BMW 1 Series - Bmw 1 series auto - worst driving position ever !

Honest John Back Room » Motoring discussion
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Thu 13 Jun 2019 00:35
BMW 1 Series - Bmw 1 series auto - worst driving position ever ! - MTD
So, I get a new job, and it comes with a company car. Being tall at 6’4” I ask for a car that has the ‘pull the front of the seat forward’ extended bit for thigh support , and get a temp BMW 1 series from a more senior position car pool until I get an ordered Astra (have driven astras lots and they are fine)

Have had this 1 series a week and 500 miles now, and simply cannot get remotely comfortable non it, and finish my 50 mile commute with sore right ankle, front of shin, back of thigh, and right buttock, as well as sore left front of shin bizarrely ! Have tried every combo of reach, tilt , height , thigh support out or not, even putting a cushion on top - but just get pins and needles within 5 mins.

I’ve not driven a floor pivot accelerator car before with such a low position before, that’s all I can think of as have driven autos , other bmw’s And low lying cars before and never had this much discomfort .

I most be the only person who genuinely can’t wait for an Astra instead of a BMW ! I will miss the lovely IDrive system and gearbox, but not it’s driving position. Has anyone else found 1 series horrible to sit in ?
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Thu 13 Jun 2019 07:25
BMW 1 Series - Bmw 1 series auto - worst driving position ever ! - veloceman
Snap! I had a brief fling with a 1 series.
Terrible driving position with seat height adjust that seamed to pivot from the front.
Friend also had a Mini who complained of the same.
I did get used to the accelerator tho.
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Thu 13 Jun 2019 08:37
BMW 1 Series - Bmw 1 series auto - worst driving position ever ! - bazza

Interesting that, some years ago I had one as a pool car .the reason it was a pool car was that it had been rejected by someone as they couldn't get comfortable with the seat position! And sure enough it was a horrible uncomfortable experience, driving a 300 mile round trip. Have you noticed how low down people look in the driving seat, often only a head is visible! I'm surprised they haven't fixed the problem, this is going back 6 or 7 years

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Thu 13 Jun 2019 09:04
BMW 1 Series - Bmw 1 series auto - worst driving position ever ! - dan86

I can trump that I had the displeasure of driving a Dennis Elite 2 for a week (bin lorry) the seat was and I'm not exaggerating 100 times worse than the seat in the Mercedes lorry I was used to. I just couldn't get comfortable no matter how I adjusted the seat. This also had the accelerator pedal like the BMW mentioned unlike in the Mercedes with the normal pedal lay out.

I think sometimes some people are just incompatible with certain vehicles but saying that everyone who drove the Dennis complained about how uncomfortable it was and now our policy is Mercedes Benz lorries only.

For the sake of around £10000 ( per vehicle) and a happy workforce they made the right decision.

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Thu 13 Jun 2019 11:33
BMW 1 Series - Bmw 1 series auto - worst driving position ever ! - daveyjp

The only reason I went ahead with a test drive of a 3 series GT was to be polite to the salesman who had taken ages to get the car off the lot.

Had it been easier to jump in and drive off I wouldn't have bothered as I knew as soon as I tried to adjust the seat to get comfortable the car wasn't for me. You couldn't adjust the height whilst sat in it and when I did get it right I couldn't see the dash dials properly.

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Thu 13 Jun 2019 13:28
BMW 1 Series - BMW 1 series auto - worst driving position ever ! - Avant

I'm glad to know it's not just me! I'm 5'7" with an average-sized body but shorter-than-average legs, and I can get comfortable in any car except BMWs.

I remember that years ago motoring journalists used to talk about the 'Standard Italian Ape' - with long arms and short legs which you had to have to be comfortable in an Italian car. BMW seem to demand the opposite. To be able to use the pedals comfortably I have to sit too close to the steering wheel. Perhaps it's a 'sporty' driving position that BMW (including Mini) think you should adopt to drive their cars.

Actually there was one exception - the 2-series Active Tourer that I considered last time I was looking: the driving position was fine. What a pity - the seat itself was uncomfortable.

Edited by Avant on 14/06/2019 at 20:17

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Thu 13 Jun 2019 14:03
BMW 1 Series - BMW 1 series auto - worst driving position ever ! - Snakey

I test drove a 2014 BMW 1 Series and thought the driving position was terrible. The seat was very low and narrow and it felt like my feet were offset. After 20 minutes driving I had backache and my left foot ached!

I'm 6 foot, and average build and its the only car I've walked away from because of the weird driving position!

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Fri 14 Jun 2019 08:04
BMW 1 Series - BMW 1 series auto - worst driving position ever ! - Happy Blue!

Mentioning the Mini....

My wife has a Mini. We are the same height but different body proportions; she has longer legs. I cannot get comfortable in the Mini, but she loves it.

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Fri 14 Jun 2019 09:23
BMW 1 Series - Bmw 1 series auto - worst driving position ever ! - SLO76
Being a bit of a short a*** (5’6”) I rarely have trouble getting comfortable behind the wheel. The only exceptions being most Alexander Dennis products which have seats that are always twisted off centre. Not sure if it’s years of abuse from fat bus drivers but the all seem to be the same and also lack padding. I’ll include the old 70’s and 80’s Alfa’s in that too. No idea who they used to plan their driving positions but I wouldn’t like to meet him in a dark alleyway at night.

Edited by SLO76 on 14/06/2019 at 09:23

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Fri 14 Jun 2019 11:09
BMW 1 Series - Bmw 1 series auto - worst driving position ever ! - macscrooge

I had a 116 manual as a loan car for a day. I am 6'2" and can't safely operate the clutch pedal! It certainly distracted me from the issue of seat comfort....

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