I want to replace my NHW11 03 Prius seats, especially the passenger seat, for my wife. She has had two back surgeries so comfort is very important but trying to find any sort of objective reviews has proved difficult. I can handle the mounting but the challenge is finding a consensus on the best seats. So far, I'm reading that Saab and Volvos tend to have comfy seats. Short of visiting the various car dealers and doing a 'sit test,' are their any personal recommendations? Thanks, Bob Wilson
I'm going a slightly different route. I'm looking for seat cushions. Here's one that interesting: Car Seat Cushion - Jobri BetterBack with Tempur Pedic Pressure Relieving Material Shop, Find and Buy at ComfortChannel.com. I've got a tempurpedic mattress and my wife and I love it. She used to have horrible back problems and this mattress has really helped her out. So hopefully, the "memory foam" will do well in a car. Here the lumbar support is made of the tempur material: BetterBack Backrest Seat Support Pillow with Tempur-Pedic (w/cover) Good luck!
Don't mess about with seats from another car, get the best. .: RECARO :. and find someone who can consult you on your real needs and make a professional recommendation.
Just remember to bring it into the house at night if it is going to be cold outside. If not, you will find out that it will be as hard as a rock until it warms up and becomes pliable again.
New seats sound expensive. My suggestion is to try something simple like this Therm A Rest for a mere $32. The nice thing about this cushion is you can easily add air on the fly. It is self inflating. You can easily move it around as needed. I use this in my Prius. I also have a brand new scaro-ease that I used for a week. It is similar to the "Car Seat Cushion" mentioned in this thread. It made me sit too high in my last car (4Runner), where my head touched the ceiling. In addition, it did not help my low back problem at all. Now I am out $229 . Anybody want a screaming deal on a new sacro-ease? ~Blaze
There are several makes of seat cushions available. Check them out in the orthopedic section of your "large" drugstore. Obusforme and several others make them, and some even have heat and vibration! They do seat bottoms and backs. Getting an aftermarket seat to fit in the car can be troublesome.
When you are talking about a person who has had back injuries already isn't it worth getting professional advice and a seat you can put into your next car and the one after that etc? While Recaro may seem expensive you win some back in resale every time you trade in a car with as new seats and you know what ever you buy next will have perfect seats as soon as the Recaros are bolted in just for the cost of a base frame if you buy a different car. You will have forgotten the price in a few years but you will remember the quality for many years to come.
All I can say is that the Saab Aero 95 seats are the best seats my dary has ever touched. I've owned 2 Jags, 83 XJ6 and 02 X-Type, driven an 06 XK8 and rented a multitude of vehicles. The Saab is by far the best "production" seat I've found. Of course there are better when you're talking custom seating. You can always have a seat molded and fitted to your dimensions, then, you'll be the only one enjoying it.
For us, rather than mess with unhooking/hooking stuff built into the seats that's related to the side curtain air bags, "she who must be obeyed" found these gel cushions that she swears by. She's had multiple surgeries, and in need of a 3rd (recently sheered, via a nasty fall, one of the titanium screws used during surgery). Most any seating posture causes her discomfort, except the gel. It's a lot cheeper, and It'd be a darn shame to buy new seats, go to the hassle of hookups, only to find out it may not work, or only give partial relief. Good luck with your choice!
I am recovering from a triple spinal fusion 10 months ago. Just bought an '08 and didn't realize the seats would be so bad on my back until I drove it for an hour or so. Anyway, I went to the Relax the Back store and tried a few options. I finally ended up with McCarty's Premium Sacroease Auto Back Support. They custom molded the seat to the curvature of my spine for optimum support. I have been driving around for a few days now and the problem is solved. They also sold me a small rectangular lift for to put under the seat that raises me up some. This helps a lot with the correct angle that I am seated. I highly recommend trying this out before investing in a seat.
