In September 1965, the Recaro sports seat was presented for the first time at the International Motor Show (IAA) in Frankfurt. The innovative feature of the visually striking seat was the foam upholstery, which compensated for shocks from the road. Until then, metal springs and horsehair upholstery had been used in the seat core, which only absorbed these shocks to a limited extent. In addition, pronounced side bolsters provided better body support. What had proven itself in racing was now celebrating its premiere in a seat for road vehicles.
"At the IAA 1965, the seat prototypes were enthusiastically received by the trade fair audience," explains Martin Putsch, Managing Partner of Recaro Holding. "That was a more than successful start for the still young Recaro company." The seat specialist emerged from the "Stuttgarter Karosseriewerk Reutter & Co." in 1963.
At the time, Reutter had decided to sell its bodywork plant with around 1,000 employees to Porsche and concentrate on its core competence "seats". "For Recaro with its 250 specialists, the sports seat was a milestone in product development that significantly shaped the future and realignment of the company," says Putsch.
Pioneering Recaro product development
As a product for sporty drivers who did not want to do without a healthy degree of comfort, the sports seat was fitted as standard in the Porsche 911 S. Thanks to the console as an adapter for installation in various vehicle types, the product was also the first retrofit seat that could be used regardless of manufacturer. From then on, Recaro was not dependent on one main customer, but opened up completely new markets that are still being successfully served today. The name Recaro became synonymous with good seating.
The company underpinned this reputation with seats for a wide range of applications: today, aircraft seats and child seats are also offered under the Recaro name.
"50 years of sports seats" at Retro Classics 2015
At the Retro Classics classic car trade fair from March 26 to 29, 2015, Recaro will be ringing in the anniversary year "50 years of sports seats". This year, the brand's trade fair presence in Hall 1, Stand 1C12, is all about innovative product development. The automotive highlight of the trade fair presence is the original "Autonova GT" prototype, which - equipped with a predecessor of the first Recaro sports seat - also celebrated its debut at the 1965 IAA. In 2015, the model can now be seen again on an exhibition stand in cooperation with lender Audi Tradition 50 years after its premiere.
