Aftermarket Seat Safety

[JsTA]

I have been looking at different name brand (Sparco, Recaro, etc) aftermarket seats but have a big concern. How well do these types of seats do in accidents, especially a major rear ending accident? Do they get tested for things like that or is it just a buyer beware situation?

Would it be safer to get a fixed back seat that's all one piece? I kind of like this idea since the backseat of my car (02 Trans Am) never gets used for anything anyway..

[Ron in SoCal]

Some testing and real world has been posted on YT.

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9xoauIutCmc

Consider what you're buying and intended use.

[JsTA]

Some testing and real world has been posted on YT.

j4Qsd4-8IMo

9xoauIutCmc

Consider what you're buying and intended use.

Thanks for the videos they kind of opened my eyes a little more on safety. I don't plan to buy cheap knock offs so I guess maybe something fia approved would be a good place to start? Car will be almost 100% street driven and sometimes a daily driver if the weather is nice so I'm assuming a fixed back might not be the best idea there?

[RussMurco]

I have used Recaro seats in every car I've built for comfort but also because they are an OEM supplier and as such should be a better choice in terms of strength and safety.
The last set I installed were the Recaro "Sports" and were the same seats used in the Mitsubishi Evos and other cars. All of my cars have served as daily drivers at some point and I never felt any hesitation over safety concerns. In fact, the factory seats I removed from the 2 Camaros I installed Recaros in had bent backrests from normal use!