BRZ Limited Seats

[alan329]

Hoping someone can take a couple measurements for me...

I just got a BRZ about a week ago and I have noticed that my drivers seat is uncomfortable, but my passenger seat is much better. I don't remember the drivers seat being so uncomfortable when I test drove a couple BRZs. If I take a tape measure and measure the width of the drivers and passenger seats I find that the drivers seat back is 1/2" - 3/4" narrower than the passengers seat back. I measured from the inside stitch to the inside stick on the proudest part of the side bolsters, and I measured from the point of the alcantara shoulder pad to the same point on the other side of the seat. Both measurements were narrower on the drivers side.

Can anyone else measure these 2 items on their drivers and passengers seats, and let me know if they are the same or different?

[Stu baru]

If no one else answers, I can post back Wednesday after I p/u my car from the detailer (Opti-guard and tint getting done today/tomorrow).

[Zaggeron]

I measured from the inside stitch at the widest part of the seat back and came back with 11" for both passenger seat and driver's seat.

Measuring the seat bottoms at the first stitch -- counting from the front of the seat (inside stitch to inside stitch), I get a tad below 12" for both seats.

This was on my BRZ Limited

[alan329]

Update:

I called one dealer who had a BRZ limited in stock, and had their sales department measure the 2 front seats, and he could not find any difference between them.

I then went to another dealer about half an hour from home who had a limited in stock, and measured myself, and sat in the drivers seat of this car. There is a huge difference. it only measures about a half inch, but it's like a whole different car.

I am trying to get Subaru to warranty my drivers seat. I'm not sure how willing they will be to do this since there is an airbag in the seat. They are supposed to call me today.

Anyone ever heard of anything like this?

[Zaggeron]

Is the passenger seat wider than normal or the driver's seat narrower than normal? 11" is what I measured across the widest part of the back (inside to inside). Is your driver's seat narrower than that?

[alan329]

the alcantera (sp?) part of the seat seems to be the same on all of them. The side bolsters seem to be what varies.

My passenger seat, as well as the driver and passenger seat in 2 other cars that I have measured are the same width measured across the front of the side bolsters. I measured from the seam to the seam, on the most prominent point of the side bolster. and also I measured from seam to seam on the upper part of the seat, about shoulder height. My drivers seat seems to be about 1/2" narrower than other BRZ Limited cars.

Sitting in a different BRZ is like a world of difference. it feels like the angle of the side bolsters are wider in other cars. Mine feel much narrower. I'm a pretty big guy and I have big shoulders. Maybe someone smaller wouldn't even notice.

In any case, I stopped driving the car. I am hoping Subaru will fix this.

[Zaggeron]

I see. So the variation could be that your driver's seat bolsters are slightly overstuffed compared to others you have sat in. Good luck in dealing with this, but I wouldn't get my hopes up that Subaru would actually swap out a seat for you.

[alan329]

still not driving the car. It's pretty frusterating to have a brand new car sitting at home that isn't drive-able.

Subaru customer service says they are working with engineers in japan to decide if there is a problem. They said they need a few days to look into it. I feel pretty let down with the customer service.... It seems like if a customer comes to a dealership and shows a defect by compairing one car to another, it shouldn't require discussions with engineering in japan to decide if it's a problem or not. I mean, they defiantly should, but I don't want to wait for them to track down what went wrong, I just want them to fix the problem....

[Zaggeron]

Originally Posted by alan329

still not driving the car. It's pretty frusterating to have a brand new car sitting at home that isn't drive-able.

Subaru customer service says they are working with engineers in japan to decide if there is a problem. They said they need a few days to look into it. I feel pretty let down with the customer service.... It seems like if a customer comes to a dealership and shows a defect by compairing one car to another, it shouldn't require discussions with engineering in japan to decide if it's a problem or not. I mean, they defiantly should, but I don't want to wait for them to track down what went wrong, I just want them to fix the problem....

If you enlarge your sample size or ask them to, you will have a much stronger case. You've shown that out of 3 cars the difference is is greater than 1/2" in one. You need to show that the 1/2" smaller is outside of the normal variation. To do that you need a larger sample than 3 cars.

[Dave-ROR]

Agreed with zaggeron. Post your measurements in here and a pic of where you are measuring and let people here measure theirs.

[Mango22]

my brother and I both bought the premium models and we recently stopped by the Subaru dealership to check out the XV, but while there we saw Limited BRZ model in the showroom and checked out the seats because I thought the seats were wider in the limited than our premium seats. At first my brother disagreed but quickly changed his mind after he sat in the limited model seat. The thigh bolsters in the premium model are more vertical and same for the seat back kidney area.

I originally test drove the limited when I ordered my car; had I known the premium seats were going to be tighter/more narrow, I would have gone with the limited. Truth!

[BRZfan]

I believe you should go to the the first dealer (who measured the seat) and be with them when they measure. Only then will you know that both measurements are comparable. Possibility the two parties do not have the same measuring procedure. Until then, I cannot accept your conclusion.

Originally Posted by alan329

Update:

I called one dealer who had a BRZ limited in stock, and had their sales department measure the 2 front seats, and he could not find any difference between them.

I then went to another dealer about half an hour from home who had a limited in stock, and measured myself, and sat in the drivers seat of this car. There is a huge difference. it only measures about a half inch, but it's like a whole different car.

I am trying to get Subaru to warranty my drivers seat. I'm not sure how willing they will be to do this since there is an airbag in the seat. They are supposed to call me today.

Anyone ever heard of anything like this?

[BRZfan]

There is probably no required design standard that says one seat design in one model must be the same as another model (Limited vs Premium).
Lesson Learned: Always test drive the model that best 'fits' you in materials, options, color, electronics, acceleration, etc. There are 'buying car checklists' out there. This may also apply to passenger seat vs driver's seat. Admittedly this cannot always be easily done especially when considering a newly introduced vehicle such as the 2013 BRZ.

Originally Posted by Mango22

my brother and I both bought the premium models and we recently stopped by the Subaru dealership to check out the XV, but while there we saw Limited BRZ model in the showroom and checked out the seats because I thought the seats were wider in the limited than our premium seats. At first my brother disagreed but quickly changed his mind after he sat in the limited model seat. The thigh bolsters in the premium model are more vertical and same for the seat back kidney area.

I originally test drove the limited when I ordered my car; had I known the premium seats were going to be tighter/more narrow, I would have gone with the limited. Truth!

[BRZfan]

Doesn't seem like a good reason not to drive the car, other than living in Rochester, NY with Lake Effect Snow.

Originally Posted by alan329

the alcantera (sp?) part of the seat seems to be the same on all of them. The side bolsters seem to be what varies.

My passenger seat, as well as the driver and passenger seat in 2 other cars that I have measured are the same width measured across the front of the side bolsters. I measured from the seam to the seam, on the most prominent point of the side bolster. and also I measured from seam to seam on the upper part of the seat, about shoulder height. My drivers seat seems to be about 1/2" narrower than other BRZ Limited cars.

Sitting in a different BRZ is like a world of difference. it feels like the angle of the side bolsters are wider in other cars. Mine feel much narrower. I'm a pretty big guy and I have big shoulders. Maybe someone smaller wouldn't even notice.

In any case, I stopped driving the car. I am hoping Subaru will fix this.