OEM Seat Swap Options

[QuadRings]

I've searched tirelessly on this, and most of what I find is older, so hoping someone might have some information on this. What other OEM seats can swap into our cars with light modification? By light, I mean I don't mind swapping over some plugs to make them clip. I've heard S4/S5 seats fit, but every person who says it, says the same thing; they "think" or "heard" they fit. I have an A3 without sport seats, and I know S3 are the obvious swap, but they're hard to come by. Not looking for any aftermarket options. Anyone have any insight?

[AlaskanAudi]

I've searched tirelessly on this, and most of what I find is older, so hoping someone might have some information on this. What other OEM seats can swap into our cars with light modification? By light, I mean I don't mind swapping over some plugs to make them clip. I've heard S4/S5 seats fit, but every person who says it, says the same thing; they "think" or "heard" they fit. I have an A3 without sport seats, and I know S3 are the obvious swap, but they're hard to come by. Not looking for any aftermarket options. Anyone have any insight?

I’ve seen an 8P A3 for sale recently with B8 S5 seats swapped in. I presume 8P and 8V seat rails are the same.

Also, I’ve seen B9 S4 seats swapped into a B8. If S5 seats fit in the 8V, B9 seats must also. Not sure if the massage function will work though


2010 S4 Prestige DSG Deep Sea Blue
2015 S3 Premium Plus Florett Silver

[QuadRings]

I’ve seen an 8P A3 for sale recently with B8 S5 seats swapped in. I presume 8P and 8V seat rails are the same.

Also, I’ve seen B9 S4 seats swapped into a B8. If S5 seats fit in the 8V, B9 seats must also. Not sure if the massage function will work though


2010 S4 Prestige DSG Deep Sea Blue
2015 S3 Premium Plus Florett Silver

Yeah I've seen some swaps into the 8P too. Just really surprised no one has done with the the 8V. I've seen some MK7 GTI's with swaps too, but I think most of the plugs were different. I've done seat swaps in Subarus before, but they were always plug and play. Just want to know what I'm getting into before I go dropping over a grand on other seats haha. I don't care about the massage function, just want to retain power, heat, and airbags, and have a more comfortable and supportive seat.

[MikTip]

I want cloth. Why? Much cooler in summer and better in winter.

[QuadRings]

Could do an S4/S5 alcantara swap...if we can verify they work...

[MikTip]

Could do an S4/S5 alcantara swap...if we can verify they work...

Its not the covering...but the seat frame that bolts into the car. Only way the verify is someone would need to swap the specific seats...

TT/TTRS seat may fit...

[timmyzr1]

I hear you, been down that road, decided to aftermarket seat only on drive side, even RS3 sucks imo! First of, i also hate leather seat, slippery,cold and hot! Second while the confort is good support isnt, so really its easier to do aftermarket seat and much better results!

[Spinnetti]

If you can do without the "Lazy Boy" features, you can put any seat in. I've swapped seats a bunch of times on various cars and trucks but never cared about heat/cooling/PODS etc. Another option is have the factory seats recovered to one that suits your needs. I prefer cloth too, though the best looking, longest lasting best fit were the "leatherette" seats of my B6. After 14 years they still looked and felt brand new.

[QuadRings]

From what I've seen, the S4/S5 seats DO bolt in (the rails fit) but I'm not certain. That's mainly what I'm looking to find out. If they do, the wiring portion can be figured out. I can deal without power, but it's a daily, and I still want the airbag safety, and I live in the Northeast, so going back to non-heated would suck on 0 degree winter days.

[MikTip]

I had the Recaro VW GTI seats in my 1986 Audi Coupe...

Put cloth sport seats in my B6 A4.

I will look around...see what I can find on Audi seats that fit the S3/A3

[MikTip]

A3 in UK

[QuadRings]

A3 in UK

Are those S5 seats? I'm assuming yes, since it has the lever by the headrest to lean the seat forward.

[MikTip]

No

The UK and German cars have cloth seat options...

[esskay]

Are those S5 seats? I'm assuming yes, since it has the lever by the headrest to lean the seat forward.

It could also be a pic of a 3-door hatchback.

[MikTip]

It could also be a pic of a 3-door hatchback.

It is

[MikTip]

[QuadRings]

It is

Ah yeah, forgot that's an offering in Europe.

[Turbonegro]

I questioned this about a year ago and got nothing but crickets..

The problem is the seats themselves.. Changing to a different fabric won’t help the fact that they offer little to no side bolster, & simply don’t perform like a “sport” seat.

I considered trying some Golf R seats, since they are from the same platform, and they offer much more bolstering than our sport seats. But after researching, nobody could confirm if they directly fit right in. At roughly $1,000 for both front seats, I decided I didn’t want to be the guinea pig.

Any information would be great 👍

[Turbonegro]

I just re-read your post and realized that you are talking about the base A3 seats.. based on my loaner car experiences, I agree, they are horrible!!

I have the standard sport seats in my S3, and they are definitely better, but still lacking the capabilities of what you would expect from a “sport” seat.

I’ve sat in cars with the super sport seats also, and they seem to be almost identical to my seats as far as overall feel, except around the shoulder area. Of course the diamond stitch and material was a big plus, but still lacking the side bolster and that feeling of being planted in your seat.

I guess since the A3/S3/RS3 are basically the introductory models of the Audi lineup, we can’t expect big development going into the seats..

[m3th0d79]

I would love to find some more info here, somewhere deep in an audiworld thread I found a while back there are some options with nice Skoda seats that are plug and play. That doesn't really help us folks here in the good ol u s of a, I am really surprised there is so little info and lack of plug and play options on this platform.

[Clod]

If I had the $ I would have these shipped over
https://www.ebay.de/itm/173833520605...UAAOSwf75ch8X-

[QuadRings]

Yeah, I do have the base seats. There was a set on ebay of the sport seats for a good price, but I have my wedding in Sept (pandemic pending) so not in the place to spend the $1100 on seats until after, which was a good price. I assume anything from the MQB platform would fit, but TTS seats are even harder to find it seems. I've also seen that Skoda seats fit, as I believe that is also the MQB platform.

I'm surprised there's not more info on it too. There was a massive amount of info on Subarus, even the newest models. Maybe because it's more of a "tuner" community.

I have driven an A3 with the sport seats, and while not a ton better, it's still a good improvement. The adjustable thigh support seems to be what most people say is the real plus. But an S4 seat is much more bolstered, which is why I figured if it'll fit, I'd just go that route. Does anyone know a friend or family member that has a B8/8.5/9 A4/S4/A5/S5? Maybe they'd let you take a few hours and just see if they'll fit? Can at least know what the extent of compatibility between the platforms are then.

[Spinnetti]

Yeah, I do have the base seats. There was a set on ebay of the sport seats for a good price, but I have my wedding in Sept (pandemic pending) so not in the place to spend the $1100 on seats until after, which was a good price. I assume anything from the MQB platform would fit, but TTS seats are even harder to find it seems. I've also seen that Skoda seats fit, as I believe that is also the MQB platform.

I'm surprised there's not more info on it too. There was a massive amount of info on Subarus, even the newest models. Maybe because it's more of a "tuner" community.

I have driven an A3 with the sport seats, and while not a ton better, it's still a good improvement. The adjustable thigh support seems to be what most people say is the real plus. But an S4 seat is much more bolstered, which is why I figured if it'll fit, I'd just go that route. Does anyone know a friend or family member that has a B8/8.5/9 A4/S4/A5/S5? Maybe they'd let you take a few hours and just see if they'll fit? Can at least know what the extent of compatibility between the platforms are then.

One reason is the stock subaru seats were terrible lol. On one of our Soobs, I replaced the gawdawful seats with seats from an MR2 which were my favorite OEM swap for a while (put MR2 seats in my Toyota Pickup replacing the bench seat too). Made my own mounts for the Recaro in my AE86, and Sparco in my LS400. For VAG Stuff, very often the seats physical mounting is compatible, at worst swapping out the seat mounting base, but is more the heat/cooing/airbags/PODS that get trickier.

[QuadRings]

One reason is the stock subaru seats were terrible lol. On one of our Soobs, I replaced the gawdawful seats with seats from an MR2 which were my favorite OEM swap for a while (put MR2 seats in my Toyota Pickup replacing the bench seat too). Made my own mounts for the Recaro in my AE86, and Sparco in my LS400. For VAG Stuff, very often the seats physical mounting is compatible, at worst swapping out the seat mounting base, but is more the heat/cooing/airbags/PODS that get trickier.

Yeah agreed that the wiring for the other stuff is the issue. Yeah I swapped WRX seats into my Impreza, and then did the same with a Forester XT, from the current WRX. Everything was all plug and play. Only thing with the Forester was I swapped the rails because the WRX ones made the seat sit very low.

This seems to be the closest thing I've been able to find.https://forums.vwvortex.com/showthre...i-S5-Seat-Swap Seems like some of the wiring did match, and that was too VW, so I'm wondering if more would match being that it's Audi to Audi.

[mkv nr]

I’ve been searching for a thread similar to this for weeks. I agree with the a3 seats are lacking. I came from a 06 gti and the stock seats felt way better than these. I was able to buy Audi TTS seats from a guy who had them installed in his gti. The guy that installed the seats in his gti helped me put them in my gti. It was 100 times better. He did however have to take the wiring from my gti seats to get it work. So I’m thinking and hoping to find s3 sport seats or rs3 (doubtful) replacements and it’s plug and play. There’s more s4/s5 seats out there but info if they will work is...?


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[Spinnetti]

Generally, seats should swap between many audi/vw, but the key thing is sedan to sedan or SUV to SUV is more likely to go smoothly, and you will also have better luck if in the same generation. Different platforms get updated at different times, so being on the same platform generation is more of a determinant than model line. Plugs may be different, but often the wiring functions are the same so have to spend some time with a wiring diagram. Ultimately, in many cases you may need to be the first and just figure it out. I'd like to change the seats in my R8 but they are just too dang expensive.

[QuadRings]

mkv nr me too, and I got tired of looking/waiting so I figured what the hell, I'll start one up. Spinnetti 100% true on the generation being the biggest factor, and that's the root of what I'm trying to find. Using the Subarus I did as an example, seats were interchangeable between 12-16 Imprezas/Crosstreks, 15+ WRS/STi, and 14-18 Foresters. You would THINK that any car manufacturer would keep something as simple as connectors/wiring pretty similar between models, given the same generation. What I'm wondering is, MQB started in 2015 here, I believe? So was it the last of the previous generations, or the first of the newer generation? Is it more B8 A4 or more B9? Or is there not much difference? There's a guy by me with B8 A4 sport seats for sale, but like I said, my wedding payments are flying at me fast and furious, so not gonna inconvenience the guy to see if he'll let me play around with them when I can't snag them right now.

Side note, weddings are a dumb waste of money haha.