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Tall driver, mod the seat?


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Good morning all,

 

I'm really tall. I have an office job and I also commute one hour each way. Lots of sitting. The Subaru is just too small for me, after about 20 minutes the car starts to bother my knees (airplane legs feeling). Have a tendency to put my foot alongside the brake pedal which can interfere with braking. Not to mention, I'm grouchy AF after the drives. I'm to the point I need a different vehicle or to deal with this.

 

I tore the covers off of the seat brackets and have some ideas as to how to modify them to get more space. I'd like to go down in the back somewhere around 2 inches, and backwards at least 2-4". A used power/heated seat from a wrecked car is $100 all day long just in case something goes bad. Has anyone done anything like this yet?

 

Are there any airbags in these seats?

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If you're asking for your 1999 Legacy (per your profile), you should probably post this question in the 3rd Gen forum.

"If you don't know where you're going, any road will take you there." ~ The Cheshire Cat (Alice in Wonderland)

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Are there any airbags in these seats?

There are two airbags in each front seat: one under the thigh support, and one in the seat back. The seat covers have labeled tags near each of these airbags.

"If you don't know where you're going, any road will take you there." ~ The Cheshire Cat (Alice in Wonderland)

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So far, the way I'd like to mod the seat might require welding to the tracks as I cannot seem to find hardware that will clear. I'm sure even unplugged, welding around an airbag isn't a good idea.
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No it doesn't have the sunroof. Bought it at a Dodge dealership, was originally looking for an AWD Charger without a sunroof, did not fit in one WITH a sunroof. The Legacy won out over the Charger.

 

Right now, the issue is I'm too close to the pedals/foot pad to the left. It causes pain in my left knee unless I can stretch my leg out nearly straight, which can be done but my foot is next to/under the brake pedal. Also, Id like to be lower in the windshield, but not needed. Would be nice.

 

My truck doesn't allow for my leg to be all that straight, but the pain is much less or zero driving that. Could also be the weird pressure points in the legacy seats. My girlfriend is 5'5" and has the seat almost all the way forward and up.

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tilt the seat cushin down slightly and move the seat back accordingly

 

The seat is all the way down, all the way back.

 

Sounds like thigh support.

Some people on other car forums have placed washers under the front bolts of the seat in order to raise the front slightly.

There are also seat covers with thigh support.

 

Interesting you say that. Coupled with the airbags in the seat, my gf complains quite a bit about numbness in her legs when riding in the car. Those airbags could be playing havoc with pressure points in the legs, hers and mine.

 

I'll look into that, thanks.

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The seat is all the way down, all the way back.

 

Interesting you say that. Coupled with the airbags in the seat, my gf complains quite a bit about numbness in her legs when riding in the car. Those airbags could be playing havoc with pressure points in the legs, hers and mine.

 

I'll look into that, thanks.

 

The car should not be driven tilted all the way back on a regular basis. It's bad for your back and likely has your head in a position that will give you a whiplash if you're involved in an accident.

 

Extend My Seat offers extensions that will enable your seat to slide back more. I'm not sure if this is a safe option.

 

Link: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10658875

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Good morning all,

 

I'm really tall. I have an office job and I also commute one hour each way. Lots of sitting. The Subaru is just too small for me, after about 20 minutes the car starts to bother my knees (airplane legs feeling). Have a tendency to put my foot alongside the brake pedal which can interfere with braking. Not to mention, I'm grouchy AF after the drives. I'm to the point I need a different vehicle or to deal with this.

 

I tore the covers off of the seat brackets and have some ideas as to how to modify them to get more space. I'd like to go down in the back somewhere around 2 inches, and backwards at least 2-4". A used power/heated seat from a wrecked car is $100 all day long just in case something goes bad. Has anyone done anything like this yet?

 

Are there any airbags in these seats?

 

 

I assume that you have long legs and that's the issue. I'm the other way around - short legs and long back (4" longer back than average), and for me the Outback I have give me sufficient headroom.

 

 

The seats do have airbags so if you plan to work on the mounts then you have to be careful.

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I assume that you have long legs and that's the issue. I'm the other way around - short legs and long back (4" longer back than average), and for me the Outback I have give me sufficient headroom.

 

 

The seats do have airbags so if you plan to work on the mounts then you have to be careful.

 

ehsnils is correct. Unless your pants have a 34in or greater inseam (leg length), then a seat extender probably won't help you.

 

To comment on the headroom, the outback has 1/2 an inch more headroom, both with and without a sunroof.

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jMeg, the seat isn't reclined much if at all. Head room is okay. would still be nice to get in the middle of the windshield with my face to increase my field of vision, seat lower in the back.

 

Its all the way down, all the way back, and the front of the seat is all the way up. Even with the front of the seat up, I have no thigh support at all, so a seat extender with thigh support would also need to come several inches UP to the bottom of my legs. Essentially if my legs are straight out, (such as when I tuck my foot under the brake pedal) I engage the thigh support on the seat.

 

With my truck, the pedals are down, and the seat is higher. Its a bit more cramped and my legs are closer to 90 degrees but the pain is much less, hypothetically, because my thigh is engaged with the seat.

 

Essentially I need to figure out how to safely weld/cut on the seat without setting off the airbags. Or sell the car.

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I agree, Subaru has great head room,the issue I have with the headroom is the smallest part of the problem, honestly.

 

While modifying the seat to go back, it would be nice to also go down. Going down in the rear would help thigh angle/support anyway. Might solve all of the issues, actually. there is PLENTY of meat on the rear brackets to cut/drop. the front is where you need to get creative, extending the factory brackets to meet with the adjuster rail if moved back.

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