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MG Midget and Sprite Technical - Seat Upgrades

I've started taking my 9yo son out in the Sprite. He is just tall enough to not require a child seat by law and sometimes he just sits in the (horseshoe) seat and sometimes I take out the seat base and put his car seat in. My car has an Aleybars braced rollover bar and as the seats don't have headrests I'm a bit conscious of his head hitting the roll bar in an accident which is why I'm happier when he's in his car seat. I'd therefore like to upgrade the seats to something with head restraint and would value thoughts and comments. The options I'm currently considering are:

i) MX-5 - A well trodden path and a possibility but I find them a bit modern looking.
ii) MGF - Again, others have done this so it's a well proven solution. I think the seats are better looking than the Mazda ones. If I can get the red ones from the anniversary this will be a reasonable match for what I'm taking out.
iii) Later midget ones with headrests - A possibility but they look a but flimsy.
iv) These, anyone got any experience: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/175287157404?
v) The BB seats available on ebay (though currently out of stock) again any experience? https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/153533135346
vi) Something else.

All thoughts, comments and experience would be appreciated.

Thanks
Jeremy Cogman

I would always recommend FIA homologated Roll bar padding for any road or race/speed car with a roll bar.
Daniel

I have fitted MX5 seats. They are much more supportive and comfortable than the originals but they do look more modern and they do prevent the use of the tonneau. For me it's a worthwhile trade off.
Roger D

i went with the mgf seats a lot better than originals slight adjustment to fit and they are a bit tight but not a problem.


mark heyworth

Right way around.



Martin

Jeremy

You could make up and fit two head restraint pads attached to the roll bar combined with Daniel’s recommendation of FIA rollcage padding.

Cheers
Mike
M Wood

I have mgtf seats,(same as Mark's) in my mk3 Sprite and the are definitely more comfortable, particularly over long distances, than the original horse shoe seats, but they are much heavier and I have to admit they look a bit too modern IMO. However,the TF seats are not as bulky as the earlier F seats, they have a shoulder at the top and are slightly narrower at that point than the F seats.
Bernie.
b higginson

Mine are the MGF seat, the bulky ones as how Bernie calls them.

Absolutly great seats for long trips, sporty driving(more side support as no side support on the originals)
I did put in the lowerings springset to "sink" a bit more in the seats so to keep more room between hair and hood.






A de Best

tryed the black mgf seat for a season then his it tweeked a bit by putting more cushion in the horizontalbit under your legs to create more support.
Then had the seats upholstered in a classic look, never regretted it.

they do weigh more then standard seats and some more as I welded (heavy)metal strips under the seats to lever the seats a bit more backwards (again for the right position for me and legsupport, im 1.84mtr) and also to use the exchisting bolthole in the floor.







A de Best

Also had a baby seat for the midget in which we took our firstborn with us when going out in the midget.
Nothing official/legal but good fun, he loved it and so did we!
And his sister was born.... end of all fun LOL!

Bolted the seat to wheelarch on the seatbeltbolts.
Dont know who fabricated it but its brilliant!!





A de Best

But know he fits in the passengerseat with some help of a kiddy seat, wont be long as he grows fast.





A de Best

Sigh, Arie you will have to turn to the dark side and buy a B, we got to 4 kids before running out of room in that.
We got each of them a Midget when they no longer fitted in the B. You've seen the result ...

Paul Walbran

No Paul, no B!!!!
Ive got a somewhat bigger classic to take the family out: 78 Jaguar xj6
Loads of space!! :)

But do have a spare midgetbody in my workshop ;)
Sofar no plans(time) to restore it anytime soon...





A de Best

Off topic Jeremy, but you were mentioned last night over dinner in Bagnoles-de-l'Orne with Toby, Bob T, Bill Mohan and his son, plus Paul Batts and two other non Spridget people. We've been visiting the town for post Le Mans overnight stay every year (covid allowing), since you recommended it to us probably around 2006! Thank you. Gary
G Lazarus

Happy days Gary, glad you are still enjoying Bagnoles.

Maybe I'll bring Peter in a year or two though Sarah will suffer serious FOMO.

Back to seats:

I managed to pick up a pair of very reasonably price Cobra Cubs. However the Cobra sliders are extortionate and the universal sets available are too short and too wide. Only the bottom half of Midget ones are available but you can buy new MGB ones e.g.:

https://mgbhive.co.uk/product/mgb-seat-runner-set-of-4-mm454-105-mm454-115/

Could someone with a B please measure as follows:

The top runner (i.e. the bit that fixes to the seat) total length and the distance between the studs.

The bottom runner length.

Many thanks.
Jeremy Cogman

Strike that, these fit the Cobra seats and are cheaper than the B ones:

https://www.carbuilder.com/uk/black-seat-runners-twin-lock-290mm-width
Jeremy Cogman

Hmmm!

To cut a long story short, the Cobra cubs are not going to work. A combination of:

i) The lateral floor strengthener on mk2 Sprites, and therefore having to mount the seat a bit higher.
ii) Less give in the new seats.
iii) Me being 6ft and longer in the body, shorter in the leg
iv) Possibly screen height, are the '64 and before screens lower?

Means that they have moved me from looking through the centre of the screen to looking at the top of the screen. Lovely seats and they look great. I think they'd work in a later car with the flat floor or even with someone a bit shorter in the body.

Back to plan A (fitting some sort of separate head restraint) or plan B (fitting later Midget seats with headrests).
Jeremy Cogman

A pitty the cobra's didnt fit the way you want to Jeremy.
Replacing with later midgetseats sounds easier then fixing something on the old seat.
Keep us updated with the endresult
A de Best

Hi Jeremy, What is the "lateral floor strengthener" on a MK 2 Sprite? I thought they were the same as a MK 1 with the same quarter eliptic springs?
Do you mean the spring reaction top hat section. I am surprised that makes much difference in fitting the Cobra seat. Its barely 3/4" high. Can you perhaps adjust the rake of the seat with packers under the front?
GuyW

This thread was discussed between 05/06/2022 and 28/06/2022

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