Thinking of Prius - stunned at wife's assessment

I'll add my stats and experience to the list here. I'm 5'3", overweight, and have recurring back trouble that stems from an old injury. My longest trip so far in the Prius has been about 5 hours. I had shoulder and neck pain after the trip out, and finally determined the cause to be the height of the steering wheel. I lowered it, and had no discomfort during or after the return trip. There is a lack of lumbar support in the Prius, but usually I am not in the car long enough for that to be a big issue. I'm trying out lumbar cushion options now, and I'm sure I will find just the right one. Then my perfect Prius will be even more perfect. I agree with Godiva; the seats are, for me, a non-issue, even though I do have back problems. I think an uncomfortable seat can be readily addressed.

And you are right, you may be facing some other sort of objection from the wife. The looks of the Prius, for one... the style seems to be polarizing. Most people either seem to love it, or think it's butt-ugly (I fall in the 'love' category).

 

I use a mesh lumbar support in the car, the office and at home. I really like it.



mesh lumbar support

 

I drive mine long-haul on a regular basis, as much as 16 hours in a day. I'm also in the tall-ish crowd, at 6'2, 195lb. My assessment is that the ergonomics are fine (not good...just fine) for anything up to a couple hours. After that I start to get pretty uncomfortable and just a little annoyed at Toyota's designers. The seat is a bit too hard, not well bolstered, and the travel is about an inch too short for my legs to stretch out the way they ought to. Yesterday I ran a couple of two-hour legs sitting on a pillow, and that helped a bit. The extra inch or so of height allowed my legs just enough room to un-cramp, making them comfortable. Problem is that the steering wheel doesn't telescope, and is at least a couple inches too far away from my body. So now I get pain at my left collarbone even after an hour from reaching out to steer.

I'm determined to find a solution, because the driving position is literally the only fault I've found in this car after a year of ownership. Maybe one of those obus forme cushions and some fiddling would do it.

 

I don't think the seats are super comfortable (I'm 5'10" and 'height/weight proportionate, as they say) but they're not bad, either. I do like the driving position and the way it's easier to get in and out of than other cars, like this Dodge Charger I drove recently.

That thing was a huge ponderous tank, with a too-high beltline and a windshield like a slot, and I'd clunk my head on the roof sometimes when I got in and out (of the seats that weren't any more comfortable than those in the Prius).

I think, because the seats aren't that adjustable, it's more of a luck-thing; some people fit and some don't. The seats in my '96 RAV4 are lots smaller than these by comparison, so the Prius felt like a big improvement to me when I first drove it.

 

We bought our Prius 6 days ago. The dealer loaned us a car overnight a few weeks before to test drive. After learning the nuances of starting up the car and powering down, she now wont let me drive it !

oh ... back on topic. I find the seats in our Prius (Itec - front/back, height adjustable, backrest lean adjustable) quite comfortable, although for the price a lumbar support adjustment would have just been perfect.

Both my wife and I are approximately 5'10" and have no problems. I note her preferred seating adjustments are significantly different to mine.

 

The Prius is the only car I've ever driven where I drive with the seat all the way aft. I'm only 5'9", so it's ridiculous really. However, I've taken the car on a few long road trips and have no complaints about the seats. I wouldn't describe them as luxurious but they are fine.

 

My girlfriend and I have driven several long roadtrips in the Prius, including a 5,500 mile cross-country one over nearly 3 weeks. I'd say that for the most part, no complaints (she's 5'4", I'm 5'7"). They're not luxury-vehicle caliber but they're also not just a couple of cushions thrown together. In fact, I think the bigger issue isn't so much the seat comfort but the placement of the armrests--personally, I like to rest my arm and steer using the bottom half of the wheel. But because the placement of the door and center console armrests are so far back, you can't reach the wheel. But you get used to it.

Good luck!

 

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In January, we test drove both a Prius and a Civic Hybrid -- both were fine with me, but my wife (5'9", with some back issues) did not like the comfort of either front seat of the Prius. We bought the Civic, mainly for that reason.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(ozjohnd @ Nov 22 2007, 02:35 PM) [snapback]542787[/snapback]</div>

Welcome to the Prius Club from another Aussie!
Maybe we can help you sometime?

John, priusclubqld.org