Moving Seats and Access to Back

[neilmanc]

Hi All

This is probably a really lame question so apologies as I am still getting used to my new 500 !!

For the first time today I had someone in the back of my 500 (my mum and Gran unfortuantely en route to a family funeral). No matter what I tried I couldn't get the passenger side seat to go back to the original position !!

I think I did what it says in the manual - pull the handle on the side, push the seat forward, then afterwards push the seat back (I had to hold the seat base rather than the backrest) and the pull the handle and push the seatback back. However this put the seat to the fully extended position rather than at the position on the runners which had been set at before I tipped it forward (if that makes sense)

The driver's side one seems to go back to the position it was in before you tip it forward but I can't figure out how the passenger one works !!

Cheers for any ideas

Neil


Xavi = 500 1.4 Sport / Punk Grey / Black leather / 16" 5 spoke "O" alloys / red brakes / side rubbing strip with 500 logo

[Scrogg]

You're not doing anything wrong Neil, that's how the car is designed.

Until very recently, only the drivers seat in RHD models had the memory function. It is available now, but only as a factory option.

That's what happens when you buy a car designed to be LHD I'm afraid

[Paul]

I do think that's crazy, that's GOT to be a "must have" option. I assume it's a cost option? How many pennies?

[bexx]

I know what you mean it has to be reset each time. I find that quite annoying but as I dont have many passengers its not too bad. Although I did pick my fella up from a works do the other week. I had 3 men in my car all 6 feet tall. Trying to explain and get them to manage to click the seat right back before you can move it forwards was very painful.lol! Well probs was for the poor guy in the back getting knee capped. As they were all drunk they were going to leave it sliding about but I sorted it in the end. I agree though it could be better designed to avoid such hassle. x

[lfc958]

I was advised by the dealer to move the seat as follows:-

1) Tilt seat back fully forward.
2) Then push whole seat forward.
3) Keeping seat back pushed forward, push base back .( with seat back still forward )
4) only now do I put seat back upright.

I was told that if you dont do it this way it will not remember its seat base location.

So far so good.

[neilmanc]

Originally Posted by Scrogg

You're not doing anything wrong Neil, that's how the car is designed.

Until very recently, only the drivers seat in RHD models had the memory function. It is available now, but only as a factory option.

That's what happens when you buy a car designed to be LHD I'm afraid

Thanks for that Scrogg Glad I wasn't doing something wrong this time

Agree with others - this is the wrong way round totally as it sort of forces you to let people in and out the (UK) offside rather than nearside which is clearly not as safe. Thankfully it's not something that I think is going to be problematic as I don't have kids so prob won't have anyone in the back much. Any way we can feed this back to product development so we can have both sides with "memory" as standard rather than having to pay for something you need ?

Yes - once you live with the car for a bit you can see there are a few things that haven't translated from LHD to RHD very well - the driver seat height adjustment being far too close to the handbrake for one (I assume on the "native" design the seat height adjuster is on the outside of the driver's seat (i.e next to the door) and they have simply swapped the seats over (if not then it's just bad ergonomics !!)

Other than that am still loving it (unless McDonald's have copyrighted that phrase lol)

[neilmanc]

Originally Posted by lfc958

I was advised by the dealer to move the seat as follows:-

1) Tilt seat back fully forward.
2) Then push whole seat forward.
3) Keeping seat back pushed forward, push base back .( with seat back still forward )
4) only now do I put seat back upright.

I was told that if you dont do it this way it will not remember its seat base location.

So far so good.

That is the way I was doing it - but it only remembers the position where you started from on the driver's side and on the passenger's side it defaults back to the maximum extension (i.e. the seat goes as far back on the runners as it can) rather than back to where it started (unless you order the option which Scrogg mentioned in an earlier thread). That's OK if u can park back to fron with the OS next to the kerb rather than the NS but it isn't good practice.

As bexx says this is mad cos obviously the only time you are tipping the seat is to let someone in the back, so to have the seat go fully back when someone is in there is mad - even if it went back to the fully forward position so that people in the back had the max legroom to start with and then slide it back rather than cramping them in once they are in then sliding forward would be better.

BMW have the same cock-up with the mini clubman which only has one rear passenger door which is on the "wrong" side for the UK - that is it located on our OS rather than NS so the only way you can get in and out of a UK Mini Clubman is to step in or out of the flow of traffic !! I guess that is one of the downsides of being seen as a minority market compared to the rest of Europe (even more so that Mini used to be a UK brand)

PS (to Scrogg) - is the passenger side memory only a factory fit option or can it be retro-fitted by dealers ? ? ?

Cheers evereyone for a grand forum

N

[Missus_LDP]

Re the Mini Clubman - Mini salespeople even refer to this as the "Suicide Door"

Not the smartest move by BMW to leave this as is for the RHD market, wonder how long it will be for the first lawsuit as a result of a parent having to let their children get out directly into traffic only for them to be mown down.....

[Scrogg]

Originally Posted by neilmanc

PS (to Scrogg) - is the passenger side memory only a factory fit option or can it be retro-fitted by dealers ? ? ?

Factory only as it involves changing the runners and the seat mechanism

[bexx]

When I was at the garage I spoke to them about this. I felt like a right wally, my seat was alreay in the extended position hence why it kept going back that far and knee capping everyone. As I hadnt sat in that seat I didnt realise someone had put it right back. They put the seat further forward on the runner and it did remember its position and when tipping the seat forward the chair stayed where it was if I remember rightly. Then you simply put the seat back upright. I have yet to try it again but will have a play when I get my car back. I never ordered anything exrta to do with the seat position when I ordered my car.

PS. I am blonde!lol!