As a NASA tech inspector, I can say that if it looks like a race seat, smells like a race seat and feels like a race seat, then it is a race seat. You need to go by the rules, as does the chief tech inspector. One piece, fiberglass, no FIA sticker--all it needs is a seat back brace. I would recommend that you put a large plate against the back if you use this seat. However, I agree with Steve in several ways. You can sell it for more than a real race seat and it would be a shame to attach a seat back brace and lower the value of the seat. Also, your safety is your own concern and you should not rely *only* on the rules and the tech inspectors to dictate safety. Personally I prefer the Kirkey Full Containment seats for the most safety. I would rather have a seat back brace fitted as it triangulates the seat mount. A solid mounted seat will allow you to feel what your car is doing. A tight-fitting seat will not only be safer in an accident, but also, again, allow you to feel what the car is doing. The Full Containment seats are much safer in an accident and the Kirkey Full Containment seats are well designed to keep both your head and shoulders from moving sideways in an accident. Having lost a very good friend to a cheap seat in an T-Bone accident, I can tell you that you want the best safety equipment. I also think that the Full Containment seat is not a substitute for a right side net, you should still have this safety device.
With all that said, Kirkey makes cheap seats for low-speed racing and they make great seats like the Road Race Full Containment seat. See it here:
www.ioportracing.com/Merchant2/merchant....p;Category_Code=KRS2
They are the first company to produce an SFI-certifed seat. Some might like the FIA-rated seats better, but I prefer the well-made aluminum seats. They give the added benefit of being less expensive and not expiring. FIA rated seats expire for a reason and a seat back brace can be added to satisfy the rules, but it will change how the seat was designed to work. I recommend that anyone with an expired FIA-rated seat purchase a new seat for the most safety with that type of seat. Your non-FIA-rated seat was also not designed for a seat back brace, so that is something to think about.
