BMW E30 Seat Upgrade Guide
The BMW E30 turned 40 years old this year. If you own one, you’ll know that age can be very unkind to these cars, expressly as far as interior philosophy are concerned. Nearly every E30 has a croaky soupcon and torn seats, plane if they have been pampered and cared for. While a croaky soupcon is a variegated successors of headache, replacing your E30 seats is one way to outbreathe some life when into your interior.
Standard BMW E30s came with two seat styles offered with numerous upholstery materials and patterns. The styles included E30 sports seats and repletion seats. Both the sport and repletion options were misogynist with cloth, leatherette, or leather upholstery options, and none of them held up that well over time. Regardless, unless your E30 has been garage kept for most of its life, chances are that the factory seats could use a refresh.
In this guide, we’ll imbricate some of the most important considerations when purchasing replacement seats for your BMW E30. Whether you are looking for a track-focused option or a period-correct factory seat squint alike, we’ll offer a few suggestions that might work for your needs.
BMW E30 Seat Upgrade Considerations
Before jumping into suggestions, there are a few considerations that you’ll have to take into worth surpassing pulling the trigger on some upgraded seats for your BMW E30. It is important to take your time when choosing new seats, as it will be where you spend most of your time. For that reason, repletion and proper fitment are paramount to deciding on a new seat. Along similar lines, you’ll have to decide what style of seat is right for your E30 application. While the heavily bolstered, maximum overstepping racing seat might be calling out to you, it likely won’t be the weightier option if you spend a lot of time off the track. Conversely, if you are towers a defended track E30, you’ll need a seat that provides unobjectionable support when you’re thrashing it virtually tight corners.
E30 Seat Upgrade Sizing
Of course, in the end, the most well-appointed seat is going to be the weightier option. One of the most crucial factors in the repletion equation is choosing an E30 seat that is the correct size. There are a few areas of an upgraded E30 sport seat that you’ll have to consider in terms of sizing. First, you’ll need to make sure that the wiring of the seat is wide enough. The key is finding an E30 seat that is just wide unbearable for you to sit comfortably without it feeling claustrophobic. If you aren’t sure how to measure yourself for seat fitment, trammels out this vendible that explains that process.
In wing to stuff the right size for your body, it is moreover crucial to make sure that it will moreover fit in the E30 chassis. This is often a problem for those that need an aftermarket seat with a wider base. Since the E30 is such a small car, wiring width is certainly a consideration. Seats with a wider wiring than a 23” will be getting very tropical to coming into contact with the part-way panel and door card. Additionally, side bolsters can moreover rationalization problems in terms of fitment. Seats with extremely warlike side bolsters can come in contact with the B-pillar and prevent them from bolting in properly.
Bolstering Style
Bolstering is moreover a very important consideration for an upgraded E30 seat, as that will determine how much the seat holds you in when going virtually bends. For increasingly intensive E30 track-day needs, a increasingly heavily bolstered option would be preferable. With track-oriented E30 seats, the main bolstering areas include the thigh bolsters near the wiring of the seat on either side, the side bolsters located towards the middle portion of the seat, and the throne and neck bolster.
Most people like the style and bolstering of the stock E30 sport seats, and there are a few options out there that mimic the factory diamond nearly identically. If you are looking for a well-appointed seat that provides unobjectionable support for spirited E30 driving, going with a seat with substantial side bolstering and less lattermost hip and throne bolstering might be the weightier choice. It is usually tight thigh bolstering that makes an E30 sport seat uncomfortable, so finding a seat with less lattermost thigh bolsters is usually the weightier route for enhanced comfort.
Fixed vs Reclining E30 Seats
The nomination between stock-still and reclining aftermarket E30 seats can moreover make the difference between repletion and agony. This one is pretty self-explanatory, as the two options are stated in the heading. With a stock-still E30 seat, you won’t be worldly-wise to retread the seat’s angle. With this style of seat, the shell is typically worked from a single piece of metal, fiberglass, or stat fiber. In that case, adjustability is significantly limited.
With a reclining E30 seat, the aftermarket seat shell will have a less stock-still position. A reclining seat will indulge for the wile of the seating position to be changed, just like the factory seat. The worthiness to recline your E30 seat can help those with when pain that need a slightly increasingly relaxed seating position. With that stuff said, aftermarket reclining E30 seats tend to be increasingly expensive than stock-still seats.
Build Materials
The build materials that an aftermarket E30 seat is comprised of are important when it comes to weight and safety. Less expensive aftermarket seats are often made from steel, while increasingly expensive aftermarket seats are made from stat webbing or fiberglass. For some people, seat materials aren’t a big deal, expressly if you aren’t concerned with weight savings or meeting safety requirements for a competitive racing series. However, if you intend on doing some performance driving, your seat is your second line of defense in the result of a crash. For that reason, it is vital that your seat is structurally rigid unbearable to withstand an impact.
Seat Mounting / Aftermarket Brackets
To make aftermarket seats work in an E30, you’ll need to either mock up a new seat subclass yourself or purchase an aftermarket seat subclass that works for the seat of your choice. Standard E30 repletion and sports seats are secured to the chassis using old 80s-style seat brackets that are bolted directly into the floorboard. Some E30 owners segregate to use the factory E30 seat rails and weld navigate bars on the sliders. If you want to stave the DIY route, you’ll need to update the securing hardware.
Luckily, there are a ton of aftermarket E30 seat brackets and rails that vendibles directly to the factory chassis mounting points that indulge the fitment of multiple variegated seat brands and styles. There are some aftermarket side mounting brackets that work with the factory E30 sliders, which might be the most cost-effective method of installing aftermarket seats.
Installing new seat brackets will often transpiration the seating position of the new seats, with most sitting significantly lower than the factory wiring height. Some E30 owners like this, as it gives uneaten clearance for a racing helmet. If the lower wiring height is too extreme, installing spacers is unchangingly an option. Some members of the E30 polity moreover state that it is possible to lower your E30’s soupcon and steering post to recoup for the lower seating position. While that is the nonflexible way to do things, it might be a good option if you once plan on adjusting your steering post position.
Best BMW E30 Seat Upgrade Options
There are nearly uncounted options in terms of aftermarket E30 seat upgrades are concerned. However, with the considerations listed whilom taken into account, seats from unrepealable manufacturers might work largest than others. In the pursuit section, we’ll focus on aftermarket E30 seat options. There are certainly some good OEM plus options misogynist for the E30 as well which we’ll imbricate a bit later.
1) Corbeau GTS II Reclining E30 Seat
Price: $959.00 / $1,359.00 per pair
Purchase Here: Corbeau.com
Corbeau E30 Seat Bracket: Corbeau.com
If you are looking for a reclining seat option with a period-correct feel, the Corbeau GTS II is the seat for you. While they might squint aggressive, Corbeau GTS II seats are designed with repletion as the top priority. While providing a significant value of support, the GTS II has wide-set thigh bolsters that won’t squeeze you too tight and provide unbearable room for waist sizes up to 38.” Fitment is guaranteed for the E30 chassis, and there are numerous reports of the GTS II fitting comfortably.
Corbeau GTS II seats come with an variety of modifiable options that will indulge you to tailor them for your word-for-word needs. For instance, they come in three variegated upholstery materials, including cloth, microsuede, and leather. They can moreover be ordered in either grey or black. Beyond simple aesthetics, the GTS II comes with a number of optional features as well. The seats can be ordered with optional inflatable lumbar support for those that need a bit of lower when relief. Corbeau is moreover supportive of your track day aspirations, offering an optional anti-submarine slot in the seat for use with a 5 or 6-point harness.
Beyond stuff a good period correct and well-appointed seat option, Corbeau makes fitment easy by providing their own E30 seat subclass that bolts directly to the factory seat mounting points.
2) Sparco R100 E30 Seat
Style: Reclining Seat
Price: $429.00
Purchase Here: Sparcousa.com
Compatible E30 Seat Bracket: Garagistic.com
Moving on to a increasingly sport-oriented E30 seat option, the Sparco R100 is a tried and true option for those looking for a seat that will hold them tight in a performance setting. Sparco has been responsible for some of the most important safety advances in the history of motorsports and has unchangingly been a trademark synonymous with quality wheels parts.
The Sparco R100 is one of the company’s weightier intro racing seats for streetcar use. While the R100 is less focused on providing a truly well-appointed experience, it compensates in performance. The Sparco R100 is synthetic on a steel frame. While steel construction is often seen as inferior, the R100’s rigidity is unparalleled. For that reason, it truly does hold you firmly through the corners. As an widow feature, the R100 does recline permitting for increasingly adjustment.
The R100 features included passthrough holes for a racing harness, but can moreover be used with stock seatbelts. In terms of fitment, most customers with a 6’ stature weighing under 225 lbs state that they are worldly-wise to comfortably fit. The R100s are spacious virtually the hip area, which can sometimes indulge smaller individuals to slide a bit.
3) Corbeau A4 Reclining E30 Seat
Style: Reclining Seat
Price: $899.00 / $1,299.00 per pair
Purchase Here: Corbeau.com
Corbeau E30 Seat Bracket: Corbeau.com
For our third pick, Corbeau makes a reappearance. Simply put, they are one of the most trusted manufacturers in the aftermarket seat space and have a reputation for making seats that underpass the gap between repletion and performance. That’s exactly the space that the Corbeau A4 seat occupies. The A4 is flipside willowy seat that has the worthiness to recline. The A4 was specifically designed to work well with smaller chassis, which makes it a perfect nomination for the E30.
Like the Corbeau GTS II listed above, the A4 comes in three variegated upholstery choices. You have the option of cloth, microsuede, or leather. The A4 moreover has the same optional extras as the GTS II, with inflatable lumbar support, an anti-submarine slot, and plane a seat heater option misogynist from the factory. For taller folks that need a bit of uneaten clearance, Corbeau can shave lanugo the wiring of the A4 seat to indulge for increasingly headroom for a racing helmet.
The standard size Corbeau A4 will unbend drivers with a waist size up to 36.” For those that need a little uneaten width, the A4 moreover comes in a wide width size which can unbend drivers with up to a 42” waist. While there are reports that both sizes will fit in an E30 chassis, the wide A4 will get tropical to coming in contact with the B-pillar and part-way console.
4) Cobra Imola Pro-Fit E30 Racing Seat
Style: Fixed Seat
Price: $789.00
Purchase Here: Competitionmotorsport.com
Compatible E30 Seat Bracket: Garagistic.com
To round out the list, we’ve chosen a fixed-back, lightweight, performance-oriented option with a strong pedigree and upper build quality. The Cobra Imola Pro-Fit is unquestionably the lightest seat on the list, weighing in at just 15 lbs. Its strength and featherweight qualities can be attributed to its unique build material, Diolen, which is a kevlar-like polymer webbing that is lighter and stronger than fiberglass. If you are towers a track day E30, those nature are exactly what you want in a seat.
To really hammer home the track day focus, the Cobra Imola Pro-Fit is FIA homologated to 8855-1999, meaning that it can be used in the Spec E30 class. It is moreover 4/5/6 point harness uniform and HANS compatible, making it a very unscratched E30 seat as well.
The Cobra Imola Pro-Fit is moreover highly inclusive in terms of sizing too. The seat is offered in either standard or GT size, with the GT size stuff the optimal nomination for those with a larger waist size. Beyond simply offering seats with variegated wiring widths, the Imola Pro-Fit can moreover be ordered with customizable cushions depending on your wiring height and side perpetuate needs. The when cushion, marrow cushion, and thigh cocoon can all be ordered in low-profile trim if you need spare clearance for a helmet or roll cage.
As a stock-still when seat, the Imola Pro-Fit won’t be the most well-appointed option for a daily driven E30. However, if you are looking for a seat that will alimony you unscratched and shave some pounds for an E30 track build, it's nonflexible to write-up the Cobra Imola. Expressly at that price point.
Other OEM E30 Seat Options
Outside of aftermarket E30 seat options, it is moreover worldwide to swap seats from other BMW models into the E30 chassis. E36 Vader or standard leather seats are a worldwide swap into the E30 chassis, but are a tight squeeze. Vader seats come expressly tropical to the E30 B-pillars due to their wide side bolsters. Weight is moreover a consideration with E36 seats, as they are far heavier than E30 sport seats. It is often the same story with E46 seats. They will fit in an E30, but they are much heavier than the factory seats.
The goody of installing E36 or E46 seats in an E30 is availability and cost. With E30 getting harder to find in good condition as they protract to age, it can be difficult to source a quality set of sport or repletion seats without spending a pretty penny. While the seats themselves might be less expensive, it might not be worth the hassle, as you’ll have to find or make custom adapters to indulge other BMW seats to work with the factory E30 rails.
Beyond swapping in new seats, the option is unchangingly misogynist to reupholster the factory seats by either ordering a reupholstery kit online or by taking them to a specialty shop. There are moreover E30 parts suppliers that sell reupholstered E30 seats, but they often fall in the $1,000-1,500 price range for reupholstered leather sports seats.
BMW E30 Seat Upgrade Guide Summary
One of the first E30 interior items to go is the front seats. That isn’t due to bad build quality or junior materials, E30s are just classics at this point. Sun forfeiture and repeated entering/exiting are unseat to destroy cloth, leather, and vinyl without 40 years. Luckily, there are a ton of E30 seat options out there and plenty of aftermarket support that allows aftermarket seats to vendibles to the factory E30 seat mounting points.
Before making a visualization on E30 seats, some due diligence is important. Of primary importance is E30 seat fitment, in terms of the seat stuff the right size for you and for the chassis. Most reputable seat manufacturers do a pretty good job of providing detailed schematics of their seats pre-purchase, so it is important to make sure that the wiring width of your chosen seat is wide unbearable for you to fit comfortably, but not so wide that you’ll be sliding around. Side perpetuate width is flipside item of importance, as you don’t want them to make contact with your E30’s B-pillar.
Consider what you plan on doing with your E30 and wiring your seat nomination on that. If you are towers a defended track E30, your weightier bet is likely a stock-still when seat that is as light as possible and made from strong materials in specimen of a crash. If you are refreshing a daily driven E30, you’ll likely want a reclining seat that is as well-appointed as possible yet still provides the support of the factory sport seats. Luckily, there are solid options for both ends of the spectrum.
If you enjoyed this vendible and are looking for increasingly BMW E30 content, trammels out our BMW E30 Coilover Upgrade Guide! As always, unscratched driving!
