Just curious if ventilation makes a difference in seat comfort?

I'm coming from the 4 way sports seats plus which I loved.

My new 991.2 has the 14 way with ventilation. I would normally never think about or notice seat padding but with these no matter how hard I try to find the perfect fit my butt goes numb.

Waiting for them to soften but in the meantime a little frustrated.

 

I have 18 way seats with ventilation and find them very comfy. Did a 5 hour drive back from Florida for new year's and was comfortable and relaxed the entire way.

 

The thing with these seats is you have to sit bolt upright to maximize comfort and reduce fatigue. Even though the OEM is American, the 14-way seats are stereotypically Germanic in operation.

 

I tend to agree with this statement. Because of a little bit of time spent in small Formula cars back in the day, where you practically lie down with feet out in front, I had always driven with a good deal of seatback recline. Not gangsta at all -- I raise the seat cushion so visibility was unimpeded -- but still laid back a good bit. Always worked with previous, pre-991 Porsches.

But with my 14-way vented seats I was fine for shorter distances but would go numb on long trips. Unrelated to that, I was having some minor back issues and saw a back guru. She harped on my seated posture, I listened to her and cranked all of my car seat backs up into near vertical. It felt so strange for a week. Then I realized that the numbness with distance was gone!

Now the upright position feels completely normal. As an added benefit, I'd always known about Paul Frere's correct driving position, as detailed in Sports Car and Competition Driving decades ago. But it's hard to assume when you are laid back in the seat, so I just got as close as I could and called it a day. Now I can utilize Frere's position accurately.

 

Nick Murray just did a comparison of his .2 with 18 ways and his friend'S .2 with 14 ways. Both were ventilated. He noted that his were better padded.

I did notice that my seats are quite stiff, however driving 1,300 miles in 2 days never had an issue.

 

Nick's actually are heated but are not ventilated because he has the partial cloth seats. He did note that he finds his 18-ways softer than his old 14-ways but I'm wondering if the cloth has something to do with it.

I wish someone could/would do a direct comparison with ventilated, leather 14-ways vs 18-ways. Something tells me that the 18-ways would indeed be cushier but I'm wondering how much.

I plan to order a 991.2 C2S within the next year or so and I'm starting to think that the 18-ways may be the way to go.

 

I had the same issue in my 2014 991.1 and my wife's 2011 Cayman with the ventilated seats, after about 100 miles the fatigue in my lower back was terrible, affected my son too - I ended up with these for long drives over 100 miles: (Gelco GSeat Orthopedic Seat Cushion)
However in my new 991.2, when I spec'ed the car I went with 18 ways w/o ventilation (alcantara inserts though) and they are much more comfortable, no need for the pad - 1200 mile roundtrip in 2 days and no pain.

 

I have three bulged discs and have no problem with the 14 way ventilated seats. Love the ventilation and the seats. As NoGABiker mentioned, I also sit extremely upright, so that may be the key. Good luck.

 

I found the seats really uncomfortable when new, but now after 6 months they have softened up and feel comfortable, give it time. First month was horrible, though.

 

I have the 14 way with ventilation. They feel great. Maybe I do have mine a little more vertical.

 

Agree re the 4 way sport seats. Had them in my 08 Boxster and they fit my bod like they were designed for it. The 14 way seats in my 991 are by comparison, "pretty good". The basic design is like my Macans, but that is more comfortable for long trips because they are more chair-like. I don't think the cooling feature affects the padding to cause any discomfort. It functions well when the AC is on in both.

 

Well the 4 way SS plus are the deeper 18 way seat shape, so it probably has nothing to do with the padding and more to do with the difference in the shape of the 14s.

 

I’ve had 18 ways with seat vent in boxster gts which I loved and just fab on hot days. Real dilemma on new 911 gts with the gts interior which is only in alcantara. It looks stunning, seems more comfortable with the alcantara but the drawback is you can’t opt for seat vent. Life throws up some tough decisions!
Anyone driven on a hot day with the roof down on alcantara and if so how did you find it.

 

I have the 14 way ventilated seats, and find them very comfortable. The ventilation is something I would not give up - which for me is a problem with the GTS interior.