Tall People Solutions?
 

I am interested in buying a 2022 BRZ base to replace both my 13 FRS and 09 335d but the seating position is terrible compared to my 13 FRS and previous 14 BRZ. I like to sit quite upright and close-ish to the wheel and find my head has zero room for a helmet (not even enough head room without a helmet) and my right knee hits the column plastic with it all the way up. I figure minimum an inch lower is what I need to consider the car, but I also am not sure what’s going to be involved wiring/warning light defeat wise to change seats and brackets. Also do we know yet eta for aftermarket seat/rail options or whether 1st Gen aftermarket parts are likely to fit?

Anything aftermarket will not have a side airbag, which IMO is a non-starter for a daily driven car.
On top of that, many argue that fixed-back bucket seats are unsafe at the track without a roll bar / half cage.

Previously I looked into fabricating a custom bracket for the 1st gen to mount the stock seat an inch lower, but couldn't figure out an easy way to do it.
The good news is the 2022 seat is attached to the seat rails differently than '13–'20. This time they went with four horizontal bolts, so perhaps two L-shaped brackets is all that's needed to mount the stock seat in a fixed lower position.
The challenge might be to figure out how to bolt the brackets to the floor when the seat is in place. Might require some serious car yoga!

Another possibility is to do foamoctemy to the lower seat cushion.

I would suggest reverting to your teenage form to reduce your height. But I'm not qualified, nor tall enough, to give a good solution.

I have the same problem. I also prefer to be sitting more upright, and the BRZ does not allow for this, nevermind with a helmet on. I will also be looking at many different solutions, custom brackets or a different seat, maybe remove the headliner? Every millimeter counts at this point.

Recaro sportster CS has airbags.

How tall are you guys?

I don't think we can get those in North America. I would love a pair though.

First gen stuff bolts in, supposedly.


That said, I definitely felt like the seat sits higher too in the second gen, but I still have decent headroom even with a helmet at 6'4" and I'd love to keep stock seat and lower it, like the Aurora Auto Designs lowering rails for the ND Miata

There are a shit ton of us tall people in these things because we're all would-be mr2/s2k/miata owners had we fit in any of those.


That's my story and I'm sticking with it.

Truth!!!!! K-swapped MR2

Im 6'1 and I sight directly upright as well I fit just fine however I would not be able to wear a helmet unless I move the seat back. Do you have more leg length or more torso length? I actually sit further up in the BRZ than I do my Z3 as the pedals in my BMW are so much closer to my feet I can push the seat back a bit. Also do you have the pitch of the seat cranked down? Ive found you can gain a little more clearance by pitching the seat a bit

So, just confirming, seat bottom as low/tilted back as it can go, steering wheel pulled as far out as possible? I've found you can get a few more millimeters longitudinally on the gen1 steering wheel if it's tilted a few degrees down from the topmost setting. Might want to try a couple clicks back on the seat and tilt the wheel down a bit. Aftermarket steering wheel might help too.

When I did my test fit at the dealership, I actually wished that the steering wheel would have come out further.

In 1989, I sat in a Miata and my head just touched the cross bar on the convertible top. I knew instinctively that several miles of my head bouncing off that bar would be a big pile of regret. Over the years I would try out the next iteration of the MX5 and no dice. I am only 6' tall. The BRZ fits like a glove, problem solved.