just got my prius about a week ago and love almost everthing about it. Ran through a whole tank of gas and was able to to get over 55 mpg calculated. But, i have one major complaint; my head just about hits the ceiling and i can't extend my legs very far forward with the seat all the way back; my knees have to stay bent at about a 45 degree angle to step on the accelerator. i wish the seat would slide back at least another 4 inches. i am only 5'10" tall, does anyone else have this problem?
umm.. how can you be 5'10" and almost hit the ceiling? we've had 6'3" ppl here and they still have headroom.
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(splinter @ May 29 2006, 04:14 PM) [snapback]262430[/snapback]</div> You will find multitudes of posts about the driver’s seat position. Bottom line is, just keep screwing around with it and or modifying it until you find something you can live with. There are people who are 14 feet tall and say that they don’t have a problem and there are some who are 3 feet tall and have no problems, I have no answers. Take it to Jesse James and have him modify it. I messed with mine for about 6 weeks of pulling out the seat and trying everything I could think of; I found a position that is acceptable to me. Not great, but at least it doesn’t put me in the Hospital after an 8 hour drive. Good luck! B)
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(splinter @ May 29 2006, 01:14 PM) [snapback]262430[/snapback]</div> My friend is 6 feet and thinks the car is just fine-I'm 5' 10" or 5' 11" and wish the seat would go back an inch or two more. Seems to depend on how long your legs are, and maybe some more things as well. I recently drove the car 700 miles in one day and it wasn't to bad for the first 300 or 400 miles, after 700 I was ready to sell it. The seat needs to be longer for more thigh support.
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(splinter @ May 29 2006, 12:14 PM) [snapback]262430[/snapback]</div> I have that same problem on a recurring basis!!
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(tumbleweed @ May 29 2006, 05:17 PM) [snapback]262450[/snapback]</div> i do a lot of driving as well, when i initially took a test drive it felt reasonably comfortable. after the first 50+ mile drive is when i realized that the seat was a problem. i really do love the car otherwise. i will definately look into getting the seat cusomized. i think if it would go back a few more inches, not only will i get more leg-room but it will also give me more head-room due to the slope of the ceiling.
i have a friend who is 6'3" and he thinks there is plenty of room but also have this guy who is about 6' and complains that he has too little headroom so guess it all depends on what you are comfortable with. im 5'8" and im just fine although most think im too far away from the steering wheel. seen too many accidents to think it possible to be too far away from something that can do nearly as much harm than good in the right (or wrong) situation
I agree with you Splinter, I loved the car but hated the lack of legroom when I got my 05 Prius. I'm 6'1" and I like having my seat back straight up. This cut off the top of the speedometer and limited my view out the front and back windshields. But I fixed the problem. I took the car to New England Wheels in Billerica, MA. They modify cars for Boston Celtics players. They removed the seats. Drilled out the rivets holding the 8 pedastals to the 4 seat rails. Welded about 4 inches of strong steel to the front of the seat rails. Welded the 8 pedastals to the rails 3 inches forward from the original position. Painted it black so it looks good. Then reinstalled. the movement of the seat was shifted back 3 inches. They did it in less than 4 hours for about $300. It was well worth it. the car is much more comfortable now. I would still like to lower the seat an inch or more. But I haven't heard of a way to do that yet. The guy who did the work has done the same thing to well over 100 cars. He didn't even need to look at the car to tell me he could do it. I strongly recommend you get someone with experience to do it. At first, I went to a handicap retrofitter, who had never done this type of mod. They mounted to seat to metal plates which moved it back, but also raised and tilted the seat. I had them put it back to original position, then found New England wheels.
Many years ago I took some long road trips in my old Civic. While the Prius is very comfortable for normal driving, I think it is not as comfortable on very long trips as the Civic was. But I really don't know if it's the car, or my aging body. Probably the latter.
i think my Prius is about as comfortable as any other car ive driven. i have drove across the country east to west and top to bottom about a dozen times and i didnt really feel comfortable in any of the half dozen vehicles i drove. for me after the drive exceeds a few hours i am not comfortable period. the Prius having the range to drive 8 hours without stopping makes it tougher. i did drive to Montana and back in a weekend in the Prius. i dont remember feeling uncomfortable but that i attribute to the fact that there was 3 other very animated people with me. without a doubt, the most entertaining long drive i have ever been a part of. being a military brat, it seems i spent half my youth on one car trip or another. until you experience the Al-Can hiway BEFORE it was paved, you have not really taken a real road trip.
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(nyprius @ May 29 2006, 11:44 PM) [snapback]262608[/snapback]</div> new England wheels sounds like they know what they are doing. if i can't find someone in the central florida area that can do the same; i might have to take it there on my next trip up to the northeast. you hit it on the head nyprius, i too like to drive with the seat straight up. i tried all kinds of configurations today while driving. if i recline the seat back a little i get more head room but i don't feel in control of the car. the only real solution is to have the seat custom fitted thx.
