[psingam]

im glad i saw this. I thought i was the only one getting back aches. I have had numerous BMW's and Mercedes over the years, and never had this issue. I often find myself shifting around, changing the seat configurations, etc... cant seem to find a solution.

I have the Sport seats... and i got say they look better than they are.

My wife too also complains that the seat doesnt go high enough for her. She finds herself extending her neck to drive. Then complaining about the pain later.

[kirbyj]

I have the multiple contour seats and I find them to be very comfortable. I had driven an SUV on the job for many years so when I got the BMW I did raise the seat as high as I could. I am 6 feet tall. I also suffered a back injury many years ago so I set the seat to a very upright almost forward leaning position. I also extend the thigh supports a bit. Both my wife and I love these seats. I experience no back pain at all and if my butt starts to hurt on long trips I turn on the optional massager. We occasionally drive from New Hampshire to Pittsburgh in one continous trip which takes around eleven hours (BMW time) and I am surprisingly comfortable the whole trip.

[LiveLarger]

Originally Posted by psingam

im glad i saw this. I thought i was the only one getting back aches. I have had numerous BMW's and Mercedes over the years, and never had this issue. I often find myself shifting around, changing the seat configurations, etc... cant seem to find a solution.

I have the Sport seats... and i got say they look better than they are.

My wife too also complains that the seat doesnt go high enough for her. She finds herself extending her neck to drive. Then complaining about the pain later.

Really? How tall are you guys?

[OzDriver]

Originally Posted by crl8474

I've been experiencing severe lower back pain after driving more than 20-30 minutes in my 535i m-sport with comfort seats. A prior discussion on another forum suggested that anyone having this issue should flatten the bottom seat cushion, raise the seat and have the seat back angle at approximately 90 degrees to the bottom seat cushion. I have tried every way possible but can't get the bottom seat cushion to anywhere near a flat position. My wife's Buick Enclave will allow the front of the seat bottom to tilt well beyond flat (front lower than the rear) but the BMW won't even allow for a flat position. I can immediately feel some relief when flattening the bottom cushion as much as possible so I'm confident that an even flatter position would do the trick if allowed. Anyone else have this issue or is there something wrong with my seat?

I've got comfort seats and had a similar problem until I worked out the top of the seat back wasn't far enough forward, and my back was holding me upright and not the seat. Since adjusting it I haven't had a problem in nearly 4 years, and regularly do 6 hour drives.

[skiingmav]

I have the same issue with my e92 335i and also my e46 330ci. My lower back screams in pain after more than 5 min in the car. The only other brand to do this to my back has been Honda.
The solution for me was to remove the back cover of the drivers seat and pull the lower horizontal spring away from the seat cusion. I held the spring against the frame of the seat with zip ties. This allows the lower seat cushion to flatten much more than just deflating the lumbar. It worked great in the e46 and eliminated my pain, but only helped for a few months in the e92. Now my back is killing me again and I'm trying to find another solution.

[RandomGuy152]

In my personal experience, a very upright position holds the body much better than reclined positions. It brings the upper body closer to the steering wheel so force exerted on the steering wheel comes from stronger muscle groups. Additionally, the pressure on the lower back and lumbar is shifted to the buttocks and hamstring (just try this at your desk, move from a slouch to a military upright without shifting your feet, and you will feel the shift in weight and the curve in your lumbar restore itself).

To a large extent, the back pain is probably an underlying issue that is just ignited by use of a car - stretching and exercises performed outside of driving life will probably be the solution rather than the seating position, assuming you're not sitting in an extreme driving position.

[ezmaass]

I have the multi-contour seats, and I'll say this - you need to be careful about how you adjust them.

Ever hear the saying, "enough rope to hang yourself"? The general concept here is that providing options to the consumer is good, until it isn't. A seat that can adjust in every direction is a good thing, but if overly configurable, I think it may also be a negative.

For instance, the top section of the seat back can tilt independent of the bottom. If the user wasn't quite aware of this, they can get the seat into quite an awkward position where the lower back is sunken into the seat and the upper back is pushed forward, for instance.

I'm inclined to believe that back pain is the result of (a) a poorly "configured" seating position (of which numerous controls, in concert, must be aligned), and/or (b) an underlying medical issue. At a minimum, I think people need to study-up on their seat controls and really try out multiple configurations, paying close attention to how the settings will work in concert. If you experience no other back pain in your life, but only in this car, then it may very well be a poorly configured seat or an odd case of physical incompatibility (shame, but it must happen from time to time as everyone is "unique"). Otherwise, it may pay to get a check-up.

[BavariaExclusive]

Nice to know how to sit properly when driving a car. Eight minutes and fifty six seconds of my life that I will never get back.