B8.5 Ventilated Seats

[QuattroJ]

After driving home today, I realized I had never owned a vehicle with a black interior (I've also never owned a vehicle with a black exterior). Lot of learning experiences here. This is my first summer with the S4. I have Nappa leather, which I love, but man was it roasting. After I got home, I began looking for a mod to solve this. Obviously it led me to the comfort seats in the A5/ S5/ RS5. I'm in agreement with many who dont like the look of these seats. I'd like to keep mine. Then I stumbled upon this:

https://www.a5oc.com/threads/cooled-...n-texas.27817/

This thread describes what parts are needed and how the system works. I've read several posts that describe the system as less than adequate. If it indeed works as described, could the issue be that the fan is not close enough or powerful enough to draw enough cool air in from the ducts?

Since I am not interested in losing my seats, I began to look at seats and where the perforations are. I came across these:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/264642847597

My thought was that the inserts on these could be reupholstered to the S4 seats. Would someone with Photoshop be willing to overlay them onto the below photo? I'm not sure how aesthetically pleasing it would be. I would also be curious if anyone has modded the foam inside the seat.

Thoughts?Screenshot_20200721-204619_Chrome.jpeg

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[BR11S4]

It would be cheaper to buy a different car


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[QuattroJ]

Most definitely. Three pedals are a dying breed though.

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[2by2handsofblue]

If you look up the higher end audi models, they use a different leather (Valcona) for the cooled seats.

What I hate about audi, their lower model like the s5, s4, they dont offer cooled seats for the S sports seats.

Even the rs5, which can top out at 100k doesnt get cooled seats for the S sport seat. Its 2020 lol.

Makes absolutely no sense.

The 2020 s5 doesnt get the cooled seat in the S sport seat. Not much of a color choice too.

If I'm not mistaken, the Mercedes C class amg offers a cooled seats in their sport seat.



we are the borg! resistance is futile.

[QuattroJ]

I came across the Valcona last night. It seems like Audi keeps options from the lower models in an attempt to get you into the mid or higher level models on your next purchase. I am not ready to give up the 6MT. That leaves me having to retrofit. I dont mind it. This is just something I'm looking into. My main concern is being able to mod the seat foam and with the consensus that the system is lacking.

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[Senseless]

My S4 is black metallic with red Nappa leather. The black exterior color is much more of a problem than the interior. I also have a silver Honda with black leather that's cooler and doesn't retain heat nearly as long. I would buy a non-ventilated seat car in the future as long as it's silver or white.

[Cacevedo]

Have you tinted your windows at all? Ceramic tinting all around helped keep my interior a lot cooler and it is quite cheaper and easier, granted cooling seats are pretty nice.

[K_Estes]

Have you tinted your windows at all? Ceramic tinting all around helped keep my interior a lot cooler and it is quite cheaper and easier, granted cooling seats are pretty nice.

Strong +1 to this. I did it, my car sits outside at the train station all day and I have not had a problem. Did clear ceramic UV protectent on the windsheild and the steering wheel is never hot.

[Dr GP]

Black seats are not hotter than any other color UNLESS they are exposed to the sun. They will absorb more heat from the sun.. If you keep the windows closed and not exposed to the sun, white and black seats will be exact same temp, The solution to your problem would be to have a dark tint on the car and using a sun shield on the windshields if you need to park in the sun. I have had at least 20 cars with black leather interiors. Another secret is to vent the roof and or windows slightly if it is safe to do such or not going to rain. It will allow the heat to vent out the top of your car and reduce interior eat. .Dont allow the interior to become an oven in the first place

[Ashtonts]

I agree with others that this probably isn't a worthwhile mod. Are you planning on gutting the A6 seats and putting the internals into the S4 seats? Or are you trying to swap the skin of the S4 seats onto the A6 seats?

I doubt the A6 seats will fit without some custom rail/bracket if you're swapping skins, and wiring them will be a nightmare either way. Paying a shop to effectively reupholster 2 sets of seats will probably run you a couple $k too. I'd rather get some Sportster CS seats and slap on some ceramic tint with that level of cost and effort lol

[QuattroJ]

@Cacevedos, K_Estes A friend recommended this to me today as well. My car is not tinted at all. Definitely something I need to fix.

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[QuattroJ]

My S4 is black metallic with red Nappa leather. The black exterior color is much more of a problem than the interior. I also have a silver Honda with black leather that's cooler and doesn't retain heat nearly as long. I would buy a non-ventilated seat car in the future as long as it's silver or white.

Agree on the exterior. That has been a learning experience. She looks so good when shes clean. Doesn't last long though.

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[QuattroJ]

I agree with others that this probably isn't a worthwhile mod. Are you planning on gutting the A6 seats and putting the internals into the S4 seats? Or are you trying to swap the skin of the S4 seats onto the A6 seats?

I doubt the A6 seats will fit without some custom rail/bracket if you're swapping skins, and wiring them will be a nightmare either way. Paying a shop to effectively reupholster 2 sets of seats will probably run you a couple $k too. I'd rather get some Sportster CS seats and slap on some ceramic tint with that level of cost and effort lol

If the link I posted above is correct, my thought was that the A6 seats should have the appropriate internals that could be swapped. The inserts would need swapped as well since I do not think that the S seats would look good just being perforated. All of this needs more research though. The foam in the S seats would need modified for the air channels. I dont think they'd fit by themselves either. I dont want to lose my S seats. They are comfortable and supportive. If the tint makes a difference, this probably won't be something I pursue. I'm not sure though. I am interested in retrofits.

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[Senseless]

Agree on the exterior. That has been a learning experience. She looks so good when shes clean. Doesn't last long though.

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I know. Black glows when freshly washed and waxed. On really hot days, I bunch a small towel on the seatback to get some air circulation. Helps a bit.

[coop3422]

As an owner of an A6 with ventilated seats, who's selling it because I just got an S4, what I'll say is that it's a bummer to lose them, but they suck in reality. They aren't cooled, they're ventilated. All they do is blow ambient cabin air through the seat. While better than nothing, I find them meh at best. I certainly wouldn't bother trying to retrofit them into my S4. If they were actually cooled seats, that would be a totally different story.

[QuattroJ]

Thanks for replying. That matches everything I had read about them. The link I posted dealt with the A5/ S5/ RS5, but I'm thinking that the A6 probably uses the same system. I couldn't confirm that though. Could you confirm that there is a fan in the lower seat back that is trying to draw air from the duct beneath the seat? I'm curious if the system is lackluster due to an underpowered fan or the duct just isnt close enough.

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[coop3422]

Thanks for replying. That matches everything I had read about them. The link I posted dealt with the A5/ S5/ RS5, but I'm thinking that the A6 probably uses the same system. I couldn't confirm that though. Could you confirm that there is a fan in the lower seat back that is trying to draw air from the duct beneath the seat? I'm curious if the system is lackluster due to an underpowered fan or the duct just isnt close enough.

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My understanding is there's a fan on the bottom that pushes air up through the seat. It's lackluster because there isn't cold air going through it though, it's just the general cabin air that it's blowing through the seat. So if your car is cold, say in the winter or if you've been driving some time and the AC has chilled your car, it's okay. If the inside of your car is warm though, it's just going to push warm air through the seat. Mercedes, at least the C400 I test drove, is the same idea. There are brands that actually use AC and feed that through the seats. THAT is what I want, but I was pretty let down by the ventilated seats. Sure I'd rather my S4 have them than not, but it's not a big loss. The heated steering wheel is a much bigger loss IMO.

[Senseless]

My Honda has ventilated seats and I have to check to see if they're on or not. But I rented a Chrysler 300 that had air conditioned seats and they were great. Big difference between the 2 systems. I won't get excited about plain ventilated seats.

[coop3422]

My Honda has ventilated seats and I have to check to see if they're on or not. But I rented a Chrysler 300 that had air conditioned seats and they were great. Big difference between the 2 systems. I won't get excited about plain ventilated seats.

Bang on. Massive difference between AC seats and ventilated. One of the very rare things the American OEM's are doing better currently IMO.

[2by2handsofblue]

The question is, this isnt hard thing to implement. Sometimes this crap is done on purpose.
Imo it's better to have ventilation than none.
U can have the ac blasting. On a hot day (over 100f), my body can handle it with the ac on. But if the sun is toward u, my back is still sweaty. One downfall of leather seats. It should be always a options. Well it is, but with audi specifically, they dont have really have any good options. Plain boring seats with ventilated seat

we are the borg! resistance is futile.

[QuattroJ]

My wife's X5 has them. The air is actually cold coming out. Other than initially feeling like I pissed myself, they are amazing.

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[QuattroJ]

Forgive my crude drawing. This is how I am picturing the system working. Working off of ambient air seems like a cheaper implementation than ducting the AC directly into the seat. Ventilated could be viable given that the ambient air under the seat should be cooler than else where. The AC duct being there should provide colder ambient air upon intake. The ducting location could be a problem given that it's also cooling the rear cabin and has to be the proper length to suit that need. The fan may not be strong enough to pull the colder air in from the distance. I also could be wrong about how the system works as well.

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[QuattroJ]

Forgot the drawing. Screenshot_20200723-155655_Samsung%20Notes.jpeg

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[QuattroJ]

As an owner of an A6 with ventilated seats, who's selling it because I just got an S4, what I'll say is that it's a bummer to lose them, but they suck in reality. They aren't cooled, they're ventilated. All they do is blow ambient cabin air through the seat. While better than nothing, I find them meh at best. I certainly wouldn't bother trying to retrofit them into my S4. If they were actually cooled seats, that would be a totally different story.

If you dont mind me asking, what made you go with the S4 over the S6? I've often thought the S6 was sexxxier than the S4 and looked at some, but the 6MT swayed me.

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[coop3422]

If you dont mind me asking, what made you go with the S4 over the S6? I've often thought the S6 was sexxxier than the S4 and looked at some, but the 6MT swayed me.

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6MT. I don't think I'd ever consider an S6, the turbo failures scare the crap out of me, and a stage 2 A6 3.0T would be fast enough for me. The sticking point was if I'm only to have 1 car, it needs to be a stick. The past 6 years I was okay with my winter car being an auto, because I knew come convertible season the manual toy came out. But auto year round made me sad. As a car guy to the core, that's a bad thing lol.

[QuattroJ]

So my theory still rings true. Lol. We are a dying breed. I feel the same way. I drove around my 2008 F150 for a decade with no payments. She still does her job with projects. But at 200Gs, shes not my DD anymore. I can't bring myself to drive a car without three pedals yet. Itll come eventually, by my own doing or a lack of options. 20200723_164045.jpeg

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