My trusty bimmer's biggest problem is that the leather and foam on the driver's seat are cracking and coming apart. My local shop tells me that BMW replacement seats are really expensive, and upholstery repair is expensive and unsatisfactory. So I want to research the idea of dropping a Recaro in there. Has anybody here had experience doing that? Thanks.
My dad had the bottom cushion on his (now sold) '94 325i fixed at an upholstery shop and the end result looked every bit as good as when the car was new. It cost him far less than buying new seats too. He kept the car for about 3 more years and the new leather, which matched perfectly, still looked great.
See the Recaros at the top of this link, and the E36 brackets at the bottom of that page. http://www.tcklineracing.com/seats.htm
I've gotten used to the spring jabbing me in my leg. Nice seats! Two seats exceed the value of my car.
If you really want to go the route of Recaro's then go ahead. However, if you really want to retain the stock interior or upgrade to sport seats check out ebay. Believe it or not, I purchased a set of sport seats for my E39 for $330 which INCLUDED rear fold down seats AND side panels. I sold my standard front seats and the fold down seats and side panels for $600.