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Boxster Driving Position

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Just posted this on Pistonheads but wondered if anyone on here could help......

Just test-drove a lovely Boxster S (986) but i felt a little cramped in the front seat, even after adjusting the seat a few times. Apparently changing to sport seats to standard seats will help a little but I was wondering whether....

1 anyone else 6 foot 1 and above has had similar problems(I'm 6 foot 2) -i'd especially like to hear the views of someone tall who has had the car a while

2 is there anything else that anyone's tried to improve the position? getting the seat lowered would definitely help so is this possible? and maybe the steering wheel could go up further?

Other than that I loved the car and want to buy it so it's quite crucial!

A comment from PH was that the electric seats are significantly higher than the non-electric seats. So is this true? And if so, does anyone know if it's possible to change an electric seat for a non-electric one? And what would it cost?

Cheers for any help.
 
I'm 6'1" and had no issue in my 986 with sports seats - the centre console can bea little intrusive for taller people but this can be removed (there is an official kit which replaces the centre console under the stereo with a carpeted section, but further back towards the bulkhead freeing up knee room.

I used to have the sports seat quite a long way back, and the backrest about 30' from the vertical, but not touching the engine compartment area. I didnt have te seat on its lowest height setting either.

I'm not sure that the std backrest seats offer any more room, but as they don;t have the shoulder bolsters you might be able to get your shoulders a touch further baclk in the seat.
 
I am 6' 2" and have always had sports seats in all the Boxsters ... the seat was lwways fully back .. but comfortable ... The only thing that ever worried me about the 986 was the back of my skull could touch the roll bar .. I often wondered what it would do in a rear end shunt .. the 987 seat is better in that my head is fully cushioned on the seat

HTH
 
I'm 6'2" and fit in a 987 easily, I don't have the seat right back (manual one) and have it pumped up a little (more used to Land Rover driving position[&:]). The alleged extra room of a "7" over a "6" was a good excuse to get the newer model.
DW
 
I'm 6' 1" and did not have any issues with front to back space in my 986, although I did have issues with height (even with the seat lowered to the bottom). I had the electric seats.

If you find you are having issues with front to back space, you should make sure you are not driving with your arms fully extended. Ideally, you should be able to place both wrists on the steering wheel at the 12 o'clock position, for the following reasons:

If you are driving round a tight left-hand bend for example, when driving with arms fully extended, your right hand will be at the 9 o'clock position pulling your right shoulder so far forwards that you are no longer fully contained in your seat and the forces of the bend could move your whole body to the right. Far from ideal.

Another reason for not having fully extended arms, is that you are more likely to have a fully extended left foot when using the clutch. This is incorrect, as you have less leverage when your legs are straight, making it more tiring and giving you less 'feel' of the pedals.
 
Thanks guys. So lowering an electrically adjustable seat sounds like a no-go. But I'm wondering whether it could be replaced by a manually adjustable seat (the dealer in question is putting oin soime standard seats for my anyway).

Anyone know/think that this owuld be possible?

Cheers
 
ORIGINAL: boxster27

ORIGINAL: JCB..

ORIGINAL: Mark Bennett

The pedals are certainly farther away on the 987.
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Farther away from what Mark?
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The ends of his legs maybe...?
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Actually, pretty accurate [:D].......[&o]

One of the design decisions made when the 987 was developed was to help accomodate the "taller" driver. To do this Porsche moved the pedals an inch or so "further away" from the other reference points such as gearstick and steering wheel.

Result is that taller drivers have a little extra room. However the result for ME is that I have to have the seat farther forward, meaning that it is no longer comfortable for me to get the gearstick in to 4th and 6th (my arm also now hits against the side bolster of the seat when going in to 4th and 6th). I'm also too close to the wheel than I'm happy with.

Result is that I'm sticking with the 986 as it fits me better.

Cue lots of short-a** jokes... [&:]
 
The height issue is the reason I couldn't have a Boxster until the 987 model came out. For years I have wanted a Boxster. I'm 6ft 5in and fit nicely into my 987. I couldn't even get into a 986 no matter how hard I tried. It's amazing how much extra space they have created in the 987, try one for size, you'll be amazed. Funnily enough it is the same issue with the 996 911 and 997 911. I tried a 996 the other day and struggled supprisingly, whereas I had stacks of room in a 997 I sat in recently. I've squeezed into all sorts of cars over the years, MGB, MG TC, TD etc and absolutely love the fact that the latest Porsches are tall driver friendly!![:D] It certainly helps the back and neck.
 
I'm sure that I could fit into a 987.

The problem is, I don't think it could fit into my budget!!
 
OK nodz. Well seat mods may be the way to go. The 986 seats appear to have alot more padding than the thinner 987 seats[8|] Perhaps an Upholsterer could do a mod on the seats for you making you seat lower in the car? I've had this done on other cars with success and it will cost you alot less than going for a 987 [;)]
 
There used to be an option for 1" lower seats...
The PET (Parts list) shows option IXSU as being "Lowered Front Seat" so that's probably it.
Silly money though if I recall. But you might want to look at the sticker under the bonnet and see what option numbers are there - if it has IXSU then you are (very) lucky [;)]
 
Where do you get all these tasty bits of knowledge from Mark?[:D] You always seem to pull something out of the hat!! Really enjoyed reading about Yves's 997 engine power upgrade in PP. Do they offer anything like this for the 987 2.7 Boxster? When I first bought the car I thought the power was unbelieveable, now I crave more[8D]
 
ORIGINAL: Rodney Naghar

If you find you are having issues with front to back space, you should make sure you are not driving with your arms fully extended. Ideally, you should be able to place both wrists on the steering wheel at the 12 o'clock position, for the following reasons:

If you are driving round a tight left-hand bend for example, when driving with arms fully extended, your right hand will be at the 9 o'clock position pulling your right shoulder so far forwards that you are no longer fully contained in your seat and the forces of the bend could move your whole body to the right. Far from ideal.

Another reason for not having fully extended arms, is that you are more likely to have a fully extended left foot when using the clutch. This is incorrect, as you have less leverage when your legs are straight, making it more tiring and giving you less 'feel' of the pedals.
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m6.gif


Very good and important advice.

If you look at the itinerary for any of the Porsche Sportfahrschule (driver training) Courses, the first item is always "Selecting Correct Driving Position" - because most people sit too far back for optimum control. The wrists at the top of the s/w is a good test.
 
I have now done about 112,000 miles in two Boxsters ; I am about 6 ft. 2 and regularly commute to Southern Italy, and have on a couple of occasions done 900 miles in a day. The seating position takes some getting right and ideally I would like a little more space in my 986 "S" but overall I find it OK and no worse than our A6 Quattro estate which we sometimes use on the same trips (wife doesnt like the Porsche so might have to change(the wife that is!!) Have managed to build in Tom tom sat nav in to the dash which works very well and is less obvious for getting nicked in Naples!! John.
 
ORIGINAL: plimmer

I Have managed to build in Tom tom sat nav in to the dash which works very well and is less obvious for getting nicked in Naples!! John.
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Sorry to briefly hijack the post, but do you have any pictures of houw you have 'built' the Tom Tom in?
 
Thanks for all the advice guys. I've decided against a 986 and will save up for a 987. In the meantime, a high mileage 993 cab might be worth a look....
 
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