Car seat comfort

Honest John Back Room » Motoring discussion
What is life like with your car? Let us know and win £500 in John Lewis vouchers | No thanks
View Threaded
Thu 2 Dec 2004 16:44
Car seat comfort - No Do$h
Having now disposed of Mrs ND's late Laguna to a chap a little over 6' tall (is he in for some backache) I got to thinking about car seating. The Laguna was a classic example of bloomin' awful seating, whilst my 156 has a superb seat that allows me to arrive refreshed after 800 miles of motoring (and no, that's nothing to do with it being on the back of a breakdown truck).

I recently took a Saab 9-3 for a test drive and was extremely impressed with the seating. Ditto the Touareg. On the other hand the seats in a Merc ML were awful.

Nominations please, for the best and worst seats out there.
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Thu 2 Dec 2004 16:46
Car seat comfort - NowWheels
wotst: back seats in a Yaris. The squab is so short that it leaves most of my thighs unsupported.

Best: Renault 16. Like a nice soft armchair.
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Thu 2 Dec 2004 16:52
Car seat comfort - No Do$h
wotst: back seats in a Yaris. The squab is so short
that it leaves most of my thighs unsupported.


That...... conjures images probably best left unconjured.
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Thu 2 Dec 2004 16:48
Car seat comfort - Altea Ego
Best
SAAB 9-5 leather (properly adjusted)
Laguna II Half leather sports seats with bolsters as found on the dynamique or extreme.


Worse
Mitsubishi L200 double cab
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Thu 2 Dec 2004 17:04
Car seat comfort - Big Cat
Best
Renault 18
Renault 30 - ah!!!!
Laguna 2
Rover 75
Volvo V70

Worst
Land Rover Defender.
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Thu 2 Dec 2004 17:14
Car seat comfort - Truckosaurus
I can concur with both the Saab (good) and Yaris (bad) choices.

I have the Saab myself, and the seats are very comfortable, and most passengers agree too.

With the Yaris, I got a lift in one, and was thinking "this'll be good, Yarises are meant to be the best supermini these days", but the back seat was not a nice place to be. My friend's Fabia is much better for back side riders.
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Thu 2 Dec 2004 17:25
Car seat comfort - No Do$h
My friend's Fabia is much better for
back side riders.


I am soooo glad you proof-read that.
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Thu 2 Dec 2004 17:32
Car seat comfort - SjB {P}
Volvo P2 platform cars (S60/V70/S80).
No contest.
End of debate. :-)
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Thu 2 Dec 2004 17:57
Car seat comfort - nortones2
An interesting site which looks at some (not all) modern car seats and the relationship with car controls. Laguna soggyness noted! www.car-seat-data.co.uk/xlcardata.htm
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Thu 2 Dec 2004 18:42
Car seat comfort - NARU
In recent times:

Worst: 1999 Saab 9-5 Aero (standard leather seats). My back got so bad I got rid of the car.

Best: 2000 BMW 330d (sports seats, fabric)
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Thu 2 Dec 2004 23:02
Car seat comfort - formerfarmer
Best:
Recarro seats of the Ford Escort Mexico/RS2000
Worst
Land Rover Defender.Absolutely no question about it. Short in the seat and lacking enough space in the cab to get any rake adjustment.
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Thu 2 Dec 2004 18:52
Car seat comfort - Clanger
Best; Renault 16, Citroen DS, Citroen CX, Citroen BX (GTi style), Morris 1800.

Worst; Citroen 2CV, Morris Minor, Hillman Imp, Morris Marina, Austin Montego
Hawkeye
-----------------------------
Stranger in a strange land
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Thu 2 Dec 2004 19:12
Car seat comfort - somebody
I found the seat in (believe it or not) a mid-1970s Rover P6 to be extremely comfortable.

Worst seats: Ford Sierra
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Thu 2 Dec 2004 20:17
Car seat comfort - adverse camber
Having been in a saab 9-5 and a volvo V70 in the last couple of days - V70 has better seat for tall drivers. The head restraint on the saab catches the top of my spine.

Best : Subaru SVX (In which I am in agreement with mr LJKS), if only the gearbox didnt fall to bits on a regular basis Id still run one of these.

Worst: Rover Metro with seats not rake adjustable.
2nd worst 309 in which the seat padding collapsed so I was sitting on the frame (my 1st company car)
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Thu 2 Dec 2004 20:19
Car seat comfort - patently
Absolute best: BMW 'sports' seats. Never mind the sporty styling with the deep side bolsters, I tried them once many years ago. At the time, an hour in any car was my limit before feeling distinctly uncomfortable. In those, I could detect no limit.

Worst - rear seats on a 911 cabrio behind a driver's seat set to accommodate me. Yaris? [yorkshire accent] Luxury! [/yorkshire accent]
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Thu 2 Dec 2004 20:23
Car seat comfort - adverse camber
thats odd - I know 2 people who have had the sports seats taken out of M3's and replaced because they claimed theey didnt have enough side support.
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Thu 2 Dec 2004 20:31
Car seat comfort - patently
thats odd - I know 2 people who have had the
sports seats taken out of M3's and replaced because they claimed
theey didnt have enough side support.


I'm thinking of the sports seat option on the normal (non-M) models. An M3 owner might have a different expectation as to side support!
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Thu 2 Dec 2004 20:27
Car seat comfort - tr7v8
Good Alfa 156 & TR7 (once repaired properly)
Best Recaros in Alfa 75 LE
Worst either knackered TR7 seats or wifes Toyota Corolla
NOt bad Ford MOndeo or Subaru Legacy

Jim
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Thu 2 Dec 2004 20:39
Car seat comfort - GrahamF1
Best: Peugeot 205 GTi. Seems to almost wrap right around you, incredibly snug. Just the right amount of back support.

Worst: Early Ford Focus (not sports seats). No back support at all - truly terrible.
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Thu 2 Dec 2004 22:19
Car seat comfort - Big John
Worst1: Ford Focus At 6ft 4" using the seat hight adjuster opens up a 2" gap between base and back and after 100 miles the bar at the back base sticks into the base of the spine.

Worst2: Renault 21 , like an arm chair for 50 miles tooooo softttt for a long run, my company car from 1990-1 give me back ache that I still now suffer from!!! It took me 20 minutes to be able to stand up straight and walk after 250 miles.

Best: Saab 9000CS, could drive all the way to Munich in one trip wihout a single twinge. (PS 95 not as good)



PS Is it me but is the seat on the new Golf really narrow and uncomfortable, try sitting in a Golf and then sitting in a Touran (much much better)
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Fri 3 Dec 2004 00:12
Car seat comfort - tyre tread
Best: Rover P5 front armchairs, erm sorry I mean seats.



Worst - Ford Scrote (anagram) - enforced company car used for daily commute of 174 mile round trip - How I HATE escorts!
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Fri 3 Dec 2004 00:21
Car seat comfort - Quinny100
Best - Citroen C5

Worst - Ford Focus Ghia - "Luxury" seats apparently according to the brochure, I've sat on more comfortable park benches.

Seems to be trend of modern cars that the seats have to be rock hard - recent observations from riding in cars show Vauxhall to be universally solid, I've also been in a 99 VW Bora that were quite hard, an 04 Octavia which were harder still, likewise an 04 Golf. After a bad experience with the Focus, I won't buy anything without a bit of give in the seats.
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Fri 3 Dec 2004 18:02
Car seat comfort - Ben79
Best - Citroen C5


I'll second that. 4 1/2 hours in the seat, you could turn round and drive back again! (unless you need the loo!). They are nice big seats, but I bet if you were 5' tall, it might be too big for you.
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Fri 3 Dec 2004 05:24
Car seat comfort - Bagpuss
Best:
Mercedes S-Class rental car (sadly), nappa leather, airconditioned and massage function. I wish my home furniture was this comfortable.
BMW M3 (my own), leather/ alcantara combination sports seats with adjustable width side supports and adjustable length seat squab. Fit as if moulded to the body, if a little difficult to get into and out of.

Worst:
Ford Escort Mk2 that I had as my first car. The non reclining brown vinyl seats were even less comfortable than those fitted to my Dad's Austin Maxi at the time.
Chevrolet Blazer I had as a rental car some months ago. I didn't realise any new car was fitted with such astonishingly bad seats and never figured out if the covering was leather or vinyl.
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Fri 3 Dec 2004 12:19
Car seat comfort - Mapmaker
Worst seat of any car I've driven any distance recently is that low-mileage T reg Vectra with the poor running. Hard & uncomfortable.

My 130k Audi 100 I'll drive for ever & love every second of it.
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Fri 3 Dec 2004 12:29
Car seat comfort - daveyjp
Worst - Pug 206 - back ache after the 6 mile trip to work.

Best - Focus was excellent, but only for about 25,000 miles then the seat base started to lose it's solidity leaving a gap between the base and the back, right on the lumbar region.

Both the A2 and the smart have very supportive seats - I can drive both for hours and not get uncomfortable.
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Fri 3 Dec 2004 13:46
Car seat comfort - doctorchris
I find my Nissan Terrano 2 seats very comfortable. I think this is so because you sit rather upright with knees angled rather than stretched out in front of you.
Therefore your weight is transmitted vertically down the spine and onto the seat base rather than from the spine onto the seat back. In addition the nerves and ligaments at the back of your legs are not being stretched all the time.
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Fri 3 Dec 2004 16:04
Car seat comfort - Stargazer {P}
Best car seat: Subaru Legacy Outback, 6000km in 2 weeks from NSW to Cooktown, Queensland and back via rough sealed and unsealed inland roads. Never a complaint from the comfort department, just ran out of CDs (only took 40).

Mrs StarGazer was 5 months expectant at the time and was concerned about sitting for long periods at a time but had no problems with comfort.

Worst: Mk1 Escort. Front seats tilted to allow access to rear but no other adjustment whatsoever. Black vinyl material that caused 1st degree burns after a day in the sun.

StarGazer
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Fri 3 Dec 2004 18:35
Car seat comfort - adamj23
The seats in the new Honda Accord are also very good.

But you can't beat Volvo or Saab when it comes to car seats the Swedes do it best.
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Fri 3 Dec 2004 19:54
Car seat comfort - tack
The worst seats I ever used were the beer crates screwed to the floor in the rear of my mates Escort van!
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Fri 3 Dec 2004 20:06
Car seat comfort - Mondaywoe
C5 seats are the most comfortable of all the cars I've owned (2 Minis, Renault 18, Renault 11, Renault 21, Renault 19, Citroen Xantia, C5) I'm just over 6 ft and this is the only car that I've felt I've had enough room in.

Everything about C5 is bigger than average - seat width/depth, legroom, elbowroom, headroom etc. I once parked side by side with a Merc and was surprised to notice that the C5 is wider and taller.

I suppose the Mini was the worst, but I was young(er) then and didn't really notice!

Graeme
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Fri 3 Dec 2004 21:24
Car seat comfort - Buster Cambelt
Best and most comfortable seats in a car I've driven this year, probably ever, was an MB S500. I found the Accord and 407 particularly uncomfortable.
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Fri 3 Dec 2004 21:27
Car seat comfort - machika
I would agree with the comments about the C5. The seats are a big improvement over those in the Xantia.
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Fri 3 Dec 2004 21:40
Car seat comfort - Robbie
Honda Accord has the most comfortable seats of any car I've owned. One of the reasons for buying the Accord after trying lots of diffferent makes.

Seems to be the view shared by AutoExpress.

www.autoexpress.co.uk/index.php
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Fri 3 Dec 2004 22:54
Car seat comfort - andymc {P}
Best seats - Rover 75, even after an hour and a half in the less-roomy-than-you'd-expect rear of the cabin. Have to say that compared to many competitors, my Passat isn't bad either, especially in the back - plenty of room for normal-sized adults, more like an Audi A6.
Worst seats - current shape Clio, closely followed by the Fiat Punto. Diabolical, both of them. Rover 25 driver's seat wasn't great either.
--
andymc
Vroom, vroom - mmm, doughnuts ...
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Sun 5 Dec 2004 11:29
Car seat comfort - Big John
"Worst seats - current shape Clio, closely followed by the Fiat Punto. Diabolical, both of them. "
I like the seats in Mrs BJ's Punto HLX, they are well padded an supportive with excellent adjustable head restraints and they even fit me (large & 6ft4"). I tried a more basic model and hated them though.
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Sun 5 Dec 2004 12:57
Car seat comfort - Andrew-T
Good - all 205 versions I have tried (several, especially the sport varieties). Original Punto seats were highly rated (and may have been designed) by osteopaths. Austin Maxi (!!).

Bad - 206 Garros, leather. Had to get rid after 2 months/3000 miles, too uncomfortable after an hour's driving.

Just shows that it is down to individual shapes/requirements as much as the seats themselves.
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Sun 5 Dec 2004 13:10
Car seat comfort - Pugugly {P}
Good. My current and last 5.
MINI
Cavalier SRi (Remarkable for a car of its age)
Disco

BAD Defender...........!
Cav Lsi.
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Sun 5 Dec 2004 14:02
Car seat comfort - madux
Best - My new Volvo 945 - drove back from Cornwall yesterday - 6hrs driving with a break at the Eden Project (Highly recommended). Seats firm but supporting. Felt more like a 20 min. drive
Worst - Moto-Guzzi Le Mans MkII, once spent 14 hrs in the saddle from Switzerland to Holland - am I a hero or what?
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Sun 5 Dec 2004 19:50
Car seat comfort - Hugo {P}
Best: Citroen Xantia, Nissan Primastar van (Renault Trafic)

Worst: Lada Riva.

Took some getting used to: Land Rover Discovery 200TDi I just needed to try different seat positions.

H
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Sun 5 Dec 2004 23:41
Car seat comfort - expat
Looking through this thread it would seem that usually you get what you pay for. There are some exceptions but generally more expensive cars have better seats and cheaper cars worse ones. No big surprises there.
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Mon 6 Dec 2004 10:22
Car seat comfort - Adam {P}
Just to disprove your theory expat,

BEST - M reg Polo!!!, Ford Focus Ghia (although you have to adjust it quite a bit to get comfy, Merc E class, Merc Viano LWB (all of the seats!), Mazda 626 and the BMW M3 ....oh ok, most of your theory was right!

WORST - 53 plate Vauxhall Corsa, Fiat Punto, Ford Fiesta (I'm 6ft 5 so you can't really complain), Audi A3 - although I suspect a lot was down to the ride as well)
.
--
Adam
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Mon 6 Dec 2004 12:46
Car seat comfort - Andy P
One other plus for the Accord - there's plenty of headroom. I'm 5-11 and there's probably another 4-5 inches between the top of my head and the roof (helped by not having a sunroof). I'd alos agree that they are very comfortable - easily on a par with Volvo and Saab.



Andy
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Mon 6 Dec 2004 16:41
Car seat comfort - Robbie
I noticed in the motoring section of the Daily Telegraph that a reader with back problems had found the seats in the Accord Executive the most comfortable of a number of cars he'd tried. HJ concurred.
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Mon 6 Dec 2004 17:38
Car seat comfort - L'escargot
Best ~ Ford Focus Ghia
Worst ~ Ford Ka. I don't know which variant because the three samples that I drove were all courtesy cars and in each instance I was more interested in getting to my destination as soon as ever possible (and getting out of the car) than I was of taking note of which variant they were!

I know that a lot of you will disagree with me on both counts, so I can only assume that one's shape and size are highly relevant factors.
--
L\'escargot by name, but not by nature.
Reply | Report as offensive | Link

Choosing a child seat can be a quite baffling experience – there are so many sizes, types, brands and price points available that you might not know where to start.

How to choose the right child seat