Car Seat foam base/Momo seats?

[BFG in the BRG]

Sorry for not using an existing discussion thread , but none of them seemed to fit my question. The foam on my Drivers seat is disintegrating badly and so I have removed the seat and taken out the foam, intending to make a replacement, but the shape is complicated, and will take a lot of time and decent foam is quite pricy. I don't want to use the passenger seat and I ideally want to keep the originals - I just love that numb feeling when I drive .

So....
do you know anywhere where I can get the foam - Lotus or does anyone know of anyone cheaper/part cross reference?
I can't afford a full refurb so it is a case of DIY

Also - what non standard reasonably cheap and comfortable seat will fit in - I have heard Momo GT RS mentioned but Momo seem to have changed their range since that discussion thread.

[muley]

BFG

Have you considered going to a breakers and buying a similar size seat and stripping the padding out of it.? I haven't done that but I've heard of people who have - using the passenger seat out of a similarly contoured seat...

Cheers

Jim

(I just stuffed an old Tottenham Hotspur t-shirt into my seat..)

[Enright]

Sorry for not using an existing discussion thread , but none of them seemed to fit my question.

Hey, at least you tried!

do you know anywhere where I can get the foam - Lotus or does anyone know of anyone cheaper/part cross reference?
I can't afford a full refurb so it is a case of DIY

I'd approach Lotus's Trim Shop direct if I were you.
A single seat base foam shouldn't be too expensive, although I (probably WE) would be very interested to hear how much they quote you.

[BFG in the BRG]

Ah well I tried, I spoke to SJ Sportscars because the parts guy at my local dealer is on holiday. He said the foam hadn't been available for about 3 years. I asked how Lotus trim shop do it then and he said they re-use the existing seat foam, and replace the rubber seat base with a welded steel plate - which is similar to what I was going to do - only with 16mm ply wood.
a) because I don't have a welder
b) because I can't think of any way of welding the plate on with the foam in situ without setting fire to it
and
c) because I can't be arsed to remove the whole of the frame from the seat cover to refurbish it.
I might do a Wiki if it turns out OK

[BFG in the BRG]

Ah, so full of hope, so nieve, things I have learn't...
Never remove the seat cusion from a seat, unless you are prepared to take the fabric off the seat - it is difficult to get out without damaging.
It is really difficult to get out, and putting it back in without damaging it is even harder.
Easiest option is to either get the seat sorted out professionally, replace using a non-standard seat, or wait for a set to come up for sale and put the "new" passenger seat in the drivers position.

my seat is fine now, it is a little out of shape - because I packed the base up with plywood since the bottom was dropping out, I have also lowered the whole seat by removing the aliminium spacers between the runners and the car, (to negate the fact that that I now sit about 2 inches higher in the car, and the windscreen top bar gets in the way) .

On the positive side, it is comfortable for long journeys - no dead leg, which was the point, so it doesn't look the best - not quite buckety.

[Foo]

You may be able to find a business in your area that specialises purely in foam supply, shaping, repair etc.

There's an entire shop in Sheffield on London Road, and all they do is foam. I remember being surprised there was enough of a market to support an entire shop full of nothing but foam, but it's been there for years.

So you may get somewhere with a local foam supplier if they can identify the material and craft a decent replacement:

Eastbourne Foam
Tel: 01323 430777 - 137 Green Street, Eastbourne, East Sussex, BN21 1SB

[dermotbell]

Whats the name of the place on London road, I'm not too far from Sheff and am there quite often for the footie.

[Foo]

Whats the name of the place on London road, I'm not too far from Sheff and am there quite often for the footie.

I don't think they have a sign up outside but I think they trade as 'Trading Company Ltd' or something daft like that.

The shop is before Abbeydale road junction and before the staggered T junction where the Japanese restaraunt is, on the left hand side as you head out of town, just past Steers and the Army/Navy place. Pastel blue frontage I think.

[BFG in the BRG]

I went to a local foam shop and the problem was that the foam seat is moulded and quite heavy duty stuff, you will get a similar type of foam - not as firm though, I was quoted around £30 per seat, and that is before it is shaped which, since the shape is fairly complicated time will be money, although you could DIY.

The base of the seat material has metal bars running along the stitching - to presumably maintain the shape, and also to stick into the foam and keep evrything in place, the foam has channels along it, to take these metal bars.

Also, within the metal seat frame are two metal bars which maintain the shape of the wings of the seat, These bars slot into channels in the foam base - this makes removal problematic and replacement nigh on impossible (if the seat fabric is not removed from the frame) without ripping the foam.

IMHO, if you are going to do this, I would suggest it is an autumn/winter job when you can spend time doing it, I figure cut the foam to shape then divide it into 4 or 5 sections and start at the wings, then move onto the base, this will give room to work within the seat base and reduce the rosk of ripping the foam. The sections can be spray glued together once in the seat.

[inkitin]

The base of the seat material has metal bars running along the stitching - to presumably maintain the shape, and also to stick into the foam and keep evrything in place, the foam has channels along it, to take these metal bars.

I'm following this thread with interest, as I'm sure my seats might be here in a few years' time.

I suspect you've already worked this out but the problem with the bars, as you call them, is that they were originally embedded in the foam base. Thus, when they were attached to the seat cover, they held the cover tightly and correctly to the foam preventing creasing and bulging of the cover.

When I put mine back together I had to tie the bars back in place through the foam base because, over time, the bars had ripped out of the foam. Not surprising really considering the hammer they get.

If you want to see how I did it I wrote a very short explanation here at the end of the thread. There's even a photo !!

It may not be a very pretty solution but, so far, it's working quite well

[uk08462]

I have just found this thread and also having spoken to SJS today. He laughed when I asked whether a replacement foam seat was available....

Does anybody else know of an specialist in the UK that can replace the foam base of a sagging S2 drivers seat?

With the age of these cars there must be a growing market. Or is that with the age of the drivers there are growing backsides.....!

[inkitin]

Are you sure it's the foam and not the diaphragm that's giving way?

[uk08462]

Is there any way of checking this without dismantling the seat? I know you can get the diaphragm still.

[inkitin]

Is there any way of checking this without dismantling the seat?

Short of removing the seat!

Push the seat forward as far as it will go. From the back of the seat, push your hand and arm underneath and feel around under the seat. You should feel a rectangular sheet of "rubber", with a steel rod down the two sides of the sheet. Hooked onto each of the two rods should be four or five steel "clips" (eight or ten in all) which also hook into the seat frame sides, these keep the diaphragm under severe tension.

Problems can be one or, more usually, a combination of the following:

1. Rubber sheet split/torn
2. Rod/s bent
3. Clip/s detached
4. Clip/s broken

On my Elan's seat it was 2, 3 & 4.

[rip]

sagging S2 drivers seat?

Are you sure it is an S2 seat? These have a metal base, not a rubber diaphragm as described (rather accurately) by Roland.
I hope Dico doesn't mind me borrowing his thread because the 2nd posting on this page has a pic of both seat types together.

[uk08462]

The car is a 1995 S2 and they are definately S2 seats (no fetching yellow stripes) in which case it has a metal base I guess. The picture in the link confirms this although it does appear to show a car with an SE centre console. Will check when I get home for the metal plate with holes in it.

If there is no rubber diaphragm to split/sag/bend, then I guess it is the foam that is giving up the ghost....

[rip]

The picture in the link confirms this although it does appear to show a car with an SE centre console.

That's because it Dico's Elan which he modifies more often than he drives.
It is an SE but he has changed many things including the seats which is why he was able to photograph both together.

[inkitin]

Are you sure it is an S2 seat? These have a metal base, not a rubber diaphragm as described (rather accurately) by Roland.

Accurate but ultimately useless! Stupid boy Pike!

[uk08462]

It has taken me a bit of time (a year) but I have just removed the seat, confirmed it is an S2 with a metal base. As there is no diaphragm to become unclipped / sag, I assume that it is a foam replacement or supplement required rather than a replacement diaphragm.