Adding additional front seat padding

hastym3 · 05-16-2009, 10:06 PM

I could not quite get comfortable in my m3 front seats, and I've read a couple threads expressing the same. Mostly in the lumbar area, I felt as though there was not enough support, and I felt "hunched over." If I added the air to the lumbar support, then the seat felt too firm and uneven. As a solution I decided to attempt to add some cushioning myself. I went to a local fabric shop and bought a 2" thick high density foam pad. I cut this into a rectangle (with an electric carving knife) 12" long and 11 3/4" wide and 1 1/2" thick and tapered it at the top. To remove the seat cover you have to remove the two push pins holding the seatback in place and pull it off. Unsnap the leather from the frame and bring it under the seat. You can then pull up the lumbar cushion area and look at where the lumbar air bladders are. I placed the additional padding on top of the air bladders and behind the original padding. It is a tight enough fit that the pad stays in place without any fasteners or adhesive. I then snapped everything back into place. The hardest part of the job is working with the seatback pushpins. They may have to be replaced and they are a pain to get back in. So far, I feel like the added padding has significantly reduced the pressure points I had and improved my comfort. Anyways $4.99 for some padding is a heckuva lot cheaper than aftermarket seats!

mPlasticDesign · 05-17-2009, 12:07 AM

Cool, I know some Mcoupe guys that added lumbar support in a similar way.

sard · 05-17-2009, 12:33 AM

That's odd, I think the lumbar support's great...I don't even have it at max...

Finnegan · 05-17-2009, 02:36 AM

Good write-up. Did you happen to take an photos of the work you were doing? Sounds like a good DIY that with some photos could go in the DIY section!

05-16-2009, 10:06 PM	#1
hastym3 New Member 0 Rep 11 Posts Drives: f80 M3 Join Date: May 2009 Location: Philadelphia, Pa iTrader: (0)	Adding additional front seat padding I could not quite get comfortable in my m3 front seats, and I've read a couple threads expressing the same. Mostly in the lumbar area, I felt as though there was not enough support, and I felt "hunched over." If I added the air to the lumbar support, then the seat felt too firm and uneven. As a solution I decided to attempt to add some cushioning myself. I went to a local fabric shop and bought a 2" thick high density foam pad. I cut this into a rectangle (with an electric carving knife) 12" long and 11 3/4" wide and 1 1/2" thick and tapered it at the top. To remove the seat cover you have to remove the two push pins holding the seatback in place and pull it off. Unsnap the leather from the frame and bring it under the seat. You can then pull up the lumbar cushion area and look at where the lumbar air bladders are. I placed the additional padding on top of the air bladders and behind the original padding. It is a tight enough fit that the pad stays in place without any fasteners or adhesive. I then snapped everything back into place. The hardest part of the job is working with the seatback pushpins. They may have to be replaced and they are a pain to get back in. So far, I feel like the added padding has significantly reduced the pressure points I had and improved my comfort. Anyways $4.99 for some padding is a heckuva lot cheaper than aftermarket seats!
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05-17-2009, 12:07 AM	#2
mPlasticDesign Major General 684 Rep 5,069 Posts Drives: BMW 230i Msport w/LSD Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Astral Projecting: ∞ 23.516 -122 02.625 0242.101 ĕv'rē-hwâr' iTrader: (16) Garage List 2009 Porsche 911 997.2 [10.00] 2019 Hyundai N (Sold) [10.00] 2013 BMW M3 (Sold) [10.00] 2011 1M Coupe (Sold) [8.78] 2008 E90 M3 (Sold) [8.60] 2007 Z4 Mcpe (Sold) [9.50] 2005 BMW M3 (Sold) [10.00]	Cool, I know some Mcoupe guys that added lumbar support in a similar way. __________________
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05-17-2009, 12:33 AM	#3
sard Major 235 Rep 1,334 Posts Drives: 2008 M3 Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Southern California iTrader: (1)	That's odd, I think the lumbar support's great...I don't even have it at max...
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05-17-2009, 02:36 AM	#4
Finnegan Dog Listener 701 Rep 7,850 Posts Drives: Z4M/. Z3M, E36/46 M3 Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Teaching the dog to slalom iTrader: (22)	Good write-up. Did you happen to take an photos of the work you were doing? Sounds like a good DIY that with some photos could go in the DIY section!
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