scrowley

I have to say I really wanted cooled seats. I'm not that happy with the cooling out of my e550 seats.

do these work off the a.c? Mine definitely don't get cold even on high. The fan makes a lot of noise coming out of the back of the seat but nothing through the perforated holes in the seats.

I've sat in a older sabb that would freeze your *** off. I was thinking that's how these would be.

Is there something wrong? Both seats work about the same. Poorly.

thanks in advance.

KEY08

Who told you they were cooled seats? The 3 fans pull cabin air from the seat back and force it up through the perforations. It is simply a ventilated seat. If your cabin is warm, you get warm air.

scrowley

I just figured they where. Well that's lame. Thanks for clarification.

homeofstone

They are ventilated seats in E. The cooled seats in my Genesis will freeze your butt when on high. I wish my E63 seats cooled as well.

Johnny Rad

Yup, same here. Sad, but true.

For my last car purchase, I'm not too proud to say that a smart key and ventilated/cooled seats were "must have's" on my shopping list. Smart key is awesome, but ventilated seats are not cooled seats.

Pro tip - my ventilated seats work great when it's about ~65F outside. Performance drops precipitously as the temp rises!

scrowley

Where is the air going pulled from? I see the exit

KEY08

Like I said it's pulled from the seat back. You can see the vents in the knee indentation. Then pushed through the seat. The exit is the pinholes in the leather. Make sense?

tresean1

To answer your question, there's nothing wrong with the seats; they're like that by design. Sadly, the whole "cooled seats" thing is a myth in Mercedes. They help ventilate your backside, as in blowing the sweat off you and helping you not get all sticky and uncomfortable during a drive. That's about it...

BMW's system works much better, even in my '07 E60. I have the same gripe with my W212 as I had with my W211, a bunch of noise and no cold air...lol. BMW, on the other hand, will actually cool you (the noise is worth it, lol)...and there is actually a custom setting in iDrive that will lower the temperature even less than the default setting, for an even more enjoyable cooling.

I know it's not the answer you want to hear, but you will learn to live it, and develop lower expectations.

jahquan3

Yeah as others have said it's not going to be cold per say but it helps a little. I use it all summer long since I'm always in a suit even in the summer and I just can't bare getting into a hot car.

I noticed on off days with a t shirt and shorts it's actually a solid system, but with thick clothes on you can barely feel it.

scrowley

exactly! Very lame.

blegthbloo

Yeah I thought mine worked alright with a t-shirt and khaki pants... jeans or jackets are too thick to notice any benefit. But I also noticed they work better with the AC on, but that could be because the air is cooler. I always thought it was cooled by the AC as well, but I guess it makes sense if it's just pushing the air that's already cold... in that case, you'd have to make sure the rear vents (behind the center console) are open, so you get the coldest air in the back.

PeterUbers

yeah they are useless in the benz and great in the bmw

someone on here, lol, used those taxi cab beads to create a space between his **** and the seat and said the air flow was much better

scrowley

The rear a.c. is a joke too. I'm not pleased but guess I can't do anything about it.

jahquan3

I used it once after the beach and I had the heating and venting both on simultaneously and it seemed to dry me off faster then normal. I doubt, I'll need that combo often though.

The G Man

My 2012 BMW 535i's ventilated seats work about as poorly as my Mercedes'. As some have already mentioned, if the cabin is cool, the vented seats work better.

tresean1

That's interesting. Mine worked much better (than the Mercedes), stock. They worked even better after I coded my car.

belarus27

The only thing with bmw.. is that you actually be a lucky guy if you find 5er or x5 with cooled seats... its like 1 out of 20 that will have that option. Thats the sad part....

The G Man

The ventilated seats are part of the $2800 BMW comfort seat option, but well worth every penny as they are some of the best seats on the market.

NickTH

Best way to use the VENTILATED seats are turn your AC to blow both front & feet (both arrows), thus seat fans will pick up cooled air from the lower cabin to blow into your seats...

tresean1

Yeah, guess I got lucky both times...as I like to find well-optioned, rare cars.

tresean1

Actually, that is wrong my friend: the ACTIVE VENTILATED SEATS and MULTI-CONTOUR SEATS are two separate options. How do I know for a fact? I have both.

chipmjohnson

Mine work like most - just ok but nothing to write home about. Keeps your shirt from sticking to you and prevents a little bit of SAS but thats about it. Interior has to already be cooled off. Living in FL, any help you can get is welcome.

I have had several cars with them and the only one I say where worth the price of admission was in a Saab. When on high you can really feel them circulate air through the seats. Sounds like a small Sessna in the back seat when on high but they are the best.

raja777m

thefisch

I run mine all the time, even in winter. Hard to notice they are on, but if I drive with them off for a few minutes I do notice a difference.

Egonvdv

it's "better than nothing"...