# Has anyone ever put more foam in a car seat to make it more comfortable ?



## AF (Dec 21, 2001)

I am thinking of taking my driver's seat out of my RX8 and basically taking the seat apart and making the seat softer to sit in.

Does anyone have a clue as to what an upholstery shop does to a seat to make it softer ? 

Do they just put more foam on the existing foam and glue it in place ?

If they use foam, where can it be purchased ? 

I have no idea about these things and I tried to do a google search but can't quite find out the answer ... 

thanks for any advice you can offer . . .


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## Terry Kennedy (Sep 21, 2002)

AF-RX8 said:


> I am thinking of taking my driver's seat out of my RX8 and basically taking the seat apart and making the seat softer to sit in.
> 
> Does anyone have a clue as to what an upholstery shop does to a seat to make it softer ?
> 
> ...


"Comfortable" imvolves a wide variety of factors, not just the softness of the seat. The amount of "give" in the foam, as well as the thickness of the foam are important, but so is the underlying structure of the seat (the amount of stretch in the springs and their spacing, as well as the overall shape). I'd be wary of making any changes, particularly since the car manufacturer probably has certain assumptions, the most important of which could be the seat occupancy sensor for the airbag(s).

Racing prep shops can custom mold a seat to your exact shape, but those are usually geared for performance over comfort (though if you tell 'em you're doing a 24-hour race, maybe you can get comfort, too). Plus, if you gain/lose weight, you might need a new seat. And I don't know if they're street legal and work with regular seat belts (you might need a racing harness instead). Might be worh asking, just to get an idea of what is involved and the costs.


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## bmw325 (Dec 19, 2001)

Alan-

Interesting question. I've been kicking this idea around for a while regarding my e46 seats. I've never found them to be comfortable (they feel good for about 20-30 minutes and then i hate them) and I'm not quite sure what the best thing to do is. I have read of people getting upholstery shops to put "gel inserts" in the seats and that supposedly makes them a bit more comfortable-- but i haven't been able to find any shops that have progressed past the neanderthal stages and know what i'm talking about. Terry brings up good points about safety. I personally don't want to put an aftermarket seat in because I don't like the looks, and I don't like the compromised safety. Check this link out-- someone put VOlvo seats into their pickup truck:
http://ttora-ne.com/newsite/new_england_ttora_volvo_seat_swa.htm
I've also considered using Volvo seats-- they're the best I've sat in.

Another idea (that i'm not crazy about) is to buy a seat pad. There are variety of them on the market. THe probelm is that they raise you up too much and htey slide around. I guess you could put them under a seat cover. I've also considered buying a sheepskin seat cover thinking that it might make the seat just a little more comfortable. But, I odn't like the way they look, and they're expensive.

Terry-- I don't think any current auto seats actually have springs in them-- they're all basically just a frame with some wires and some foam-- that's part of the probelm. THe e46 has a sort of "spring pad" that the bottom foam rests on top of but its not much. I always found that the older style German car seats (the ones that were made w/ real sprinsg and horsehair pads) are so much more comfortable.

As manufacturers continue to "cheap out" on seats and make them less comfortable, ther's probably a business opportunity to develope some system for making OEM seats more comfortable while retaining their appearance and safety.

Personal aside:
This isn't applicable to the RX8, but my current idea (been kicking this around fo a while) is to see if e39/8 seats can bolt into an e46. Terry--any ideas on how I could figure this out? I'd have to find cheap exampels for this to work though. I find them to be soooo much more comfortable.


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## Jon Shafer (Dec 15, 2001)

AF-RX8 said:


> I am thinking of taking my driver's seat out of my RX8 and basically taking the seat apart and making the seat softer to sit in.
> 
> Does anyone have a clue as to what an upholstery shop does to a seat to make it softer ?
> 
> ...


I'll gladly trade you for the seats in my Tundra...


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## Terry Kennedy (Sep 21, 2002)

robg said:


> Terry-- I don't think any current auto seats actually have springs in them-- they're all basically just a frame with some wires and some foam-- that's part of the probelm. THe e46 has a sort of "spring pad" that the bottom foam rests on top of but its not much. I always found that the older style German car seats (the ones that were made w/ real sprinsg and horsehair pads) are so much more comfortable.


The sport seats in my E46 have sort of zigzag or S-shaped springs in the base, and in the back there are straight wires with coil springs on the ends, if I recall correctly. 


> This isn't applicable to the RX8, but my current idea (been kicking this around fo a while) is to see if e39/8 seats can bolt into an e46. Terry--any ideas on how I could figure this out? I'd have to find cheap exampels for this to work though. I find them to be soooo much more comfortable.


Unless there's some commonality of part numbers, you'd have to compare mounting hole positions and any wiring harness connector pinouts. Sounds messy, unless you have a set of seats around to play with (removing the E46 seats isn't actually difficult).


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## AF (Dec 21, 2001)

thanks for the comments guys ... 

Jon that offer sounds like something I should jump on . . . maybe we could meet half way and make the switch 

Rob & Terry ... I'm going to comment later since it's 4 in the morning right now . . .


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## AF (Dec 21, 2001)

I'm a little more awake now !!

*Terry,* thanks for the information, it gave me some idea of what to look out for and what I'd need to have done. I have a diagram of the seat from the shop manual and it is similiar to what you are describing with the bottom zig zag metal springs !?

*Rob*, I found an upholsterer who was going to charge $200 or less and they do the car in one day. Basically you go and describe to him the problem you are having and he does his best to make the seat more comfortable. After the seat is done, you are allowed one re-fit for no cost so if you needed some other type of adjustment because it was done and you aren't comfortable they will try it again. He came very highly recommended by my Brother in law who had him reupholsterer a 55 T bird (or whatever year that T-bird came out)

He really knows his stuff, I was telling him what I want done and he had told me that he was working on a Miata with the same exact problem ... he said mazda seats in general are on the harder side.


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## rwg (May 10, 2002)

http://www.accessconnect.com/store/showdetl.cfm?&DID=16&Product_ID=322&CATID=36


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## AF (Dec 21, 2001)

rwg said:


> http://www.accessconnect.com/store/showdetl.cfm?&DID=16&Product_ID=322&CATID=36


 lol ... my mother has that in her car . . . seriously


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