Drgolf131

I've now had my E350 for about 6 weeks ... And I feel like I'm still searching for that perfect driving position. I've got the multi contour seat, so you would think I should be able to work it out. But I often feel like my legs are going to the left of straight ahead. Now ... It's not that I'm uncomfortable ... It just seems like I am not finding a natural position the same way I did on the 535. So ... I'm curious if anyone else has had a similar experience.

Btw ... I love my car. I may never drive anything but a Mercedes ... This may well be the first of many!

Poomobile

Had my car for over a month...same problem.

I prefer to be in a "zero gravity chair" type position...Legs up but with back forward. I'm getting used to the position I have but it is not ideal...

BM2BZ

all i can say is the seats aren't the best in this segment.

Arrie

I have found that the pedals, especially the gas pedal, are too close or there is not enough adjustment on the steering wheel to get enough distance from the pedals. And I'm not even 6' tall.

AF330i

I find my Standard seat pretty comfortable (and I had my 650i at the same time with the sport seat and have owned many BMW's so I know how great their seats are too) ... the thing that took getting used to was the steering wheel is kind of far from the driver's door so I can't rest my elbow on the doorsill and hold the wheel comfortably but even this I got used to after a little bit of time.

Also seats do break in to the body so in time you might find you are getting more comfortable.

MB-JIM

I can't get enough angle to the cushion without bringing it nearly all the way down. I'm short and in that low position I feel like I'm sitting in a hole.
Frankly, I love my 2012 E350 and hate the seat.
Maybe if you are six feet and weigh 180 pounds you will like the seats.
I have found that cars like AUDI have seats that feel much more comfortable then mine.

RNBRAD

I'm sorta the same way. I think it's partially due to all the adjustment that I just can't find that sweet spot. I never can in the 211 either but I feel like the 212 gets closer to that sweet spot for me than the 211 can. I like to have a greater angle where the back part of the seat sits lower than the front. The 212 is better at this than the 211.

MB-JIM

I believe that several models back they must have eliminated one of the motors. You used to be able to independently adjust the front and back of the cushion independently. If you watch as you think you are lowering the back, the front is also moving down. It must be a cost reduction item.

RNBRAD

I can move the back down and the front up independently. Problem is the angle is limited, especially in my 211.

Drgolf131

It seems like I've struck a resonant chord with my question ... I've been wondering if was me, that I've got so many years of the kind of seats in my Suburban and Escalade. There were so m any ergonomic factors the I liked in the MB compared to the 535i that I didn't pay as much attention to the seat. I just assumed that with the multi-contour seat that I would surely be able to find a good seating position. Upon reflection and one of the comments, I do think it would help if the pedals could be adjusted. The brake pedal seems like it is too close ... That I feel like I need to move my foot to apply the brakes rather than a simple heel-and-toe motion.

But as I said ...l love my car. I'm sure I will get used to the seat as it breaks in and I try more positions.

ttoE550

I was thinking the same. I think you have to twist the adjustment knob or something. Out of curiosity, do you by chance have your seat all the way down? My recollection is that the seat flattens the farther down it goes; i.e., the angle we both prefer is better when the seat is set higher. I am lucky: I've got my settings absolutely dead on perfect. I drove six hours practically nonstop and felt like I would on a trip to the grocery store.

MB-JIM

Watch carefully when you move the seat down and you will see that the front doesn't stay up.

BM2BZ

i've experienced this and i thought i'm the only one. but i think this is a safety issue from years back.

Mbenz260e

Same thing with me, my only problem with the seat/drivers position is the accelerator pedal seems to close and make it awkward where my right foot lays. If i put the seat back further then my left foot has to stretch for the dead pedal. I also < 6'...

ImInPA

I was wondering when this was going to become another "safety issue". I drive about 30K/year. I find the seats adequately comfortable and supportive. If it is great seats you are after, then, Volvo is your brand. Volvo does an incredible job with seating. In my opinion the best in the industry. To call the seating in the E a safety issue is really digging deep to nit pick IMHO. Sometimes I think it is only the Bluetec owners that are really enjoying their cars.

K-A

Keep in mind, M-B "enthusiasts" aren't ones who have historically come on Message Boards and the like to gush about their cars (like BMW enthusiasts so very well do, for example). Hence how here we'll usually get a more subdued and logistical, almost clinical discussion about our cars here.

I was getting my car serviced yesterday at one of Socal's biggest and most high end M-B Dealerships, with some special edition/modified SLS, and Mclaren SLR (I think it was) sitting in the waiting docks, and the Foreman was complimenting me on my car and saying how the E is "my favorite M-B right now, the best one available". So people are surely out there enjoying the cars somewhere.

BenzV12

Thanks for your posting what your foreman said these longhair guys don't say anything out of nothing lol
Well, I find W212 the best MB money to buy and you can see them everywhere for multiple purposes and you can use it for many reasons :
In Europe these are driven by taxi drivers , a tycoon can own or have a chaeffeur drive it and enjoy it's comfort in the rear seats, a young boy like myself can drive it as daily ride so are an executive manager and a banker .We can enlarge the examples like this

K-A

Totally agreed. To me the E-Class is the best value in the M-B range (same as the 5-Series in the BMW range, for example). You get all important qualities for just the "right price". Also, I love the versatility. A stately conservative Sedan at its core, but dynamic enough to dress-to-impress when you want it to, and can be at home for youthful to older demographics. Just the right balance and function, IMO. As nauseating as some fanboy types could be, I do wish our online-enthusiast base was more passionate and emotive in their feelings toward the car and its history. A good example of what I'm talking about is the BMW Forums. These guys spill emotions toward even their stock 528i's and study and dissect them constantly. I'm crazy so it makes sense to me.

RNBRAD

Yea you do have to twist the adj knob to get the back to lower and front to raise at the same time. I keep the back as low as it will go and the front as high as it will go. I don't like my legs straight out to the pedal but provide a bend in my knees. Just more comfortable to me.

Live Oak

Uh, WHICH "adj knob?"

MB-JIM

Has anyone shimmed the front of the seat track to get a better angle for the cushion?

RNBRAD

Bottom seat botton/knob/lever/control on door, the one shaped like a seat.

ttoE550

Yes. Pull the front of the knob up with your finger and push the back down with your thumb. The knob will rotate and your seat will move accordingly.

MB-JIM

Unfortunately, there is no way to lower the rear of the cushion without having the front also go down.

ttoE550

Not true on my car. I have some option with dynamic seat somethingoranother, so maybe that is a difference? Never use it, except to adjust my seat as described maybe.