After a few hours of driving the MC-CVT does anyone else's leg get numb or ache? This is without using the cruise control because I'm aware one can bend the leg then. It may be the improper seat adjustment. Any thoughts?

 

on long trips keep shifting the seat a notch or two ,up ,down ,back and forward ,every hour or so . I'm in my MC for 1 hour twice a day,no problems,Maybe I just happen to fit in the car well,Don 't use cruise till you are through brake-in

 

just FYI: you should not drive more that an hour at a time...sitting still with your circulation impeded can cause thrombosis ( a formation of a clot ) not only that but vinyl gases are emmitted inside the cabin ( this is a good case for leather; i mean in this synthetic world ever wonder why the skin of a bovine is still used? it's inert! ) along with NOX and ozone coming from the outside ( numbing your response time and just generally being bad for your health) your numb leg is not so dumb ..it's trying to tell you something...oh and yes they could have put a little more bolstering at the front of the seat to "lift the thigh"

 

So you drive for an hour, and then stop for how long?

 

I was thinking about thrombosis. I've heard about the airline seats and people getting blood clots from sitting so long.

And i can't remember a time when I stopped an hour after driving. I usually drive for at least a couple before taking a break.

 

>>After a few hours of driving the MC-CVT does anyone else's leg get numb or ache? This is without using the cruise control because I'm aware one can bend the leg then. It may be the improper seat adjustment. Any thoughts?
>>

My wife has this problem with the sport seats in my MCS on trips. I've driven close to 32000 miles without any numbing or aching. I have no clue as to why she has a problem while I do not.

 

I thought I was the only one! I'm a big guy I just figured it was big right leg resting up against the downtube. it hurts like hell sometimes. On long trip I might put a pillow there, and once I actually wrapped a belt around my knees to keep them closer together. funny but it worked... MINI could get rid of this problem all together if I could sit farther back in the car (which would change the angle of my leg( but then I'm too far away from the steering wheel.. I wish the mini had a telescopic wheel. Maybe someone could makea clip on pad for the console downtubes, a nice leather one that matched my cordoba and I'd ****** one up. Or make an extension for the wheel. sorry to here of your pain.

 

hi
i use to have that problem until I moved the seat around and paid attention to how my hip was positioned. it seems
by resting the leg on the down tube you twist the whole thing and this pinches the nerves higher up.

I have a new problem now, a pain in my clutch foot. This is my first man. transmission car, and after driving the weekends I can hardly walk.
Its just a burden of owning a MINI...and well I guess there are worst things in life.
after 5700 miles I am still like a kid in the candy store when I go for another motoring experience.

 

YES! I thought I was the only one. 5'8'' female.

 

NO, never had this problem. I also rest my leg against the
downtube with no ill effects.
I guess i would probably try numerous seat adjustments
if I did however

 

Oh! My aching turn signal finger!

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SE Regional, BAMA Club Moderator: PM me

 

Yes, I took my MCS on it's first long drive (180mi) and after about 2 hours it got a little sore/tired. I'm in pretty decent shape (work out 2-3 times/week, walk 1/2mi to work), when I borrowed a dealer Audi TT and took it for a long drive, I had the same problem. I think it's related to the positioing of the tubes and me.

Wasn't bad, tho, after walking around for a few minutes after the drive I was fine. I used cruise control for about 1/2 of the drive. It sure does suck on hills :smile: w/2 people...

 

this isn't a whine and cheese thing, this is is that your leg goes numb and it hurts thing.... I notice my fiancee doesn't have this problem becasue she's sued to leaving her knees together, I woudl suspect many women do. guey tend to sit open legged and since personally I have limited room in which to manuever aroudn the wheel then my leg tends to rest right up to the sharpest point on the downtube.. thats what tends to hurt after while, I really think we coudl coem up with asolution by puting soem heads together...

 

I also suspect that it is a seat position thing. I’m pretty skinny, 6” and 160 lbs. When I first got my MINI I automatically set the seat to match the setting that I use in my Z3 - - full down and nearly full back with the back fairly erect. No problems even with 4-5 hours of freeway driving. I’ve since moved the seat forward a little and the back a little more erect to leave foot and knee room in the back seat and haven’t driven for more than 2-3 hours this way, but still no problems. Also, as a carryover from the Z3 my knees are against the side bulkhead and down-tube.

 

My lower back ache does not happen when I drive my MINI.Now, if I even hold the keys to my truck,I can hardly move

 

That use to happen to me on my other car when I had my wallet in my
back pocket. the seats in the MINI's are one of the more
comfortable ones Ive driven. My lower back hurts after a couple hours
driving since the clutch pedal is so close to the floor. They need to
raise the pedal (not the engagement point Im talking about).

 

>>That use to happen to me on my other car when I had my wallet in my
>>back pocket. the seats in the MINI's are one of the more
>>comfortable ones Ive driven. My lower back hurts after a couple hours
>>driving since the clutch pedal is so close to the floor. They need to
>>raise the pedal (not the engagement point Im talking about).
>>
>>
>>I like the pedal where it is as I don't have to lift my leg to get on the clutch,all the movement is in my ankle.drove too many old three on the trees where you had to stand up to get on the clutch
Maybe all the pedals could be adjustable though

 

haha I have problems with my legs in any car much less a MINI! haha the fact that I have a 38 inch inseam dosent help!!!!

 

>>haha I have problems with my legs in any car much less a MINI! haha the fact that I have a 38 inch inseam dosent help!!!!

>> do you have another set of knees

 

>>just FYI: you should not drive more that an hour at a time...sitting still with your circulation impeded can cause thrombosis ( a formation of a clot ) not only that but vinyl gases are emmitted inside the cabin ( this is a good case for leather; i mean in this synthetic world ever wonder why the skin of a bovine is still used? it's inert! ) along with NOX and ozone coming from the outside ( numbing your response time and just generally being bad for your health) your numb leg is not so dumb ..it's trying to tell you something...oh and yes they could have put a little more bolstering at the front of the seat to "lift the thigh"
[QUOTE]

FIY, Many chemicals are used in the tanning process for leather.They gas out
very similar to vinyl.

I used to drive for hours without stopping,now older and a little wiser, I stop
about every 1-2 hours and take a short walk.

 

On a long trip my right leg starts to hurt from leaning against the downtube on the center console area. I haven't found a comfortable position no matter what I do with the seat. I think the seat bottoms are basically to short.

 

true hides are tanned and they do gas out ,not all hides are "tanned" using the same process and or chemicals ie. vegatable tanning. Here's an indepth: what is leather this being stated i have not found definitive data on Leather VOC's or the process Mini deploys...but the rest of the materials are a different story...Auto Interior VOC's ...i may be going out on a limb here but i think the vinyl and other synthetics are more detremental as far as voc's go.....and also there is the consideration of body burden ( amount and duration of said VOC's ) .....and as far as how long to stop ,well, that would depend on your activity. Ergonomically i enter the car with the seat in the farthest back position ( i exit the car by setting the seat all the way back, that way i can set one foot down outside the car to disperse my weight thus relieving stress to the leather ie. less twisting and also to allow easier egress) extend fully my left leg, move the seat forward until my left foot contacts the foot rest; then i move forward until my left leg is almost 90º angle...i know this isn't a "cool " position but it keeps my thigh off the edge of the seat and me closer to all of the controls ; about where you would seat if you were autoXing

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Where's my cake Bedillia!

 

pretty interesting...does anybody's door leg ever go numb? there is that funny door pocket thing there.

the way most people seem to be talking, it seems that constant pressure on the outside of your right calf/knee is causing the problems. this is kinda like sitting in a funny position, ie. figure 4, for a while and getting the pins and needles down the leg.

in both cases, constant mechanical pressure on a nerve will result in just what you folks are saying. for the downtube issue, there is a nerve running just at the lower outside knee where our fibular head lies. in fact, it's so superficial that you can literally make your outer calf go zing by squeezing just behind your fibular head, which is the prominent bump in that area.

how's about if you cushion that part where your leg rests against the downtube?

for those who c/o the seat bolster causing your leg numbness/pins and needles, you should probably try adjusting your seat. in this case the nerve in the back of your thigh is probably getting the squeeze.

driving for long periods of time, as many of you have stated, is not a good thing. first of all, many back pains are aggravated or even caused by excessive sitting. even if you were to sit with good posture, the pressure exerted on your back is quite high. in fact, an infamous study on measuring back pressures exerted during various common activities found that sitting for prolonged periods of times is second only to bending over and lifting, in terms of highest pressures measured at the back.

if you're getting back pains and/or stiffness along with your leg going numby, be wary that it could be coming from your back, which would be a bit more serious. if so, i would highly recommend visiting your MD or other healthcare professional.

 

It doesn't look like this discussion got resolved. This probably won't do it either.

A number of things seem to work together to produce leg discomfort/numbness:
(1) The seat (I have the standard seat but I see people with the sport seat have mentioned this too) is short and doesn't have any front (thigh) support. If the seat bottom could be tilted up, we could make better use of what's there, but it doesn't tilt.
I keep a folded-up hand towel handy:smile: to put under my right thigh which provides some relief. However, if it's left in place too long it contributes to numbness, kind of like a tourniquet.
(2) Room. In a larger car you can usually move your leg out to the side to accomplish more thigh support from the side of the seat. Plus you can move your leg more, which helps too.
(3) The resistance of the gas pedal. When it's just right, at a constant throttle setting, your foot rests on the pedal. You don't have to hold your foot up and you don't have to press your foot down. For me, my MINI's gas pedal resistance is too light, so I have to hold my foot up all the time to keep a constant setting.

Fixes:
MINI could add a seat-bottom tilt adjustment.
I could move the whole seat up, but I run out of headroom pretty quick.
Adjustable pedals or a telescoping steering would add to seating possibilities.
Adjustable gas pedal resistance. One of these days I'll take a look to see how MINI designed the gas pedal. Maybe it's easy to swap springs and cause no problems. Or maybe that would interfere with the cruise control.

 

I agree that the seat bottoms are too short. I've also noticed they are too short on many cars that are much larger than MINI. Toyotas are especially bad in this regard.