Seat swap

Author
Discussion

corvus

Original Poster:

431 posts

159 months

Saturday 6th September 2014
quotequote all
Been looking at some of these recently.

http://tinyurl.com/kd5hkcj

I don't find the standard seats in my Forester that great. No lumber support or side support when cornering and the squabs are short for my legs. Was wondering if anyone owns the above and can say they are comfortable. Even better would be if anyone has sat in both and can do a comparison. Apparently they can be swapped straight on to the Forester subframes, but I'm wondering if it's worth doing.

Ved

3,825 posts

182 months

Saturday 6th September 2014
quotequote all
You're better off putting some WRX seats in it.

corvus

Original Poster:

431 posts

159 months

Sunday 7th September 2014
quotequote all
Ved said:
You're better off putting some WRX seats in it.
OK, are they comfy for long trips?

peter8171

183 posts

150 months

Sunday 7th September 2014
quotequote all
Done trips from the Midlands to Scotland I'm my WRX with no discomfort, so I feel that they are good.

corvus

Original Poster:

431 posts

159 months

Sunday 7th September 2014
quotequote all
peter8171 said:
Done trips from the Midlands to Scotland I'm my WRX with no discomfort, so I feel that they are good.
What year is your car?

peter8171

183 posts

150 months

Sunday 7th September 2014
quotequote all
It's a 2003 car which I've had since 2006! Only basic adjustment, but I found a comfortable position easily. If you can, best to try the seats in a WRX before committing as I've struggled to get comfortable in cars others found fine.

corvus

Original Poster:

431 posts

159 months

Sunday 7th September 2014
quotequote all
peter8171 said:
It's a 2003 car which I've had since 2006! Only basic adjustment, but I found a comfortable position easily. If you can, best to try the seats in a WRX before committing as I've struggled to get comfortable in cars others found fine.
Yes - many people who have swapped seats on subaruforester.org reckon that the 03/04 seats are some of the best, but there's no substitute for trying them out, so I'll have to do that. Thanks.

Ved

3,825 posts

182 months

Sunday 7th September 2014
quotequote all
corvus said:
OK, are they comfy for long trips?
They're fine for me yes. I did 600 miles last week over 3 days.

NormalWisdom

2,145 posts

166 months

Monday 8th September 2014
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OK - I've got a 2001 WRX and have driven to/from Munich 3 times this year (c750 miles and 12 hours in the saddle). Coming back again this Thursday and am experimenting with a small cushion as after 12 hours I have found it quite difficult moving about for a bit afterwards (or maybe that's because I am 53!!)

NW

loskie

5,690 posts

127 months

Sunday 12th October 2014
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any chance that Saab or Volvo seats would fit?

corvus

Original Poster:

431 posts

159 months

Friday 3rd July 2015
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Just to pick up again on this thread, I bought some 2001 WRX seats from Ebay and fitted them to the Forester. I found them hugely more supportive and comfortable than the Forester seats, but I do have a back problem that means I need more lumbar support. The drivers seat is a bit more worn, so I've also bought an inflatable lumbar support insert that goes into the back of the seat, which I'll fit this weekend.

If you do this, be aware that the seats sit very low on the floor. The subframe legs are much shorter, and the Forester subframes do not easily swap over, the bolt fixings are in different positions. I took mine to an upholsterer to have them modified to sit higher and recondition the drivers seat cushion.
With hindsight I should have had the subframes done by a metal fabricator, as the welds don't look that great to me. The airbag leads plugged straight into the Impreza seats, but I lose the heated option which I never used anyway.

But overall, a great improvement and that and the soundproofing were about the only things that I wasn't happy about on the car.