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Seat Slider Showdown: Which Motorsport Runners Give You the Best Travel?
Seat fitting guide, runners
When you fit an aftermarket seat, the driving position matters as much as the seat. Sliding runners, or seat sliders, are what give a base mounted seat its fore and aft adjustment, and they come in more versions than most people expect. We sell runners from Cobra, Corbeau, Recaro, Sparco, OMP, Sabelt, Endurance Motorsport, PCI and Tillett.
This guide covers how much travel the main runners give, which seats they are made for, when you should use them and when you should not. The short version from Garreth: match the runner to the seat maker and to the frame's bolt pattern, and leave them out of a car that is going racing unless your rules allow them.
- Runners sit between the seat and the frame and add fore and aft adjustment
- Cobra runners give 200mm of travel, Recaro double locking runners 220mm and OMP's kit 145mm
- Common runner widths are 291mm, 345mm and 405mm
- Match runners to the seat maker; Recaro seats go on Planted brackets
- Runners add height, so check headroom first
- In scrutineered competition, runners are often not accepted; check your rules
What is on this page
What runners do and why they matter
A seat on a fixed frame goes where you bolt it and stays there. That is fine in a single driver car, and a nuisance in anything shared or used on the road. A pair of runners bolts between the seat base and the frame and puts the fore and aft adjustment back, without a reclining mechanism.
- Base mount seats use runners between the seat and the frame or subframe.
- Side mount bucket seats are usually fixed to side mounts; some makers, such as Sabelt, offer runners that go between the side mounts and the frame.
- Runners add height. You are adding a mechanism under the seat, so the seat sits higher. In a car where headroom is tight, measure first.
The order of the stack, from the floor up, is: the car floor, the subframe or base mount, the runners if you want adjustment, then side mounts if the seat uses them, then the seat.
How much travel do you get?
| Runner | Travel | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Recaro double locking runner | 220mm | Double locking mechanism, for Recaro base mount seats |
| Cobra sliding runner | 200mm | 291mm or 405mm handle width, for Cobra base mount seats |
| OMP seat slider kit (HC/665) | 145mm | Suits OMP frames and seat mounts; hardware not included |
These are the figures from the makers and our listings. Of the three, the Recaro gives the most travel and the OMP the least, but for most drivers any of them gives enough range to set the position properly. Travel on other runners, such as Corbeau, Sparco and Sabelt, varies by version; ask us for the figure on the one you are looking at.
More travel is only useful if the seat can use it. In many cars the seat will hit the rear seat, the cage or the B pillar before the runner reaches its end, so it is worth measuring the space as well as reading the number.
Laid side by side, you can see why runners are not interchangeable. The lengths differ, the hole positions differ, and the handle that joins the pair sets the width between them.
That width is the number that matters. It has to match the bolt pattern on the underside of the seat, and the frame has to take the runner. Turn the seat over and measure across the mounting holes before you order anything.
Which runners suit which seats
Our advice is to use runners made by the same company as the seat wherever possible. Makers design their runners around their own bolt patterns, and most will not guarantee fitment with another brand’s seat.
- Cobra. Cobra runners fit Cobra base mounted bucket seats and reclining seats, with a 291mm or 405mm handle. The 291mm matches Cobra’s standard base pattern, which covers most of the range. Cobra’s own direct fit frames already include a runner.
- Corbeau. Corbeau runners come in 291mm, 345mm and 405mm widths. Match the runner width to the pattern on the seat and the Corbeau frame. Corbeau and Recaro fittings are not compatible with each other.
- Recaro. Recaro base mount seats use a 405mm pattern and go on Planted brackets. The Recaro double locking runner is the native runner for them, and the Endurance Recaro compatible kit is an alternative.
- Sparco and OMP. Sparco’s runner kit bolts to Sparco’s 345mm by 271mm pattern, and the OMP kit suits OMP frames and seat mounts. Neither fits a side mount seat.
- Sabelt. Sabelt’s runner kit is for Sabelt seats on Sabelt side mount brackets, and does not suit base mounted seats.
- Universal. PCI universal sliders and the Endurance Motorsport kit are for builds where there is no ready-made frame, such as kit cars and fabricated mounts.
If you are mixing brands, send us the seat and the frame before you order and we will check the patterns. Our guide to universal sliding runners goes further into the universal options.
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Are sliding runners suitable for motorsport?
For road cars and track days, runners are fine. They give the adjustment you need, especially when more than one person drives the car.
For competition, it is different. An FIA seat installation is scrutineered, and runners add a moving mechanism between the seat and its approved mountings. Sparco sell their runner kit as a non-FIA fitment, and runners are often not accepted where the seat mounting is inspected. Most competition cars bolt the seat directly to its approved mounts in a fixed position.
If you race, read your championship’s rules and ask the scrutineer before fitting runners. For drivers who share a competition car, an adjustable pedal box is the usual way to deal with different sizes.
Runner widths at a glance
- 291mm. Cobra’s standard base pattern, and Corbeau’s Sportline and classic seats.
- 345mm. The Sparco and OMP base pattern (345mm by 271mm), and Corbeau’s standard motorsport width.
- 405mm. Recaro base mount seats, and wide or XL shells from Cobra and Corbeau.
Some seats have more than one pattern. The Corbeau RRS, for example, has both 291mm and 345mm patterns on its base. Check the seat before you choose the runner, and if the numbers do not line up, ask us. Our post on whether Sparco runners bolt straight to the car shows how the stack goes together in a real fit.
Which seat runners give the most travel?
Of the runners we list with a figure, the Recaro double locking runner gives 220mm, Cobra 200mm and the OMP kit 145mm.
Can I use one brand's runners with another brand's seat?
We recommend runners from the same maker as the seat; most makers will not guarantee fitment otherwise, so check with us first.
Do runners raise the seat?
Yes. They add a mechanism under the seat, so check your headroom before fitting them.
Can I use sliding runners in motorsport?
Often not in scrutineered competition. Read your championship’s rules and ask the scrutineer before fitting them.
What width runner do I need for a Recaro seat?
Recaro base mount seats use a 405mm pattern and go on Planted brackets, with Recaro’s own runner.
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Most travelRecaro double locking runner
220mm of travel and a double locking mechanism, for Recaro base mount seats.
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