Prius Driver's Seat Misery

Tall people come in different shapes. Some are all legs, others all torso, which explains why some tall people find the Prius okay and others do not.

If you have tried the various cushions suggested in other threads, then your only options are to extend the seat rails or trade in your Prius. Extending the seat rails preserves the air bag.

The new 2010 model features more leg room, an adjustable seat, and a telescoping steering wheel. I would consider that before buying an Accord.

Tom

 

I'm so glad I'm not the only one that hates the seats in this car. They need to be height adjustable and heated, at least...and the lumber sucks. For that matter, the lack of a telescoping SW is also a bummer. Honestly, I don't drive the car that much, but I'll be watching this thread as I assume we might be taking the car on a 1200 mile round trip for vacation in June.

I'm only 5'11 with a 30" inseam, but I have serious back issues when I drive the car for an extended length of time. I put the seat all the way back (which makes me have to reach for the SW), so I have no idea how someone over 6'2" could drive this regularly. The seat and SW are perfect for my wife (primary driver) but she's 5'1".

I feel like I can do better if I force myself to pull my lower back away from the seat...maybe a lumbar cushion is all I need...but I shouldn't need one in a car that retailed for $29k. Interestingly, I alway had similar issues in my wife's last car (Volvo V70), and they're supposed to have the best seats in the world.

 

I'm 6'3" , 34" inseam. I agree that the seat sucks, but before selling try at least these two things. They can make a big difference:

1. Don't carry anything (wallet, billfold, etc.) in a rear pocket.

2. Put a small fat pillow or cushion (or even a wadded-up t-shirt) behind the small of your back. All of the purpose-made back support thingies I tried were not worth a darn.

 

I know tall people come in all different packages, but are there any shorter folks who have serious back issues or leg strain complaints from these seats?

I'll agree they are not the most comfortable seats, but I've had absolutely no issue when driving the car for very long stretches (600 miles non-stop). Perhaps I'm just the one body-type that works in these seats.

The 2010 is an entirely different machine in this respect. The seats were noticeably more comfortable, and the telescoping steering wheel and seat height adjustment will allow substantially more freedom to set the most comfortable driving position.

 

Look around, I'm 6'1" and have similar issues... I've found a couple threads regarding adding the vertical adjustment mechanism from a Corolla driver's seat, and intend to do that mod within the next few months. Right now, the seat is bearable, but it won't be when I make road trips.


Here's one talking about the mod:
http://priuschat.com/forums/prius-main-forum/58247-i-added-new-handle-08-a.html

 

I took a piece of pvc pipe put a "T" fitting on the top with some foam on it and I use that to support my right leg, worked for a 10 hour trip

 

Listen .... very .... carefully

I am 6ft. 2in and have worked on this issue ....

#1) You are a tall / big guy. You want to protect your seats with covers, BUT the covers are sucking up the small seat-bottom and legroom available. These seats are darn small for a big guy.

I do not use a driver's seat cover any more. You would be wise to start by removing yours.

#2) Yes, the driver's seat has abysmal thigh support for anyone with 34" inseams. There is a way to help this.

Look up a local professional foam factory. You will need to have a custom cut foam cushion made. Good news is they will make one for about $10 (no kidding), BUT,

you must supply the template of what you want.

Read on....

 

#3) You cannot afford to sit any higher in the car, therefore cannot sit on the commonly found cushions with 2" foam in the butt area.

You need something like 1/4" foam to sit on, but ironically, more like 1 1/2" foam in the front part of seat.

A foam factory can make a 1/4" base seat cushion, then attach (ok, glue) a wedge on the front portion for your thighs.

Sounds cheesy? Darn well better than selling your $30k car for $20k !!

A good wedge cushion for you will end up looking like a T-shape with the front 5" wedging up to about 1.5" thick, roughly.

I covered my seat cushion with a pillow case in dark blue.

Read on...

 

This is my template,



and this is my custom seat cushion. I challenge anyone to find something like this in a store, anywhere.



It is a T-shape since I did not like foam in the side bolster (raised sides) area. Foam there just makes the seat feel smaller. I cut the whole side bolster area w/o foam except for the area where the foam 'wedges' up.

This shape does help with thigh support. I started out using just a wedge on front of seat, but found myself always fidgeting with it (arrived at shape above after several other tries). When sitting on a whole cushion, no fidgeting to do.

Is my seat really, really good? No. Is it much better with the seat cushion ... most definitely yes.

I also use a very small pillow between the seat and console just for a little something to rest right leg against (not the one shown, another much smaller).

Read on...

 

At this point you may be thinking - I'm not putting some ghetto-a** seat cushion in my $30k car!!

O. K. but you have the car and really need something to make yourself more comfortable.

I drove a 400 mile weekend with the seat cushion and did fairly well. BTW, I buy 34" inseam jeans all the time, in case you can't tell from pic below



Read on...

 

You have a package #3 and are likely finding that blasted rearview mirror blocking your line of sight ...

simplest solution is to carefully! invert it (wires attached to it).

I've had my Homelink mirror inverted for 3 months now, and it helps.

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Why did Toyota favor the rear seat legroom and go marginal on the front seat?

Most comforting (pun intended?!) explanation I've heard is they didn't think the Gen2 Prius would sell amazingly in North Am., so they favored designing it for the Japanese market.

Hollar back and let's see you get something working

BTW, my driver's seat didn't 'hit me' until after 3 months of driving also. Was caught up in the 'new-ness' early on.

 

Stop struggling about using cushions in an expensive car. No one will hit you on the head for doing so. At this point, you just need to get more comfort.

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Little off topic, but want to get PO'd? Go sit in a $20k sticker priced Honda Civic (skip the Si) and languish in one of those driver's seats. Make sure to put the ...

driver's seat height adjuster all the way down and back. Sure the rear seat leg room goes to pot then, but, who ... cares. At least you, the driver, are then comfortable.

I could go on about the gen2's seat for tall people. Some might say, 'it wasn't for you ... buy something else'.

Imagine, not being 'qualified' to buy a car that has more than enough physical size, but not the correct design for a wider range of heights.

However, the driver's seat travel is also linked to the location of the pillar between the doors, since the seat belt is mounted on that. 2010's pillar is moved back along with the roofline peak, hence the driver's seat travel is greater.

Oh, and most 'well over 6ft people' must be challenged sitting in the Gen2. If legs are short, then roofline is seriously blocking view.

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Wanna get really PO'd? Wait, sit in a 2010 Prius and find out what a proper driver's seat feels like.

 

Is it possible to install another seat? Even if you had to pay retail for a fully adjustable 2010 model, that has to be cheaper than losing 10 grand on resale.

 

I know one PC'er had a Recaro installed to the tune of $2k in his Pri.

Another very creative PC'er took a Corolla seat base with height adjuster and attached it to the Prius upper. There is a whole thread on this.

The thing is, the height adjuster does give the effect of some more legroom, because the Toyota adusters tilt the back of seat bottom downward. Slightly increases legroom and 'marries' thighs up with the front of seat.

Take any 09 Corolla, put the seat height mostly up - you have a Gen2 Prius. Crank the seat height all the way down ... you have what will be much closer to the 2010 Prius.

The Honda and Mazda seat height adjusters are Really good since they move the way the seat down and back simultaneously. Downside is a little harder to get in / out.

Wanna know what kinda stinks? The Gen2 Prius driver's seat is basically the same as a ....

Yaris Liftback's (yes, even the Yaris sedan has height adjust), save some better fabric over top.

We paid for the Prius drivetrain, not the seats, that's for sure.

 

Cycle, the link I posted on the first page is the very Corolla seat mod you mention.

 

Has anyone actually changed seat rails in a gen2 Prius?

It was a thought at one time. There was a thread for a seat rail group buy, but I don't think that ever occured.

Crazy thing is, there is actually 1 more rail slot on the right seat rail, but not on the left on the Prius. I'd take that extra notch back.