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Chevrolet Corvette C5 bucket seat guide

1997 to 2004

Before you buy anything for this car, there is one thing to get right, and getting it wrong is the most common mistake on any Corvette order that comes through us.

Planted make four different Corvette seat brackets. One for the C3, one for the C5, one for the C6 and C7, and a separate one again for the ZR1. They look similar in a search result and they are not interchangeable, because the floor pans and the mounting points changed between generations. If your car is a 1997 to 2004 C5, there is exactly one part number that fits it and the others will not.

Past that, the C5 is an easy car to seat. It is wide inside in a way that almost nothing European is, which means the big shells that we normally have to talk people out of are genuinely the right answer here.

  • Planted list four Corvette brackets and only the C5 chassis one fits a 1997 to 2004 car
  • Base mount only, so the fore and aft adjustment goes with the standard seat
  • The cabin is wide, so the XL and large shells are a real option rather than a stretch
  • The Corbeau Sprint X System 5 XL is listed at a 36in to 40in waist for all heights
  • The Sabelt Titan X-Large is listed at 36in to 40in and for drivers over 6ft
  • Most C5s are left hand drive, so check which side the shell is handed for if it is handed
Corvette C5 on track with a helmeted driver
The C5 on a trackday

What is on this page

  1. The bracket
  2. Competition seats
  3. Reclining seats
  4. Harnesses
  5. Fit table
  6. FAQ

Getting the right bracket, first time

The bracket you want for a C5 is the Planted Chevrolet Corvette C5 chassis bracket, listed for 1997 to 2004. That is the only one of the four Corvette brackets that fits your car.

We also sell the C3 bracket for 1968 to 1982 cars, the C6 and C7 bracket, and a separate ZR1 bracket for 2009 to 2013. All four are genuine parts and all four are for a Corvette. None of them is a substitute for another, because the floor and the mounting points changed with each generation. If you order by searching Corvette and taking the first result, there is a decent chance you get a bracket for somebody else car.

So if you are at all unsure, send us the year and we will confirm the part number before it ships. It costs us nothing and it saves you a return.

The bracket is a direct fit base mount. It bolts into the standard mounting points and sits the seat lower, and it sets the position once, because no sliding sub frame is catalogued for the C5. A fixed back shell needs a pair of side mount brackets on top of it, which are a separate part.

Four Corvette brackets, one of them is yoursC3, C5, C6 and C7, and ZR1 are four different parts. For a 1997 to 2004 car it is the C5 chassis bracket and nothing else. Send us the year of your car and we will confirm it against the Planted listing before anything leaves us.

Fixed back competition seats

Here is where the C5 differs from most of what we write about. It is a wide car inside, and the shells that get sold as XL are not an admission of anything in a Corvette, they are simply the ones that suit the cabin.

The Corbeau Sprint X System 5 XL is listed at a 36in to 40in waist and for all driver heights, which is the widest thing on this page. The Sabelt Titan X-Large is the same waist range and is listed for drivers over 6ft. The OMP ARS-R sits between at 36in to 38in, and the Sparco Evo L QRT is the large version of the Evo shell.

If you are a normal size and the width is not the issue, the Mirco RS2 3D and the OMP Champ-R are the value FIA shells and the Corbeau Revenge X is the comfortable one. Do not buy an XL seat just because the car is wide, because a shell you slide about in is worse than the standard seat.

Reclining seats

Plenty of C5s are grand tourers that get taken to a circuit twice a year, and a fixed back shell is a lot to live with on a long drive to one.

The Corbeau Sportline RRS Leather Elite and the Tartan Edition are the ones that suit the interior of a Corvette without looking like an afterthought, and both are listed to a 38in waist for all driver heights. The two Cobra Misano Anniversary seats are the expensive end and among the nicest reclining seats made. The Sparco SPX and SPR are the modern equivalents.

The Auto Style JW and the Sparco R333 are the sensible money if you want the support without the bill.

💬
Our picksPlanted C5 bracket and a Sprint X System 5 XL

For a C5 that does track days, that pairing gives you an FIA approved shell wide enough for the car and for most people who drive one, on the correct bracket. If it is a road car, a pair of Corbeau Sportline RRS recliners suits the interior and keeps the recline. Send Cameron your height and waist rather than assuming XL, because a shell that is too big does not hold you.

Ask us what fitsCall 0115 9893488

Harnesses

The standard belt is right on the road and works with everything above. On circuit a harness is what holds you into the seat, and in a car that carries this much speed into a corner that matters more than usual.

The shoulder straps need a solid anchor behind you at or above shoulder height, and we do not catalogue a roll cage for the C5, so that means a harness bar. In a targa roofed C5 the rear bulkhead and the roof structure are not interchangeable with a proper bar, so get somebody who has done it before to look at it. What you must not do is anchor the shoulder straps down to the floor behind the seat, because that angle loads your spine instead of holding you back.

💬
Our recommendationsSort the bar first, then pick the belts

On a C5 the anchor is the hard part and the belts are the easy part. Once the bar is right, the TRS Clubman belts cover fast road and trackday use with no renewal date, and the Magnum 6 point Superlite and Schroth Profi carry FIA dates for series that ask for them. Tell us what is behind the seats and we will match them properly.

Ask us what fitsCall 0115 9893488

What fits what

Waist, height and approval are taken from each product listing. Where a listing does not state a figure the table says so.

SeatMountingWaistHeightApproval
Corbeau Sprint X System 5 XLSide mount36in to 40inAll heightsFIA 8855-1999
Sabelt Titan X-LargeSide mount36in to 40inOver 6ftFIA 8855-1999
OMP ARS-RSide mount36in to 38inAll heightsFIA 8855-1999
Sparco Evo L QRTSide mountNot statedNot statedFIA 8855-1999
Corbeau Revenge X System 1Side mount32in to 36inUnder 6ftFIA 8855-1999
Mirco RS2 3D FibreglassSide mount32in to 36inAll heightsFIA 8855-1999
OMP Champ-RSide mount32in to 36inUnder 6ftFIA 8855-1999
Sabelt GT3Side mount32in to 36inAll heightsFIA 8855-1999
Corbeau Sportline RRS Leather EliteBase mount32in to 38inAll heightsRoad and track
Corbeau Sportline RRS Tartan EditionBase mount32in to 38inAll heightsRoad and track
Cobra Misano AnniversaryBase mount32in to 38inAll heightsRoad and track
Cobra Misano Anniversary Spec 2Base mountAll sizesAll heightsRoad and track
Sparco SPRBase mountAll sizesAll heightsRoad and track
Sparco SPXBase mount32in to 38inAll heightsRoad and track
Auto Style Type JWBase mountAll sizesAll heightsRoad and track
Sparco R333Base mount32in to 36inUnder 6ftRoad and track

Questions about fitting seats in a Corvette C5

The Chevrolet Corvette C5 chassis bracket, listed for 1997 to 2004. We also sell C3, C6 and C7 and ZR1 brackets and none of them will fit your car. Send us the year and we will confirm the part number before it ships.

No. The floor pan and the mounting points changed between the generations, which is exactly why Planted make separate parts. It is the most common ordering mistake on a Corvette and it is the reason we ask for the year.

Only if you are wide. The cabin being roomy means an XL shell will physically fit, which in a European car it often will not. It does not mean an XL shell is right for you. A seat you can slide about in holds you less well than the standard one, so buy for your measurements and enjoy the extra elbow room.

No. The Planted bracket is a direct fit base mount and no sliding sub frame is catalogued for the C5, so the position is set once. Sit in the car and get it right, with your helmet on if you use one, before you tighten anything.

Not one we catalogue. For a harness you need a bar behind the seats at or above shoulder height, and on a targa roofed car that is a job worth having somebody experienced look at rather than improvising. Ring us and tell us what the car is for.

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