High seating position, very short foot well - can it be fixed with different seats?

[Anmocito]

Hello everyone!

I have recently purchased an Audi A3 8v for my wife, and the plan was for me to use it as a daily driver as well.
Both of us are very tall, she is about 6'0 ( 182cm ) tall, and I am 6'6 ( 198cm ) tall.

Previously our daily driver was a VW Golf MK6, and the seating position was just fine. Nobody could sit behind me if I was driving, but it was great for our daily needs.
With the Audi A3, we both immediately noticed the seating position is quite high, but it was not a deal-breaker. However after driving it for a couple of weeks, it started bugging me a lot

We have the seats from this picture:



My question is, can this be fixed with any other OEM seats? Every centimeter counts.. ( that's what she said )

[MikTip]

Here in the USA we don't have cloth seat. Only Leather in the A3/S3.

I have found my friends A3 has more seat room...the A3 seats go back farther and sit lower than my S3 seats!

I highly doubt any OE seat will give you more than you already have....

Even in my A4...my drivers seat was all the way back and down.

I am 6ft tall. 6.6 feet in the car....not good.

[Anmocito]

Ah, not what I wanted to hear.. Might have to throw it in for a Golf MK7 if I can't get used to it after some time.

That would be heartbreaking, we both fell in love with the A3, but my legs are killing me when driving it in city traffic for more than an hour.
Highway driving is fine when my right leg is mostly on the gas pedal, but when I'm mostly on the brake it's no bueno.

[MikTip]

Ah, not what I wanted to hear.. Might have to throw it in for a Golf MK7 if I can't get used to it after some time.

That would be heartbreaking, we both fell in love with the A3, but my legs are killing me when driving it in city traffic for more than an hour.
Highway driving is fine when my right leg is mostly on the gas pedal, but when I'm mostly on the brake it's no bueno.

Sorry to hear...

Maybe an aftermarket seat? Recaro? Or a shop in your area could fabricate or modify the seat brackets to give you more room?

Good luck!

[Anmocito]

Yeah, perhaps extending the seat railing would be a solution. The height I can live with, but I would definitely need the seat a couple centimeters further back.

Sent an enquiry to a local shop. I also need the middle arm rest installed, hopefully they can do both at once for a decent price. We'll see.

[sciroccokid]

Has anyone successfully lowered their seating position in this car with aftermarket seats or some other modification?

[b1aZe]

Has anyone successfully lowered their seating position in this car with aftermarket seats or some other modification?

My Recaro Sportster CS seats lowered my RS3 seating by at least a half inch. Doesn’t sound like a lot but it’s noticeable. And the RS3 seats are manual every thing so they went lower than power seats anyways.

[MikTip]

My Recaro Sportster CS seats lowered my RS3 seating by at least a half inch. Doesn’t sound like a lot but it’s noticeable. And the RS3 seats are manual every thing so they went lower than power seats anyways.

The original poster is 6ft-6...

[MikTip]

I am 6ft tall. The seat in my S3 is all the way back and all the way down. Physically...the drivers seat can only go back 3" more inches and it will hit the rear seat. Unless you remove the lower rear seat cushion and you could get about 4". A 6 foot 6 inch person would need approx. 6"....

[Spinnetti]

A3 has a really high seating position and low headroom.. Pretty much have to put something like Recaro buckets on manual mounts to get that kind of headroom. When i get in it after not driving if for a while, it feels like it sits up like a truck.

[R1ce]

I went with aftermarket seats and the Planted seat brackets which lowered the seat height at least an inch. I'm not that tall but made a huge difference for me and can wear a helmet in the car with no issues now. Some drawbacks to aftermarket seats and a bit more work on installation but worth it for me.

[Anmocito]

I am 6ft tall. The seat in my S3 is all the way back and all the way down. Physically...the drivers seat can only go back 3" more inches and it will hit the rear seat. Unless you remove the lower rear seat cushion and you could get about 4". A 6 foot 6 inch person would need approx. 6"....

I wouldn't really need that much, I bet an inch or two would really make the ride more comfortable. I got used to the seat height, but having those few extra inches further back to just stretch my knees a tiny bit would be helpful.

I still haven't found a solution, but did get used to it a little bit. The shop I contacted said they don't do this modification. I don't drive it that much anyways, so it's no rush. But if I eventually do figure something out, I will update this topic.

[sciroccokid]

Even 1" drop would help. Also, increasing the pitch of the seat bottom (measured from front of seat to rear of seat) would help a lot as well.

S3 steering wheel doesn't telescope out very far, so if you move the seat back further it may be awkward reaching the wheel.