Status Racing Seats and Autopower Race Roll Bar

[Curt2000]

STATUS RING GTX SEATS

When I started the Santorini M3 build I knew I wanted to adhere to a theme of individuality and functional track worthy modifications. As I browsed through the options for racing seats I had a very specific look in mind. I wanted a one piece bucket seat with good size bolsters for spirited driving/track days that was also comfortable for daily driving. I also wanted them to be in black suede with custom stitching and logo lettering to match my santorini paint. I found that most seat manufacturers did not have that level customizability in their production models. The added cost of tearing apart a brand new seat to have an upholstery shop make the custom modifications was far outside of my budget. Then I came across an American branded company called Status Racing out of Phoenix AZ. Their 'Ring' line of seats were exactly what I was looking for in the functionality and comfort departments but what really sold me was their business model of making the seats 100% custom for every buyer's needs. The seats are made to order with several standard material options, I chose FRP 'GTX' (wide American ass) shells with Ultra Suede jackets that had custom Santorini Stitching throughout. The Status Racing customer service department exchanged countless emails with me that included pictures of stitching color options, detailed seat specs, and installation support.

End result? I got exactly what I wanted and for an incredibly reasonable price considering the amount of work and care the Status CS and production personnel put into my order.

Install
Status carries 'Planted' seat brackets which are essentially a metal plate that is constructed for specific vehicle applications with several generic mounting holes on top and a welded bracket for the seat belt receptacle. I also ordered the OMP Sliders which really helped out with ensuring my 6'4" legs could fit comfortably in the drivers side foot well. Initially I was worried about helmet-on sitting height with the brackets and sliders but was delighted to find I still had a couple inches with everything installed. Everything went together as advertised in a couple hours worth of work. I do have the seatbelt and airbag dash warnings now due to removing the weight sensor and side impact airbags in the stock seats. An issue that is easily remedied by a visit to my friendly local coder. The fit and finish of these seats is top notch, I am very pleased with the level of quality!

Driving
These seats feel incredible! The suede is soft to the touch, the shell fits me like a glove and the appearance of the cockpit makes me grin every time I open the door! The large shoulder and thigh bolsters make you feel locked into an aggressive driving posture and effortlessly keep your weight from shifting in hard corners. Getting in is like sliding into a bucket molded just for your hind side so naturally getting out is a little more challenging, but I don't mind at all because I honestly don't want to get out of them anyway

If you are thinking of upgrading your interior and want a customized and comfortable seat option from a reputable manufacturer I would highly recommend checking out the offerings from Status Racing!

Autopower Race Roll Bar

I also wanted to say a few words about the Autopower Industries Race Roll bar that I have had installed. I know a lot of people are hesitant of installing a racing roll bar or half cage because the perception that its a very intrusive and irreversible modification. Not the case with the bolt-in option from autopower! This FiA certified cage comes with metal plates and bolts that sandwich to the cab shell directly under and behind the driver and passenger seat and on the rear wheel wells. You can either remove or cut the carpet behind the drivers seat, I opted to cut a slit for the bar to go through which will be repaired and under the floor matt anyway after removal. For the support struts that bolt into the rear wheel wells, you simply pop out the leather bolsters on either side of the rear seat. You do have to drill 4 holes at each location through the floor board but thats it! if and when I remove the roll bar I will simply weld those locations shut to prevent leaking and replace the interior pieces.

The bar adds a significant feeling of rigidity in corners, Im going to have a hard time explaining this because before and after body flex is a sensation you'll really have to experience to understand. Kind of like the feeling of stiffer sway bars only there is no change in the body roll of the car. Besides a stiffer frame for spirited driving the roll bar is primarily a safety modification for, just as it's name implies, rolling the car. Plus it gives the car a whole new level of track day credibility and a completed custom look to the interior.

I hope you enjoyed this review, now its time for some pictures!

[Amirsm3]

Gorgeous! I love my status racing seat

[tbone28]

Beautiful

[Curt2000]

Originally Posted by Amirsm3

Gorgeous! I love my status racing seat

Originally Posted by tbone28

Beautiful

Thanks!

[nekky]

Love your car man! Jeremy Brian did a great job snapping pics for you a while back (he's local to me and a buddy). Keep up the great work! Santorini ftw.

[dj_dub]

I used to be sponsored by Status Racing back in the day, even had my car in their booth for SEMA one year. Definitely Grade-A quality seats! They offer the look, quality and feel I couldn't find with other seat companies at the time. Great choice, car looks great dude!

[B8bydesign]

Those look great, nicely done man, love the attention to detail. Your car just keeps getting better and better!

[Curt2000]

Originally Posted by nekky

Love your car man! Jeremy Brian did a great job snapping pics for you a while back (he's local to me and a buddy). Keep up the great work! Santorini ftw.

Thanks man, yeah I love the pics Jeremy snapped of the car, just posted one on instagram today actually!

Originally Posted by dj_dub

I used to be sponsored by Status Racing back in the day, even had my car in their booth for SEMA one year. Definitely Grade-A quality seats! They offer the look, quality and feel I couldn't find with other seat companies at the time. Great choice, car looks great dude!

Thanks man! Booth car at SEMA, must have been nice!

Originally Posted by B8bydesign

Those look great, nicely done man, love the attention to detail. Your car just keeps getting better and better!

Thanks a lot, gotta work hard to keep up with all these liberty walk cars

[Curt2000]

Snapped a couple more

[Acree]

Delicious...

[radiantm3]

Looks really good. Never heard of Status, but I really like the look of those seats. One thing to note about the feeling of rigidity though is that going from stock to bucket seats are actually what make the car feel way more rigid. That's probably what you felt more than the harness bar itself. When I put Recaros in my car it felt like I changed out my whole suspension.

[s85e90]

I had two sets of these. Great seats, although the company has changes hands so I've heard things that say they aint' what they used to be. I loved them. Used to daily drive my car with them too, nice and supportive and very deep. Curious to see if you'll like the planted mounts as they sit a bit higher than others.

[e92ben]

Looks great man! You shoulda removed the rear seats to save a good amount of weight from adding the cage

[slicer]

Originally Posted by s85e90

I had two sets of these. Great seats, although the company has changes hands so I've heard things that say they aint' what they used to be. I loved them. Used to daily drive my car with them too, nice and supportive and very deep. Curious to see if you'll like the planted mounts as they sit a bit higher than others.

I love my planted mounts. They are much simpler / cleaner than the other options (100 hole MS and Vac mounts). They also include a welded on seatbelt receiver tab while the other mounts require purchasing that part separately. Lastly you can attach a sub-strap to them without purchasing a separate part.

[Curt2000]

Originally Posted by Acree

Delicious...

Originally Posted by radiantm3

Looks really good. Never heard of Status, but I really like the look of those seats. One thing to note about the feeling of rigidity though is that going from stock to bucket seats are actually what make the car feel way more rigid. That's probably what you felt more than the harness bar itself. When I put Recaros in my car it felt like I changed out my whole suspension.

That very well could be it, since I installed the cage and seats together.

Originally Posted by s85e90

I had two sets of these. Great seats, although the company has changes hands so I've heard things that say they aint' what they used to be. I loved them. Used to daily drive my car with them too, nice and supportive and very deep. Curious to see if you'll like the planted mounts as they sit a bit higher than others.

I believe Vivid Racing owns them now, they are a pretty big company, the manufacturing facility is still up in Washington though.

Originally Posted by e92ben

Looks great man! You shoulda removed the rear seats to save a good amount of weight from adding the cage

Yeah I liked the clean interior look, and didn't want to pay thousands for a CF or GTS seat delete.

Originally Posted by slicer

I love my planted mounts. They are much simpler / cleaner than the other options (100 hole MS and Vac mounts). They also include a welded on seatbelt receiver tab while the other mounts require purchasing that part separately. Lastly you can attach a sub-strap to them without purchasing a separate part.

Yep they are pretty versatile!

[Hujan]

Looks good.

Now you gotta do a rear-seat delete and shed some #s.

[s85e90]

Originally Posted by slicer

I love my planted mounts. They are much simpler / cleaner than the other options (100 hole MS and Vac mounts). They also include a welded on seatbelt receiver tab while the other mounts require purchasing that part separately. Lastly you can attach a sub-strap to them without purchasing a separate part.

I would just drill/tap a hole on the inside side mount and you can even then use the OEM hardware to mount the seat belt right to it. It works well and looks clean.