[nike001]

I don't think you're supposed to be able to stretch your leg straight out and rest it entirely on the dead pedal. I either rotate on the ball of my heel from the clutch to the dead pedal or move my foot an inch or two towards the dead pedal.. but never have my 100% of my foot on the dead pedal.

It's quicker to rotate on the bottom of your foot to the clutch rather than it is to pick up and move your entire leg from the dead pedal to the clutch..

[moldcad]

Yeah... If you had AT like I do, you would try to rest your entire foot on the dead pedal. Of course not for all the time - changing position is vital for your blood flow

[crawfordbay]

Originally Posted by moldcad

OK, so I was so curious that I checked it carefully, and voila! - it turns out the driver seat's rails on the car's floor are not parallel to the car main axis. It's designed so that the seat is twisted slightly inwards - this way, the driver has the steering wheels more or less in front of him, and not to the right (if the seat was placed parallel to the car's axis, the steering wheel would be off-center and to the right). Since the other reference point is the dead pedal, they must have chosen a sort of compromise between the two - the result being that if you want your leg in a natural position while resting the foot on the dead pedal, your thigh "axis" is again not parallel to the bolster - resulting in resting on top of it slightly rather than next to it... All is clear now, but somehow I can't think high on BMW engineers!

And mind you - I'm not comparing the M235i driver's uncomfortable sitting position to the F10 I used to have, which was big enough for the seats to be wider, steering wheel on its center axis, and dead pedal where your left foot lands naturally. The car I'm comparing it to is my other small car - the Golf R, which has perfect seats and seating position... So if it's possible in the VW, why not in the BMW?

Thank you for going to the trouble to figure this out. This makes a lot of sense. I'll have to notice where I put my foot on extended drives and maybe I can find a better position.

[moldcad]

Originally Posted by crawfordbay

Thank you for going to the trouble to figure this out. This makes a lot of sense. I'll have to notice where I put my foot on extended drives and maybe I can find a better position.

I'm glad I helped you with this idea - and try to imagine how awkward my driving position must be if I tell you I'm shorter than you This forces me to slide the seat even more forward, which in turn increases the angle my left leg must be at for my foot to rest on the dead pedal firmly - making my thigh literally cross with the bolster.

And to think one (not the most important of course) of the reasons I never loved my F10 was I felt somewhat too small for it, haha.

But this can be fixed I hope (to some extent at least) - a silly thing like this is not going to spoil the pleasure I otherwise have driving this wonderful car. Even with this minor annoyance, I'm in love with my M235i - it so different from the 300-hp R, but has one thing in common with it: it truly is a driver's car! Only the driver should at least be some 6 feet high

PS. Rather than fool with my seat's rails, I'm wondering if having a special (more offset to the right) dead pedal made for me would be a better idea...

[crawfordbay]

Originally Posted by moldcad

I'm glad I helped you with this idea - and try to imagine how awkward my driving position must be if I tell you I'm shorter than you This forces me to slide the seat even more forward, which in turn increases the angle my left leg must be at for my foot to rest on the dead pedal firmly - making my thigh literally cross with the bolster.

And to think one (not the most important of course) of the reasons I never loved my F10 was I felt somewhat too small for it, haha.

But this can be fixed I hope (to some extent at least) - a silly thing like this is not going to spoil the pleasure I otherwise have driving this wonderful car. Even with this minor annoyance, I'm in love with my M235i - it so different from the 300-hp R, but has one thing in common with it: it truly is a driver's car! Only the driver should at least be some 6 feet high

Me too. Love this car.

What if we gave the dead pedal a slight angle toward the center of the car? I might try a temporary angle out of a thin, stiff material on my next trip to see if that helps. If it works I guess I could recover the pedal and add some material under the left side to lift it a few millimeters.

[zznalg]

Interesting. I had an X1 and one of my take away memories (besides it being great to drive) was that my left thigh climbed up the left seat bolster. I found it unfortunate but not painful. I wonder if BMW engineers worked the same compromise on the X1?

[moldcad]

Just dived again into the space between the driver's seat and the dead pedal - and yes, definitely the solution to the problem (for me, and for all those with rather short legs out there ) is some modification to the pedal mounting: it should be moved to the right and backwards by an inch or so.

[3.0L]

Originally Posted by moldcad

Are yours? In the M235i, I mean...

The backrest bolsters are adjustable, but not the seat's ones...

Just the seat back bolsters. I can get pinched in pretty tight if I desire.

I must admit that the number of seat adjustments and resulting combinations seem rather daunting at first, but after spending some with it, I put the settings in memory and then rarely fiddle with the seat adjustments again.

[nike001]

Originally Posted by 3.0L

Just the seat back bolsters. I can get pinched in pretty tight if I desire.

I must admit that the number of seat adjustments and resulting combinations seem rather daunting at first, but after spending some with it, I put the settings in memory and then rarely fiddle with the seat adjustments again.

It's SO much easier to get a driving position in automatics. I had my 330i ZHP for 2 years until I found *the* optimal driving position. It just takes so much longer when having a clutch pedal that you have to figure out the engagement point, leg bending, etc etc. Then after that.. you can figure out the rest of the seat. But if you move something too much.. you just threw off the placement for your leg on the clutch

I didn't do too bad with the M235 though. I've had it for a month and I THINK I've figured out the best position for me..

[webbit]

Originally Posted by moldcad

I did search this forum (plus some other 2-series ones), but haven't found anyone complaining about the strange and - let's be honest here - screwed combination of the driver's seat design, it's position (offset slightly to the right), and the resulting tendency of the driver's left leg to rest _over_the seat left bolster rather than both legs _between_ the 2 seat bolsters.

When I want to rest my left foot on the dead pedal, my thigh literally goes outside the in-between the bolsters position, and rests on top of the left bolser. Not only does it negate the very purpose of the seat (not backrest) bolsters, which is to keep me nailed to the seat in spite of the quite high G-forces the car is able of, but - after prolonged trips - causes serious fatigue of my left thigh

Hasn't anyone noticed it before me?

I have the same problem in my 125i M Sports. Although it is a right hand drive (Australia) its my right thigh that gets the same issue you described. Its like the seat is too close to the centre of the car, and your sitting off-set.
I am hoping its different when I pick up my M235i in about a months time otherwise long road trips are going to be a pain in the 'thigh'

[BMW335iOn18s]

Funny you mention this. I had a similar problem with my 2012 Volkswagen Jetta, but not my F22...

[BMW335iOn18s]

Originally Posted by nike001

It's SO much easier to get a driving position in automatics. I had my 330i ZHP for 2 years until I found *the* optimal driving position. It just takes so much longer when having a clutch pedal that you have to figure out the engagement point, leg bending, etc etc. Then after that.. you can figure out the rest of the seat. But if you move something too much.. you just threw off the placement for your leg on the clutch

I didn't do too bad with the M235 though. I've had it for a month and I THINK I've figured out the best position for me..

+1 THIS

[RPM90]

Originally Posted by moldcad

OK, so I was so curious that I checked it carefully, and voila! - it turns out the driver seat's rails on the car's floor are not parallel to the car main axis. It's designed so that the seat is twisted slightly inwards - this way, the driver has the steering wheels more or less in front of him, and not to the right (if the seat was placed parallel to the car's axis, the steering wheel would be off-center and to the right). Since the other reference point is the dead pedal, they must have chosen a sort of compromise between the two - the result being that if you want your leg in a natural position while resting the foot on the dead pedal, your thigh "axis" is again not parallel to the bolster - resulting in resting on top of it slightly rather than next to it... All is clear now, but somehow I can't think high on BMW engineers!

And mind you - I'm not comparing the M235i driver's uncomfortable sitting position to the F10 I used to have, which was big enough for the seats to be wider, steering wheel on its center axis, and dead pedal where your left foot lands naturally. The car I'm comparing it to is my other small car - the Golf R, which has perfect seats and seating position... So if it's possible in the VW, why not in the BMW?

Interesting. In my 335i Msport the steering wheel is not centered to the driver/me, it's a bit to the right.
VW sport seats are great too, they rival BMW's, but I like BMW's sport seats more so.

[Slamau]

Hi moldcad,

I've been having problems with the seat adjustment in my M235, and came across this thread from a few years ago. Have you managed to resolve it?

I'm in Australia so I have the opposite problem - it is my right leg which is hurting. Sometimes I even get pins and needles after more than 45mins or so in the car.

Similar to you, I drove a Mk6 GTI for the last 5 years, and a Mk5 Golf for 6 years before that, and never had any problems with the seats.

I'm hoping to get some hints to resolve my problem - I really enjoy driving the car but the pain in my leg is really detracting from the experience.

[PDXF22]

I'd not seen this thread until Slamau bumped it up, but it perfectly describes my situation.

This car is great for short drives, but on anything much longer than 30-40 mins my left leg is in pain or I'm shifting around the whole time. I want to love this car so much, but this has become a genuine problem for me.

On track, another issue is that I'm nice and snug against the center stack but really loose against the driver door. So on left turns, I'm confident and composed but right turns, I'm literally bracing with my left leg and left arm, which is not ideal for longer sprints on the track.

Left Hand Drive
ZF 8Speed
6'3 ~ 240lbs

Any options would be amazing.

[aerobod]

Originally Posted by moldcad

The car I'm comparing it to is my other small car - the Golf R, which has perfect seats and seating position... So if it's possible in the VW, why not in the BMW?

We have a Mk7 Golf R and M240i (both manual transmissions), I find the M240i has a far better seating position with the seat axis being aligned with the steering wheel. With the Golf R the steering wheel is not aligned with the seat axis, leading to sore shoulders on long trips as your body is twisted with the left arm having to reach further than the right when hands are at the 9-3 position on the steering wheel. Having just completed a 1750km round trip in the M240i this weekend to complete most of it's break-in, the same trip twice in the Golf R in the past left me far more tired than in the BMW.

[RiksRide]

Any suggestions on adjusting the seating position to make ingress & egress easier? I have a very narrow parking space, and it's challenging getting in and out without being able to swing the (large) doors all the way open.

[Slamau]

Originally Posted by RiksRide

Any suggestions on adjusting the seating position to make ingress & egress easier? I have a very narrow parking space, and it's challenging getting in and out without being able to swing the (large) doors all the way open.

I move my seat back all the way when parked in narrow spots. I find that helps a lot

[Maynard]

Originally Posted by moldcad

.....yes, definitely the solution to the problem (for me, and for all those with rather short legs out there ) is some modification to the pedal mounting....

This, NOT messing with seat mounting, is the safe way to go - IF you bolt down whatever added spacer you put in there. Make sure it can't possibly come loose, or it can jam up behind the brake in an emergency - very bad. And make it sturdy - remember that if you are using it as a dead pedal, there will be times you are really pressing hard on it, and those will be the worst times for it to collapse suddenly. I have longer legs, and it hasn't been a problem, but I can see how it is angled just a little to one side (personally, I think I'd be more cramped up if it were to the right more, but everybody's different. Seat mounting is so central to the safety restraints that messing with it would be crazy (and hella complicated).

And for Slamau, try experimenting with seat tilt and the thigh bolster. That 'pins and needles' thing is really bad over the long run, and a sign you are having too much pressure in a small area. Usually front edge of the seat, but you should be able to tell after sitting there a while where the 'hot spot' is. Not just a comfort issue, it can get into medical problems if you do a lot of driving that way.

[shark715]

We've had our 235 vert for more than 1 1/2 years now and are at 20k miles. Never noticed this thread before.

Perhaps the way the seats are mounted on a vert are different because the floor is a slightly different shape on the vert versus the coupe (I assume the floor needs extra bracing to make up for the loss of body rigidity provided by the fixed roof on a coupe?), but on the vert it looks like the seat track IS parallel with the sides of the car.

What makes my left thigh end up partially on the bolster is my size (6'3", 260 lbs.) plus the footrest being not as directly in front of the seat as the gas pedal.

I've been in the car for many hours several times and have never had an issue with seat comfort, although I do wish the seat bottom had power tilt so I could gain even more thigh support by raising the front of the seat like I can on our X5 (but I knew about this going in and the issue didn't stop us by buying the car, it's one of the few things I wish were different.

Seats are such an individual thing. We have the 20 way BMW comfort seats on the X5 and think they are absolutely extraordinary, but yet there was someone on the X5 forum who said he/she was not comfortable in them. I find that shocking, but to each his own.

[aerobod]

Originally Posted by shark715

...although I do wish the seat bottom had power tilt so I could gain even more thigh support by raising the front of the seat like I can on our X5...

Are you sure that the seat base can't tilt, as it does on our M240i? It isn't the same control I'm used to on older BMWs, though, instead of pushing up on the front of the seat base control (which just causes the seat base to move up), I have to rotate the base control to tilt the base.

[shark715]

Originally Posted by aerobod

Are you sure that the seat base can't tilt, as it does on our M240i? It isn't the same control I'm used to on older BMWs, though, instead of pushing up on the front of the seat base control (which just causes the seat base to move up), I have to rotate the base control to tilt the base.

I can't believe it, but you are correct! Just went out in the garage and tried it. I've never seen a power seat on any other other car where you "twist" the control to tilt the seat bottom. Maybe I should open the owner's manual once in a while :-)

You just substantially changed my opinion on the seats. Wow! Can't believe we did not discover this before now! I have particularly long thighs, so being able to tilt the front of the seat up makes the thigh bolsters much more effective for me.

Thank you, thank you, thank you! :-)