I'm going to pile a few things into this one.

I have a Grand Touring 06 and was wondering if there are any solid DD SCCA/NHRA/FIA aproved racing seats out there for the west coast? I found a few but I was looking for your input and experience. I'm looking for anything Blue or black on black, but may decide to go yellow on black. I'd rather have a reclinable option, but a fixed back is fine if reclinable isn't race legal.

I'm fairly new to all this so let me know if there is something specific I should be mentioning/looking for.

A few I was looking at were (But some don't say anything about SCCA/FIA/NHRA aproved):
http://www.k2motor.com/a-pair-of-bri...lack-blue.html
http://www.andysautosport.com/mazda/...a00900002.html (Why is this so expensive?)
http://www.f1spec.com/200138.html (Is carbon fiber, lighter than carbon kevlar?)
http://ltbautosports.com/sparcoevo2.html



I'm also looking for a better stearing wheel. I don't care to have all those buttons on my wheel. I think the only ones I would want is cruise control. All the radio buttons and nav need to go. Anyone know a good stearing wheel I can buy that allows for cruise? Something still maintaining the stylish look and feel of the RX8 "art" but offering a more performance orriented experience.



Has anyone ever ripped the back seats out and put two buckets back there? Any experience in doing this?



And last but not least, I want to rip out the cd/stereo and put in a touch screen that controls everything it replaces by touch. Maybe something that slides out when powered on and has a cover that blocks it from view while stored. Anyone know any brands with solid interface use?

 

unless you are building a race car (i dont think you are after the back seat question) i wouldnt remove the steering wheel because you will lose the air bag. i think the rear seats are allready kind of bucket seats. i dont think you could fit the front seats back there w/o cutting them in half of cutting the roof off

 

Actually, my idea was to take out the rear center console and do some plastic work at my buddies local shop. Then we were planning to throw some smaller passenger bucket seats back there. The fronts will be replaced separately from the rear, I'm just curious if anyone has done this to their rx8 yet.

 

If you're racing the car, take the rear seats out completely. If you're doing it for looks, then leave them alone. There's not even close to enough room back there for anything you're discussing. Even removal of the center console gives you a very minimal amount of extra room. You're talking about major fabrication work for, essentially, nothing.

Replacement of the factory headunit is discussed in the FAQ at the top of the forum. Manufacturers are moving away from the flip-out LCD single din headunits and simply making more double dins. Too many moving parts that add to cost and potential for failure. Spring for a double din headunit with minimal buttons (like the Pioneer AVIC Z-series) and it will look as factory as possible.

 

I'll check it out, thanks.

 

The first set of seats you mentioned costs, as a pair, less than what a single FIA compliant rail costs in most cases.
Reclinable "bucket" seats are often heavier than OE ones and most of the real bucket seats are not that safe if used with a 3 point seatbelt.
Stick to brands like recaro, sparco, corbeau etc... oh well, since it's not a race car just keep your stock interior as it is.