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Seat Fix

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Some time ago, Elon indicated that Tesla was working on a fix to make the seats more comfortable (he also talked about a new seat that was farther in the future). I believe it involved removing or tweaking a support beam in the seat. I have now scheduled my appointment to have the fix done at no charge. Has anyone already had this done? If so, can you please share your experience with the new seat. Thanks.
 
Some time ago, Elon indicated that Tesla was working on a fix to make the seats more comfortable (he also talked about a new seat that was farther in the future). I believe it involved removing or tweaking a support beam in the seat. I have now scheduled my appointment to have the fix done at no charge. Has anyone already had this done? If so, can you please share your experience with the new seat. Thanks.
We had it done a few weeks ago, just before we went on a 1600 mile trip sharing driving. We're pleased with the modification. Our complaints differed, but were both based on the seat bottom being too hard. My wife found it painful and I didn't like the lack of lateral support (I slid from side-to-side on turns). After they modified our driver's seat, sinking lower solved my lateral support complaint and the softness solved her complaint.

I've always set the seat position all the way down. Although it wasn't a complaint of mine, I also now like the slightly lower seating position better (I'm 6' 1").

Initially, I thought it odd they only modified the driver's seat and not the passenger's, but after our road trip neither of us were uncomfortable in the passenger's seat even though it's noticeably harder. The only reason I can imagine for the differenence in comfort is that as a passenger you unconsciously are able to shift your position often without being "locked" to the pedals and steering wheel.

BTW - The seats we're accustomed to are our Mercedes S550 and SL500 seats, which are still slightly better overall than Tesla's seats.
 
Was this a paid retrofit or they fixed it for you no charge? Do you have the work order that you can share?

Thanks!

We had it done a few weeks ago, just before we went on a 1600 mile trip sharing driving. We're pleased with the modification. Our complaints differed, but were both based on the seat bottom being too hard. My wife found it painful and I didn't like the lack of lateral support (I slid from side-to-side on turns). After they modified our driver's seat, sinking lower solved my lateral support complaint and the softness solved her complaint.

I've always set the seat position all the way down. Although it wasn't a complaint of mine, I also now like the slightly lower seating position better (I'm 6' 1").

Initially, I thought it odd they only modified the driver's seat and not the passenger's, but after our road trip neither of us were uncomfortable in the passenger's seat even though it's noticeably harder. The only reason I can imagine for the differenence in comfort is that as a passenger you unconsciously are able to shift your position often without being "locked" to the pedals and steering wheel.

BTW - The seats we're accustomed to are our Mercedes S550 and SL500 seats, which are still slightly better overall than Tesla's seats.
 
Was this a paid retrofit or they fixed it for you no charge? Do you have the work order that you can share?

Thanks!
Seat Fix 4.jpg
 
I initially felt the driver seat was too hard. I had to take my wallet out of my back pocket for the first few months to avoid being uncomfortable. Now though, after a year, it seems that either my behind has adjusted or the seat has been broken in. I did find hints on the forums about adjusting the forward edge of the seat up, and that helped.

I just had my annual service a couple of weeks ago. If I had known about this seat mod then, I don't know if would have opted for it since it seems to be fine now. Of course, I have not taken many long road trips so I might not be a fair judge on this.
 
We had it done a few weeks ago, just before we went on a 1600 mile trip sharing driving. We're pleased with the modification. Our complaints differed, but were both based on the seat bottom being too hard. My wife found it painful and I didn't like the lack of lateral support (I slid from side-to-side on turns). After they modified our driver's seat, sinking lower solved my lateral support complaint and the softness solved her complaint.

I've always set the seat position all the way down. Although it wasn't a complaint of mine, I also now like the slightly lower seating position better (I'm 6' 1").

Initially, I thought it odd they only modified the driver's seat and not the passenger's, but after our road trip neither of us were uncomfortable in the passenger's seat even though it's noticeably harder. The only reason I can imagine for the differenence in comfort is that as a passenger you unconsciously are able to shift your position often without being "locked" to the pedals and steering wheel.

BTW - The seats we're accustomed to are our Mercedes S550 and SL500 seats, which are still slightly better overall than Tesla's seats.

Thanks for the information. I'm having both of my front seats done at no charge.
 
I initially felt the driver seat was too hard. I had to take my wallet out of my back pocket for the first few months to avoid being uncomfortable.
FWIW, you shouldn't ever sit on your wallet anyway. It can really cause damage to your spine over the long term.

Piriformis syndrome - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Piriformis syndrome is also known as "wallet sciatica" or "fat wallet syndrome," as the condition can be caused or aggravated by sitting with a large wallet in the affected side's rear pocket.[23]
 
I broke my tail bone many years ago, and my bottom bothers me when sitting in the Tesla. I had the car in yesterday for the battery shield and asked for this mod. For me, it is a worthwhile improvement. Not perfect, but better. They only modified the driver's seat and not the passenger seat. Maybe I'll ask them to do the passenger seat next time the car is in the SC.
 
FWIW, you shouldn't ever sit on your wallet anyway. It can really cause damage to your spine over the long term.

This 1000 times! I sat on my wallet for 20+ years before someone told me not to. My long term back pain has gone away completely since I stopped, and while not necessarily the cause, I'm pretty sure it was a contributor... Seems so obvious now, but for over 20 years it never crossed my mind.
 
FYI, they can only apply the fix to the driver's seat. The airbag sensor in the passenger seat prevents them from doing the modification. I guess the only way to improve that would be one of the better, new seats coming out that are available as a retrofit. I wouldn't want to hazard a guess at how much that'll cost.

Ah well, one seat softer is better than no seats.
 
FYI, they can only apply the fix to the driver's seat. The airbag sensor in the passenger seat prevents them from doing the modification. I guess the only way to improve that would be one of the better, new seats coming out that are available as a retrofit. I wouldn't want to hazard a guess at how much that'll cost.

Ah well, one seat softer is better than no seats.

Mine is going in at 11 am on Friday so I will report back Friday night.

Very excited about this.