Hundreds Of Products Ready Today. Dispatch/Collection Customer Question: Pole Positions To Sportster CS In A 997.1 GT3
Customer question, Porsche 997.1 GT3
A customer emailed this week asking for a price on swapping the Recaro Pole Positions in his 2007 997.1 GT3 for Sportster CS seats, brackets included. It is a good question and the answer is not just the seat price, because those two seats do not mount the same way.
A Pole Position is a fixed back shell that hangs off side mount brackets. A Sportster CS is a reclining seat that sits down on a base through runners. The side mounts he has now do not carry over, but the base underneath might, and the runners are useful to him either way.
Here is the full stack, the number, and the one question that could save him GBP 445 on the pair.
- Pole Position is side mount and Sportster CS is base mount, so the side mounts do not carry over
- A slider suits both, so he can add movement to the seats he has without changing them
- The CS is drilled 405mm x 290mm, which is the Recaro pattern and not a universal one
- The stack is floor, then a vehicle base, then Recaro double locking runners, then the seat
- Complete per seat is GBP 1,970.84, so GBP 3,941.68 for the pair
- If the base already in his car is reusable, the pair drops to GBP 3,496.48
- We list two Porsche 997 bases and only one of them suits a Recaro. Details below
Why the mounting changes completely
These are both Recaro seats, so it is reasonable to assume the brackets carry over. They do not, and it is worth understanding why before looking at the price.
The Pole Position is a competition shell with no floor to it. It has no bottom to bolt down, only two sides with holes in them, so it hangs between a pair of Recaro side mount brackets and those bolt down to a base in the car. Take the shell out and the side mounts have nothing left to hold.
The Sportster CS is a reclining seat built on a steel frame. It bolts downwards through a 405mm x 290mm pattern onto runners, and those runners bolt to the base. Different part, different job, and the Recaro double locking runners are the ones made for it.
The runners are the interesting bit though, because they are not exclusive to the reclining seat. A slider will sit under a set of side mounts just as happily as under a CS, which opens up an option worth pricing before you spend anything.
| Pole Position, what he has | Sportster CS, what he wants | |
|---|---|---|
| Type | Fixed back competition shell | Reclining sport seat |
| Mounting | Side mount | Base mount |
| Bolt pattern | None, it hangs from side mounts | 405mm x 290mm |
| Needs | Recaro side mount brackets | Recaro double locking runners |
| Sits on | A base in the car | A base in the car |
| Adjustment | Fixed once bolted | Reclines, and slides on the runners |
Before you spend anything, the cheaper option
If the reason for the change is that the Pole Positions do not move, there is a much cheaper answer than new seats, and it would be wrong of us to quote you GBP 3,941 without putting it in front of you first.
A slider goes between the side mounts and the base frame. The shell keeps its side mounts, the slider goes underneath them, and you get the fore and aft travel you are missing. It is one part per seat and the seats you already own stay in the car.
The catch, and it is the only one: a homologated seat with a slider under it is no longer FIA compliant for competition. On the road that does not matter at all. If the GT3 is never going to be scrutineered, this is GBP 166.94 a side against GBP 1,970.84 a side.
The stack, bottom to top
Three parts per seat, in this order.
1. The base
Planted Technology Porsche 997 bracket, GBP 222.60 a side. A flat steel plate that bolts to the factory seat mounting points and gives the runners something to sit on.
2. The runners
Recaro double locking sliding runners, GBP 166.94 a seat, 220mm of travel. Made for Recaro seats directly, which is why they suit the CS and its 405mm pattern.
3. The seat
Recaro Sportster CS, GBP 1,581.30 each. Base mount, reclining, drilled 405mm x 290mm, listed for all driver heights and up to a 38in waist.
The price he asked for
Everything inc VAT, and this is the complete job with nothing left to add afterwards.
| Part | Each | Pair |
|---|---|---|
| Planted Porsche 997 seat bracket | GBP 222.60 | GBP 445.20 |
| Recaro double locking sliding runners | GBP 166.94 | GBP 333.88 |
| Recaro Sportster CS | GBP 1,581.30 | GBP 3,162.60 |
| Complete, per seat GBP 1,970.84 and for the pair GBP 3,941.68 | ||
The seat is the bulk of it. The bracket and the runners together come to GBP 389.54 a side, which is what makes the question below worth asking.
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From £1,581.30 Incl. VATPayPal CreditKlarna ReadySelect options This product has multiple variants. The options may be chosen on the product page
One option on the seat itself. The CS also comes as a matched pair in Ambla leather and Dinamica suede at GBP 3,623.76, which is a different trim from the standard seat above and not a cheaper way of buying two. Worth a look if the GT3 interior is going to be finished properly, but it is a trim upgrade and priced as one.
The 997 bracket that will not work
This one is worth being blunt about, because we sell both and they are within GBP 33 of each other.
Our Cobra Porsche 997 subframe is drilled 291mm x 330mm. That is Cobra own pattern and it suits Cobra seats. The Sportster CS is 405mm x 290mm. The two do not line up, so a Cobra 997 subframe is the wrong base for this job even though the listing says Porsche 997 and the price looks comparable.
The Planted bracket is a flat plate with the runners bolting to it, which is what a Recaro wants. If you are ordering yourself and not through us, that is the difference to watch for.
One more thing that is not a trap, just a quirk of our catalogue. Planted list this bracket once for the 997 specifically and once as a 996, Boxster, 997, Cayman and 991 part, because Porsche kept a common seat mounting arrangement across the water cooled cars. Same bracket, same price, so order whichever you land on.
What he gains and what he gives up
Worth saying, because this is a downgrade in one specific sense and an upgrade in every other.
He loses the FIA homologation. A Pole Position is an approved competition seat and the CS is a road and track seat, so if the GT3 ever goes near scrutineering that matters. He also loses some of the lateral hold, because a fixed shell wrapping your shoulders will always beat a reclining seat on a circuit.
What he gains is a car he can actually use. The CS reclines, it slides on the runners, it is far easier to get in and out of, and on a 997 that does road miles that is the whole point. Garreth would make the same swap on a GT3 that has stopped being a track car, and would talk you out of it on one that has not.
If the Pole Positions are coming out in good condition, tell us. They hold their value and there is always somebody after a pair.
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Planted 997 brackets, Recaro double locking runners and two Sportster CS seats is the whole job with nothing to add later. Before you order, get the shells out and photograph what they are bolted to. If that base takes the runners you do not need our brackets and the pair drops to GBP 3,496.48. Send Cameron the photograph and the registration and he will confirm it either way.
Questions on this swap
Can I reuse my Recaro side mounts?
Not with the Sportster CS. Side mounts hold a shell by its sides and the CS bolts downwards onto runners, so there is nothing for them to grip and they come out with the Pole Positions. Worth knowing the other way round though: if you keep the Pole Positions, those same side mounts will sit on top of a slider and give you the movement you are missing.
Can I reuse whatever the Pole Positions are bolted to?
Possibly, and it is worth GBP 445.20 on a pair. It depends what is in there, so take the shells out, photograph the base and send it to us with the registration. If it takes the Recaro runners you keep it and buy less.
Why can I not use the Cobra 997 subframe, it is cheaper per side?
Because it is drilled 291mm x 330mm for Cobra seats and the Sportster CS is 405mm x 290mm. It fits the car and not the seat. The Planted bracket is the flat plate the Recaro runners want.
Do I need the Recaro runners, or will any slider do?
Take the Recaro ones. They are made for Recaro seats at the 405mm width and give 220mm of travel, and they are the double locking type. Mixing a generic runner into a seat at this money is a false economy.
Can I just add a slider to the seats I already have?
Yes, and it is the cheapest answer by a distance. The slider goes between the side mounts and the base frame, so the Pole Positions stay in the car and you get the fore and aft travel. GBP 166.94 a side. The only catch is that a homologated seat with a slider under it is no longer FIA compliant for competition, so it is a road fitment. If the car is not being scrutineered, that costs you nothing.
Will I still pass scrutineering?
Not on the seat, no. The Pole Position carries an FIA homologation and the Sportster CS is a road and track seat with no FIA approval. If the car is ever going to be scrutineered, that is the thing to weigh before you swap. Tell us what you enter and we will be straight about it.
Is the CS going to fit a GT3 cabin?
It is a bigger seat than a Pole Position and the runners add height, so it is worth checking against your own driving position, especially if you are tall or the car has a cage in it. Send us your height and whether there is a cage and we will tell you honestly before you spend anything.
Send us a photograph and we will price it exactly
The number above is the complete job buying everything new. To find out whether you need all of it, get one shell out, photograph what is underneath, and send that with the registration.
Ring 0115 9893488 or bring the car to the showroom. On a 997 that is worth doing anyway, because you can sit in a Sportster CS before you commit to two of them.