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Recaro: 'Devil is in the detail' of Chevy Camaro Z/28 performance seats
Michael Wayland
on December 22, 2013 at 7:30 AM, updated December 22, 2013 at 2:11 PM
AUBURN HILLS, MI- When General Motors Co. unleashes the Chevy Camaro Z/28 next year, it will be performance-focused all the way down to its seats.
The resurrected vehicle – scheduled to arrive in dealership spring 2014 – comes standard with seats from Recaro, a seat manufacturer that has become synonymous with performance and racing.
Recaro has made such a name for itself that GM North America President Mark Reuss singled out the company when unveiling the vehicle at the 2013 New York International Auto Show in March.
And the seats, which are also available in the 2014 Chevy SS 1LE package and ZL1 models, are Michigan-made at Recaro’s North American headquarters in Auburn Hills.
The more than 100,000-square-foot facility isn’t your average manufacturing center either. The seats are primarily made by human hands, not automated machines. Every single seat is meticulously sewn together and examined for any and all flaws from the hide the seats are made out of to an out of place stitch.
“The devil is in the detail,” said Markus Kussmaul, vice president of Recaro North and South America, during a tour of the facility with MLive earlier this year. “It’s really millimeters, or inches, which changes a seat from a perfect visual appearance to wrinkles, problems, life-cycle issues.
"There's really a lot of knowledge going into it.”
The company’s strict attention to detail can be easily seen throughout the facility, which employs upwards of 200 people at times. The detail is everywhere – from the first stitch to the final inspection and shipping.
Consumers may not think of it when they sit in their car how much time and effort goes into making a seat, but it’s a complex process. For Recaro, the new Camaro seat is a particularly interesting challenge. It features more than 100 primarily handcrafted pieces.
“The more lines you have on a trim cover, the more complex it gets. This is why the Camaro is complex,” Kussmaul said. “The complexity for us doesn’t come from the functions of the beat because that is pretty much a given.”
In keeping with Chevrolet’s desire to keep the weight down on the track-capable Z/28, the standard Recaro seats in the vehicle will only be manually adjustable. This offers a combined weight savings of 8 pounds for the driver and passenger seat versus the power versions of the Recaro seats available on the ZL1, SS and 1LE models, according to Recaro.
That 8 pounds combines with other weight-saving measures -- taking out the trunk carpet and insulation, installing thinner glass for the rear window, making air conditioning optional and removing all but one speaker – make the Z/28 about 300 pounds lighter than a supercharged Camaro ZL1.
As for the seats themselves, they feature aggressive bolsters to ensure both passengers and drivers remain firmly planted, even in high-energy driving situations; “RECARO” embossed under the “Z/28” logo in the head rest and fine quality leather hides that include Miko suede inserts.
“Camaro is such a fun car, it’s just absolutely incredible to take it to that next level and that we can be a part of that,” said Tom DeGiorgio, production manager at the Auburn Hills facility. “The real impact hasn’t hit yet because nobody’s going to see a Z/28 on the road until spring.”
DeGiorgio said employees take pride in all of their work, but there’s just something special about the Camaro Z/28 seats.
“It’s awesome to build that seat for that kind of car,” said Latakdis Coleman, Recaro line leader for the Camaro seats. “I really do like working Camaro lines.”
Recaro continues to grow its offerings and become available for more vehicles. In the U.S., Recaro seats can be found GM’s Cadillac CTS V Series wagon, coupe and sedan and Ford Motor Co.’s Mustang, Fiesta ST and Focus ST.
Kussmaul said the Auburn Hills facility has plenty of room for expansion, as automakers continue to choose the company for their performance and racing vehicles.
“This is really a win-win," he said. “We won’t sell a seat without the car, so we have a real interest that the OEMs support us and we have an interest to support them.”
Expect that "win-win" to continue into the future in the U.S. Some analysts expect the U.S. auto industry in 2014 to top 16.5 million vehicles sold, which should mean more Recaro seats on the road.
