Great video - thank you! I've had a lot of trouble with my seat - I had a lot of hip and back pain from daily driving an ND MX-5. I'm an early 30s guy who's into fitness. Thought I'd share some solutions for anyone interested. The main issues are: 1. There is no foam padding in the seat, especially needed in the lumbar support area. This causes your lower back to sink into a rounded position, and can cause posterior pelvic tilt. 2. The hamstring angle is too acute (like a formula 1 position) - this causes more of your weight distribution to be supported on your lower back and glutes, rather than your hamstrings and feet like in a traditional seat in a hatchback/passenger car 3. The hamstring area is too long for shorter people. If you depress the clutch, this puts stress on your hip. 4. The shape of the seat between the headrest and upper back area is concave, so it encourages your upper back to round (kyphosis) as your body sinks into the seat. Some solutions I've used to good effect. 1. I stuffed foam into the rear of the seat between the zipped seat cover and the mesh seatback. This provides a bit of padding to the seat, but it's still not ideal. The foam bulges out backwards as you lean on it, so it still has inadequate support. There isn't space available to put foam between the the seat cover's inside front and the heating element - and you would lose having heated seats anyway. I've put a small diagonal steel brace into the back of the seat to discourage the foam to bulge outwards. 2. I used spacers and new bolts to raise the rear of the seat rails, resulting in a more upright seating position. 21stcenturyfiat124spider.wordpress.com/2019/01/01/raising-the-height-of-the-seats/ 3. I used a clutch bump stop. Similar to this product, but I made my own for cheaper: rev9autosport.com/joyfast-clutch-stopper.html 4. I'm strapping some thin foam to make the profile of the seat more straight than concave to avoid neck pain. It's a much more comfortable seating position now in an upright position, and I get better visibilty.
Hi Nathaniel, thanks for sharing your thoughts and solutions. You might be interested in watching my other video where I reveal how I added more support to the seats by adding seat springs used by other vehicle manufacturers. I've driven many miles with these new springs in place and its made a massive difference.
I could not have done my cloth to leather change over on my 2016 MX-5 ND seats without your detailed video. Putting it back together I am figuring out on my own from reverse engineering of your dismantling video. You should however do a video of how to remove the round seat adjustment knob on the driver's seat behind you as it is the most challenging part of the whole process. Trying to successfully remove that knob and the part behind it without destroying them is the most diabolical dirty trick the Japanese have ever perpetrated on the Allies since Pearl HarborI! By the way, be careful when re-upolsterying your seats after you've dismantled them. Over the two days it took me to install leather seat covers the constant maneuvering of the seats and stretching the leather seat covers caused me to rip my shoulder tendon ..what the hell...it may heal in 5-6 years...or not.
There is an unseen horse shoe shaped clip that holds the knob on the shaft. You have to slide a thin flat screw driver (or two) under the cap and try to blindly push one or both sides of the clip off the shaft and then the knob slides off.@@gray1724
Great video! However, I was so upset when I got to the end! I have an Abarth 124, but my seats are all black! I would dearly love to have those red covers on your seat. When you said that you were getting the red bits changed by an upholsterer, I almost cried! By the way, I have found that the base support of the seal tends to sag after a while. I have read somewhere that you can insert a more firm support under the heated section in order to alleviate the problem. Are you aware of this? By the way, I note that you said you got your seats from an auction site.....were they used or new? Can you give an idea of what sort of price they tend to go for? Wonderful content, by the way! Seats are very much ignored on RUclips.
Hi Steve, please see my other video where I reveal how I added more support to the seats by adding seat springs used by other vehicle manufacturers. I may also have the red sections I removed, email me (via my blog) if you're interested in getting hold of them.
Great video - thank you!
I've had a lot of trouble with my seat - I had a lot of hip and back pain from daily driving an ND MX-5. I'm an early 30s guy who's into fitness. Thought I'd share some solutions for anyone interested.
The main issues are:
1. There is no foam padding in the seat, especially needed in the lumbar support area. This causes your lower back to sink into a rounded position, and can cause posterior pelvic tilt.
2. The hamstring angle is too acute (like a formula 1 position) - this causes more of your weight distribution to be supported on your lower back and glutes, rather than your hamstrings and feet like in a traditional seat in a hatchback/passenger car
3. The hamstring area is too long for shorter people. If you depress the clutch, this puts stress on your hip.
4. The shape of the seat between the headrest and upper back area is concave, so it encourages your upper back to round (kyphosis) as your body sinks into the seat.
Some solutions I've used to good effect.
1. I stuffed foam into the rear of the seat between the zipped seat cover and the mesh seatback. This provides a bit of padding to the seat, but it's still not ideal. The foam bulges out backwards as you lean on it, so it still has inadequate support. There isn't space available to put foam between the the seat cover's inside front and the heating element - and you would lose having heated seats anyway. I've put a small diagonal steel brace into the back of the seat to discourage the foam to bulge outwards.
2. I used spacers and new bolts to raise the rear of the seat rails, resulting in a more upright seating position. 21stcenturyfiat124spider.wordpress.com/2019/01/01/raising-the-height-of-the-seats/
3. I used a clutch bump stop. Similar to this product, but I made my own for cheaper: rev9autosport.com/joyfast-clutch-stopper.html
4. I'm strapping some thin foam to make the profile of the seat more straight than concave to avoid neck pain.
It's a much more comfortable seating position now in an upright position, and I get better visibilty.
Hi Nathaniel, thanks for sharing your thoughts and solutions. You might be interested in watching my other video where I reveal how I added more support to the seats by adding seat springs used by other vehicle manufacturers. I've driven many miles with these new springs in place and its made a massive difference.
Great video. Made me realize I need to hire someone to do this for me.
I could not have done my cloth to leather change over on my 2016 MX-5 ND seats without your detailed video. Putting it back together I am figuring out on my own from reverse engineering of your dismantling video. You should however do a video of how to remove the round seat adjustment knob on the driver's seat behind you as it is the most challenging part of the whole process. Trying to successfully remove that knob and the part behind it without destroying them is the most diabolical dirty trick the Japanese have ever perpetrated on the Allies since Pearl HarborI! By the way, be careful when re-upolsterying your seats after you've dismantled them. Over the two days it took me to install leather seat covers the constant maneuvering of the seats and stretching the leather seat covers caused me to rip my shoulder tendon ..what the hell...it may heal in 5-6 years...or not.
There is an unseen horse shoe shaped clip that holds the knob on the shaft. You have to slide a thin flat screw driver (or two) under the cap and try to blindly push one or both sides of the clip off the shaft and then the knob slides off.@@gray1724
You could of sold them seats and made a few quid. They are lovely.
Was hoping for driver side - do you happen to know the dimensions of the headrest speakers? I’m looking to upgrade them
Could you tell us how to remove the cover from the adjustment wheel at the drivers seat? That would help a lot.
Great video! However, I was so upset when I got to the end! I have an Abarth 124, but my seats are all black! I would dearly love to have those red covers on your seat. When you said that you were getting the red bits changed by an upholsterer, I almost cried!
By the way, I have found that the base support of the seal tends to sag after a while. I have read somewhere that you can insert a more firm support under the heated section in order to alleviate the problem. Are you aware of this?
By the way, I note that you said you got your seats from an auction site.....were they used or new? Can you give an idea of what sort of price they tend to go for?
Wonderful content, by the way! Seats are very much ignored on RUclips.
Hi Steve, please see my other video where I reveal how I added more support to the seats by adding seat springs used by other vehicle manufacturers. I may also have the red sections I removed, email me (via my blog) if you're interested in getting hold of them.
@@mx5ndblog135 Hi again! I am not too familiar with blog-type stuff. Where would I find your email address?
Do you have a install leather seat covers? Also how did you remve the bottom seat circular knob?
Damn you cant do a foamectomy.