The Pro High Back II is a plain automotive race seat that has become a quiet favorite in budget sim rigs, and understanding why means understanding what it is not. It is not a padded, reclining sim chair; it is a bare, double walled polyethylene bucket shell from JEGS, built for real cars and priced accordingly. At around 13 pounds it is light enough to bolt to a frame without loading it, and its rigid fixed back gives you the locked in posture serious drivers chase, with none of the flex a reclining mechanism adds. For a DIY rig builder who wants a stiff, cheap bucket and is happy to add a cover, it is a lot of seat for very little outlay.
This review weighs JEGS’s published specifications against the pattern of verified buyer feedback in our database, where the Pro High Back II holds a 4.2 out of 5 average across 341 reviews. You can read how we weigh maker claims against owner reports on how we review, and the wider field is laid out in best sim racing cockpits.
![Pro High Back II Race Seat [Black]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/71kovaeFxyL._AC_SL500_.jpg "Pro High Back II Race Seat [Black]")
What it is and where it fits
The Pro High Back II (JEGS part 555-70250) is a fixed back bucket seat molded from high density polyethylene with a double walled shell. It is a real automotive seat, listed as a driver side, vehicle specific fit part, which is the single most important thing to grasp before you buy it for a sim rig: it was made for a car, not for a cockpit with matched sliders. JEGS lists it at 13 pounds with overall dimensions of 32 inches tall, 21 inches wide, and 30 inches deep, and it ships as a bare shell in a black finish, with seat covers sold separately. That bare, rigid, lightweight nature is precisely why the DIY sim community reaches for it. When you want a stiff fixed back bucket and you are building your own frame anyway, a plastic race seat like this is a pragmatic starting point rather than a compromise.
Comfort, fit, and the bare shell
Comfort is where you have to be honest about a seat like this. JEGS describes it as offering back, lumbar, and side support from the shape of the shell, and the high back design does wrap and hold you, but it arrives as bare polyethylene. The covers are a separate purchase, and most owners treat one as essential rather than optional, because sitting on molded plastic for a long session is not the experience a padded sim seat gives you. The 21 inch overall width is the number to check, so a very broad driver should measure hip width against it before ordering. Owners who run it in a rig generally describe the fixed shape as supportive once a cover is fitted, and they value the rigidity the plastic shell provides. Go in expecting to budget for a cover, and the comfort story is a fair one for the money.
Rigidity and the fixed back
The Pro High Back II has no recliner, and for a certain kind of driver that is a feature, not a limitation. A fixed back bucket cannot creep, rack, or flex at a hinge, because there is no hinge; the backrest angle is whatever the shell is molded to. That gives you the stiffest, most direct connection between your body and the frame, which is exactly what a driver chasing a consistent formula or GT posture wants. The double walled polyethylene construction adds stiffness to the shell itself, and at 13 pounds it does all of this without loading the frame with weight. The trade is obvious and permanent: you cannot adjust the seat angle. You set your posture by how you mount the seat, not by a lever, so plan the mounting angle before you drill.
Building it into a rig
This is where a car seat and a sim seat part ways, and it is the detail a rig builder must plan for. The Pro High Back II does not come with sim sliders or a matched mounting bracket, so you supply the mounting hardware and figure the geometry yourself. In a real car it bolts to the floor pan or a seat bracket; in a rig it needs side mount brackets or a bottom mount adapter sized to your frame. That is normal for a DIY build, but it is extra planning and, often, extra parts that a purpose built sim seat spares you. The upside is total control over seating angle and height, which is why builders who want a specific posture like starting from a bare shell. Confirm your frame accepts a side mount or bottom mount bucket before you buy, and account for the cover and brackets in your budget. For frames and complete rigs that suit a bucket like this, see our budget sim racing cockpit guide.
Pros and cons
What works:
- Very light at 13 pounds, easy to mount without loading the frame
- Rigid fixed back with no hinge to creep or flex, ideal for a consistent posture
- High back shell with back, lumbar, and side support molded in
- A budget price and a large verified review sample
- Full control over seating angle and height in a DIY build
What to weigh:
- Ships as a bare shell, so a seat cover is effectively a required extra
- An automotive seat with no sim sliders, so you supply brackets and plan the mount
- Fixed back means no seat angle adjustment once mounted
- JEGS lists a 30 day warranty, short compared with purpose built sim seats
Who it is for
The Pro High Back II is for the practical rig builder who wants a stiff, light, inexpensive fixed back bucket and is comfortable sourcing brackets and a cover. It suits drivers who want a low, consistent racing posture and value shell rigidity over adjustability, and it is a sensible seat for anyone assembling a custom aluminum profile frame who wants to control the exact mounting geometry. For a side by side look at the range from budget shells to premium reclining seats, see best sim racing seats, and browse the full category in racing seats.
Who should skip it
Anyone who wants a seat that works out of the box should skip it, because the bare shell, separate cover, and self sourced brackets add up to a project rather than a plug and play purchase. Drivers who want to recline or fine tune their seat angle should look at a reclining sim seat such as the Next Level Racing PRS1, which adds dual recliners, sliders, and adjustable lumbar support. Buyers who prize a long warranty and a maker built specifically for sim use will also be happier with a purpose built seat. And if you want a seat already mounted in a complete cockpit, a bundled rig in best sim racing cockpits saves you the fabrication entirely.
How it scores
The WSR Score reflects verified buyer ratings gathered and normalized on a consistent scale, not an editorial rubric. On that basis the Pro High Back II rates solidly, which matches its standing as a light, rigid, budget bucket that a large number of owners have put to work in real rigs. You can read what goes into the number on how we review.
