Audi S4 Recaro Seats Installed (1 Viewer)

[Brodie]

@Brodie I know it is probably listed. But are those OEM seat mounts they look aftermarket. If they are audi did they bolt up? I am a non welder also am very interested in a non welded install of seats. Thanks in advance.

They're OEM Audi seat bases if thats what you're asking, I didn't dismantle the Audi seats at all, left it all in place and bolted it up to a slightly modified bracket from Planted. If I could weld I would have gone to the local junkyard and pulled some rails off the 80's they have there and welded the "feet" to the Audi rails and saved the $140 per bracket.

@Brodie or others can comment, I only have had Wedge for Recaro sliders/SRD’s into E30 body brackets.
No issues but Recaro street seats are almost all a 6 bolt pattern if meant to mount to a slider / non-fixed base & back like the Profi or Pole Position styles.

HTH

Yeah, Wedge is great for non-OEM Recaros, aka "normal" Recaros and other racing seats, if you're going to go with an OEM seat like these Audi ones, nobody makes a bolt-in bracket solution for it since it's already taken a Recaro design and modified it for the chassis it came in. If Planted or Wedge made a set for "B6/B7 Recaros to FJ80" brackets, I'd be shocked, it's just not feasible financially for a company to do that.

I've seen Wedge brackets used with some great Recaro Orthoped seats and looked amazing with incredible fit and finish. But those seats start around $1500 each (and go WAY above that), I scored both of these used Audi seats with power and heat for 1/15th of that, so I was willing to do some tinkering to get it to fit.

Below is a 94 that was for sale on Bring A Trailer and the seller said they used Wedge brackets to get the Orthopeds in there.

 

[ch26]

Thanks for the clarification.

 

[Lowbudgetlc100]

They're OEM Audi seat bases if thats what you're asking, I didn't dismantle the Audi seats at all, left it all in place and bolted it up to a slightly modified bracket from Planted. If I could weld I would have gone to the local junkyard and pulled some rails off the 80's they have there and welded the "feet" to the Audi rails and saved the $140 per bracket.



Yeah, Wedge is great for non-OEM Recaros, aka "normal" Recaros and other racing seats, if you're going to go with an OEM seat like these Audi ones, nobody makes a bolt-in bracket solution for it since it's already taken a Recaro design and modified it for the chassis it came in. If Planted or Wedge made a set for "B6/B7 Recaros to FJ80" brackets, I'd be shocked, it's just not feasible financially for a company to do that.

I've seen Wedge brackets used with some great Recaro Orthoped seats and looked amazing with incredible fit and finish. But those seats start around $1500 each (and go WAY above that), I scored both of these used Audi seats with power and heat for 1/15th of that, so I was willing to do some tinkering to get it to fit.

Below is a 94 that was for sale on Bring A Trailer and the seller said they used Wedge brackets to get the Orthopeds in there.

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those are really nice seats

 

[Brodie]

In case anyone goes the same route, LSeat has a pretty decent (needed some trimming and modification here and there) leather kit to make the Audi seats match the LC’s interior. I went with “Dim Grey” on their color chart.

 

[man0fsteel]

I've seen Wedge brackets used with some great Recaro Orthoped seats and looked amazing with incredible fit and finish. But those seats start around $1500 each (and go WAY above that), I scored both of these used Audi seats with power and heat for 1/15th of that, so I was willing to do some tinkering to get it to fit.

Below is a 94 that was for sale on Bring A Trailer and the seller said they used Wedge brackets to get the Orthopeds in there.

View attachment 2116148View attachment 2116149View attachment 2116150

Brodie!! Great write up.! I'm currently in the process of swapping out my original seats - thinking of going with Recaro Orthopeds (or maybe the Ergomeds $$$$) and wasn't sure which bracket to use. I've been trying to figure out if the AC Ventilation & Heating on the Orthopeds needed a special wiring harness and switches (your Passat switches look pretty OEM). From the looks of the Orthopeds in that '94 for sale, they look to have all the controls built into the seat.

Unfortunately, according to Recaro, they no longer offer custom colors and I've got tan interior so I'm really debating whether I want to spend close to $3K/seat that don't match. They said the 'Specialist' seat comes in tan though. Decisions decisions...

 

[bapps]

Looks awesome! I own a '08 B7 S4 Avant currently as my daily, though I'm not ready to steal those seats quite yet. Kinda surprised how many others also own this series or similar series in this thread. B6 B7 owner check in?

 

[Brodie]

Brodie!! Great write up.! I'm currently in the process of swapping out my original seats - thinking of going with Recaro Orthopeds (or maybe the Ergomeds $$$$) and wasn't sure which bracket to use. I've been trying to figure out if the AC Ventilation & Heating on the Orthopeds needed a special wiring harness and switches (your Passat switches look pretty OEM). From the looks of the Orthopeds in that '94 for sale, they look to have all the controls built into the seat.

Unfortunately, according to Recaro, they no longer offer custom colors and I've got tan interior so I'm really debating whether I want to spend close to $3K/seat that don't match. They said the 'Specialist' seat comes in tan though. Decisions decisions...

You can always get your own covers to match, I used LSeat and they were very good for the price. After several months of use the wrinkles are gone and they're really set in well. Genuine Leather - Recaro - Lseat.com - https://www.lseat.com/categories/genuine-leather/recaro.html
This also means you can source some pretty tatty used ones and just put fresh skins on them.

 

[man0fsteel]

You can always get your own covers to match, I used LSeat and they were very good for the price. After several months of use the wrinkles are gone and they're really set in well. Genuine Leather - Recaro - Lseat.com - https://www.lseat.com/categories/genuine-leather/recaro.html
This also means you can source some pretty tatty used ones and just put fresh skins on them.

Wow...that's a bargain if you can get some lightly used Recaros! I decided to go with Scheel-Mann Vario F seats in Brown. They are comfy, have the heating option (no ventilation tho) but are in stock!

Here's their pic in a 60 series LC.

 

[Brodie]

Nice! If I had the funds available at the time that's for sure the route I would have gone too. The armrest alone is worth it.

 

[man0fsteel]

Nice! If I had the funds available at the time that's for sure the route I would have gone too. The armrest alone is worth it.

The arm rest was a no brainer! I'll post pics when it's all done.

 

[chainlink71]

Incredibly disappointed in Lseat's customer service. Prior to ordering my seat covers, I asked for a swatch/sample of their leather color choices. I selected the color that was very close to my oem seats and ordered the covers. I paid for a custom logo and asked them to contact me before they manufactured the seats so I could give them the location, size, and color of the logo. They never contacted me even after I called and left a couple of voice mails. The covers arrived in several weeks with the logo on the headrest (not my preference), and more importantly, in the wrong color! I had ordered a medium gray and the seats they sent me were in a light gray (that exactly matched the light grey on the color sample). I submitted a return request and the customer service agent I dealt with (via email only) was very short in their communication and was adamant they sent me the medium grey seat covers (they call it Dove Gray). I sent them pictures of my current seats next to the color sample and the new seat covers next to the color sample, and the new seat covers next to the current seats...the differences in color were blatantly obvious. The agent continued to deny they made a mistake. To top it all off they are charging me 20% to restock the wrong seat covers they sent me plus $29 extra shipping. I will never order anything from lseat again and I'm going to do my very best to make sure everyone knows the kind of business this is.

 

[Brodie]

Incredibly disappointed in Lseat's customer service. Prior to ordering my seat covers, I asked for a swatch/sample of their leather color choices. I selected the color that was very close to my oem seats and ordered the covers. I paid for a custom logo and asked them to contact me before they manufactured the seats so I could give them the location, size, and color of the logo. They never contacted me even after I called and left a couple of voice mails. The covers arrived in several weeks with the logo on the headrest (not my preference), and more importantly, in the wrong color! I had ordered a medium gray and the seats they sent me were in a light gray (that exactly matched the light grey on the color sample). I submitted a return request and the customer service agent I dealt with (via email only) was very short in their communication and was adamant they sent me the medium grey seat covers (they call it Dove Gray). I sent them pictures of my current seats next to the color sample and the new seat covers next to the color sample, and the new seat covers next to the current seats...the differences in color were blatantly obvious. The agent continued to deny they made a mistake. To top it all off they are charging me 20% to restock the wrong seat covers they sent me plus $29 extra shipping. I will never order anything from lseat again and I'm going to do my very best to make sure everyone knows the kind of business this is.

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Yeah, that sucks. Sorry you had a bad experience, I didn’t.
When I had my E36 M3 it had “Dove Gray” Vader’s, which were nearly white, I went with World Upholstery and got a perfect match.

 

[CrippleCrawler]

Brodie, thank you for such an amazing write up.

Every swap I read about is the Jetta seats, but coming from an Audi/VW background, I found myself wondering why more people weren’t doing a s4/s6 seat swap. I managed to find a few sets, and am waiting to hear back from some guys. My cruiser seats in my 1996 are absolutely destroyed, and it’s been my biggest pain since buying. I couldn’t justify spending $5,000 on Scheelmans, but I love the Audi Recaros.

Once I get answers, I will be swapping them over, and it’s all thanks to you! Bravo!