Recaros vs cooled seats

[R3G]

Just want to confirm, there is no way to get Recaro seats that are heated and cooled? I have found a pretty loaded grabber blue mach 1 near me, my only hesitation is that it has the recaro seats. The window sticker says it has cooled seats but I thought that wasn't possible with the recaros. Can anyone confirm? It is a 700A, 6speed model. I am waiting on the dealer to send me actual footage of the car to confirm.

Are the Recaro seats worth giving up bum coolers?

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[junits15]

I don't know your answer but this is my first car with ass coolers and I tell you its really nice in the summer.

Especially when the thing has been baking in the sun all day its a godsend.

I don't know about the recaros though lol

 

[Jimmy Dean]

I find the premium stock seats to be well bolstered (haven't tracked it though). I do believe that if you went the premium cooled/heated seat routes, that you can retrofit either standard recaros or aftermarket heated/cooled recaros down the road. But you cannot go as easily from recaros to heated/cooled seats.

I plan on eventually getting a spare set of seats to swap out for track days, street premium seats, track recaros.

 

[Zelek]

No, you can't have cooled/heated seats with Recaros. You lose the features even though you pay for it in the package.

 

[R3G]

No, you can't have cooled/heated seats with Recaros. You lose the features even though you pay for it in the package.

are the recaros more comfortable than the stock seats? I think theyd have to be awesome to give up heated and cooling

 

[Nightmonkey]

From the factory, the Recaros have neither heating nor cooling.
A heating can be retrofit by any useful upholsterer (which you will visit because of the leather quality in the Mustang anyway someday).

Just test drive it, if you ask me the seat ergonomics of the stock seats (with heating and cooling) are a disaster, except maybe if you are a lightweight dwarf.
If there wasn't the Recaros I would have passed on the Mustang.
But the Recaros certainly do not fit everyone!

 

[2022 Mach 1]

I have recaros(the sticker will have them listed as cooled in the standard equipment on a 700a car but once you option in the recaros you lose the heat/cooling) in one car and the heated cooled seats in another. Both have plusses and minuses.

Recaros-hold you tight better lateral support, good for tracking. But are stiff on long rides, no memory function, no heat or cooling. Manual adjustments only.

Premium seats-just flip the good and the bad above.

Really depends on how you want to use the car. If you daily drive the premium seats will be best. If it's a occasional driver and spends time at the track get the recaros.

 

[NJMike]

are the recaros more comfortable than the stock seats? I think theyd have to be awesome to give up heated and cooling

I had Recaros in my 2014 and they were very comfortable. I cannot tell you if they are better or worse than the stock seats comfort wise, plus it would be a matter of my opinion.
I do have cooled/heated seats in my daily and they are nice to have but not always used and do not completely cool me off or heat me up. Good when its 90-100 & 8-20 - other than that, just a novelty for me. YMMV

EDIT - I also had my 2014 from April 2013 to Jan 2022 and only 11k miles, so it was my not my daily. Longest trip in it was 2.5-3 hours and the Recaros were fine for me.

 

[Zelek]

are the recaros more comfortable than the stock seats? I think theyd have to be awesome to give up heated and cooling

More comfortable? I wouldn't say they are for everyone since they hug people differently. They're just better bolstered for hard cornering. The Recaros work for me because I'm fairly thin. I kept the heated/cooled seats which are bolstered enough for me. I was annoyed that you paid more money for Recaros and still paid for the heated/cooled seats and never got that discounted for having it removed.

 

[Nightmonkey]

Really depends on how you want to use the car. If you daily drive the premium seats will be best. If it's a occasional driver and spends time at the track get the recaros.

I have to disagree, especially if you drive the vehicle daily and a lot, then the Recaros are probably the better choice, depending on the body type.
The problem with the "normal" seats starts with the seat cushion being too short for taller people without adjustable leg support, which causes the legs to tire more quickly, especially on longer trips.

I use the Recaros in my daily drive, my distance to work is ~40 mi / 50 min over partly for local conditions bad roads through the bogland (by US standards, probably a Sunday drive to the nearest bakery?).

 

[Cobra Jet]

The Camaro Recaros do come with heating/cooling... Maybe the actual Camaro Recaros can be bought from salvage and retro'd into an S550. There's also Camaro forum discussions on how to upfit the Recaros with such a mod.

There are also aftermarket heating/cooling component kits that can be added to Recaro or other vehicle seats, providing the seat surface has the perforations to allow for breathing and pass-through of the heated/cooled air.

----
Modern day heated/cooling seats have TEDs in them. Here's more TED (“peltier”) tech for others who aren't aware of how TEDs work:
https://www.marlow.com/how-do-thermoelectric-coolers-tecs-work

https://www.oemcarandtruckseats.com...r-conditioned-car-truck-seats-work-the-basics

These other threads are helpful which have images of the TEDs:
https://www.mustang6g.com/forums/threads/cooled-seats-not-cooling.23384/

This thread contains images and user write ups on how to remove the upholstery which will allow access to the TEDs:
https://www.mustang6g.com/forums/threads/how-to-cloth-removal-and-leather-install.30323/

--

I have seen a 2013 Boss 302 that had upholstery work with Leather Recaros that also were heated (and the rear seat upholstery matched the front leather). Looked killer..and totally stock.

EDIT: Found the images I had saved of the 13 B302 custom Recaros, and if looking at seats closer you can see the perforations in the upholstery. The on/off for the seats was custom fit into the forward section of the center console (seen in 2nd image from passenger seat angle).

 

[Rael]

I have to disagree, especially if you drive the vehicle daily and a lot, then the Recaros are probably the better choice, depending on the body type.
The problem with the "normal" seats starts with the seat cushion being too short for taller people without adjustable leg support, which causes the legs to tire more quickly, especially on longer trips.

I use the Recaros in my daily drive, my distance to work is ~40 mi / 50 min over partly for local conditions bad roads through the bogland (by US standards, probably a Sunday drive to the nearest bakery?).

See, now, it all depends on your body and what you would find comfortable.

I'm no longer big and have never been tall, but Ford's Recaros aren't comfortable for me. Although I've been told the newer versions are more comfortable to sit in, I still prefer the better comfort of the heated and cooled seats. All my cars have been daily drivers, and the heated/cooled seats held me just fine the handful of times I've been on track with them. As wise men before me have said, pay attention to your butt.

 

[traxiii]

Katzin makes a heat and cool retrofit: https://katzkin.com/degreez/

 

[gone_n_60]

many opinions from folks of varying weight and height. I have a 2020 GT with the upgraded leather seats cooling and heating. I'm 5'9" about 200lb (ugh) drive for fun, some long (over 3 hrs) some short and have had it to the track 4 times this summer. I like the leather seats for the fun long drives, comfy to me and my gal. At the track I slide around a bit but next year I'll add Schroth harnesses to my roll bar. I'd maybe get a track seat for the season but return my stock leathers for driving. I like them and was impressed you can distance drive this car without misery.
fwiw OP.

 

[iceman145]

are the recaros more comfortable than the stock seats? I think theyd have to be awesome to give up heated and cooling

I haven't sat in the stock seats, but I love the Recaro's. My car is not a daily driver, but I've taken a few trips that were 2+ hours and my wife and I were comfortable. I've tracked twice at Daytona and the Recaro's were perfect. If you live in a hot weather state or it's a daily driver, the standard seat may be the way to go.

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