I have just purchased a 2015 Mini Cooper S (hatchback) with leatherette seats, and i have to say that the bolsters are so uncomfortable that I am contemplating either getting new seats or having the current seats modified.


I was wondering if anyone out here has encountered similar discomfort with the standard seats?

Also, I have heated seats (realize that it is the summer), but after driving around with them on, I really don't think they are even generating that much heat. Has anyone else noticed that the heating element is really weak?


Thanks thanks in advance!

 

Mine get so hot, I've never gone above setting II.

 

The seats seem to get hotter when the weather is colder, but they are not as hot as on the R50.

You have the sports seats?

 

I do have the sports seats.

I was thinking of just having the bolstered removed as even though I am skinny, they just cut into my sides.

Love the car, but total design flaw

 

I'm not skinny. I have the very basic leatherette seats in the 3 cylinder. These may not be out there anymore.

Everyone should try the seats they will have if they can. The sport seats did seam to change from last year to this year, they got wider. https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...t-changes.html

Redoing the seats is a pretty good idea, you could get them the way you want, get hotter elements if they work with the electronics. There are airbags in the seats, which could make it difficult.

Here's a thread about the seat heaters, there have been a few.
https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...ow-output.html

 

I loved the seats on my F55 the moment I first sat in the car, and still do.
They grip my skinny little rear end just right.

I traded a 2014 Paceman for this car, and never did like the fact that those seats didn't "grab" me.

 

The sport seats are awesome in my opinion...keeps me in place when hittin the corners hard!
Just because you don't care for them doesn't mean it's a "total design flaw."

 

The seats fit everyone differently. I would have gotten an F55S had it come with standard seats. The sport seats didn't fit my wife at all. I was fine with them. Love my standard seats in my F55. I now see that mini offers standard seats in the F56S, but not yet in the F55S.

 

The sport seats fit my 5'6 160 frame perfectly. Sorry to hear you're having trouble with them.

Would not call it a design flaw though...

 

If you were anywhere close to the SF Bay Area, we should talk about trading seats, as I'd kill for leatherette sport seats.

 

I love the new seats. I had a Gen 1 and a Gen 2 both with sport seats. IMHO they have just improved with each generation. I'm 5'4" and 115 lbs. My husband has the leatherette sport seats in his new F55 and loves them. He's coming from an '11 Countryman. I will say it did take each of us a couple of days of adjusting the settings to get the seats just where we like them but in the end we both like them better.

Annette

 

I love the sports seats in my F56, they are better than the one in my '10 Clubman S.

They are better then those that the standard seats in my daughters F56 Justa.

 

Another fan of the leatherette sport seats here as well. They felt a little odd for perhaps a day or two while I got used to them, but after borrowing my girlfriend's Mazda the other day, I missed them! They really make you feel part of the car in the corners.

 

I prefer the leatherette, too. I like the looks of real leather, but I didn't want anything I had to condition, clean, etc. I've had the leatherette sport seats in the 3 Minis that I've owned. When I traded in my first 2 Minis after 3 years for each, the seats still looked new even though I hadn't done anything to them except for a casual vacuum. I don't really like that slide out panel for the legs, though, because I'm only 5'2" and don't really need it.

 

Has anyone tried to address the bolster squeeze issue? If so, it would be great to learn what you did, and if it worked.

My MA tells me that "bolster squeeze" is a common issue with sport seats, and that many people have this problem.

 

everyone should complain to Mini about the bolsters being uncomfortable so future models will have nice flat seats like a bus.

 

I have the sport seats cloth/leatherette combination. I hate leatherette (fake leather), I don't understand why not use a real leather or just cloth. Anyway, I know what you mean about the seat being uncomfortable. I have reposition my seating position all the time.

 

I totally agree! And while they're at it they should soften the suspension and detune the engines.

I have the satellite leather sport seats and I haven't had any of my passengers complain. In fact all of them have said how comfortable the seats are. My 5'8" 140 frame fits just fine, as does my friends 5'11" 210 frame. The seats do break in and soften a bit. Maybe it just takes getting used to.

 

I've read that all of the cloth/leatherette is recycled materials. Given the importance of being green to some Germans, I'm guessing this is BMW's real-world trial of recycled upholstery materials.

Recycling real leather would be a bit difficult.

 

news flash

Leather is just recycled grass...

 

Isn't leatherette recycled leather?

 

Recycled dinosaur droppings.

 

Mini seats have the same frame whether they are sport seats or regular seats. Its the padding/stuffing that is glued to the inside of the covering which gives the seat the form. I replaced the standard leatherette non sport seats that came on my car with a used set of leather/cloth sport seats. They look and work great. I also had the lumbar support installed while they were switching the seat covers.

I took a set of sport seat covers from a coupe and had them installed on my Clubman.

 

It holds up for MINI, Mine has 260K on my 2005 MCC and it still looks new, its a high quality PU material.

Remember they changed the seats in the 2015+ sports seats so the side bolster are not so tight like the 2014? Like linked above. So they may still be to tight for some people but if you come from BMW side sport seats , they feel the same. Now on the R50 non sport seats to F56 sport seats, that a big change.

 

I don't understand what all the complaining is about....did you buy a car without sitting in the seats you wanted? I almost bought the leatherette sport seats for my JCW I liked them so much, but in the end I just had to go with the JCW dinamica/leather sport seats which are awesome!


I think MINI does very well with their seats, from my experience. Now, on older model Minis the seats don't really look like they would hold up for long. Most of the older used Minis I looked at had crappy looking seats!


The F56 seats look to be well made to me!


If you don't like the side bolsters, you can opt for a standard seat with low bolsters (even on the JCW hatch). There are so many options, I don't see the problem.


I think it would be nice to have adjustable side bolsters, but that will drive up the cost. I bought seats that have the adjustable lumbar support which is a great feature.


In the end, the leatherette sport seats are a great looking seat imo, and they probably wear well also...no experience there for me though.