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Seats: To Next Gen or not to Next Gen....that is the question

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Tesla fans!

Been a stalker of the forum for almost 2 years but as time as progressed and I get closer to pulling a trigger I figured I should become more active in the community!

I know the questions about accessories/upgrades gets asked all the time and I have managed to figure out everything else I am looking at for the car but can't seem to get around the seats.

I've read a number of reports of people preferring the standard leather seats over the next gen leather seats. I personally couldn't care less about leather. I actually prefer textile seats however Tesla does not offer this in the Next Gen seats.

I've sat in both...multiple times. And everytime I leave the store my mind has switched. Once time the Next Gens hug me really well and I feel like I would slip off the standard seats in any sort of turn. Other times I feel like the Next gens just don't show enough value to warrant the costs.

Anyone care to weigh in on this discussion?
 
I guess if you are on the fence and like the textiles the savings is fairly big. I love my next gens and would certainly pay the $750 difference for them over the regular leather. But if you are okay with textile I can see going that way. For me a car in this price range needs leather. Just would seem strange to me w/o it.
 
I originally had the standard leather seats before the Next Gen seats were available so I had plenty of time to try them out. Once they switched me out to the Next Gen seats I felt a huge difference in the bolstering. For me, the Next Gen seats are worth it! Much, much improved over the standard leather seats.
 
I've read a number of reports of people preferring the standard leather seats over the Next Gens...I've sat in both...multiple times. And everytime I leave the store my mind has switched. Once time the Next Gens hug me really well and I feel like I would slip off the standard seats in any sort of turn.
Do a test drive in a car with standard leather seats and then do the same drive in a car with Next Gen seats. Then decide. Only you can be sure which you prefer.
Probably not possible to do a test drive in a showroom car with Textile seats.
Don't agonize over the seat choices. The car is so awesome it doesn't really matter!
 
I own (for my wife) a P85 with the performance leather (regular leather with red piping) and a P85D (for myself) with next gen. Honestly.... I don't even like the seats in the P85 anymore after having the next gen ones in my P85D. The difference is very obvious when switching cars.

I had a loaner with textile seats when I got the LTE upgrade done not long ago. Definitely worse feeling than the P85's leather.

Based close to 50,000 Model S miles driven, I'd definitely pick the next gens.
 
It surprises me that after sitting in both people would still ask this question. I had a P85+ loaner recently and when I "fell" into the seats, it almost hurt. I am close to say that the NG Seats is the most important difference to my old P85. Absolutely love it.

If you drive fast in curves, its an absolutely must. I can pull high g's now in turns, not possible with the standard seats.
 
I own an S with standard seats and have spent a significant amount of time in cars with Next Gen, and I prefer Next Gen. But am currently finishing up a 3,300 mile trip in my S and find the seats very comfortable and I don't "slide" in them. But I do not drive my car on public roads as if I was at the track (and I have tracked cars, but not the S)
Each person has to decide on their own if the additional cost of the Next Gen seats is worth it to them. For some it may not be.
 
The cost is one aspect; but even aside from the cost, some people just prefer the old seats. My wife, for example, who has more than 50k on her old seats. She doesn't like the Next-Gen seats at all.

Me, I prefer the contours of the Next-Gen seats. But I prefer the feel of the textile seats more (which, as noted, are not available on the Next-Gen seats...a shame). Even if the price was the same, I'd likely get textile seats for mine rather than Next-Gen seats. I don't see any way I'd pay what they are asking for the Next-Gen. I just met a brand-new owner two days ago that felt the same; his car had textile seats. Of the cars I helped deliver in June, I think Next-Gen made up more than 50% of the deliveries, but not much more. (Of course there's no way to know how much of that is due to seat preference and how much is due to price. Plus some were inventory and CPO where there may not have been a choice).

It does seem that more people prefer Next-Gen to the old seats. But different people have different preferences; you will never know what works best for you unless you try them both!
 
I agree with those who say you need to make your own choice. You cannot assume that one or the other is "better" because someone else likes it more. In my own case, I had a rental in CA for a day with the original seats, and was quite comfortable in that seat. Later, I had one test drive with the NextGen, and found it very uncomfortable. So, each person owes it to himself to try them both and go from there. One other thing: Sitting in them in a parking lot or showroom is not the same as actually driving a car with them. I urge an actual drive if you can arrange it.
 
I've taken test drives in both the regular (leather) seats and Next Gen, and while I'm leaning towards the Next Gen it wasn't a clear winner. I did the Next Gen drive first, and I found the bolsters a bit confining even though I'm thin -- you can't adjust the bolsters as you can in some other sport seats. If I didn't go with Next Gen I would just get the textile seats -- I didn't drive in them, but I've seen them and they look nice.
 
Tesla fans!

Been a stalker of the forum for almost 2 years but as time as progressed and I get closer to pulling a trigger I figured I should become more active in the community!

I know the questions about accessories/upgrades gets asked all the time and I have managed to figure out everything else I am looking at for the car but can't seem to get around the seats.

I've read a number of reports of people preferring the standard leather seats over the next gen leather seats. I personally couldn't care less about leather. I actually prefer textile seats however Tesla does not offer this in the Next Gen seats.

I've sat in both...multiple times. And everytime I leave the store my mind has switched. Once time the Next Gens hug me really well and I feel like I would slip off the standard seats in any sort of turn. Other times I feel like the Next gens just don't show enough value to warrant the costs.

Anyone care to weigh in on this discussion?

From my initial Model S test drive the only thing i remember absolutely hating about the car were the seats. They felt like really uncomfortable bench seats but love what they have done with the Next Gen seats. personally I can't imagine buying a Model S without the Next Gen seats. Having said that buy them if you feel the money a worthwhile improvement and don't otherwise. It's really a personal thing.

Just one thing to keep in mind is that part of what you pay extra in getting the Next Gen seats, you will likely get back when you sell the car.
 
I've taken test drives in both the regular (leather) seats and Next Gen, and while I'm leaning towards the Next Gen it wasn't a clear winner. I did the Next Gen drive first, and I found the bolsters a bit confining even though I'm thin -- you can't adjust the bolsters as you can in some other sport seats. If I didn't go with Next Gen I would just get the textile seats -- I didn't drive in them, but I've seen them and they look nice.

That's exactly why I didn't go for nextgen. During my test drive, I didn't like them hugging me.

That and my wife didn't like them.


OP:
Considering the overall price of the car, the $750 is a trivial addition. If you like them, get them. If you're not sure, don't. I'm sure it'll help with resale value as someone else stated, but I didn't get the car for resale value, I got it to drive it.
 
OP: Just be sure to try the Next Gen seats on a test drive before you decide. Even a 10-15 minute test drive is not going to tell you how you'll like the seats on a long trip (unless you immediately dislike them :), but it will give you a better idea than just sitting on them for a few minutes in a showroom. Since you like the base textile upholstery (as I do), Next Gen will cost you $2,500 so choose wisely.
 
If you personally don't think it's a big difference and you rather want textile, then go with the base seats and save some money.

For me, it wasn't a question. Just like MsElectric, I was very disappointed by the seats in the Model S the first few times I drove it (before the P85D and the nextgen seats were available). Maybe I was spoiled by the German sport seats I was used to, but I just didn't like them at all. Then when I drove a P85D with nextgen seats it was like a revelation. They are some of the best seats on the market, imo. I love them, and I wouldn't have even considered ordering a Model S without them (in fact, I even passed on a very good deal on a slightly used Model S mainly because it didn't have nextgen).
 
The 1.5 standard seats are a significant improvement (IMO) to the 1.0/1.1 standard seats in my car. I believe I have the 1.1 (1.0 + spring tweak fix) seats, but on longer drives I get neck strain since the headrest is so far away from my sitting position, that I am actively holding my head up. In the 1.5 standards, the headrests are further forward and I can occasionally relax my neck and the headrest is just behind me.
 
If you are more than 6'3" absolutely standard. With next gen your head will touch the roof!

It may actually not only depend on your height, but also on your weight. I am 5'11", 155 lbs and initially had the regular leather seats and drove them for 5,000 miles until my NG seats were retrofitted. Night and day: I was swimming in the regular seats and the NG seats are holding me tight, but in a good way. So I would always get the NG seats again, not even a question. And I also read that another owner, spentan, who is much taller and bigger than I am also loves his NG seats and didn't feel they were too tight at all.
However, I remember that an owner in another thread was complaining about back pain in the NG seats. I have never experienced that with my seats and would highly recommend them to be more secure during cornering.

You may have to take a few more test drives. :wink: