MinnBobber

Hi,
I'm ordering 2013 E350 Wagon and have questions for those with the active multicontour driver's seat option.

1. Is the basic seat shape of this option the same or more contoured vs the stock seat?? I find the stock E seats a little too flat for my taste---would prefer more contoured side bolsters etc.

2. The active seat has adjustable lumbar support, side supports, and shoulder supports. What does the stock seat have, adjustable lumbar only or what??

3. How's the cornering auto adjust function, do you like it?? Auto massage wothwhile or worthless?

4. Any other comments greatly appreciated, like if you love it or hate it and why.

Thank you.

BM2BZ

i love the cornering auto adjust function and my wife is still complaining about why i drive this car much faster when i'm going in corners compare to my previous bmw. i told her simply because i want to have some fun w/the side bolsters and she finally understands...but still complains . anyway, i think this is probably the only option i consider is a great deal. you'll pay a lot more on a slightly better massage lounge at home but still w/o the auto side bolsters . btw, the massage on the multicontour seat is just so so. not really like massage, more like a roller going up and down. still feels good especially for ppl drive long distance. i have it on even for 30 mins driving .

hyperion667

big +1 on the cornering hugging........that is great....
I don't really like the massage setting.......feels kind of weak.....
but the hugging seat is awesome! I'd get it again just for that!

SolidGranite

GET IT. Best option they offer considering the price of only $670.

troymir350

My only gripe with this is that it adds the switches on your right thigh. I don't consider myself to be among the nation's obese by any means, and the switches seem to be taking away about an inch of space that I would prefer to have. But, coming out of a GL, it's taking some time to get used to the driving position anyway.

That being said, the cornering active bolsters are great. For me, I like the knee bolster extension also. Lumbar is same as most MBs now, up/down and in/out function is nice.

If you're getting this you're obviously getting leather, so don't forget the vented seats. A noticeable difference in the heat when you have the fan pulling air through the seat.

WEBSRFR

Does the fan push the air through the sit or pull the air through the seat? I thought it pushes cabin air through the seat vents...

troymir350

I could be mistaken, but I believe each seat has an auxiliary fan motor that pulls air from either under or behind the seats. When the seat vent button is turned to high, you can actually hear the fan motor running and then feel the air being pulled through the seat vents. Not sure of the actual parts or technology, but it works.

ttoE550

I must be in the minority here - I dislike the cornering adjustment. It's too slow for my tastes, and begins adjusting only after most of the weight shift has occurred. Then again, everybody tells me I take corners faster than most...

newyorktoLA

I HATE MY CORNERING SEATS! But only because the side bolsters make noise every time I corner...this is on my 08 S550 w/ 66K miles on it; longevity wise, these bolsters will start to deteriorate FYI

Rovel

Hi All,

I have a question about multicountour seat buttons.

The last two buttons on the seat, what do they do? I mean the ones closer to the back of the seat. I thought the very last button with two arrows on it would inflate/deflate, and the one above it, would move it up/down so that I could adjust the support.

What it does is that the very last one, regardless if I click on the bottom arrow or down arrow, iflates the lumbar part. The button above it does the same thing - inflates/deflates. So how do I control whether I want a lumbar support or a shoulder support?

I mean the passenger seat that has a button with 4 sides is much easier to understand and control: up,down, inflate, deflate.

Is my seat settings messed up?

thefisch

I think the last one does the up/down and the second to last does the inflate. IIRC you have to hold the last one a while as it slowly moves up and down.

Rovel

Thanks for your reply. I think my settings are wrong then. As the last one inflates the seat. Regardless whether I hold down the down or up arrow. Sometimes it inflates lumbar, other times it inflates in the mid-back area.

The second to last only inflates/deflates.

That being said I don't have easy way to inflate as much as I like, and then to move it up/down.

I wonder if dealer can adjust it, or whether they will say "oh sorry, it functions as it should". The car is still under warrantly

thefisch

For me, the last one moves the lumbar support only up and down by what feels like half a foot or so as you'd expect with lumbar. It doesn't go up to my shoulder area or even middle back so it only does lumbar, not shoulder. It only goes that high during the massage function.

The second to last will inflate/deflate. It doesn't feel like it goes up and down much but there is a slight rising sensation as it inflates.

Passenger seat with regular lumbar support control feels about the same, but the up and down movement was more discernible. Not a big difference though. Although at the highest or lowest point it starts to deflated on the passenger side.

Just tried it on the way home - hadn't used it in a long time.

Rovel

The way mine works is that pushing those up and down arrows both inflate different parts of the lumbar area. So if I want to inflate a bit and then move the inflated area to the upper part of my lumbar, I cannot accomplish that, as both buttons keep inflating different parts. As a result the seat becomes too inflated and uncomfortable to seat on. The passenger seat, in contrast, can be inflated as much as I can, and then moved up/down using the up/down arrows.

Based on what you said, I think I will ask the dealer if mine works correct. It will be hard to explain to the dealer. I doubt they will have another E550 with multi-contour seat to compare.

cetialpha5

It was also an option on the E350. I have those and I don't really play with those buttons because I think it does what you say. I only use the massage and push the front cushion out more. The cornering I don't play around with too much, too distracting when it comes on.

belarus27

+1