I’ve had my Octy 3 Elegance estate for about 3 months / 5,000 miles.  At first go it seemed a remarkably comfortable car, but is now crippling me.   I suffer with back problems due to old injuries, and the Octy is exacerbating them big time.  Seems the problems are, in no particular order:

-hip position causing outward rotation of the legs

-position of the pedals causing an awkward movement of the hip when doing clutch work

-position of the foot rest block (too high, causing left and right feet to be in totally different positions)

-lack of places to rest feet in cruise control

-seat base angle not adjustable causing a bad posture in any seat configuration

-seat base not padded enough

-most tolerable position for “comfort” is bad for visibility.  
 

What can I do?  I’ve tried a variety of cushions etc and of course every seat position possible.  I love the car.  Practical, economical and rammed full of tech.  Even my wife thinks I should sell it but I’m scared of getting another car, thinking it’s fine at first go and finding the same sort of problems occurring later down the line.  
 

Is it possible to get pedal heights adjusted?

 

I've considered getting VRS seats but concerned that they might not help at all and the pedal positions and leg space might be the overriding issue.  It’s hard to tell, but this car is crippling me.  Any advice welcome!

 

Cheers

If the cushions can not get you in a comfy position and the seat and steering wheel adjustment best get shot of the car.

No point suffering in the long term IMO, take the financial hit now.

 

I have 4 prolapsed discs. So got the T-Shirt...

20 minutes ago, Roottootemoot said:

If the cushions can not get you in a comfy position and the seat and steering wheel adjustment best get shot of the car.

No point suffering in the long term IMO, take the financial hit now.

 

I have 4 prolapsed discs. So got the T-Shirt...

that wedge looks much better than mine.  Probably worth me trying a more ergonomical one before I get shot 

Clearly your pain arises from your existing catalogue of injuries. In my case, I ordered my Octavia L&K in early May 2018 after my Kia Picanto was giving me excessive grief in the area of the right pelvis and sacrum on even relatively short journeys that I attributed to the car being small and me being 6'2". I still get some pain on 2hour journeys in the Octy. Forgot to mention, I was diagnosed with advanced prostate cancer at the end of May 2018 and have been receiving treatment since August 2018.

I have had that cushion for years (it was for my Dads bad back.) and it is the best one i have used, and i have used in various vehicles with uncomfy seats.

Never seen one just the same for sale and i have looked.  I think that was over £30 yunks back.

 

All the best with it.

Hi, I had the same problem on. 3 series BMW. Could not get comfortable in the seat. I suffer from a prolapsed disc. The best support i got was from my Pysio, they should help you out or point you in the right direction for a decent support. 

Before you buy anything, just google 'adjusting car seat for bad back'. There are loads of pages which explain where you need to be, what position the seat base, back and the height should be. I researched it because I've started getting back issues due to be my office job and I followed the physio advice for my office chair and some of the points could be loosely applied to the car.

 

I only needed to adjust the back rest a smidge, lower the steering wheel a touch and add a bit of height to make me more comfortable.

https://www.physiomed.co.uk/uploads/guide/file/21/Physiomed_Sitting_Guide_-_Driving_Digital.pdf

4 hours ago, RobGy said:

I’ve had my Octy 3 Elegance estate for about 3 months / 5,000 miles.  At first go it seemed a remarkably comfortable car, but is now crippling me.   I suffer with back problems due to old injuries, and the Octy is exacerbating them big time.

 

Try a LHD car.

 

I much prefer left hand drive to right hand drive.

 

In RHD the accelerator pedal is usually in a worse position compared to the LHD equivalent because of wheel arch intrusion. Also, RHD accelerators are often topped hinged, whereas LHD are often bottom hinged.

Edited 8 December, 20196 yr by Carlston

^^^^

@RobGy   As above, great idea..

Emigrate to a warmer climate where they drive on the wrong side of the road.

 

Easier if you can is get a Flip pedal if you have an automatic and you can drive with your left foot.

I drive with my left foot as i have no right foot, and with the standard pedal position.

From the OP’s first post it seems evident that he’s got a manual car.

Surely moving to an auto is the logical first step when you have the physical problems described?

...apart from that ,aren’t Volvos supposed to have some of the better seats for support? Not that I can confirm that,but I would be giving them a try to see if they were any good.

I had severe back problems years ago, my physio came up with some cushions which helped a lot, she also suggested changing to a Volvo because of the seats, but  back in the day Volvo's were considered to be Grandad cars, things change, would now consider one if need be!!

2 hours ago, tunedude said:

Before you buy anything, just google 'adjusting car seat for bad back'. There are loads of pages which explain where you need to be, what position the seat base, back and the height should be. I researched it because I've started getting back issues due to be my office job and I followed the physio advice for my office chair and some of the points could be loosely applied to the car.

 

I only needed to adjust the back rest a smidge, lower the steering wheel a touch and add a bit of height to make me more comfortable.

It’s important to remember the pedals are fixed, the seats and steering can be moved.   A lot of people do the adjustments in wrong order so are never able to get a comfortable position

 

 

2 hours ago, tunedude said:

Before you buy anything, just google 'adjusting car seat for bad back'. There are loads of pages which explain where you need to be, what position the seat base, back and the height should be. I researched it because I've started getting back issues due to be my office job and I followed the physio advice for my office chair and some of the points could be loosely applied to the car.

 

I only needed to adjust the back rest a smidge, lower the steering wheel a touch and add a bit of height to make me more comfortable.

I have, and have spent hours trying every tip and trick and every position possible.  The only one that helps alleviate the pressure is having the seat so low that visibility is an issue.  

What car did you come from RobGy. Maybe you can compare. Our go back to it.

Real Sheep Skin @£35 in TK Maxx. 

Can make an uncomfortable seat feel much better, lovely in the cold if no heated seats.

Have the cushion under it if needed.

The only thing I'm not really happy with on my vrs (only had it for five months) is the lack of adjustment in terms of driving position. Coming from a BMW, there's a lot less adjustment than I'm used to, leaving me without a perfect position. 

6 hours ago, benterrier said:

What car did you come from RobGy. Maybe you can compare. Our go back to it.

Ford Focus.  Lovely car to drive, not so fun at the fuel station or the mechanic when it comes to getting your wallet out.

I also had issues with the pedal placement and no seat base tilt adjustment meaning there's little under thigh support. And no where to put the right leg on cruise control, a problem the Mk2 doesn't have.

 

When I sold the Mk3 I bought a vehicle with 20 way memory seats, I no longer have the same lower back pain.

If you do find you can't resolve your back pain issues within the limitations of your octy and or 3rd party supports/cushions and you do have to start looking around at alternative cars. Fully explain your situation to your dealer of choice to see if you can obtain a long term test drive over a few days and get some longer journeys under your belt. Failing that, perhaps see if you can hire the car or cars you are looking to buy from a rental firm and run them for a week or 2 to see if they suit you. 

I have a damaged lower back and long journeys do make it u comfortable. I tend to just put the heated seat on full to get warmth into the muscles. Also wearing body armour at work doesnt do a great deal to help it either. However the best thing I did was to get physio and that helped massivley. If you strenghten your core muscles that will help support your back and take the pressure off the spine. A few ab crunches a day to start with and it will slowly build up the strength in the core.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

The above is very important. Spend some money privately if needs be. 

2 hours ago, Gmac983 said:

If you do find you can't resolve your back pain issues within the limitations of your octy and or 3rd party supports/cushions and you do have to start looking around at alternative cars. Fully explain your situation to your dealer of choice to see if you can obtain a long term test drive over a few days and get some longer journeys under your belt. Failing that, perhaps see if you can hire the car or cars you are looking to buy from a rental firm and run them for a week or 2 to see if they suit you. 

 

I was somewhat hoping the dealer I bought it from might be the best one to try for this, seeing if they would part ex the car I bought at a reasonable price and allow an extended test drive or two, but they don't have anything in stock that I'd like (well, that I can afford!)

Do the electric seats have more adjustment?  If they are the same as in a coleagues scirocco then they are much better.  Could make more sense financially?  Especially if you are planning on keeping the car.  

Worth finding an Octavia with them fitted to find out IMO.