Auris Excel Hybrid seat

[psc1960]

Has any one experienced a problem with an uncomfortable drivers seat on the 2015 Auris Excel Hybrid?

[FROSTYBALLS]

Hello Paul - welcome to Toyota Owners Club.

Haven't seen any posts at all regarding the seats in the 2015 facelift.

Thread moved to the Auris club .

[ic2]

8 hours ago, psc1960 said:

Has any one experienced a problem with an uncomfortable drivers seat on the 2015 Auris Excel Hybrid?

Hi,

can't say i have, have been in the saddle for up to 4/ 5 hrs with no problem.

regards

 

[griff279]

Hi

No problems here drove from Manchester to Livingston and back yesterday and only stopped once for fuel.

no stretching required when getting out.

[tonino]

Hi, does your seat has a lumbar support adjustment if yes you can try to adjust and find the right position. Previous model  Auris has no lumbar support adjustment and I find it very uncomfortable as is factory set a bit more supportive  then other cars without the same function, there are few complaints about it on autotrader reviews page. 

[FROSTYBALLS]

In both of my two Auris (2009 and 2012), there has been no problem for either of us as regards seat support or comfort. Seat comfort is a very personal thing - what one person finds comfortable, another may not.

[kelvin660]

Well I have found the driver seat to be uncomfortable. I could feel the join between the seat panels and was always moving forward and back in the seat. I had the seat on the highest setting. Then I moved it to the lowest setting and suddenly it so much more comfortable! Also the door arm rest can be used all the time, giving me 2 arm rests!

I'm going to play around with a number of height setting now to see if there is an even better setting... 

[Jim45]

No problem with seat comfort for me

[exergy888]

My wife and I both find the shape of the 2014 (icon) seat pretty uncomfortable. Shape deteriorated a little since new of course. Now zero lumbar support. Spoke to a dealer and they said the excel seat had electric lumbar support. I’d like to get one installed. But dealer has concerns related to airbags (interference/position?) and presence/absence of wiring for the electric seat... Would be great if anyone has experience they could share of fitting the seat from an excel into an icon.

[sportse]

I've found it ok, but only after you spend ages adjusting it.

Moving the seat back and forward adjusts the height, adjusting the height slightly alters the back angle and also getting the back angle right makes a difference!

So it's juggling 3 settings until you find a combination that works.

I don't think much of the lumbar adjustment, so don't use it. On other cars I've had it made a difference.

I'd much prefer an adjustment wheel for back angle rather than the fixed settings.

[Gerg]

I have done something very similar to your 'changed seat' suggestion.  Our Icon drivers seat had an annoying click when accelerating and braking (a known potential fault on this model/age of car due to poor tolerances in the height adjustment mechanism).  Also the seat is not particularly comfortable after an hour or so.

I bought a seat from a facelift 2016 Auris from a breakers, it was one of the later, different trim designations but not with leather, and the cloth was a different colour/relief,  but it had  the electric lumber support.  I then made one seat from the two. 

So, original seat covering removed and reused, lumber adjust fitted, and the non-clicking base installed.  That was about 10 months ago.  The seat comfort is better, but not a complete fix for us.  It still needs adjusting occasionally, which I never need to do in other cars.  But if you are uncomfortable it helps to be able to adjust it to somewhere else!

The power is straightforward - I tapped into the rear 12v socket (just 12v and ground are needed), but that means the lumber adjust is only moveable when the car is 'on', which suits us fine.  There is no unused socket in the car loom under the seat for the new lumber motor to plug straight into.  A bit of diy is required.  I don't think the airbag is a problem - there is just one on outside of the r/h vertical seat back.  I didn't bother keeping the seat heater that came with the other seat.

Whilst killing time at the dealer during other remedial work on the car, I noticed that the last models of Auris seemed to have been made without lumber support, despite being higher trim levels.  Worth checking if you are buying something from a breakers off the internet.

The lumbar adjust is an inflating chamber, air pump and release valve, as per this picture.  The safety airbag is on the left.  Try not to get distracted by the rubbish in the background.

HTH

[TonyHSD]

Yes, Auris seats are slightly on the uncomfortable side. Lower position usually helps getting it right. When adjusting the height of the seat the base also recline and when too much up makes your back depressed towards the steering. 

[Catlover]

6 hours ago, Gerg said:

Try not to get distracted by the rubbish in the background.

What rubbish in the background. 😋

[Kaiw]

Yes absolutely. Its uncomfortable driving the damned thing more than 5 minutes. It feels like having an elbow pressed up under the right ribs.  Trying to find a replacement drivers seat, but nothing to be found yet. The lumbar support is like getting someone's knee pressed into my lower spine btw. The dealer just says "thats the way these cars are". Being an average sized man, and never experienced this in any other car I've driven, my conclusion is this model just isn't for me. Back to Citroen I guess.. 

[Auris James]

Yes, took me ages to find a comfortable position in my pre facelift 2015 Auris Icon Plus. Thank goodness I'm the only driver, as constant adjusting would be a right pain. Toyota should fit electric seats with memory. A major downside!

I finally realised it has the electric lumber adjuster and set it to no lumber, as digging into my back. Now much, much better, but not been on any long journey due to Covid. I also have a Volvo 940 and that is still comfy with 203,000 miles. Auris has 28,000miles.

James.

[MagicBoy]

Humans come in all different shapes and sizes, so take 'em for a long test drive. I had a neck and shoulder problem last year and find the Auris very comfortable for long periods, Unlike my previous Skoda vRS which had me in agony after 20 minutes post injury ... despite it being fine for the previous 10+ years.

[Pavel_Sv]

Hi, I feel like I am sitting on something square when I sit in drivers seat of Hybrid Auris 2014. Is seat upholstery pushed in? When I push seat with my fist I can feel it in the middle of the seat. Very strange. Anybody knows what that can be?

[Gerg]

The underneath of your drivers seat looks like this (front of seat is at the bottom of the picture):

The foam you sit on looks like this when stripped down (seat front is at the bottom):

And from the side (seat front is to the left):

The seat heating pad looks like this (seat base heater pad is to the right, I think, to the left is the back heater):

These pictures are taken from a 2016 Auris seat.

The seat fabric covering is attached to (fairly stiff) plastic rods that locate into the recesses shown in the second picture.  It is also located by some plastic thread which runs across the width of the seat, if I remember correctly:

Perhaps that helps identify what it is that you can feel...

 

[loz8]

the base and back have always been just wrong for me [maybe rearends gone] the seat is firm but ok for short trips.I've driven to Southern Spain [no ferry]a few timeswith a good memory foam pillow on the seat,magic though you lose a bit of side support.

[MagicBoy]

Second best car seat I've sat in, only beaten by Dad's old late 90s Volvo V70. He agrees with that.

[AisinW]

The lumbar supports helps a lot if you have lower back pain. 

[DaddyBaddy]

Nope. I’m 6 foot 2” of slim build and have a 2016 Auris Excel Hybrid hatchback. It’s got part leather / alcantara / cloth seats. My drivers seat is heated, has height adjustment and electric lumbar adjustment, and quite firm bolsters. I chose the car because I need lumber support for my lower back. I can’t have a car without lumbar support. In the (nearly) 2 years of ownership, the car has never given me a bad back, or back ache from driving. I’ve found the seats to be supportive on long journeys.