The latest impulse buy…Reproduction of Datsun Competition seats. These are a replica/reproduction of the seats you could option directly from Nissan for your Zed or Hakosuka back in the day. While I’ve always lusted for a pair of Nakamae Type R seats, it was too difficult for me to justify spending 4k+ AUD on a pair of seats, especially given the resemblance to these seats (I’ve heard Nakamae’s were styled after the Datsun competition seats?). Although I should note that these are even more identical to the Silk Road classic bucket seat. Anyway, a used set of Nakamae’s would probably have to be imported from the US (since I’m yet to see someone in Aus with a pair) and they’d end up around 3.2k AUD. Undoubtedly, Nakame seats hold their value quite well, and you could attest that to Nakamae’s craftsmanship being unrivalled.
Anyway, why bother with a replica you may wonder? Well these aren’t your run of the mill replica seats. They were purchased from Barrel Bros who are known to only work with high quality; in fact they’re a wheel shop that imports rare wheels from Japan and will only sell them refurbished! The seats are actually made in Japan by a company called M-speed and they use the exact same materials to wrap the fibreglass shell, same sizing, same everything as the original Hako seats! There are alot of cheap knock offs of these seats out there and if you look close enough you’ll be able to notice texture differences, so definitely be careful if buying from elsewhere. I know that the secretfactoryUSA also sell the exact same seat, although they were more pricey.
I managed to acquire the seats with head rests and harness loops for an incredible value of 1500 AUD (on sale). While 5 years of mx5 ownership has taught me to not purchase something you’re not completely content with as you’ll find yourself spending more down the line, I can definitely say I’m pleased with this choice.
The seats hold you in quite nicely but they do definitely suit smaller builds. They were after all made for Japanese butt's in the 70's. I'm about 5 ft 7 and a size 30 waist but I can't imagine someone with a size 34 waist feeling comfortable in these personally. The seats have built in mounting holes but I'll need to have cross pieces made to fit onto the stock rails (figures crossed I can use the stock rails).
Picked up these seats during work hours(and still at work) so I'm yet to unbox but here's a few pics from the net so you can get an idea of what they'll look like in a car.
datsun.JPG
Datto interior.JPG
Reply With Quote
. Pics to come once mounted in the coming weeks hopefully!
. The biggest downside is that tire choice is very limited, in fact more or less it’s R888’s or Hoosiers and even then I fear one day they’ll stop making 205/225 in 14’s. That said, I still swap between the Enkei’s and SSR’s on the green car. I’m currently running Direzza ZIII’s on the Mk2’s (185/60) and Azenis (195/60) on the RPF’s. On street/ track have found them both solid options. The RT615’s have more heft given the extra 10mm. Stateside they’re also nearly $50 less per corner. A lot of people were really positive about the Dunlop’s but for how I drive + the fit/ value, hard to argue against the Azenis.
Originally Posted by HarryB
. 500 rs limited editions were made but it's estimated that only 250 odd were optioned with the side skirts. These skirts are more understated in appearance which is perfect for me since I want the skirts to be a subtle visual addition. 
