Wow, over that last month or so I have been getting a pain in my upper thigh, on the right side after 10 minutes of driving.

I have tried all type of adjustments of the seat, but the dull pain persists.

Is this common?

Anyone else have this problem?

I have MB-TEX seats BTW.

I'm thinking of going to a local custom upholster and seeing if they can advise/repair the seat.

DR.Z

 

Mine are fairly good, I have the leather/'active' seats. Only complaint is I feel the seats are too "shallow" and do not have enough cushioning in them.

Besides that they feel great and so does the head rest.

 

My 2012 E350 seats didn't feel comfortable to me but I tried a 2014 and the seats felt fine.
My 2012 had leather with venting and I wonder if the fans took away seat padding that made the seats feel too firm for me? I ordered a 2014 E350 with MB Tex and no seat venting.

 

Well, Thanks guy's.
I did call service and made an appointment to bring it in.
My service rep has never heard of the proplem before as well.

If I look at the bottom bolsters the right side is higher then the left bolster.
So I'm not sitting straight , maybe that 's were the discomfort is going from.

I'll know more soon enough.

DR.Z

 

I know what you are talking about with that pain. It is not actually the seat that is the problem. It is the location of the gas pedal.

I'm only 5' 10" and I had problems with the pain you explain with my 2011 E350 on long trips. It is very difficult to set seat in position that you can keep your right leg straight enough. This is only because the gas pedal is too close. Best seat position for this is to raise the seat as high as you can without your head hitting the roof.

if it was the seat softness issue then you should have the pain on left side too but you don't. Reason is your left leg is far straighter as there is plenty of room for it.

With my current car I have less problem as I have the Distronic and need to use my right foot much less so I can keep my foot in position that is more comfortable most of the time on the highways. But it does not fix it all so to help this I have programmed three seat positions that I change between during long drives. This actually helps a lot too.

 

I have the leather ventilated seats on my 2012 E550 and I have to admit I find them very uncomfortable. I believe there was some sort of technical bulletin addressing the issue on certain cars but mine did not fit into that category. It had something to do with the heating element being misplaced as I recall. I find the seats to be much too hard and I also agree with Arrie that the bottom hinged gas pedal is uncomfortable.

 

If you feel a bump in the middle front of the driver and passenger seats, between your legs, that's the symptom that says MB needs to replace the heating element. Move your hand, with moderate pressure across the top of the seat near the front to feel it. It's quite obvious if you have the problem. Visible when the lighting is right.

I had the fix, and while I never considered the seats uncomfortable (I've done 9 hour drives), I noticed they felt better after the fix. And as a bonus, they cleaned my leather.

 

I drove a 2014 E350 with MB Tex and HATED the seats on my 20 min drive home and back to the dealer. I bought a '14 E550 with leather and just did 1500 miles to Nashville and back and NO ISSUES. It doesn't make any sense, but, the full leather seats were worlds more comfortable. I don't believe its related to the material but perhaps a different structure underneath? Crazy, but the issue with the E350 was that I felt like the frame was narrower than my hips and I was sitting "on top" of the frame, whereas the E550 was comfortable. Go figure.

 

"Only" Dr.Z needs to see his doctor or physical therapist.

 

I felt kinda uncomfortable too and it was a surprise for me because I never thought MB would have uncomfortable seats namely in W212s .
I do have Artico seats known as MB TEX too . I had many long trips in my car but occupied the passenger seats and never had a problem as before .
However, I had a 3.40 hours of driving in the driver's seats two weeks ago and after one hour of driving I felt kinda roughness in the seat and inflated the seat buttons near the seat but it didn't work as supposed to , it seemed to make the things worse .
I had to wiggle with the seat buttons a few times at the stop lights and I also noticed that my right arm was kinda sore and had to rest it on top the center console area whereon cup holders .
Finally, I found a setting it was kinda making the seat straighter but not too much and ended the trip keeping that position
I had never thought location of the gas pedal could be culprit but it might have sense considering as a passenger in my car I never feel uncomfortable
Well, during that trip I said wish I had bought massing seats or adaptive dynamic seats lol

 

My 2014 MB Tex gave me a right hip pain-- until I put my billfold in my side pocket instead of rear. With my derriere evened out, no problem!

 

the massaging feature breaks up the stagnation worth it IMO.

I am around 6 feet and only issue I had was where to keep my legs during the 4 hour ride. I was bending them, extending them.. besides that all was well.


Only wish they allowed massage/dynamic feature for the passenger.

 

The seats are okay but nothing impressive at all really. Many cars that cost a lot less will even have more snug, supportive and sportier seats. I haven't driven a leather option car extensively but found it to feel about the same.

 

OK, got my car back today from the dealer.
They pulled back the TEX and replaced seat bottom foam cushion.

I drove it about 25 minutes home, and it feels much better, it would start to ache after 10 minutes. My fingers are crossed, I hope this fixes it.

DR.Z

 

Placebo effect -

PS; i have just upgrades to E350 2012 from 2009 and i am not comfortable at all my lower back hurts but i only drive 35 miles each way every day.

I think the seats are smaller than the W211 2009 model.

My opinion only

 

Just got a 2014 E350 with MB Tex and I feel discomfort in may left thigh area from the drivers seat. The passenger seat is absolutely fine. Sat in a friends 2013 E350 today and it feels the same. He also has the same complaints regarding the seats. Any ideas WHY??

 

New driving position?

 

I have the same problem will be interested in how you make out. What the heck were they thinking with this seat. 60 plus thousand and you cant drive 30 min without getting cramped!

 

My dealer has mine out at a upholstery shop today.
I should get the car back by Wed.
The dealer is paying attention to me and is trying to make it right which is fine, but that seat is so hard .
I can't believe I bought a near $70K car with a vinyl interior.

DR.Z

 

The mb-tex is actually softer than the leather so it is both the more comfortable and longer lasting seat material. There are softer leathers, but mercedes doesn't use them (perhaps they do in the designo seats).

 

I found that my 2014 feels better than my 2010 did. Both had the Black standard leather, non-ventilated. I also had the driver's active seating in both cars. Most of my passengers also have mentioned that this current version is much better than the 2010.

 

My 550 driver's seat is hurting my left buttock so bad that I have been looking to purchase a Herman Miller office chair to alleviate the pain. I recall Jeremy Clarkson from Top Gear actually making a joke about how uncomfortable they were when he test drove 2010 E class. I am 6'4 with a slimmer build.

 

HOW IS THE SEAT AFTER A FEW DAYS OF USE?

 

The new cushion bottom didn't really help, as was noted.
I brought it back my dealer had a upholstery shop come in and talk to me.
They took the car and increased the center section padding , and shaved a bit of the right side lower bolster. Now the seat is more like the older flatter Benz seats which fits my butt much better. It has been a few weeks since the repair and so far so good. The repair was done by DuraMend I believe they are a national shop with many locations.

 

Hello
I just bought a 2014 e350 2 days ago with leather seats. I have to agree with Dr. Z - the side cushions on the sides of the seats protrude up and dig into the sides of my gluteus muscles - I too experienced pain, specifically on the left side of my butt, radiating down the side of my leg. what a drag!

I was wondering if anyone else has come up with a solution besides drz's - i.e. taking the chair to an upholstery shop to shave it down etc. I was thinking about the option of buying an AMG seat, which I sat in at the dealership and seemed more comfortable.