As per the subject.

I spent about 20 minutes in a 2018 S class today trying to find a comfy setting to overcome my worries here. I feel like there's something I can't identify pissing off my lower back. I know I have my own health issues, but I did not notice this in the 2018 LS500 or the 2019 Audi A8.

I know the bottom seat cushion sinks a fair bit because of my bony bum, but I wonder if there's anything that concerns anyone here? When I max out the lumbar setting on the S class at the lowest possible setting it helps, but I don't feel all that comfy in the seat. I'm just curious if anyone else feels that way?

 

My experience with the S Class seats is quite the contrary, as I find the seats very comfortable. I thought my W221 was pretty comfortable as well, but to me, the W222 is even more so. I too have lower back issues; I've had spinal fusion (L5-S1), with severe nerve damage resulting in numbness in my right leg, and this current 'S' is one of the few cars I can drive cross country with no issues. I have taken my Denali cross country, but that trip results in excruciating pain in my lower back around the 4-6 hour mark which results in me taking extended breaks from the road. In the 'S' however, I am able to drive 8+ hours with no issue, except fatigue at times. The massage function is a welcome treat after several hours in the seat as well! What works for me may not work for others, and as you have pointed out, does not work for you.........but I can't say enough about these seats, "they're great!"

 

Thank you. May I ask how you have your lumbar set? Is it in any position that perhaps may not be in the norm? E.g. I found that yesterday one of my pain points with the seat is the pretty pronounced S shape in the seatback. This is good for a lot of folks as it promotes a natural lumbar shape but near where my lower back meets my bum, that S shape caused my back to bend when it otherwise preferred to be | (flat). I solved this by extending the lumbar setting on the seat to the max outward position, but as low as possible.

One other thing I have noticed is that with the seat bottom as low as possible that it puts a tremendous amount of pressure on my lower back. It almost feels like a bucket seat whereby instead of _ it's like this \ (legs high, bum low). I could sort of help by tilting the back of the seat up, but then my head is too high and while it doesn't hit the roof, it's damn close.

I am really trying to get myself to like the S more here, I guess it just doesn't like me.

 

Believe it or not, my lumbar is set to 0. As a result of my surgery, I have scar on my lower back around the lumbar area, and because of that, I don't like anything touching or putting pressure on that area. As to the seat bottom, there is no way I can set mine to the lowest setting, I would struggle to get out of the car if I did. I'm 6' 1" with long arms (6' 6" wingspan) and legs so my seat is set pretty far back; I'm almost in line with the B pillar, but not quite. The seat bottom is set a bit higher, extended out forward to support my thighs, and tilted a hair down in the front. This is to keep my legs straight and avoid legs high, bum low as you mentioned. It took some time to get my seat where I needed it, but once I did, all is well.

 

Thank you, that is reassuring to me. I think what made my issue to find a comfortable seating position worse was the car salesman sat next to me the whole time.

Maybe I should go back and tell him to leave me alone!

 

 

Oh it was hot baby.

 

Another bad back here,
The first thing I do on any car is run the seat adjustments through the full range to make sure they adjust properly. Have had a S Class with partial failures.
Then I adjust the lumber for minimum, the side bolsters to min. the seat bottom bolsters to min.
So it's flat seat with no lumber pressure and seat back erect enough to have shoulder pressure..
Lock the setting into at least 2 memory functions and once I'm used to it in a week or so I'm good till I buy another car.
The S class is the best I've had

PS Smart car salesmen make sure the seats are not adjusted for some small skinny guy that wants to race.!

 

I also don't find them that comfortable -- particularly the lower cushion. I'm also on the thin side. Because I sit in the center of the seat only, I sink down (or bounce up and down when going over bumps)

 

I find the S-Class seats extremely comfortable. We have driven S-Class models since the W126, so I have a pretty good reference on those seats. Also had a 7 series BMW (F02) and driven the G12 7 series and lots of well spec'd A8's as rentals in CA and Europe. Once again, the OP is asking highly subjective questions that can and should only really be answered by himself. Other than that, all you get is everyone subjective opinion. Two subjective opinion do not create an objective one

That said, we are also skinny and tall and my wife has had spine surgeries that unfortunately did not relief the pain (it's the 1-2% you hear mentioned in pre-surgical discussions). Plus sitting in the passenger seat emphasizes how the comfort and support of the seat is perceived.

My personal perception is that neither seat is ideal. I like the S-Class seat the best but the dynamic seat bolsters are weaker than in other MB models. This is taking into account that if a bolster is already inflated to a certain position, the dynamic range is reduced by that amount. I also like the upper back controls of the BMW better but never cared for the way the adjustable front seat bolster works. Mercedes pushes out the whole pillow, Audi seem to unroll the front section = subjectivity...
Audi seats provide good support, especially when driving above 100mph for extended periods of time but I find them uneventful at best for my body.

When it comes to test drives, I never have a sales person in the car (except Porsche whose guys insist of coming along). This gives me the freedom and stress-free time to play with the settings (and reset many) to find out if the car is a good fit.

Last, I am guilty to responding to these types of posts because I feel they don't make any sense to be posted in the first place. In the end, the OP has to decide what car works for him. He is definitely getting the price for overthinking the buying decision. If it takes that long to decide, perhaps neither car is the right fit

 

 

This explains precisely my predicament. I spent half an hour today and noticed exactly what you are saying re the seat cushion.

Interestingly enough the back seats are perfect!!! The seat cushion in the rear feels like I'm sitting on memory foam. The front seat cushion is precisely the odd feeling seat.

I have resolved the back pain issue by tilting it pretty far up.

When I read this post I felt vindicated.

 

This is a common problem for motorcycle riders where the seat foam is not supportive enough.

I solved the problem in my S450 by replacing the lower 1.5" of foam in the rear half of the seat cushion with closed-cell high-density foam. It's an improvement, but still not fantastic. Unfortunately, I didn't take pictures along the way, and it was harder than I expected; so I don't recommend this solution as a DIY effort.

 

i know this post is old but just wanted to comment. I owned a 2017 S550 for a year.... it destroyed my lower back .... im 45 yrs old and never had lower lumbar problems ..... the S class seats force you to sit in the worst posture possible with NO lower back support ... creating pressure directly on the bottom disks in your back. I got rid of it and bought another range rover .... i could tell the difference in 1 4-hour trip my back was fine. The same trip in my S class I will constantly be trying to push myself up to relieve the lower back pressure. THE S-Class SEATS SUCK. i herniated a disk because of them, now i probably need surgery :/

 

I have lower back issues as well, and I don't see how these seats don't have lower back support, the lumbar movability and sculpatability of the back rest are unlike any car I've ever sat in.

Lastly, there is no way any chair or seat can herniate a disk in your back lol. Thats a serious injury that is not made passively.

 

I too have back issues now into my 50's. Iv'e had a couple of S550's and always loved the seats. When I began my search for my W222 S550 I did notice a big difference from standard leather to Napa leather seats. I live in Florida so wearing a thin shirt is MOST of the time, and I feel everything. I traded out of an S550 3 years ago to a new 2017 Denali XL, due to family needs, road trips, towing, traveling gymnastics, dog, ect. Figured it would do it all. Biggest mistake ever. I struggled with those seats for 2 years, even taking them to a shop to change out and mold the foam to my liking. The bottom line it was the design and could not be overcome. Great truck in every other way and I literally got rid of it due to the poor seat design. So when test driving each S550 the seat was my biggest concern. It was just ok in most. Then I sat in my 2016 S550 with nappa leather and immediatly noticed a difference, not knowing what it was. I thought why is this one perfect? I then learned it had nappa and the the others didn't. I have to keep the lumbar on 0 also. Nothing can push on my lower back especially near my tailbone. The Denali literally would hit the wrong pressure points and slowly cause pain then my whole back locking up on a long drive. This nappa leather S550 is great. I have driven 12 hours on several roadtrips with no issues.

 

Marcus, at first I thought you are totally nuts. But, then I realized your first post was meant as humorous. Good one! Welcome aboard

 

I wish i was kidding. No, my post is as serious as it gets.... no sarcasm, no humor. the S-class seats are horrible and at the very least worsened an existing lower back condition ..... at the very most ... caused it.

At any rate ... im glad i got rid of the car ..... add to the other insanely stupid things about it ..... throwing itself in park if you open the door while even going 1 mph, the gear shifter being where a washer lever would be, the park button like other car's washer fluid button, AC controls (utterly useless) ....i could go on ....... yes the car is smooth and quiet and handles well.... thats about it. other than that ...... junk 🤷🏼‍♂️

 

Thats just...absurd lol. There is no way a seat in a car can cause a herniated disk in your back. Seats can certainly cause you pain if you do or do not have an underlying back problem, but they can't cause that type of injury. I'm wondering if you realized the tons of minute adjustments you can make to the seat within the menu system?

And why do you want to open the door while you're moving? And what car has a turn signal lever on the right side of the steering wheel?

 

I find the seats very comfortable. Not an issue with me.

 

poor seating position and no lumbar support actually is one of the main causes of herniated discs, and yes i made every adjustment available ... the lumbar is sub-par st best as also noted by previous posters.

You've never had to open your door at a stoplight while in gear for any reason? ..... and sorry .. washer lever ...... either way ... its just not logical.... ive bumped it a couple of times and sounded like a huge transmission knock.....

 

.

 

I have a herniated disk in my lumbar spine, there is no way the seats in this car, or any car gave you a herniated disk lol

The lumbar comes out WAY more than literally any other vehicle I've ever sat in. I have it set to 1, it goes to 10, and it can be fine tuned up and down more than any other vehicle I've ever sat in. Then you have the shoulder adjustments that support the upper portion of your spine. And no, i have never had any need to open my door when in gear, certainly not when moving, and the car wont let you "bump" it into a different gear if you are moving. In any event, that's how Mercedes does their shifters, and that's something that is clearly obvious before you would purchase the car.

People's idea of comfort is variable, and certainly you personally may find the seats not comfortable but to say they are terrible seats across the board is just absurd, plenty of people here feel differently.

Pray tell, what piece of incredible automotive perfection did you replace your S Class with?

 

I had eight, new, top line, Lexus LS sedans between 1993 and 2011 and then I got my first S Class in 2013. Since then, I have had a 2015, 2018 and now a 2020 S560. To me, the W222 seats are the most comfortable seats I have ever had. That said, seats in brand new cars, in my experience, need to get “broken in” a bit, before they offer the best comfort. My 2020 with 600 miles on it is not as comfortable as my 2018 was when I turned it in, but I’m confident it will be soon.

 

Well that is great. I am glad to hear when someone finds a car that fits them. Everyone's body shape and size is different ...... i gave my opinion on here based on ME. I don't know why there are people that insist on arguing with me that S-Class seats don't fit the healthiest seating position for my body. But i guess that's just the world we live in now ........ no one can handle an opinion 🤦🏼‍♂️