Getting Comfortable: Buyers Rate the Importance of Auto Seats

There is one part of your new vehicle that you will be in more contact with than any other. Yet, it gets little attention in most reviews or advertising for cars and trucks. Nonetheless, a comfortable or uncomfortable seat will have a major impact on your driving enjoyment.

Professional and regular long distance drivers will be among the first to tell you that an ill-fitting seat can turn a long drive into a nightmare, and may ultimately lead to stress injuries or other serious medical issues. So how much attention do car buyers pay to their auto seats when they make their selection?

A new survey by BuyingAdvice.com shows that almost two thirds, 66 percent, of online buyers interviewed rate the car’s seating as “very” important in their buying decision.

The survey, taken among 1883 visitors who requested online price quotes and indicated they were within a month of making a new car purchase, also revealed that 58 percent of the respondents had already sat in the driver’s seat of the vehicle before they requested their price quote.

Far fewer, 42 percent, had sat and tested out the rear seat of the car. Also when asked to choose which was a higher priority, passenger comfort or driver position, over 85 percent said that the driver’s position was more important to them.

But how do you test whether a car seat is suitable for your needs? And how should you compare auto seats?

There is a consensus among experts as to the ideal driving position.

• Adjust the drivers seat so that your leg is fully extended with all your weight on the brake pedal, if you have a clutch, make sure you can fully depress it when your leg is straight.
• If your seat or steering wheel moves up and down, adjust it so that you can see all the gauges.
• Adjust the back rest to ensure that your arms are fully extended when your hands are on the steering wheel while remaining in full contact with the back of the seat.

In the days before air bags, most drivers were taught to keep there hands in the 10 and 2 position. But now the advice is to hold the steering wheel in the 9 and 3 positions to avoid injury should the air bag deploy.

Once you have the seat positioned, check to see how easy it is to get in and out of the vehicle. Turn yourself around in the seat to check visibility while reversing and test the comfort of the natural sitting position.

The sitting position is particularly important for high mileage drivers and those who suffer from lower back pain, which some research has suggested can be linked.

Ergonomics Professor Alan Hedge of Cornell University believes, “When you take a new car on a test drive, it is equally important to test comfort as it is to test the way the car handles.” One of the first steps he recommends is testing the base of the seat for firmness by bouncing up and down on it.

Hedge notes that driving differs from ordinary sitting because of the lateral forces and vibrations that pass to the body from the car when it is in motion, plus the fact that the legs and feet are in use while driving.

The primary requirements are finding a seat that is adjustable up and down, back and forth and that has a reclining back. If those adjustments are offered and satisfactory, Hedge advises looking for additional features like adjustable lumbar support, height adjustable arm rests and seats that can tilt in front, so the base of the seat does not press against the back of your knees.

If you are choosing a vehicle that will have several drivers, be sure to make each driver check their position, especially if the drivers have widely varying body types or heights.

When testing the comfort of passenger and rear seats, set the position for the primary driver first. Then while the driver’s seat is in position, assess the leg room and adjustments of the passenger seating. In many vehicles, the driver’s seat has features which may not be available to the front passenger and the glove compartment may restrict leg room more on the passenger side.

Always sit in the rear seats with the driver’s seat in the position you will normally drive in. Car sales representatives are trained to make the driver’s seat the last place you sit. This can disguise restricted legroom unless the seat is correctly positioned. Examine if rear passengers can get their feet under front seats for extra leg room. Also, look at the slope of the rear window which may curtail head room.

During the test drive, pay attention to the support your seat gives when cornering, as this gives an indication of the level of lateral support. When going over rough surfaces, you can get an indication of the level of vibration transmitted through the seat.

The challenge facing designers and engineers is to design a seat that will fit a wide range of body types. Luckily for the consumer, the only question is: how well does this auto seat fit them individually?