but have never had an issue in my 8. Probly cause I've got standard seats and no sunroof (wonder if that gets me more space?) Anyways I'm usually riding with the seat quite tilted back (cause I want to). But If I do have it all they way straight up, then I do feel cramped. Might do this, bet it works on a standard seat as well.

After driving countless RX-8s of every configuration I learned that I could not live with the electric seat / sunroof combination (unless modified per this topic). Both the electric seat and the sunroof individually encroach on headroom, and the combined effect is significant enough that I would need to lean the seat back to an uncomfortable angle. That's why I ended up buying a Sport model without either feature.

Now, with the information in this topic, I could upgrade to a better equipped model. Tempting...

@ Silverhorn
From what I can tell, will work for both seats. The seat pan attaches in the same way.

Now, if I can just figure out how to extend the steering column.....

Hah, i just got my helmet for my first autox next month, went to sit in the car and was like "uhhhhhh" I dont know how you guys do it but im only 5'10" and my head almost hits the sunroof when sitting close to 80 degrees. So ill be doing this mod so i dont have to recline the seat to an obscene amount when driving.

I am 6' and I did this mod, bought a thinner helmet, bought thinner shoes, wear thinner pants, and I still have to drive with my head a little bit tilted lol.

At least I got used to it now...I naturally tilt my head when I am in autox position.

Yes extending the steering column will solve all the problem...I can't believe Mazda doesn't offer that on the rx8.

Great idea I am about 5"10 and I struggle with the seat position as I meed to have the seat further back then is comfortable. I will try this soon, the other option is removing the padding :-(.

Lowering the seat will also help lower the center of gravity in the car (by lowering the driver) which will help with cornering forces making the car faster...... A tiny tiny bit, but the driver being more comfy will improve lap time more..

my problem is that my center of mass is already pretty low, and the size of my center of mass is what makes me higher in the seat.

Shaving the foam is next. From what I can tell, the foam I have is one piece. but, it can be thinned. There are just several things that I need to accomplish first. Anyone else what to take a shot at it and post pictures?

I cant hack up my 40th anny red seats :(

do you think you could provide alittle more detail in the guide when not removing the seat? Im alittle confused.

Are there any other supplemental pictures?

rx8club server decided to take a shit as i was in homedepot getting the needed supplies so i had to go home and go back out 2 hours later, i didnt know how many of each to get.

I got
(12) 5/16 washers
(4) M8-1.25 30mm bolts
(4) M8-1.25 nuts

on my way back to the car i moved the seat forward, raised the butt cushion and looked..... and had no idea where to even begin. Im going to attempt again tomorrow at around 12 so any response before then would be greatly appreciated.

can you do something like this to a manual seat? i need more space for my head :)

can you do something like this to a manual seat? i need more space for my head :)

i believe you can! same process. :)

Sorry,

Missed these posts. yeah, I think it works for the power seat.

Also, did everyone else get through it OK?

sorry i tried but it is different on manual seat

sorry i tried but it is different on manual seat

are you sure?

at first i had no idea what i was doing and i thought i couldnt do it either.

I did it with the seat in the car, maybe try taking your seat out and then examining.

Sorry,

Missed these posts. yeah, I think it works for the power seat.

Also, did everyone else get through it OK?

good news, after moving my seat back a little bit for quite some time, i moved my seat back again by accident and i guess i had adjusted to the new position and moving back further didnt bother me.

i now can put my fist above my head and have it fit between my head and the liner!!

I went for a little joyride around the block to see how my helmet fit and it was 80% tolerable. Im sure if i try now, it will be perfect!

thanks Green!

i double checked it but i think there is no way...anyone can post any pictures ? the picture is not the same with the manual seat

Worked a treat for me.

The pics are very good and I could not do better. Just stick your head in under the front seat with a printed out pic and it will all make sense.

I think I used 12 washers for spacers and a couple of large mudguard washers on each side to spread the load.

I love the new seating position. My head still hits the roof with my helmet on, but at least I can get comfortable.

Thanks heaps Mr Green

Matt

Worked a treat for me.

The pics are very good and I could not do better. Just stick your head in under the front seat with a printed out pic and it will all make sense.

I think I used 12 washers for spacers and a couple of large mudguard washers on each side to spread the load.

I love the new seating position. My head still hits the roof with my helmet on, but at least I can get comfortable.

Thanks heaps Mr Green

Matt

you got the manual seat?

you got the manual seat?

feel under youre seat for that bracket, or try to stick your hand in between the foam and the pan.

It took me a while to figure out where everything was, and the foam DID NOT want to budge, i was tugging reaaally hard to get the foam to move so i could access the bracket. I wound up using a bottle and wedging it between the foam and the pan to keep it from going back to its original position.

Dont expect it to be a walk in the park, seperating the foam so you can work in there.

Unplugging the battery and taking out the seat might have to be what you need to do.

tommorow i will remove it and i will post pictures so you can saw me where is this ...... :)

http://i30.tinypic.com/o6ihpd.jpg

http://i30.tinypic.com/o6ihpd.jpg

take a picture of the back of the seat.

you dont have to even touch the front AT ALL

Here, use my pic. CIRCLED IN RED ARE THE BRACKETS YOU ARE LOOKING FOR!

http://i890.photobucket.com/albums/ac102/F1GURIN/Powerseatunderside.jpg

yy i saw them but at the manual seat they are already like this, thats why i couldnt find them ...so i think you cant do this on manual

the only think that i can do is to replace them with new ones with bigger angle

yy i saw them but at the manual seat they are already like this, thats why i couldnt find them ...so i think you cant do this on manual

what?

i saw them(the brackets?)

already like this(already like what? thats what the bracket looks like when oem)

what?

this makes no sense, im going to find my friends manual seat next weekend and play with it to see if its there.

the bracket doesnt interact with the seat differently in auto or manual, i dont have any reason to believe they are different.

thanks a lot

I just did this inside of 20 minutes. Took 5 minutes to locate the two bolts, a minute to unscrew them, about 10 minutes to get the brackets to the top of the frame and a couple more to thread the bolts back in from the top down.

This gained me about a 1/2 inch clearance which is all I needed to get my helmet to clear the roof liner.

I just did this inside of 20 minutes. Took 5 minutes to locate the two bolts, a minute to unscrew them, about 10 minutes to get the brackets to the top of the frame and a couple more to thread the bolts back in from the top down.

This gained me about a 1/2 inch clearance which is all I needed to get my helmet to clear the roof liner.

lucky you. it took me like 10+ hours.

i was plagued with so many problems, locating the bracket, getting my hand above the foam, loosening the bracket, sticking the washers and the bolt in there, wondering why i had no room to work, moving the seat back and forth to get more room, not to mention the hours i read and re read and re read and re read and re read and re read this thread to figure out what to do.

I COULD NOT HAVE DONE THIS MOD WITHOUT THE HELP OF GREEN! thanks again!

^^ :Peace: ^^

I just did this inside of 20 minutes. Took 5 minutes to locate the two bolts, a minute to unscrew them, about 10 minutes to get the brackets to the top of the frame and a couple more to thread the bolts back in from the top down.

This gained me about a 1/2 inch clearance which is all I needed to get my helmet to clear the roof liner.

AUTO seat?

any news with the manual seat?

i actually didnt get a chance to check on my friends rx8, the meeting was cut short due to an accident and i forgot all about it.

ok i will remove mine and i will put foto so you can tell me

@hellbringer

I apologize. There is a typo in my 4/30 response. It should have said manual seat, for some stupid reason I said power seat.

The passenger seat is a manual seat as well. From the drawings in the parts list, it looks like the cloth driver seat is the same configuration as the manual passenger seat.

It seems that on some of the models the part of the seat cover that wraps around the back of the seat is very tight. This will make it hard to work with.

I scarfed this photobucket picture from earlier in this post.

http://i890.photobucket.com/albums/ac102/F1GURIN/Powerseatunderside.jpg

The red circles show the brackets. If you look at the horizontal bar between the two circles, at the border of black material and the beginning of steel, you are looking at how the cloth that wraps around the back of the seat attaches to the bottom of the seat.

In this picture, you would pull it up, towards the front of the seat, and it would unhook the 2 tabs, one near each end. You can tell where they are in the picture by the rectangular hole between the right red circle and the two holes in the steel you can see foam through. You can see the one on the right, the one on the left is behind the wire loom. The rectangle is where the steel was punched out to make the tab. If it is unhooked, you can easily get it out of the way. If the seat is in the car, I would kneel outside the car, reach in with one arm, palm up, curl my fingers around the piece of plastic and push it toward the front of the car working one side at a time. If it will not come loose, you might need to pull the seat.

It could also all be glued together. My rear seats were glued in due to soda spilled before I bought the car.