Seat Comfort

[jay swinger]

This is on a 2004 ES330.

I am a kind of beanpole type and I soon noticed discomfort in the driver's seat. On the 30-day checkup or service I mentioned it to the service manager. It feels like it is either shaped wrong where your vertebrae come to an end or it was never shaped to be high enough. I have tried moving the seat higher and that helped but it is EVIDENT all the time.

We took a straightedge and placed it on my car and in another ES330 still in the showroom and they both look alike with no one sitting in the car.

I have tried two temporary fixes, one with firm "closed foam" kneeling pad and one with common soft foam just fitting between the two 'rises' that keep you from sliding side to side. The soft foam pad really helps. I wonder if everyone else is putting up with this defect?

I also wonder if this can be fixed by a local upholsterer? It is not a MAJOR problem but it is ironic on an upscale vehicle. A complicating factor is that these seats are heated. Does anyone know if this can be fixed locally?

[monarch]

Consumer Reports tested a 2004 ES330 a few months ago. They rated front seat comfort a solid red dot = the highest (best) possible score. In all other automotive reviews I have read, seat comfort on the ES was also rated highly. The only complaint I've heard is that the seat is a trifle short on thigh support.

On ebay you can buy visco-elastic memory foam pads for chairs and mattresses in various thicknesses. You might want to experiment with making your own pad. Memory foam is great for relieving pressure points.

[SW03ES]

I find the ES seats perfect, zero pressure points and zero fatique on long trips. I'm sure though with any seat there will be body types that just don't mesh with the design of the seat.

An upholstery shop should be able to adjust the seat and rework the way the padding is distributed and get you to where you're comfortable. Try again to describe how the seat is defficient, its uncomfortable on the lower back? The bolsters are too far apart?

Another idea is to sit in seats from various other Toyota/Lexus cars like the older ES' Avalons, Camry's Solaras, those seats should come in similar colors and should bolt into the car just fine. If one of those seats is more comfortable to you you should be able to swap the front seats out.

[WSiebert]

I am 6'4", 47 years old and suffer from sciatica.

I drive 110 miles round trip daily and find the drivers seat in my ES330 a delight.

[jay swinger]

It is the butt end. Admittedly, I am bony.

I tried two other ES330 driver's seats. One was like mine and one was okay.

I have compensated so far with foam pads. "A little bit'll do ya," but I think the subcontractor for seats (probably in the land of the rising sun) got on the skimpy side of the specs. I am going to pursue this under the warranty.

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Since I wrote the above the dealership has acknowledged they have had other complaints. They have solved it by adding padding to the top of the cushion for that portion.