So I’ve now swapped out the standard springs for BBR items which has wrought significant improvement to body control and appears to have eradicated the roll from the back end. I’ve ditched the noisy back box for something more discrete and the extra power from the 220 is great.
My remaining reservation concerns the standard seats. Not enough under thigh support, too narrow across the back.
Not a great design. I’ve not parked myself into a Recaro as fitted to the Anniversary cars. I hope I haven’t missed out on something I should have tried…
To me the Recaros feel completely different. Standard ones are made like deck chairs, supported only by webbing. The Recaros feel much more padded but they also felt tighter laterally to me. I think the Recaros, which I’ve only sat in, would be better for my back - I find the deck chairs lack lumbar support. On very long drives (300 miles per day across Europe) I use an inflatable cushion to prevent backache!
I spent a while looking for some second hand Recaros, but I didn’t find any and they are ludicrously expensive.
Tough to find a set. They’re a much nicer seat, if only with them not being leather in the seated area!
Would love to find a set used to fit, but prices are daft. Might end up just retrimming my seats to be half alcantara. Aftermarket would be good and miles lighter, but I don’t want to lose the BOSE headrests.
You have definitely “missed out”, they are worth every penny and knock the standard seats into a cocked hat.
There is a way of improving the lumbar support on the standard seat which I have detailed in a previous post. If you need info please PM me and I will try to help.
They feel a bit wider too in the seated area? Maybe just having actual side bolsters makes it feel that way. standard seats do NOT have any side support! I use a CG lock for now which is massively better but having leather seats is more show than go. My Octavia has half alcantara/leather and they’re brilliant.
It was a toss up between an ND1 with the less fancy engine or ND2 with less fancy seats (wasn’t paying 30AE prices, they were insane when I was looking).
Engine character much more important to me, seats are an easier fix/swap.
I don’t think the headrest speakers are linked to the BOSE option, it seems that they come with the bluetooth option, phone connection and the larger touchscreen radio. I could be wrong
The SE-L or SE-L Nav has cloth seats and the speakers from memory, the SE won’t have the speakers in. In fact looking at this thread it seems that for UK cars the headrest speakers are only in the drivers seat on SEL & NAV, whereas with Sport & BOSE equipped cars they are in both seats. To be honest this may well all be a moot point if you don’t find the seats comfy. I suggest you find a dealer and go and have a sit in one first!
The cloth and leather standard seats are the same shape. Thus comfort level (poor) is going to be the same regardless of what they are covered with.
I suspect Recaros will be far better- but I don’t want to pay a £5k for some seats. Not do I relish finding another ND2 with Recaros and dropping £6k at BBR auto make it proper.
Yes they are the same construction, but the hammock construction was designed to be sat in a specific way to support your back. I definitely preferred the cloth when I tested some ND’s. The cloth held me better and allowed me to keep my bottom pushed back into the bottom of the backrest which means the built in lumbar support on the backrest actually worked. Whereas on leather seats you can push your bottom back but the leather means you just slide gradually forward when you start driving.
If you are sliding forward then, to me, you have the seat too far back. Adjustment for me is (in ND1 so no steering wheel sliding)
1 Slide seat forwards/backwards so that with the clutch fully depressed your bottom is pressed against the bottom of the backrest without stretching
2 Tilt forward/back so that you can rest your wrists on the top of the steering wheel whilst your shoulders are still pressed against the backrest.
3 Can then adjust thigh support - for me fully down apart from long motorway drives with little clutch use
4 And steering wheel tilt - for me fully up
