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New seats or new car, my spouse HATES the M3 seats!

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Which iteration? What year?

The first time I sat in a Model S...maybe 2013...I thought the seats were terrible. When I test drove a Model S in 2019, the seats had been significantly improved, and for my body are more comfortable than the Model 3...but it’s all subjective.

It was either a 2019 or 2020 (December 2019). I think they might be fine for people who are small. I am rather large, muscular and wide and I felt like my shoulders and sides were being pushed in.
 
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It was either a 2019 or 2020 (December 2019). I think they might be fine for people who are small. I am rather large, muscular and wide and I felt like my shoulders and sides were being pushed in.
Interesting you don’t feel pushed in by the Model 3 seats, which I find much more constricting.

But, I’m only 4’11”.
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I realize this is an old thread but it still might come up in searches.

There were a lot of posts where the poster didn't understand the problem fully (I don't expect them too and this isn't criticism) and a lot of posts where the poster had a genuine seat issue but perhaps didn't fully understand why (and more often the commentators didn't understand why). But across the board there were very few legitimate solutions. There were a few good references to some very good YT videos however. But nobody addressed the issues and solutions fully. I want to add my two cents to provide useful information.

I'm a retired engineer. I bought a Tesla M3P. Initially I loved the seats. But I didn't realize my body build would end up causing the longer rides to be painful and punishing. I loved the car but cried in pain on long rides in the seat. I had to find a solution or get a different car. I'm an engineer, I wanted to design a better seat for myself.

I spent over a year buying seats, seat bases, investigating, reading, researching and most importantly trying fixes and test driving the fixes. Until I finally achieved a redesign that I can drive indefinitely in without pain.

The seat issues are a matter of body type, and body troubles such as per-existing lower back problems. Seat issues are not subjective and those suffering are really and genuinely suffering. A person of a more normal, smaller, moderate build, middle of the road bone structure, standard weight, normal not very tall, may actually love the seats. The seats were made for them, but not for us larger builds.

The problem is almost entirely for those with the following body attributes:

1) Wider hip bones, and what comes with that is wider leg room needed.
2) The issues are exacerbated by heavier person. Let's say anyone much over 200 lbs (I am 240 lbs) can exacerbate any of the other conditions. And often if a person has a pretty large bones especially hip bones, that person is often heavier, naturally.
3) Taller upper body / torso. This makes the upper seat shape and support critical. The Tesla seat upper/ back wasn't made for this build.
4) Back problems. All back problems will get worse. Some will develop back problems from long rides in the Tesla.
5) The year and model of the Tesla matters. Early Model S and probably X had “better” seats for the body type I'm describing. But Tesla used the same seat metal base sometime around 2017.
6) There was an additional change in about 22 where the X and probably the S used an interior metal support in the bottom seat foam. This reduced the room and increased the pain for the body type I am describing.

What I'm not certain about is 2024 and later 2023 seats. Although I did test drive a 23 Model S it was a brief drive. I did not like the seat. I wasn't in it long enough as it was a test drive and I have yet to purchase a used 23 or 24 seat to explore the build.

The problem of the seat bottom for the described body type can be described as too narrow a seat for his/her bone structure.
And the problem can be described as an upper back seat support structure made for a shorter more narrowly built person but not for us larger types. The back support is all wrong for us.

Metal base surrounding the narrowness, especially towards the rear of the seat, where the hips are largest. Lumbar support doesn't fully deflate and pushes the top of larger hips forwards, which is wrong for safe and comfortable back support. And a corresponding lack of lumbar support at the correct level for a taller torso. A person with a wide set of shoulders or wider upper body build will also feel like his back is collapsing. Most larger boned people also have a lager head size, L or XL or even larger. The headrest bends his head far forward and sets his entire back posture off. Finally, the Tesla seats have very little suspension. It's felt most by the body types described herein. The metal frame and metal springs are nearly useless. The foam is so thin and soft it's totally useless for suspension. This means that road bumps will send shocks into the spine. We don't want that.

This is what I've done after a year of hard work, many iterations, and the purchase of many Tesla seats and seat metal support frames.

I removed the seat bottom from the car and modified it. My goals included: a wider seat platform, no bolster / wing pain, more suspension for a better ride and less shocks into the back, a seat that looks and performs like the stock OEM seat, genuine lumbar support at the right level, a broader more supportive back for a wider shoulder person, a headrest position that allows us to “hold our head on straight”.
I achieved all of this with my own 22 M3P.

I swapped the foam out of the seat bottom for a more robust foam that provides more support for a larger heavier person and prevents the metal frame and bolsters from pressing in and hurting. Much more suspension from the denser thicker foam and I added additional foam blocks below and above the useless metal springs. I retained all the electricals so the Tesla seat sensor and heaters works like stock. I moved the stock lumbar support out of the way and inserted my own block of foam for a custom lumbar support exactly where I needed it. I inserted another block of foam vertically in the seat upper to make the seat feel wider and broader. I bent the headrest back until my head could sit on my body straight and align with my spinal column.

I also realize there are limits.
For example a huge NBA basketball player body build cannot be accommodated in a Model 3 / Y no matter what you try. But the Model X should be workable. The 23 model X has incredible headroom to work with. They will likely need modified seats as well. I don't know where the cutoffs and limitations are, I can only speculate. Turns out the Model Y has less available headroom because the seat is on platforms. This limits how tall a person can be and how much you can raise the seat in a custom seat modification.

On the other hand smaller and easier modifications might really help those that are just slightly lager. This is not for a bigger person, such as myself.

I recommend trying to sit, for a long ride, in the passenger seat of the M3/Y. This seat has a thick plastic sensor, that the driver's seat doesn't have. The effect is to prevent sinking into the metal springs and raise up the hip bones out of the metal surround. Some find the passenger seat acceptable but the driver's seat unacceptable. In this case a smaller change to the driver's seat might help some (it was inadequate for me). A shim of say 1/4" to 1/2" of some thick but somewhat flexible material can be inserted carefully over the metal springs. Careful not to affect the sensor wire in the middle.

I hope this helps someone.

Sincerely,
George Borrelli
 
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While at a supercharger I once struck up a conversation with a gentleman seated in his new Model S plaid. I asked him how he liked the car. He said "yes, it's pretty quick but I dan't care for the seats". I said really? I thought they were pretty comfortable. He said he was 6' 3" and 285 lbs. He didn't look it while seated in the car.

How do you design for that. What kind of vehicle would have comfortable seats for someone that size? A large SUV?
 
While at a supercharger I once struck up a conversation with a gentleman seated in his new Model S plaid. I asked him how he liked the car. He said "yes, it's pretty quick but I dan't care for the seats". I said really? I thought they were pretty comfortable. He said he was 6' 3" and 285 lbs. He didn't look it while seated in the car.

How do you design for that. What kind of vehicle would have comfortable seats for someone that size? A large SUV?
That's a great question!

The car manufacturer just to simplify and make a seat that “most” people should be OK with in order to reduce his costs while serving the many.

Storytelling sometimes makes a point.

When I was in college, I was very fit. I was wrestling and had been for a decade. It wasn't noticeable, but I had longer arms, a larger neck and a skinny waist. I had a tall upper torso. I was and am 6'1”, which isn't very tall but it was all in my upper body.

There were no clothes for my upper body that fit!
I was forced to custom tailor clothes or wear clothes that didn't fit right.
That was true into the 1980's, I think. Years and years I put up with the lack of clothing that fit me right. As I said, years later clothing manufacturers came out with Large Tall Athletic Cut. Those fit. Finally I could buy off the rack.

I guess the point I'm making is this.
Most manufacturers focus upon the majority. And they focus on what appeals in the showroom. If a need is outside the majority, and it would cause them to spend more money for fewer people, oftentimes they won't do it.

Once there is enough of a demand the manufacturer often times will do something to accommodate.

For Tesla, I would think that the X and S could accommodate a larger body build, to a point, but chose not to. Tesla chose to use the same seat frame on all 4 models to save money and simplify manufacturing. I beleive that decision was made in the 2017 refresh for the S and X.

For many years they added a wire loop outside the frame for the X and S, and could have a slightly wider seat with fancier larger bolsters that way. But it really didn't help the larger boned person. I don't think they were trying to accommodate a larger body build.

That leaves the aftermarket, custom seat makers, and DIY'rs to do what they can.

For a really big guy, say quite large boned, quite tall, heavier, say around 6'4, say around 250+, both the Model 3 and Y are out. There isn't enough head room and side to side room to accommodate really big people.

But the X has a lot of headroom and side room to work with.
Tesla could offer a larger seat as an option but it does complicate the works and Tesla is into simplifying. I don't expect to see optional seats from the factory.

If a larger guy really wants an electric car, I think there are other companies making larger cars, possibly Lucid and possibly the Ford pickup, with presumably larger seats. If the larger guy really wants a Tesla, he would have to customize the Model X or S.

In my case, I'm “somewhat” larger and for me I can make the Model 3 work with a custom seat build. For drivers a bit smaller in frame build than me, small changes to the seat should work without a fully custom seat build.

As a note. Before I bought my Tesla Model 3, I preferred larger cars. I had many Cadillacs and trucks.

I never owned one but I've read in forums some luxury cars have adjustable width!
 
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If sitting is uncomfortable you need to visit an osteopath or chiropractor…still cheaper than trading in
Yes, I've been seeing both. But the problem with the Tesla seat is my bone size not fitting in the seat width. That makes the bones really hurt when pressing into the sides of the Tesla seats. The metal outside the bolsters from mid to rear is what really hurts. That problem cannot be solved by osteopath or chiropractor care. I haven't ever had this issue in any other car or truck before my Tesla. Rather than trade in the car, I modified the seat. I'm not alone.