If it really is uncomfortable there's no way around it I have driven straight 20 hr, 11 hr and 8 hr trips in my Prius and was more bothered by the lack of a telescopic wheel rather than the drivers seat. But I drive more upright than most people. I'm 6'0. I also don't particularly like the idea of getting too comfy behind the wheel.
I don't have a problem and I'm a big guy (6'3" and 280lbs ). The seats feels just fine to me. My wife is 5'4" and she says they are fine for her as well. We each drive about an hour each way to our jobs. I'll see if this is still the case when we drive 12hrs on our vacation this summer.
Likely mentioned before, but IMO, the improvement for the 'seat problem' in the next Gen Prius is simply the 'pump handle' to raise/lower or change the driver's seat tilt. This should not cost much and I don't think it would add much weight. why such a big deal? IMO, if a tall driver, need to lower or tilt seat bottom to get more room to see under the rearview mirror, 'specially with that Homelink mirror. I tilted the seatback, back more, to get more viewing room. Weird to have the seatback reclined with seat bottom relatively flat. Toyota will sometimes say 'we didn't want to add weight by putting a power seat in the Prius'. Ok, power seat is not what I'm asking for, just the bloomin' pump handle, a standard feature even on a $12.5k Yaris sedan (ooop startin' to lose my cool .... maybe that's because Toyota claims they 'thought of everything' in the Prius ..... close, but not quite ... even a $15.2k Corolla gets tilt/telescopic steering wheel, but not the Prius, that would add weight. Wouldn't it be a joke if the 3rd Gen. Prius does not get a telescopic steering wheel ... Me, a troll, no. Driver of a Toyota pickup, looking for the right upgrades in Gen 3 ... yes
I just sent a letter to Jim Lentz, President Toyota Motor Sale, USA complaining about the seat and asking for a remedy.
I agree completely. This letter if sent to me would find the round file in a hurry. It throws in every complaint, innuendo and unrelated comment and draws conclusions that are unsupportable. If you don't like the car, sell it!! You will be much happier without it.
I do agree that Toyota should have at least incorporated the Corolla features mentioned in the Prius ... surely it would have saved them design and production costs by spreading the non-recurring over a broader product range. But often model design and production centers suffer from the "not invented here" mentality and you get something inferior, like the Prius seat with no height adjustment (though I am perfectly OK with it, at 5'8" and 160 lbs plus a bead cushion).
Read Jelloslug's thread: http://priuschat.com/forums/prius-main-forum/58247-i-added-new-handle-08-a.html in the Main forum.
It's a Pius, you're lucky they didn't make it out of old birds nest sticks and upolster it with hair shirt.
And has 3 or 4 inches more rearward travel, and is noticeably more supportive (especially in the lumbar area) and comfortable all around.
I'd write to the dealer principal of the Toyota Dealer who didn't allow you to test drive or look at the car prior to purchase.
I rented a Prius before buying my '05 and the driver seat didn't seem much worse than my '01 Corolla. It didn't take long, however, to realize how tight and uncomfortable the new seat really was. I'm 5' 11", 325 lbs, and with that unnecessarily wide console next to my thigh sometimes I feel like a pourred-in Mercury Astronaut. Can't wait to sit in the '10.
I'm sure Toyota is aware of the now dead Detroit auto-makers philosophy of producing vehicles that were obsolete before they were out the door and fell apart about the time they were paid for - that increased their future bottom lines - to a point. I'm a male 6'1", 200 pounder with very little butt padding. I'm retired and have owned and driven 60+ automobiles and trucks more than a million miles or so. Since suffering a massive stroke a couple years ago, I've assigned the driving chores to my petite, 5'2", 105 pounder wife. Therefore, I've become very familiar with the passenger seat - my wife very much so with the driver's seat. We are VERY unhappy with the seats - most notably when traveling for more than an hour. We've tried all sorts of "corrective" supports, pillows, etc. with no success. I'm browsing this thread to see if anyone has come up with a comfortable solution to the seat(s) problem. It appears that some are happy - some are not. We are in the latter group and are now actively discussing getting rid of our venture into the "land of green" for something a little more utilitarian and comfortable. I'm not happy with the thoughts of losing several thou on a trade-in nor the prospect of increasing our loss by "investing" several thou in replacement seats (were they available). From reading the posts on this thread, I'm impressed with the number of folks who don't think there's a problem and the number who agree there is a problem. Sort of like, "the coffee is too strong" to "the coffee is too weak" analogy. Or, "different strokes for different folks". Seat comfort depends on your body shape, amount of time sitting without time out to stretch, engineering and construction of the "chair", and numerous other factors. Sitting in the seats for a few minutes in a dealer's showroom will not provide you with the same comfort data as will traveling over a long distance. We truly like our Prius, except for the terrible seat discomfort. This is the first new car that we've been reluctant to take anywhere for more than a few miles. It's amazing how many of you have traded in or otherwise sold your Gen I or II rides for a Gen III on speculation that one or more perceived or real problems may have been corrected by now. If Toyota doesn't monitor forums such as this, that discuss their products, and adjust to the consumer as appropriate, one can only conclude that they are following Detroit's example of short-term planning, which will eventually lead to the same outcome. In the meantime, I will continue to seek out a better "fit", while adjusting to the financial heartburn of dumping this PITA (literally) that doesn't get used as much as we intended. Just my dime (which still makes a good screwdriver).
They are comfortable or "livable" for many people, they are a problem for more people than the average car. I don't see this complaint as frequently on other cars and there really are not that many cars with a base price over $20K that didn't have standard or optional seat height adjusters in 2004 to 2009 models.
I too find it uncomfortable, especially on long trips. I can live with it, but for the price I paid for the car, it ought to be more comfortable and at least have basic, manual height adjustment, which wouldn't add a whole lot of weight.
I'm about 5'8" and find the seats to be fine. I've been in them for >500 mile trips (each way) before w/o issue. The height adjustment got added on the 2010 model.
