Short seated?

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Wed 9 Apr 2008 21:48
Short seated? - Bilboman
Having travelled in a few Skoda Octavia taxis recently, something strange struck me: the rear seat (the base,cushion, squab, whatever it's called) seems unusually short. With my legs stretched out, barely 2/3 of my upper leg was actually sitting on the rear seat, and I was beginning to find it uncomfortable.
Is it a cunning way of fooling us that there is more legroom than there really is and hiding the car's Golf origins?
Do Czechs have unusually short legs? (Thinking back to Italian cars of the 1980s which forced most "northern" European drivers to sit at the wheel legs akimbo)
Or - is it just my imagination?
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Thu 10 Apr 2008 10:44
Short seated? - craig-pd130
You're right, my Dad's Octavia 1 is the same.

Seat comfort is a big issue in cars for me, I was spoilt by a Volvo 10 years ago in which the driver's seat could be adjusted for squab tilt & height etc etc. It's frustrating that more cars don't have that, as I like a bit of under-thigh support ;-)
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Thu 10 Apr 2008 11:03
Short seated? - DP
My S60 is the first car I have owned which has what I would consider proper under-thigh support, apart from my Recaro equipped mk2 Cavalier. It's an area lacking on a lot of modern cars in my opinion. The Volvo's thigh support is not adjustable for length as craig's was, but the excellent range of independent front/rear height adjustment allows you to create a lovely "sit in" feel to the seat, rather than "sit on" which seems to be the way with many other cars. The padding is also perfectly judged, being soft enough to be comfortable, but firm enough to support.

It's the only car I've owned that gets instant positive comments from passengers as soon as they sit in the seats.

Cheers
DP

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Thu 10 Apr 2008 12:07
Short seated? - bathtub tom
I found my old Austin Maxi had the most comfortable drivers seat ever. You'd never think so from first impression, it felt like you were sitting on top of it, but it was the only car I could get out of after hundreds of miles without feeling crippled.
Nowadays I feel crippled getting out of any car, but I presume that's down to me.

I also found the old ex-BT HA Viva vans (remember the bright yellow ones?) remarkably comfortable. It looked like it had about a quarter of an inch of padding on a solid plastic base. Is it me?
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