Upgrading Seats

[mbhforum]

I have a 2015 85D with the original Nappa Black Leather seats. After having a Jaguar loaner this week from my SC with bolstered, leather seats, I am exploring possibly upgrading my seats to the Next Gen seats. I did some research and heard you can do this through Tesla for 5k?? That sounds insane. I've also seen some people selling theirs. I would imagine if I bought from someone else, I'd need Tesla to swap them for me and I'd have to pay labor rates?

I don't care about the rear seats since I have young kids right now in Booster/Toddler seats and will for a good 3-5 more years. I do have heated seats as well.

I also need to sit in the Next Gen seats to see how comfortable they are.

 

[murderedms]

If by next gen you mean the seats that were equipped for the 2016 models, I would not recommend them. I have them and find them to be very stiff and not comfortable for long periods of time. The newer ones (v3) that are in the 2018s are very nice and I would consider upgrading to those. P100D now even has the ventilated seats. Since the v3 seats have the adjustable headrests, I assume that a software update would also need to be done to the tesla system in order to get those to work. Let me know if you learn anything and what the cost would be.

 

[mbhforum]

If by next gen you mean the seats that were equipped for the 2016 models, I would not recommend them. I have them and find them to be very stiff and not comfortable for long periods of time. The newer ones (v3) that are in the 2018s are very nice and I would consider upgrading to those. P100D now even has the ventilated seats. Since the v3 seats have the adjustable headrests, I assume that a software update would also need to be done to the tesla system in order to get those to work. Let me know if you learn anything and what the cost would be.

Thanks. I wish there was a site with side by side comparisons with all of the different seats with pictures. Does that even exist? I didn't realize there was a v3.

 

[Asterix187]

I wouldn't recommend the vegan 'leather'. Uncomfortable, mark easily and stretch a lot too!

 

[mbhforum]

I wouldn't recommend the vegan 'leather'. Uncomfortable, mark easily and stretch a lot too!

Ahh yes. Those are the v3, correct?

 

[Asterix187]

Yes, adjustable headrests etc. probably the worst seats I have ever had in a car!

 

[Oldschool496]

Yes, adjustable headrests etc. probably the worst seats I have ever had in a car!

Thats too bad, I was looking forward to that seat in a future car, as I have Next Gen Seats and I thought those were the worst! Shall I count my blessings now that things are not worse?

 

[BLKTSLA]

Thanks. I wish there was a site with side by side comparisons with all of the different seats with pictures. Does that even exist? I didn't realize there was a v3.

@mbhforum I actually did a video covering the evolution of the Model S but also touched on the seats as well. Check it out here. I have another video coming out specifically for the seats but for the benefit of the community here is a sneak peek for front seats.

• Gen 1 (2012-2014) - Original Seats with leather, vegan and performance variations with colored piping and suede bolsters.
• Gen 2 (2014 - 2015) - Upgraded version of the original with slightly more padding in the base, bolsters and headrest. No variations.
• Gen 3 aka Next Gen (2016 - 2017) - New seat design sourced from Recaro with flat headrest but large bolsters for a snug fit, only leather no variants.
• Gen 4 aka Tesla Premium Seats (2017 - Present) - New Seat design featuring adjustable headrest by Unknown company that Tesla acquired so brought production in-house. Only vegan variation.

You can purchase Gen 3 and Gen 4 seats and have Tesla install them assuming your car is compatible and has the proper wiring. Gen 3 ~ $6k, Gen 4 ~ $5k. I believe cars built prior to end of 2014 cannot have either installed.

 

[Maxv]

@mbhforum I actually did a video covering the evolution of the Model S but also touched on the seats as well. Check it out here. I have another video coming out specifically for the seats but for the benefit of the community here is a sneak peek for front seats.

• Gen 1 (2012-2014) - Original Seats with leather, vegan and performance variations with colored piping and suede bolsters.
• Gen 2 (2014 - 2015) - Upgraded version of the original with slightly more padding in the base, bolsters and headrest. No variations.
• Gen 3 aka Next Gen (2016 - 2017) - New seat design sourced from Recaro with flat headrest but large bolsters for a snug fit, only leather no variants.
• Gen 4 aka Tesla Premium Seats (2017 - Present) - New Seat design featuring adjustable headrest by Unknown company that Tesla acquired so brought production in-house. Only vegan variation.

You can purchase Gen 3 and Gen 4 seats and have Tesla install them assuming your car is compatible and has the proper wiring. Gen 3 ~ $6k, Gen 4 ~ $5k. I believe cars built prior to end of 2014 cannot have either installed.

This doesn't seem quite right. "Next gen" seats were available on late 2014 and 2015 cars (see this current CPO offering for instance: Inventory Search | Tesla). Is it possible that you're calling the "gen 3" seats next gen when you mean to say that of "gen 2" seats?

 

[mbhforum]

I get confused myself. Here are my seats....It was an early 2015 build and the CPO listing had it as Black Leather Nappa. I think I have gen 2 seats. I'd have to try out gen 3 and 4 seats to see if it's worth upgrading, but at 5-6k, I can't see doing it. I'd rather see if someone was selling them and go that route.

I know the newer seats I've seen have horizontal stitching in the middle where mine is veritical.

 

[Maxv]

I get confused myself. Here are my seats....It was an early 2015 build and the CPO listing had it as Black Leather Nappa. I think I have gen 2 seats. I'd have to try out gen 3 and 4 seats to see if it's worth upgrading, but at 5-6k, I can't see doing it. I'd rather see if someone was selling them and go that route.

I know the newer seats I've seen have horizontal stitching in the middle where mine is veritical.

View attachment 326519

Those appear identical to the gen 1 classic seats in my 2013 car. If you take a look at the link, it shows a picture of what they refer to as next gen seats.

 

[mbhforum]

Those appear identical to the gen 1 classic seats in my 2013 car. If you take a look at the link, it shows a picture of what they refer to as next gen seats.

This is what I originally thought. Has anyone actually liked the gen 1 seats better than gen 2, 3 or 4? I find the gen 1 seats pretty vanilla, not much support and get dirty quite easily as sand/dust gets in between the particles

 

[Olle]

@mbhforum I actually did a video covering the evolution of the Model S but also touched on the seats as well. Check it out here. I have another video coming out specifically for the seats but for the benefit of the community here is a sneak peek for front seats.

• Gen 1 (2012-2014) - Original Seats with leather, vegan and performance variations with colored piping and suede bolsters.
• Gen 2 (2014 - 2015) - Upgraded version of the original with slightly more padding in the base, bolsters and headrest. No variations.
• Gen 3 aka Next Gen (2016 - 2017) - New seat design sourced from Recaro with flat headrest but large bolsters for a snug fit, only leather no variants.
• Gen 4 aka Tesla Premium Seats (2017 - Present) - New Seat design featuring adjustable headrest by Unknown company that Tesla acquired so brought production in-house. Only vegan variation.

You can purchase Gen 3 and Gen 4 seats and have Tesla install them assuming your car is compatible and has the proper wiring. Gen 3 ~ $6k, Gen 4 ~ $5k. I believe cars built prior to end of 2014 cannot have either installed.

What you call Gen 2 seats were still delivered in my late 2016 S. When I ordered that car, gen 3 were optional seems to have become standard late 2017 onward

 

[murderedms]

Not sure if this is the same, but I sat in a Model X with white perforated seats and found those 10x more comfortable than my Model S next gen seats.

 

[murderedms]

Also, from what I know,
These are the 1st gen seats. Had them as a loaner and found them to be more comfortable, but definitely not as supportive as my seats.

These are the next gen seats which I have in my MS. I do not find them very comfortable and at the time that I bought them the 3rd gen (latest model, whatever you want to call them) were only available on the performance models.

Then there are the 3rd gen seats. Originally they had perforated seats, but now that is only available on the P100D. I sat in a Model X with these seats and found them to be so much more comfortable than most seats I have ever sat in. I also find perforated seats to feel softer and more comfortable, even though there is a lot of controversy towards them.

 

[murderedms]

For some reason pasted the wrong link here is the video. Anyone know how to delete a reply?

 

[bmah]

For some reason pasted the wrong link here is the video. Anyone know how to delete a reply?

You just click on "Report" at the bottom of your post and say you want it deleted because you pasted the wrong link. A moderator will deal with it.

(Don't bother actually doing it now, I'll take care of it as soon as I'm done typing this.)

Bruce.

 

[verdee]

I had a 2015 and now a 2018. The 2018 seats are so much better. Softer, but more supportive.

 

[RV8R]

My MS with textile seats is on its way east now. Are all of the seats the same form/shape with only different covering material, or is there actually a structural difference?. Has anyone had their seats done in leather aftermarket?

 

[MIT_S60]

I received one of the last batches of the older wider textile seats before Tesla made the in-house "premium" seats standard for all Model S back in Decemver 2016. I kind of regretted not getting NextGen seats (or the "Premium" ventilated seats) for a while (and spent a bit of time looking at retrofitting them), but after driving a loaner with NextGen (and a bunch of loaners with the wider nappa leather seats), I'm perfectly happy with my seats. They definitely don't look as cool or as sporty, but for my mileage I find them comfortable which is all that matters to me.