I love my '04 STX and have put almost 5000 miles on it. The only real complaint I have is that the seats are very uncomfortable. Especially after a long non-stop drive.

Has anyone else noticed the seats being uncomfortable?

I suppose it make a diifference that I weigh 250 plus pounds and with the steel plate under the seat instead of springs there isn't much cushion.

 

It doesn't make a difference...I'm only 5'7" and 190 and think the seats suck too.....from the quality of the leather to the power 6-way positions....can never seem to get that thing just right!

 

I drove over 1000 miles yesterday - nearly non-stop - and my seat were surprisingly decent. To say that they are comfortable would be a stretch, but my back survived. They are stiff and not very cushy, but they make me sit up straight, which is the key to comfort for me on a long drive. It could have been alot worse and has been in my previous Ford trucks. The leather quality isn't great, but it's better than my '01 Lariat, which was better than my '99.

Before the road trip, I was very skeptical about the comfort over the long haul. I feel better about them now.....

My specs: 5'11" - 190#

 

STXDriver,

(I think I saw a similar thread start a month ago. See:
https://www.f150online.com/forums/sh...hreadid=137378)

Some seem to find the seats very uncomfortable, while others very comfortable, and most are somewhere in between. There have been a number of threads in which this has been discussed. I think that no one should have to put up with being uncomfortable while driving. In this case, I think you are best off looking at aftermarket seat covers/custom leather like some have referenced in the other threads. If you spend much time driving, it's probably worth the money.

BTW - At 6'6" and 240 lbs., I think the seats are firm, but comfortable. My back gets great support, and like Clem indicates, I sit in a more upright position, which actually seems to reduce body fatigue/aches.

Good luck in finding a resolution,

John

 

seeing that Clem and I have the same truck let me reassert what he has said and add that in short, OUR Lariat is very comfortable up to 500 miles or 7-8 hours. After that the nature of the body takes over as it needs flexing. Sitting anywhere for 10-14 hours in the same position is nearly too much for anyone's body to withstand without recourse. As for the ride, I have found that the leather/vinyl is not too slippery and the heated seat feature also ease the lumbar area. Add the vibration coming off the Audiophile sound system and we have heated massage seats. Note: I am not kidding about the Audiophile Massage.

5'6" 157lbs.

 

I restored a 1965 F100 short wide bed truck and installed a bench seat from an '86 f150 with stock foam support with a nice new tweed covering. it was much more confortable than my new '04 after a 700 mile round trip to Houston and home.

No, I'm not going to put an '86 model seat in my new STX. I was only making a comparison.

As Forrest Gump would say, "That's all I have to say about that"

 

Until the shapes and sizes of human butts and backs are standardized, we're going to continue to have this debate between people who find a particular seat comfortable and those who find the same seat uncomfortable.

The only way to make sure your seat is comfortable for you is to have it custom-made to your specs. And even then, forcing a human butt to sit on itself for hours on end is going to produce pain, I don't care how perfectly designed the seat is.

Seat adjustability is a step in the direction of butt accomodation, and it helps, but usually can't make up for the fact that the human but wasn't designed for long spells in one position.

It helps to maintain proper posture, but IMO the best thing you can do to stay comfy longer is to stay mobile in the seat. Keep moving around, stretching, flexing your leg muscles to keep blood from pooling up down there, etc. Once the discomfort begins, it is almost impossible to reverse it without an extended rest period away from the seat.

 

I went out bird hunting last week and was VERY uncomfortable after 45 minutes in to the trip.

To me, it appears to have nothing to do with body shape, form, fit etc. THE SEATS ARE LIKE SITTING ON A ROCK !

 

I'm glad but sad that I'm not the only one to have uncomfortable seats.

Contact Ford Motor Company customer relations. I did and maybe if enough complaints get filed maybe they will do something.

First, register your consern with your dealer service manager because the customer relations representative will ask if you did. I'm going to keep this thread alive.

 

STX,

Good to see another thread on these suck-*** POS seats. While I believe it takes anyone a short while to adjust to new seats when switching vehicles, there's NO winning with these things. As has been mentioned before, they have no structure, just a giant hunk o' foam. There is no resistance or support as there would be if they had some springs in them. Once you sit down, you just keep sinking and have to lift yourself back to your desired position every once in a while.

As I've posted before, that 8-way all-in-one switch is a POS also. I'm sure it was cheaper though. At least the old multiple switch set-up like my 2001 would have helped a little. You just can NOT get it quite right with the all-in-one switch. Every time you adjust it one position it affects the other. I've had my '04 two months now and it's still an issue. I drive an '00 XL with a standard cloth fixed-position bench seat for work. It really pisses me off when I have to get back into my $40K vehicle and can't be anywhere near as comfortable as I am in the work truck.

While others are correct in saying you can't please everyone, I would wager that if Ford contacted every new '04 owner right now, those that have issues with seat discomfort would be in the majority. They did NOT do enough research on these. Although they sure thought they did. Just picked up a recent issue of Road and Track and low and behold what do I find inside the back cover...a full two-page ad with a picture of an '04 and its seat. They were trumping up the awesome benefits and comfort of the seat. The caption stated something to the effect of "why aren't all truck seats made like this?"

Oh well, at least I have enough reasons to keep re-positioning myself trying to keep comfortable; like when I have to jump up to avoid water leaking in my moonroof at the car wash.