You've unlocked three free gifts
All three are in your basket at no charge.
Gift box
4WD Mini RC Drift Car - BMW
GSM Performance Customer Car Colouring Book Edition 1
Which Bucket Seats Will Fit My Ferrari Daytona?
Classic car seat fitting guide
A Ferrari Daytona does not come through our doors every week, so when one pulled up outside we made the most of it. The owner had a clear brief: a proper bucket seat that fits the Daytona's tight cockpit, fitted in a way that keeps the car as close to original as possible.
That rules out most seats straight away. We got the tape measure out, took the key numbers, and worked through which seats could go in and how to mount them. This guide sets out what we found, for anyone looking at the same job.
- Measured in the car: 78 cm bum to head, 54 cm over the tunnel, 56 cm at the shoulders
- The cockpit needs a compact, low shell with thin padding
- Three seats made our shortlist: Sparco Ultra Carbon, Tillett B6 Screamer and Tillett B7
- All three are side mount seats homologated to FIA 8855-1999
- Our preferred install keeps the factory sliders; a fixed floor mount sits lower but loses adjustment
What is on this page
The Daytona cockpit in numbers
Before talking about seats, we measured the space. These are the numbers we took in the car:
- Bum to head: 78 cm
- Width over the tunnel: 54 cm
- Width at the shoulders: 56 cm
Headroom is the other limit. The Daytona’s roof is low, and anything that lifts the driver too far puts a helmet against the headlining. That means a seat with a low base and a compact shell, and a way of mounting it that does not add height.
The width over the tunnel matters just as much. A big, heavily padded touring seat will not sit square between the tunnel and the sill, so we were looking for thin but supportive shells with nothing bulky on the outside.
This is what we had to work with: the original leather seats, a low roofline, a tall centre tunnel and a door sill close to the driver's hip. The car already had harnesses and a bar behind the seats.
A replacement seat has to fit in that same footprint and still leave the driver a sensible position at the wheel and pedals. Which is why the shortlist came down to three.
The three seats that suit a Daytona
All three are compact, fixed back, side mount competition seats, homologated to FIA 8855-1999. They differ in construction, weight and how they feel on a longer drive.
Sparco Ultra Carbon
The Ultra Carbon is the top of Sparco’s FIA range, with a full carbon fibre shell. It is a low, compact seat, which is what the Daytona needs, and it is the most hardcore feeling of the three. It suits an owner who tracks the car and wants a pure competition seat. It is side mount only, and it takes Sparco’s FIA steel side mounts, which are sold separately.
Tillett B6 Screamer
The B6 Screamer is the FIA homologated version of Tillett’s B6 shell: a compact, upright profile built for track cars and low road cars. In carbon and GRP, Tillett build each shell to between 5.8 and 6.1 kg. The shell is 40 cm wide with the rolled edges cut off and 44 cm with them left on, and there is an XL version if you need more room inside. It gives good support at the sides without being punishing on a longer run, which makes it a good balance between road and track.
Tillett B7 Carbon
The B7 is the lightest of the three. Tillett quote 3.8 kg for the carbon epoxy shell, and on their own claim it is the lightest seat homologated to FIA 8855-1999. It sits you low and follows the line of your back and shoulders, so nothing fouls your arms at the wheel. The widths match the B6 at 40 or 44 cm, with a 47 cm XL shell. It is the costliest option here, and it makes most sense in a car where the weight matters as much as the look.
-
From £1,414.28 Incl. VATPayPal CreditKlarna ReadySelect options This product has multiple variants. The options may be chosen on the product page
-
From £3,662.06 Incl. VATPayPal CreditKlarna ReadySelect options This product has multiple variants. The options may be chosen on the product page
Our preferred install: on the factory sliders
Fitting a modern seat to a classic Ferrari is not a case of bolting it in and driving off. The install matters as much as the seat, and on a car like this it should be as clean and reversible as it can be.
Our recommendation is to keep the Daytona’s factory seat sliders. They are well made, they keep fore and aft adjustment, and leaving them in place avoids cutting or drilling the interior. The steps are:
- Remove the original seat but keep the sliders. Leave the factory runners in the car.
- Fit the correct side mounts to the seat. For the Tillett B6 Screamer and B7, use Tillett side mounts made for those seats. For the Sparco Ultra, use Sparco’s FIA steel side mounts.
- Join the side mounts to the sliders. This is done with adapter plates made for the job, so the seat sits centred in the cockpit.
Tillett make a number of side mount designs, and which one suits which seat is not always obvious. Our Tillett seat and bracket compatibility guide sets them out.
The alternative: a fixed floor mount
If the driver is tall and headroom is the problem, the seat can go lower by taking the sliders out and mounting the side mounts to the floor. The catch is that the seat is then fixed in one position.
- Remove the original seat and the sliders.
- Fit the side mounts to properly reinforced floor mounting points.
- Test fit the seat and check the driving position before anything is bolted down for good.
- Secure everything with high tensile hardware so nothing can move.
What you gain: the lowest possible seat, a little less weight with the sliders gone, and a proper competition driving position.
What you give up: any fore and aft adjustment, so the position must be right first time, and it is a more permanent change that needs some fabrication.
Getting it right
Whichever seat you choose, the correct side mounts are what make the install safe: Tillett mounts for the Tillett seats and Sparco mounts for the Sparco. On the sliders, the result looks close to factory and keeps the car usable, while giving the driver a modern competition seat.
Garreth’s advice for any classic car like this is to measure twice before ordering: the cockpit, and the driver’s height and waist. The seat has to fit the person as well as the car. If you want the work done professionally, we can point you towards specialists who know classic Ferrari interiors.
Which bucket seats fit a Ferrari Daytona?
From our measurements, the Sparco Ultra Carbon, the Tillett B6 Screamer and the Tillett B7 Carbon suit the Daytona’s tight cockpit.
Can I keep the Daytona's original seat sliders?
Yes. That is our preferred install: the seat’s side mounts are joined to the factory sliders with adapter plates, which keeps fore and aft adjustment.
How do I get the seat as low as possible in a Daytona?
Remove the sliders and mount the side mounts to reinforced floor points. The seat sits lower but can no longer slide.
Are these seats FIA approved?
Yes. All three are homologated to FIA 8855-1999.
Do the seats come with brackets?
No. All three are sold as the seat only, so you need the matching Tillett or Sparco side mounts as well.
💬
Our pickKeep the sliders
A compact FIA seat on the right side mounts and the factory sliders keeps a Daytona usable and reversible.
Need a personal recommendation?
We're here to ensure you pick the right seat.
Contact us today.