Audi R8 Type 42 bucket seat guide

There are two made for the car. The Planted SB102 at 185.50 pounds per seat is listed for the first generation R8, 2006 to 2015, and takes the seat directly or on side mounts. The Cobra R8 direct fit subframe at 229.17 pounds per seat is base mount only on a 291mm x 330mm pattern and Cobra list it for their own seats. If you are buying a Cobra seat the Cobra subframe is the tidier fit. If you are buying anything else, or you want a side mount shell, the Planted is the one to have.

Cobra say fitment cannot be guaranteed with other brands, and we are not going to overrule the maker on their own part. The pattern they publish is 291mm x 330mm, so a base mount seat listed for that pattern is worth asking about rather than ruling out, and several Corbeau seats on this page carry it. Send us the seat you have in mind and we will get it confirmed with Cobra before you order either part.

Yes, on the Planted frame. Their listing says the seat mounts either directly or on side mounts, so a fixed back shell goes on with a pair of mounts underneath. The Cobra Nogaro set is 65 pounds and the Sparco FIA set is 75 pounds, one set covering both sides and mounting one seat. The Cobra subframe will not take a side mount seat without adaption bars, so pick the frame to suit the seat rather than the other way round.

No. The Type 4S from 2015 takes different parts, and both makers version them separately. Planted make a second generation bracket and Cobra make Gen 2 and RWS subframes, none of which are on this page because none of them fit a Type 42. If you have the later car, the Type 4S guide is the one to read. If you are not certain which you have, send us the registration.

Planted do not publish one for SB102. That is the honest answer rather than a guess, and it matters, because the reclining seats on this page sit on four different patterns from 291mm x 330mm up to 405mm x 280mm. If you are pairing a base mount seat with the Planted, send us both part numbers and we will get the pattern confirmed before you buy either. If you are using side mounts it does not apply.

It is a Misano Anniversary that Cobra trim and package for this car specifically, listed at 1395 pounds and made to order with 4 to 6 weeks to allow. The published figures are 885mm tall, 590mm wide, 520mm across the base, 620mm deep and 11.5kg. Cobra do not publish a mounting type or an approval on that listing, so ask us what is included before you order rather than assuming the subframe comes with it. The standard Misano Anniversary Spec 2 at 1374.17 pounds is the same seat family without the R8 packaging.

No, so you are fitting a universal belt. The mounting is the part to sort first. A Type 42 is a two seater with no rear seats and no rear belt mounts behind you, and the space between the seat backs and the engine bulkhead is shallow, so the shoulder straps need a bar or a cage rather than anything factory. Both cages on this page give you that anchorage.

It depends on what the car does and whether you are scrutineered. The TRS Magnum 6 Point Superlite at 245 pounds is FIA 8853-2016 and the cheapest current FIA belt here, with the Schroth Profi 3×2 at 370.01 pounds on the same standard. The TRS Magnum 4 Point at 205 pounds is FIA 8854-1998, an older standard some series no longer accept, so check the regulations before buying it. For road and trackday use the Clubman and Takata belts are cheaper, but all four are listed as not HANS compatible, which matters if you run a head restraint.

Two, which is more than most cars get. SW Motorsports do a Clubsport bolt in half cage at 791.67 pounds with a choice of powder coat colour, listed as dropping into the standard mounting positions without fabrication on a straight car. Custom Cages do a multipoint T45 weld in kit at 2495 pounds, part AR8/017, marked FIA approved and MSUK compliant. The bolt in comes out again and keeps the car reversible, the weld in does not.

Usually, and the frame helps, because it drops you lower than the standard seat and runners. The thing to watch is the shell rather than the car. A competition seat with a tall base and deep bolsters gives some of that height back and can make getting in awkward over a wide sill. Sit in the car and measure the space above your head before you order, particularly if a helmet is going on. Tell us your height and what the car is used for and we will point you at the shells that suit.

The Sparco Sprint L at 237 pounds is listed for a 40in to 42in waist, which is the widest figure published on this page, and it takes base or side mount. The OMP ARS-R at 428 pounds covers 36in to 38in. Among the reclining seats all four Corbeaus cover 32in to 38in and the Sparco R100, the SPR and both Auto Styles are listed for all sizes. An R8 cabin is narrow, so it is worth measuring the space between the tunnel and the sill before settling on a wide shell.

That depends whose frame you buy. Cobra include the sliding runner with their frames, so on a Cobra frame you keep the adjustment as it comes and there is nothing to add. On a Sparco, Planted, OMP, Recaro or SW Motorsport frame the runner is a separate part. Side mounts on their own hold the seat in one place, which sits lower and suits a car one person drives, and on a two seater that is often the right trade. If you want the adjustment, the Endurance kit is 34 pounds, the Sparco kit is 34.95 pounds on a 345mm x 271mm pattern, and the Cobra premium runners are 70 pounds in 291mm or 405mm handle width. None of the three is FIA approved, so treat them as road and trackday parts.

Usually yes. The original buckle stays where it is while the seat around it moves, so once the seat is bolted down check you can reach the buckle one handed and that the shell is not fouling the stalk. In an R8 the cabin is tight and the tunnel is high, so this is worth doing before the trim goes back rather than after.

The Type 42 is the first generation R8, built 2006 to 2015, in Coupe and Spyder with the 4.2 V8 or the 5.2 V10. The tell is the side blade, the large contrasting panel behind the door, which on this car is a single piece. The second generation from 2015 splits it into two and has a flatter, more angular nose. The frames are generation specific, so if there is any doubt send us the registration and we will check it before anything ships.