Last year I bought a 2012 Panamera 4s with low milage. I had an 04 911 4s as a second car, but am using the Panamera as a daily driver.

It drives like a dream but the seats are really uncomfortable after an hour or so of driving. I took it on my first mini road trip last week and my back was dying.

Anyone ever had this problem or have any solutions? I am currently in Manhattan so its impractical to have more than one car.

Thanks

J

 

You prpbably have the 14-way seats. The 18-way adaptive sport seats are among the best seats I have had. Problem is, that they cant be swapped. I would try some kind of cushioning in the lumbar area?

 

The 14 way seats in our PSeH really suck. No other way to put it. After about an hour or two, I'm wishing I was anywhere else. And I can normally do a 3-4 hour stint in a good seat with no problem. The ventilation is the only redeeming feature about them.

The seats in my E63S are so vastly superior that a comparison is impossible. Other than them having poor ventilation.

$0.02

 

@OP, I have a C4 as a second car as well. I bought my '11 P4S coming from an MSport 750i xDrive equipped with premium seat package and almost immediately I noticed the difference in seating comfort. No criticism of the 7Series, but the Panamera is in a class to itself. However, from my experience, I would say that the BMW seats offered far better support in the lumbar, shoulder, and cervical areas due to their design. Of course, those seats are larger and, I would assume, heavier that those of Porsches. In this connection, I also would say that there will never be parity in this feature because performance will always come first with Porsche vehicles. My $0.02.

 

My 14 way are great in my PTT. My wife has a lot of back trouble and took a 7 hour trip and could not stop talking about how good her felt. I think different body's fit differently.

When in my 14 way in my C4S she has problems. I guess to each his own.

 

Traded my 2012 4 for s 2014 PGTS. I was despondent over the new seat since I could not get comfortable. I returned to the dealer to sample other panamera seats since I was convinced they changed them but not for the better. What I discovered was my seat was improperly adjusted. So I experimented until i got the same comfort level as old panny. Don't give up on it. Keep experimenting with the adjustments. In my case small adjustments made a big difference to my aging body.

 

Even 18 way seats can be bad from some. I ordered my panny with 18 way seats. Since I suffer serious back problems, I opted for the best seats possible. The day I picked up the car, I had a 2.5 hour drive home, after about 30 minutes I was in serious pain to the point I had tears in my eyes ! Once I got home and took a ton of pain meds, the next day I got back to the garage and set the seats all the ways down and started over. Took me about me a couple hours to find the sweet spot so I could stay in the car. Now I can drive long periods of time with no issues. It takes a lot of time to adjust these seats just right.

 

We have a 13 GTS and I gave the car to my wife. The 14 way seats in the Panny are like sitting on steel with a piece of leather over it.

 

Did a 12hr drive straight, on 2010 panny 4S and didn't have the 14 or 18 way, was fine.

 

These reactions really surprise me. Yeah, I liked the seats in my Supra Turbo better, and I like the seats if my wife's Cayman S better, but they aren't bad and they certainly aren't "steel with leather over them."

I've done two long 8-9 hours drives in my car now, and it wasn't uncomfortable at all. And I have the base 8-way seats.

On the other hand, I had my father-in-law in one of the back seats for 4 hours, and apparently he was really uncomfortable past hour 2. I took that as an exceptional case because he's very overweight and stiff, and finds it difficult to get into and out of the car. He's just not in good shape physically.

 

Perhaps the base seats are simply more comfortable for extended driving?

Even my wife, who defended the comfort of the 14 ways, was b1tching from the pax seat about being uncomfortable on our 2 X 1.5 hour drive

My octogenarian parents have been in the back of the PSeH a couple times, and they rave about the comfort back there.

 

Love the seats though on the Cayenne's.

 

Now that I come to think of it, I have never heard anyone complain about the back seats. Our expectations are lower?

 

My expectations, bought the car for myself and my wife. Yes its great kids can sit there and so can friends, but do not want them to be too comfortable. If so, they will never leave 😄. Lets face it, might seat 4, but operates best with 2 and a **** load of fun with 1 😊😊😊 😉😉😉

 

I have a 2011 4S and initially I felt the 14 way seats were terribly uncomfortable and stiff. After adjusting a lot I got them where I like them and now on longer trips they feel pretty good. Still stiff a bit, but the support is pretty good and I do not have any discomfort.