Painful cooper s car seat... Solution needed!!!
 

So I've had my '09 Cooper S since Aug and so far i love it. What i don't love is the pain i get in my thigh/hamstring from the seat. I would get this pain from the side of my leg. I thought something was really wrong with me.

Until I realized it was the cooper seat when i drove another car (ford explorer) and felt zero discomfort. I realize that the narrow "bucket" part of the seat rubs on my leg and that's exactly where the pain is.

So, i'm wondering if the non S seats are more confortable... meaning better cushion? Does anyone know of a seat that is more comfortable that i can swap ? or do i have to get a custom upholstery job ?

I'm at the end of my rope with this issue.

Do the bolsters pinch your thighs? I have a 2010 S and the bolsters are nery very agressive at all. I am about 5'8" 175 lbs, but the seats are comfy to me, though I would prefer more agressive bolsters.

I have the lounge leather, which i believe has a wider bolster. Plus they look great :thumbsup:

can you post a pic... its the part on the side of the thigh... very narrow for me... im not that big all..

I had this issue at first but eventually got used to it. I believe it is less the size or width of the bolsters than it is the height of the front seat edge. To me, the front of the seat offers little thigh support and my knees and legs tend to spread apart causing them to rest against the side bolsters. The seat bottom tilts too far forward or down in these cars imo. I have seen where people raise the front end of the seat bottom by inserting washers under the seat frame where it bolts to the floor to aid with this, but haven't tried it myself. Like I said, I have gotten used to it more or less.

Where do you keep your wallet? If in the back pocket, that may be the problem

I had a similar problem with my '07 S. Compared to our '04 with the sports seats (the MINI S seats for Gen 1), the '07 has a lot less lumbar support. When I got my '12 I got it with the MINI seats with the adjustable lumbar support and that has helped a lot.

Like Fastlane said, try raising the front edge of the seat bottom with washer or the like or if you are tall enough lower the seat - which actually only lowers the back edge of the seat bottom and effectively does the same thing. Also, try sitting with the seat back a little bit more up-right and sit with you butt right back against the seat back. This has all worked for me.

Hope you find a simple solution. These are easy cars to love, but sometimes they miss the mark.

:thumbsup:

jacket or jean front pocket... nothing to do with this particular issue

you described it perfectly... but im so sore i just want a solution... like a replacement... any ideas?

There are non-sport seats and the Lounge seats, both of which have less side bolster. Is there a MINI club local to you? You could contact members about getting a ride in their cars (with the different seats) to see if either of those work for you. Or start looking at used MINIs to 'test drive' at the dealerships.

If you find one of those seats works better, then you can start scoring ebay and salvage yards for MINIs being parted out.

http://i.ebayimg.com/t/Eurow-Side-le...86!~~60_35.JPG

You also try a sheepskin seat cover/pad, to see if that helps.

Get the non sports seats, or try them. They are wider.

I used to get just this pain on my previous Mini and I eventually worked out what fixed it for me - sitting properly in the seat. If I jump in and drive off, I'm likely to get this pain. If I jump in, carefully center myself in the seat (often lifting myself up on my arms), I don't get the pain.

I believe it's because the bolsters are fairly narrow and so it's too easy not to sit flat on the seat base but by levered up by one or other bolster. I think the Mini seats were designed for the target market - narrow-hipped ladies....

In that case, a CG-lock would help.

Here are my seats. Not very agressive bolsters:

Attachment 161148

My other sports car (aftermarket, but these are pretty tight):

Attachment 161149

If your wallet is as thin as mine usually is, it really isn't a factor. ;-)

Spridget

I have the same problem. The solution I will may be implement if I keep my car (because I also have a problem with the door panel that are very cold with this winter weather - an when I say cold it is really cold : cold enough so I can't keep my arm on the armrest) will be to change the foam of the seat to have a softer one in the bolsters. I check that with a specialist (a "sellier" we say in french - people who are able to redo a seat or to cover it with leather that kind of stuff). In fact it because the frame on the left - due to the system to up and down the seat - is almost as high as the bolster itself - not on the right (for the driver of course). So the foam can't "move" and is blocked : it creates a pressure on your leg. On the right there is nothing so the bolster can deform itself.

Well ! Not sure my english will be understandable but for sure I understand the problem you live.

In France the cost for this transformation would be around 350 euros (let say $500)

For the door, maybe take off your panel and see if the moisture barrier is intact.

There are people who can do that here too. Maybe that is what the OP should try.

I would suggest that you try a little more lumbar (middle lower back) support. Maybe have your "seller" put some on the outside of the seat fabric so you can try it before they take the seat apart. That helped me a lot. I know that may seem strange but a pinched nerve in the back can show up as pain elsewhere.

Walmart sells a truckers gel pad cushion. Once the back condition went away I don't need it. Still use it for some long trips.

Two ideas here. 1. Go to an auto upholsterer. They can customize your seat to make it more comfortable. 2. Last summer I was speaking with a MINIAC who has taken out his "S" seats and put in Subaru WRX seats albeit, he had to make some modifications to make them fit. (I believe he said it was just the brackets). He also stated that he got them from the boneyard. The only other solution would be to get aftermarket seats like Recaro.

If it's a lumbar support issue, there is a quick and dirty solution you can try. When I drive my wife's Justa for any period of time (my Clubman has OEM lumbar support, and my wife doesn't want me to install the DIY MINI lumbar support) I use one of these-

http://www.target.com/p/cool-mesh-ba...i_sku=10978247

Funny I have the same problem in my Convertible S 2013, but more so in my wife's S Countryman 2012.

I have been playing with the idea of making a pad, that just fit between the bolsters so that I'm up a little bit, and that would make the bolsters not "pinch" as much.

I will be watching this thread for more ideas.

u can get 2 of these for $10 at Walgreens. v effective !!!