My TT is a pain in the butt, literally

[Regoma]

Sorry for the clickbait title, but I need some help

Hi everyone!

Last Saturday I became the happy owner of a 2015 TT 230. Happy until a couple hours of driving because that's when butt pain started. I drove the TT about: 500km (310mi) on Saturday, 350km (217mi) on Sunday, 410km (255mi) on Monday. Pain, pain, pain.

For context, I have had L5S1 microdiscectomy 3 years ago and did relapse so my back is fragile and quite picky when it comes to seats. My office chair is absolutely fine for example. I can sit in it for 8h straight all week and have zero issue. But the TT's seat...my butt be damned, it woke up some serious pain that I still have this evening although I didn't drive it since this Monday.

I have the cloth seats and can adjust: the steering wheel, the seat forward and backward, the backrest angle, the lumbar support, and the seat height. I'm 183 (6 ft) tall. If anyone with a similar health condition as mine has any advice, that would be hugely helpful. So far I've tried with and without lumbar support, seat way down (couldn't see the bonet) and way up (I could scratch my head on the liner), also tried moving the steering wheel a bit closer to me. What I notice is that on my office chair, my weight is mostly on my hamstrings while the TT seat puts just so much weight on the hip...but I can't see how to change the seat cushion angle! I looked below the seat and everything seems immovable (?).

Please spare me the "bUt yOu bOuGhT a SpOrtS cAr whAt dId YoU eXpEcT". It doesn't help and I'm mad at myself enough.



Thanks!

[ourlee]

I see……a Lexus in your future

[Chuckster]

Comfort mode on drive setting.

[mtwallace85]

6’4” here with a L5/S1 and L4/L5 microdiscectomy. I go low with lumbar support and almost all the way back with the steering wheel pulled all the way out and centered vertically. Definitely not the most comfortable car after hours of driving, but not the worst. I made the 30 hour drive from Chicago to Orange County in 3 days and was fairly comfortable the whole way.

[Regoma]

6’4” here with a L5/S1 and L4/L5 microdiscectomy. I go low with lumbar support and almost all the way back with the steering wheel pulled all the way out and centered vertically. Definitely not the most comfortable car after hours of driving, but not the worst. I made the 30 hour drive from Chicago to Orange County in 3 days and was fairly comfortable the whole way.

There's hope! Do you have your butt all the way down where the backrest and seat meet or do you sit a bit more forward and round your lower back?
Also how upright is your backrest relative to the floor?
I've tried low lumbar support today, put a towel (maybe like 3-4 inches circumference) about where my scar is and got no pain. Granted I did stop a lot, like 3 times for 30+ mins over a 150 mi (240km) trip.

Comfort mode on drive setting.

Do you know if it is possible to have the suspension in "Comfort" on the Individual mode? The (very!) light steering of Comfort mode bothers me for whatever reason.

[Chuckster]

Do you know if it is possible to have the suspension in "Comfort" on the Individual mode? The (very!) light steering of Comfort mode bothers me for whatever reason.

Yes. The engine sound, etc. can be set individually with that mode. That’s how I do it. I’m 6-5. i have the same opinion of soft steering as well. Makes me feel less in control.

[.:FrankRizzo:.]

I was having severe back pain all last week and then had an 8 hour drive ahead of me. I actually got out of my car with my back pain cured. I think blasting the heated seats helped. I have the diamond stitched leather seats and I don't know if the seats are different other than the material, but I find these seats to be very comfortable.

[mtwallace85]

There's hope! Do you have your butt all the way down where the backrest and seat meet or do you sit a bit more forward and round your lower back?
Also how upright is your backrest relative to the floor?
I've tried low lumbar support today, put a towel (maybe like 3-4 inches circumference) about where my scar is and got no pain. Granted I did stop a lot, like 3 times for 30+ mins over a 150 mi (240km) trip.



Do you know if it is possible to have the suspension in "Comfort" on the Individual mode? The (very!) light steering of Comfort mode bothers me for whatever reason.

I plant my butt as far back as I can go so the lumbar support is definitely arching my back. I used to sit in chairs with my butt way forward so I could lean while I sit, but that causes all sorts of issues now. I think I fully inflate the lumbar top and bottom and I lean my seat back a little, but just enough to spread the pressure out across my back.

[Regoma]

I plant my butt as far back as I can go so the lumbar support is definitely arching my back. I used to sit in chairs with my butt way forward so I could lean while I sit, but that causes all sorts of issues now. I think I fully inflate the lumbar top and bottom and I lean my seat back a little, but just enough to spread the pressure out across my back.

Noted! I have a 370mi drive tomorrow so it should be a good test. About the lumbar support, there is an upper one? On the round button with 4 depressed dots, the forward and backward one inflate/deflate the lower lumbar support. But the upper and lower dot, I have tried inflating/deflating them over and over again while staring at the seat but I can't figure out what they do (they make noise though). Same on the passenger side so I don't think they're broken (or I'm extremely unlucky) but I can't see what they do. So they're thoracic support?
I looked at the manual but it literally reads "Lumbar support*: Press the appropriate side of the button."

[DT13s6]

The upper and lower buttons on the round toggle are to move the lumbar up and down.

[Regoma]

The upper and lower buttons on the round toggle are to move the lumbar up and down.

Thanks, I had no idea!


I'm reporting after a 580km ride on Tuesday and a 335km ride yesterday, on Wednesday. No pain while driving, no pain after driving. If someone finds this thread in the future, I'll list what worked for me. It might not work for you, but just like the advice Wallace gave me, it might give you a place to start experimenting:

• My knee is barely bent when I'm fully pressing the brake/gas pedal
• With my back against the backrest and my hands resting on the top of the steering wheel, my wrists is what makes contact with the steering wheel
• I drive with my head against the headrest, no exception, no "nerd neck"
• (we drive on the right here) I drive with my forefoot against the foot rest. My heel is touching the carpet. My left knee is straight, not bend left against the door (that hurts after some time)
• My backrest is slightly bent. The headrest is probably offset by 15cm relatively to the base of the backrest

The above is fine tuning but does make a difference. Now for what has the largest impact, aka if I mess up I can feel pain in less than an hour.
I first lower the lumbar as much as possible, then deflate it to about 25% (just count the seconds from 0 to full and do the math). I then roll up a towel that is as wide as the space between the seat's bolstering. The towel is 12cm (4.7in) diameter once rolled up. I didn't measure width as it depends on your seat. When seating, I first push my butt back (not down) into the seat then I lean forward and place the towel at the level of my hip (above the iliac crest) then I rest my back against the seat, without moving my butt. It forces a pretty strong lordose (a bit more than the one I naturally have) and that seems to be the trick.
I'm not using your typical Amazon lumbar support because I already have one and they're squishy af. If I can squish it, my back will mash the support and return to a painful position. The towel is a lot denser and can only be squished so much. If you come across a fat bump on the road, reposition yourself. Also put those suspensions in Comfort.
What about the seat's lumbar support? Well for me it didn't cut it, probably because it's excessively tall and wide.

If you're self conscious: no, no one can see the towel.

So yeah, a pretty weird guide for a car forum but if you have sciatica, you know

[Fifco]

Thanks and hope this will get better and better for you!
What works for me as well, for a long term solution, is change the tire setup for something more comfortable with more 'rubber' to observe the road conditions. If you haven't done that already, get rid of the original 20" and more to 18" / 19" setup. Good Luck!

[Regoma]

Hey Vegas Yellow gang haha

I know you're right, but those 20" look so so sweet