The seats are a deal killer.

[CopperRoad]

Sadly ironic that the first affordable EV that can actually do road trips is too uncomfortable to many to do so.

I went for my second test drive yesterday at Keyes Chevrolet. (3rd time in the car total... after siting in it at the LA Auto Show)

I'm 6'2" 160, 32" waist. So, thin. The seats are by far the worst designed seats I've had the (dis)pleasure of sitting in. Pinched between the plastic frame is like some torture device, my hips ached after the test drive. I extended my Leaf lease a full year (up in 2-Months) just be able to get the Bolt. This now seems like an impossibility as I can't see living with a car that causes such discomfort, or hoping that some after market fix would make the seats livable for me.

Others have commented that they're fine, and I don't doubt them. I truly wish I were you. The thought of having to get another lower range EV with anemic performance is disheartening. With many saying the seat is an issue for them, it would be great if GM could come up with some fix, or adjustment. And, it's beyond me how not one person at GM experienced the same issue that some people are experiencing now. I'd imagine that this issue/experience will only grow as the car becomes more available.

 

[mtndrew1]

I truly wish I were you. The thought of having to get another lower range EV with anemic performance is disheartening.

I have a March 31st 10:00 am (Pacific) Model 3 reservation so if that car materializes on time it's plausible that I'll be able to get mine when my Soul EV lease is up. Otherwise I'm moving on to the Ioniq or '17 (124 mile) eGolf. I can't deal with the Bolt's seats and I had a very bad experience with two Volts so I kind of had to hold my nose on another Chevy in the first place.

There's plenty of available space in the Bolt to make the seats wider and an extra inch of padding might add five or ten pounds to the whole car. They need to redesign that seat, stat. Otherwise the Bolt is nicely packaged, assembled, and is of course very capable in regards to range and performance, if a little pricey.

 

[LeftieBiker]

I'm waiting for someone to see if Leaf front seats can be bolted in, so to speak. They are comfortable (except for the headrests, which Leaf drivers quickly learn to avoid with our heads), adjustable, and have heaters built in. They should also be fairly available from salvage yards by now. If the only thing I had to do to make a Bolt comfortable for me was bolt in a different used seats or seats, I'd consider it. But for crying out loud, why should this even be an issue???

 

[phil0909]

Pinched between the plastic frame is like some torture device, my hips ached after the test drive.

Really? I can't understand that at all. Uncomfortable - sure, but aches afterward? I don't get it. Does this happen to you in other environments? I'm somewhat bigger than you, and find the seats ok for me.

 

[CGameProgrammer]

I love the electronic shifter. It has a very short travel, excellent tactile feedback, and it's really quick and easy to use, far more so than a traditional automatic shifter or manual transmission. You don't have to look at it to know that it's in the right position. For those complaining that you can't identify its position by looking at it, you're wrong because it indicates the current setting, and manual transmissions do not indicate the current position and reverse in most of them looks identical to first gear, but that's OK because the driver is expected to know how to drive.

 

[CopperRoad]

Pinched between the plastic frame is like some torture device, my hips ached after the test drive.

Really? I can't understand that at all. Uncomfortable - sure, but aches afterward? I don't get it. Does this happen to you in other environments? I'm somewhat bigger than you, and find the seats ok for me.

Like I said, this is simply my experience. No, this does not happen in any other environment. My Leaf seats are good. Spark EV seats are also good. Most car seats you'd never be in contact with the frame. You'd be above it, or at least protected from it. I actually think someone who is a bit wider than me might be fine. For me, I settle in between the frame... and the the frame and the bolsters pushed against my hips. It was never a comfortable experience. And my hips bothered me for an hour or so after.

Even after all this, I'm going to buy some gel & memory foam cushions and go back for a 4th and final time to sit in the car. Here's hoping this works for me.

 

[LeftieBiker]

Please take the driver's seat from your Leaf along as well, and ask if you can swap it in. ;-)

 

[roundpeg]

I went for my second test drive yesterday at Keyes Chevrolet. (3rd time in the car total... after siting in it at the LA Auto Show)

I'm 6'2" 160, 32" waist. So, thin. The seats are by far the worst designed seats I've had the (dis)pleasure of sitting in. Pinched between the plastic frame is like some torture device, my hips ached after the test drive. I extended my Leaf lease a full year (up in 2-Months) just be able to get the Bolt. This now seems like an impossibility as I can't see living with a car that causes such discomfort, or hoping that some after market fix would make the seats livable for me.

Others have commented that they're fine, and I don't doubt them. I truly wish I were you. The thought of having to get another lower range EV with anemic performance is disheartening. With many saying the seat is an issue for them, it would be great if GM could come up with some fix, or adjustment. And, it's beyond me how not one person at GM experienced the same issue that some people are experiencing now. I'd imagine that this issue/experience will only grow as the car becomes more available.

I have almost exactly your build, and have yet to feel this. Are they the greatest car seats I've ever experienced? No. But... torture? Not even remotely.

Posts like this are making me paranoid wondering why my experience is so different. The answer has to be out there somewhere. Leather or cloth? That's the only obvious variable that comes to mind, other than how they are adjusted. A little more objectivity might help come up with the answer.

 

[roundpeg]

I love the electronic shifter. It has a very short travel, excellent tactile feedback, and it's really quick and easy to use, far more so than a traditional automatic shifter or manual transmission. You don't have to look at it to know that it's in the right position. For those complaining that you can't identify its position by looking at it, you're wrong because it indicates the current setting, and manual transmissions do not indicate the current position and reverse in most of them looks identical to first gear, but that's OK because the driver is expected to know how to drive.

OT for this thread, but my complaint with the shifter is that it's counterintuitive for anyone coming from a manual, as I am. Granted that's a small number. We already know how to drive, but the Bolt is requiring learning something more different than it needed to be. I am getting used to it but I doubt I will ever love it, if for no other reason than the L setting requires that double-throw every time. It's easy to miss and probably always will be.

 

[oilerlord]

I have almost exactly your build, and have yet to feel this. Are they the greatest car seats I've ever experienced? No. But... torture? Not even remotely.

Posts like this are making me paranoid wondering why my experience is so different. The answer has to be out there somewhere. Leather or cloth? That's the only obvious variable that comes to mind, other than how they are adjusted. A little more objectivity might help come up with the answer.

You're overthinking this. The seats don't have much padding, and (some) people feel the frame. From the feedback we're reading, the solution may be as easy as GM installing 1/2 inch layer of foam and/or making the seats a little wider. Since the seats aren't issue for you, drive more & worry less.

 

[CopperRoad]

Please take the driver's seat from your Leaf along as well, and ask if you can swap it in. ;-)

Ha! Will do

 

[roundpeg]

You're overthinking this. The seats don't have much padding, and (some) people feel the frame. From the feedback we're reading, the solution may be as easy as GM installing 1/2 inch layer of foam and/or making the seats a little wider. Since the seats aren't issue for you, drive more & worry less.

Not at all. If individuals with almost identical dimensions to my own are reporting "torture" sitting in these seats, and I find them to be comfortable, then this huge difference in experience begs an explanation. Leather vs. cloth? I've posed that question a half dozen times already. Maybe someone will give it a go, eventually. Assuming we want to learn anything. Well, I do, anyway.

As for padding, chair comfort is not proportional to the quantity of padding. As I have already pointed out, some of the most comfortable chairs made have no padding whatsoever (and people are happy to pay top prices for them). Seating comfort is about a whole lot of other design variables. What is going wrong for some people in the Bolt seats is what I am very curious to find out.

 

[CopperRoad]

I went for my second test drive yesterday at Keyes Chevrolet. (3rd time in the car total... after siting in it at the LA Auto Show)

I'm 6'2" 160, 32" waist. So, thin. The seats are by far the worst designed seats I've had the (dis)pleasure of sitting in. Pinched between the plastic frame is like some torture device, my hips ached after the test drive. I extended my Leaf lease a full year (up in 2-Months) just be able to get the Bolt. This now seems like an impossibility as I can't see living with a car that causes such discomfort, or hoping that some after market fix would make the seats livable for me.

Others have commented that they're fine, and I don't doubt them. I truly wish I were you. The thought of having to get another lower range EV with anemic performance is disheartening. With many saying the seat is an issue for them, it would be great if GM could come up with some fix, or adjustment. And, it's beyond me how not one person at GM experienced the same issue that some people are experiencing now. I'd imagine that this issue/experience will only grow as the car becomes more available.

I have almost exactly your build, and have yet to feel this. Are they the greatest car seats I've ever experienced? No. But... torture? Not even remotely.

Posts like this are making me paranoid wondering why my experience is so different. The answer has to be out there somewhere. Leather or cloth? That's the only obvious variable that comes to mind, other than how they are adjusted. A little more objectivity might help come up with the answer.

Believe me, this is not the experience I wanted, or expected. And as I've mentioned before, this is simply my experience... maybe I just have sensitive dainty hips.

l have also sat in the leather seats, and there might be a modicum of relief, or a bit less of the feel of the frame for me. But not enough that I took notice. If the seat doesn't bother you, I envy you. And I'm in no way dismissing yours, or anyone's experience that is contrary to mine. If the seats were an inch wider, or the bolsters were stiffer, I don't think there would be an issue for me.

 

[flamaest]

Please contact GM if you have issues with the seats. I also do not like them, but darn if that EV range is sooo nice.

I don't think anything will get done with our comments on this non-official forum.

Remember that GM later made special mirror-plastic-air-caps available for the 1st gen Volt side-mirrors when owners complained about the air noise.

http://www.chevrolet.com/contact/call-us.html

 

[roundpeg]

Believe me, this is not the experience I wanted, or expected. And as I've mentioned before, this is simply my experience... maybe I just have sensitive dainty hips.

l have also sat in the leather seats, and there might be a modicum of relief, or a bit less of the feel of the frame for me. But not enough that I took notice. If the seat doesn't bother you, I envy you. And I'm in no way dismissing yours, or anyone's experience that is contrary to mine. If the seats were an inch wider, or the bolsters were stiffer, I don't think there would be an issue for me.

I've wiggled and pressed in the seats any number of times, and have not felt the frame yet. I'm not dismissing your experience, either, just hoping to get to the bottom of it (so to speak). FWIW, I feel the lumbar support is not what it could be and unfortunately it isn't adjustable.

 

[LeftieBiker]

Imagine paying through the nose to lease or buy a Bolt, only to have GM cut prices and replace the seats with comfortable ones next model year...

 

[Anonymous]

Oh my, any chance you tried seat cushions? I know we're going to look at the memory foam as well, when our Bolt arrives.

 

[boltage]

I've wiggled and pressed in the seats any number of times, and have not felt the frame yet.

Feeling the seats with my fingers, I can feel the harder parts of the frames in the bolsters fairly easily. For the seat backs (not in the bolsters), if I press hard with my fingers, I can barely feel the frame through the padding (close to the side near the bolsters). But I cannot feel the frame with my back by sitting in the seats, even pressing hard on the footrest and pedals to push myself as far into the seat as possible. Note: these are the leather covered seats in the Premier.

For those who could feel the seat frames in the seat backs (not in the bolsters) with their backs, were they the LT cloth seats without heaters, LT cloth seats with heaters, or Premier leather seats?

Actually, perhaps a poll with standardized questions may help identify the issue:

a. Can feel frame in bolsters when sitting?
b. Can feel frame in seat backs (not in the bolster part) when sitting?
c. Seat model (LT, LT with heaters, Premier)?
d. Waist size.

For me:
N, N, Premier, 30-31"

 

[Nagorak]

Imagine paying through the nose to lease or buy a Bolt, only to have GM cut prices and replace the seats with comfortable ones next model year...

I would say a price cut is almost certain. The Volt dropped almost 8000 over the course of 6 years. I expect the same will happen with the Bolt, largely as a result of battery costs coming down, and also the need to compete with Tesla. Right now I think they're pricing it at a bit of a premium, knowing they've cornered the market.

 

[Nagorak]

I've wiggled and pressed in the seats any number of times, and have not felt the frame yet.

Feeling the seats with my fingers, I can feel the harder parts of the frames in the bolsters fairly easily. For the seat backs (not in the bolsters), if I press hard with my fingers, I can barely feel the frame through the padding (close to the side near the bolsters). But I cannot feel the frame with my back by sitting in the seats, even pressing hard on the footrest and pedals to push myself as far into the seat as possible. Note: these are the leather covered seats in the Premier.

For those who could feel the seat frames in the seat backs (not in the bolsters) with their backs, were they the LT cloth seats without heaters, LT cloth seats with heaters, or Premier leather seats?

Actually, perhaps a poll with standardized questions may help identify the issue:

a. Can feel frame in bolsters when sitting?
b. Can feel frame in seat backs (not in the bolster part) when sitting?
c. Seat model (LT, LT with heaters, Premier)?
d. Waist size.

For me:
N, N, Premier, 30-31"

You know, this is actually a good point. Could the difference be whether the seats have the heaters in them or not? It almost seems like people's experiences are so mixed that there has to be some other component involved than personal preference.