Hey, all,

Gotten so much help building my MINI from reading these threads, but still have a couple questions about seats:

1) According to the configurator, I can get tuscan beige leather with the standard seats on the MC. (not required to get sport seats) Does anyone know if this is a computer glitch?

2) If I go with the leather and sport seats, I've read some people saying that the sport seats are uncomfortable. I did feel more of a pinch in them (compared with the standard seats). What is the consensus on sport seats and comfort?

3) The lounge leather didn't seem to pinch in the same way. Was that just in my head? (or, my butt as the case may be.) Before I shell out the extra dough, I'd like to be sure that they do make the seats more comfortable.

I look forward to reading your thoughts!

 

In my opinion the sports seats are uncomfortable in comparison to the standard. I have the black punched leather , which I am very pleased with, they are soft, cool and non slip. Glad I got them . BTY If you get leather ,learn to keep your wallet in your front pocket instead of your back. This will avoid the "wallet crunch" on the seat pad.and keep your seat looking good no matter what the material is.

 

One man gathers what another man spills...

I find the sport seats much more comfortable. But, then again, I'm 6'5" --- you have to try it on to know for sure.
Did you ever see the Monte Carlo edition seats that you can get from www.minspeed.net ? It's worth a look if you're still shopping. They're the coolest looking things going.

 

I am 5 10, 170. The sport seats are very comfortable to me.

I didn't like the regular seats at all.

Note I didn't try all configurations as I bought off the lot.
Cloth sport seats or leatherette regular seats was the choice.

 

I like the sport seats as well. According to my MA it will depend on your width as to whether or not you like them. As you get wider, the standard seats will be better.

 

Another +1 for the sport seats. Especially with lounge leather - I love them. Grip in corner, very comfortable and prevent long distance fatigue.

 

I'm wider than I'd like to be, but definitely prefer the sport seats. We live in the mountains so the side bolsters are extremely helpful for the curvy roads.

 

another vote for the sport seats. I have the Tuscan Beige and a narrow butt.

 

i'm 5'2" and i find the sport comfortable also, i just have the leatherette seats so i can't help you with the other questions.

 

For the price of the leather "option", you could have a pair of these installed. I'm juss sayin is all...

 

Wow!

thanks for all the replies. I can't wait to be a part of the MINI owners club.

 

I purchased my MINI with the $1900 lounge leather option off the lot, but those Recaro's definitely are tempting for my next MINI. How much do they retail for and do they have a side airbag built in???

 

I found the sport seats had alot more comfort than the standard seats...even in the new 2nd gen they give much more support overall and especially in the twisties!

 

For someone whos complaining that the sport seats pinch their sides... I highly doubt fixed bucket Recaros would be considered an improvment!

 

The regular seats are good if you like to drive Camry's.

 

I got the 'English Panther Leather' on my R53 - a $1700 option and the predecessor to the Lounge Leather. They were noticably more comfortable than the standard sport seats in the R53. I actually sold them to a local member who had back issues and the standard space cloth set was giving him fits.

still....leather and throwing a car through the corners don't mix well, thus my reason for fitting Recaro's with alcantara inserts. Much better.

fixed Recaro race seats don't have airbags. no dedicated race seat does.

 

No airbags, but I would not call the Pole Positiion a "race seat".

 

another vote for the sport seats here, but I didn't spend the extra money on leather... I stayed with leatherette (as a dog owner, it seemed a much more sensible choice), and I've been very happy with the comfort of the seats and the material.

 

true, but any fixed seat is really. maybe not what real race cars use but none have airbags

 

Yea, I sat in all the OEM seats and lounge leather is by far the most comfortable. I don't have any back problems or anything of the sort, but I do tend to get incredibly fatigued after sitting in just about any seat for over an hour. Not so with the LL, and it looks stunning! Especially in my PW/B MINI with cream color line, piano black trim and anthracite headliner. Granted they definitely wouldn't be the best for really spirited driving and the price tag is pretty ridiculous, but for my purposes they're just about perfect.

Woops, my bad, didn't realize they are actual dedicated race seats. Side bags aren't the hugest deal for me anyway, just thought I'd ask.

 

I haven't owned a car in the last 7-8 years that's comfortable to sit in for more than an hour (my Wrangler had great seats, but nobody wants to try keeping that thing between the white lines for more than an hour at a time ). Both my Subaru's made my right leg hurt within two hours. Our FX35 has the controls on the seat...right by/under your right leg. Yeah....about 90 minutes and I'm done. The R53 seats are better.....the R56 better still. Maybe I need to buy a Caddy for road trips.

 

I thought if you had leather, you had to have the sports seat. I had a non lounge leather loner, and found it surprisingly similar to the LL, except for the padding under the knees. The Tuscan Beige in the loner was quite soiled. I had to stop myself from cleaning it!

 

lol!
I like the way the tuscan beige changes the interior of the car. But, I really liked the way the LL felt. I'm going to try to sit in both before I decide.
Thanks for your input.

 

Same, although that pretty color seems like it would be pretty hard to keep clean. In the end the look of the LL won me over and its comfort is really unsurpassed by any other OEM seat.

Best of luck on your decision! They're both gorgeous options and very MINI so you can't go wrong.

 

Don't you need to get the lounge leather to get the lumbar adjustment? Or is the lumbar standard on the sport seats?