I just finished my order for 25 CLE53...I still deciding between standard and AMG Performance seats... My car will be used as daily driver, and I like to push my cars occasionally, but no track use... Anyone here with experience with both type of seats and recommendations... Also I would like to know about differences in comfort ,adjustability and driving position for both seats...Thanks...

 

I have the AMG Performance seats so I can try to answer any questions you have. I don't have any experience with the standard seats so I can't give you comparisons

I love the performance seats, they hold you in place, are very adjustable, and they look great

If you are a "larger" person, I would recommend sitting in the seats to make sure you like their snugness.
You can't get the massage feature, but they do have energizing seat kinetics (a technology that uses electric seat adjustments to help prevent driver fatigue by making minor, automated movements to the seat)
Seat adjustments are split between the door (fore, aft, etc) and MBUX (bolster adjustments)
​​​​​​​You can get both heating and cooling options if desired

 

I have the AMG Performance seats in my '19 C63S Coupe and love them. One of the best seats I've had. I don't daily drive, but I've done very long road trips since I own the car. The longest one was almost 12 hours of driving in a single day. No comfort issues whatsoever. Recaro knows how to make seats. They require a certain level of fitness, though, to get in and out over the side bolsters. I'm 5'11", ~175 lbs, fit and athletic. YMMV as they say, but I would never get the standard seats in an AMG. I find the performance seats particularly comfortable because they hold me in place w/o straining my back muscles on a long journey. I generally find so called comfort seats uncomfortable over time, because the cushion is too soft and I have to use my muscles to stay in the seat.

Having said that, the CLE has a new generation of the Performance seats. I don't know who makes them, but I suspect it's no longer Recaro. To be honest, I didn't like them as much as the previous generation. I drove the CLE 53 in Germany last September, back to back with the new C63 and the GT 63. The former two have the new Performance seats, but the GT still has the previous generation. I just find the previous generation better. The new one is strangely tight around the butt area. Not sure how that would feel on a long journey, but it created pressure points that I don't have with the previous generation ones.

 

Thanks allot,I like adjustability part and energizing seat, kinetics...I am leaning toward performance seats in general,and I agree they look great...
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Great observation for old and new generation of performance seats,i really appreciate honest opinion...I was looking in few dealerships to seat in new performance seats,but no availability...

 

Spec'd performance seats in my C63S and GT63S builds. But got regular seats in my G82 M3 COMP, regretted it so much because the carbon performance seats were so much nicer. It will make the 53 feel as special as a 63 AMG.

 

I agree 💯... Yesterday i ordered my CLE 53 with performance seats...

 

I didn't get them but wish I had. The standard seats feel big to me. I'm 5' 9".

 

I'm finishing the configuration of my CLE 53 but really undecided between full leather performance seats and leather+alcantara performance seats

What do you guys think about that? maybe alcantara gives to the car more sporty vibes, that is what I want in my car.

 

Had Alcantara performance seats in my GT63S and found them to be more comfortable and pleasant to the touch than the full leather ones in my C63S. MB charging thousands to make it full leather doesn't even make sense. AMG colour options are so dated and dull.

 

I would think alcantara wears worse than leather in high contact areas.

 

The "Alcantara" seats don't have leather. It's MB-Tex. That's MB's fake leather made from vinyl. It's not bad, but it's not leather.

As far as leather goes, there are two grades. The standard leather MB uses is not very nice, but the Nappa leather is very soft and plush.

You can't get seat ventilation with the "Alcantara" seats.

FWIW, I had Leather/Alcantara in my previous Audi RS5. What I liked about it was that the seats weren't cold in the winter and not scorching hot in the summer when getting into the car. However, they still gave me a sweaty back at times. The material is also grippier so I was not sliding around in corners, however at the same time this grippiness pulled up my pants and shirt at times, so I had to regularly adjust my clothing. The leather quality however, was quite low. Not very smooth to touch.

Now in my C63 I have ventilated Nappa leather performance seats. They beat the Alacantara seats in all situations. First off I can adjust the side bolsters, so lateral grip is not an issue. I don't slide around in the seat despite the leather being smooth. I picked Alcantara previously, because Audi didn't offer ventilation in their sport seats back then and leather in the summer w/o ventilation isn't very pleasant, but ventilation makes all the difference. Nappa leather is very nice and soft. Can't agree with the above that Alcantara is nicer to touch. I like Microfiber materials. Have it around the house, it's easy to clean and all, but the Nappa leather just feels more expensive and as long as you get seat ventilation there's no downside. I personally wouldn't get Alcantara/Microfiber for seats anymore as long as ventilation is an option, but I would choose it over non-ventilated leather seats.

 

I have mine and I love it...

 

I have the standard non-performance heated, ventilated, multi-contour seats in Nappa leather and find them quite comfortable and supportive. The adjustable side bolsters provide a tight fit if desired. I’ve driven AMG cars with both performance and the standard non-performance seats and think the standard seats are great, especially for every day and long distance use.

 

As I've mentioned in the past, much of that comes down to personal fitness and especially core and glute strength. I've done 12 hours road trips in the AMG Performance Seats w/o any comfort issues beyond stopping periodically to move and stretch the legs as one should do when sitting for this long. In fact I find tight hugging seats less fatiguing on long drives because I don't have to use my back muscles to stay upright. Same goes for firmer seats, because one side of my body doesn't sink into the cushion every time I make a turn. For context, I spend like 12 hours or so in a gaming chair working on my computer. It's even firmer than the AMG Performance Seats. I'm also a cyclist. If you have the glute muscles to survive 4+ hours on a bicycle seat, every car seat is like a luxuries sofa...haha.

 

Yes, my preference to Alcantara seats is basically just for aesthetic reasons. They seems to me more sporty, in line with the whole car.

Problem is that i'm currently dealing for two different CLE basically the same for miles, optionals etc. The only difference between the two cars is that one has performance seats alcantara and the other full nappa performance seats. The one with Alcantara costs more (about 4k difference) than full nappa while from the official price list should cost less.

This is why i've not choose this one already, otherwise for the same cost i would have take Alcantara but like this it seems to me not fair.

 

That doesn't' make a lot of sense. The microfiber is the standard no cost interior and Nappa leather is $2500. Are they trying to charge you a markup? Do you have the window sticker?

To be perfectly honest, I wouldn't get microfiber for esthetic reasons. For starters, you can't get any contrast stitching or anything. They are just black. The current AMG interior options aren't the greatest, but at least with leather you can get some contrast. To me, sport look isn't just coming down to the material. The biggest thing for me that steps up the interior of my C63 over what I had in my RS5 is the yellow contrast stitching and accents. The microfiber also kinda wears over time and doesn't really look all that great. I however have the microfiber steering wheel and I love it for the grip it offers.

Just gonna leave these two pictures here to show what I'm talking about. The shape of the seats aside, the all black looks boring and the microfiber gets a worn look over time as the fibers get compressed from sitting on it. The RS5 had around 70k miles when the picture was taken.





And a real world picture:

 

basically the choice is between the two pics:




They both have black/red contrast but i
would prefer the second ones because of the use of different materials and because they are alined to the steering wheel that is also alcantara+leather

If they would cost same price i would take second ones. but this dealer is charging them more than the others…

 

I see. Somehow I missed that they come with black/red. They do look nice. The nice thing with the new type of Performance Seats is also the opening in the back that helps keep you cool. So sounds like this dealership is trying to get a markup. Thought that was done with the way car sales have been going. I'd refuse to pay any markup.