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      11-25-2019, 02:41 PM   #1
JasonP22
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Back pain with SE driver's seat

Hi all, sorry my first post is a question but i'd really love your advice.

I have a 2018 5 Series Touring (520d SE) and i’m getting a lot of back pain around my lower lumbar spine and sacrum during and after driving in it. I feel i’ve tried every seat position possible and read loads of articles to get the best seating position, but i’m not able to alleviate the back pain when in this car.

The only thing that helps stop the back pain is a seat wedge, but this is far from ideal and gives further issues as I lose sport of my distal thighs and slide across the seat more. My seat does not come with an adjustable lumbar support.

A few things to note,

1) I’m 34 and I have never suffered with back pain before getting this car
2) If I stop driving it for a few days the pain stops, and the longer I drive it in one sitting the worse it gets.
3) I have driven a lot of cars for 200k+ miles and never had back pain problems with them including 2006 BMW 3 Series, VWs, Fords, Mazdas, Volvos, you name it.


Has anyone else had back pains due to the 5 Series’ driver seat? And if so how did you fix it.

I really love this car, but if I can’t find a solution the driver's seat I feel i'm going to have to sell it (which I really don't want to do).

Any advice/help would be greatly appreciated.
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      11-25-2019, 03:01 PM   #2
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Quote:
Originally Posted by JasonP22 View Post
Hi all, sorry my first post is a question but i'd really love your advice.

I have a 2018 5 Series Touring (520d SE) and i’m getting a lot of back pain around my lower lumbar spine and sacrum during and after driving in it. I feel i’ve tried every seat position possible and read loads of articles to get the best seating position, but i’m not able to alleviate the back pain when in this car.

Any advice/help would be greatly appreciated.
The angle of the cushion can certainly effect the back - I am sure you have, but have you tried lowering the cushion so your legs are flat to the peddles with the back support then brought forward.

As I have a long term back / pelvis problem I have found that changing the angle of the cushion really help.
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      11-25-2019, 03:07 PM   #3
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BMW makes a bunch of different seats for the 5 series. Which seats do you have?
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      11-26-2019, 08:36 AM   #4
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You may or may not have tried this, but...sounds silly...do you keep your wallet in your back pocket of your pants? I get back pain when I do this, and I do it regularly out of habit. When I think to take it out, back pain subsides. Google this and you'll see it is a common issue with back problems. I have the quilted seats with massage and the leg extension thing - seats are very comfy for me.
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      11-26-2019, 10:42 AM   #5
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You might have to retrofit lumbar support. Check this website: https://www.motormods.co.uk/lumbar_support_cars.html

G30 seats without adjustable lumbar support are particularly back pain inducing as I have found out like you compared to even MSport seat in m240i

Other options I use is to get back supporting belts from amazon when going on journeys or simply use a narrow cushion.
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      11-26-2019, 12:55 PM   #6
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Unfortunately we don't get the 5 series touring over here in the colonies. I suspect that your sport seats are not the same as ours in the states. The first thing my wife said when she sat in the G30 for the first time was "these seats are great!" And they are.

Not cheap, not easy to do, but I presume that you could maybe source a USA sport seat from a dismantler (I think you guys call them breakers?) over here and have it shipped. Hopefully that would be a plug-and-play solution, albeit expensive.

I'd certainly try that retrofit lumbar thing first.

Best of luck.
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      11-26-2019, 12:58 PM   #7
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I'm curious too if the OP ever had a chance to test drive the car before buying it.

I had the same issue with the VW GTI when I test drove it, I thought it was great, and I was in the office buying the car when I started getting back spasms and begged-off and went back later, drove it again and still had some back pain. Something about those seats, I just couldn't get adjusted to fit me. It was a shame, because I really liked that car.

I test drove the newer generation and didn't have the issue, so maybe they changed something, or my back has just gotten better since. I didn't buy that car because the wife hated it. So I spent twice as much on the BMW. LOL
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      11-27-2019, 06:41 AM   #8
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I had similar issues on my previous F10 with sport seats and no lumbar support.
Issue didn't come up in test drives.

So first few weeks of ownership were was a case of getting the seat where I wanted it. Luckily I had fully electric with memory so once I had found the ideal spot, I could put it in memory.
I found relaxing my back seemed to help and tipping the front of the seat down seemed to be the trick.
Tempting to put the front of the seat up higher but that seemed to make thing worse.

once settled in, I was fine after that.

Current comfort seats in my 540 were pretty much ok from day 1 but again it does take a few weeks to find what is the best position for you.
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      11-27-2019, 01:51 PM   #9
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Thanks for all your replies.

Yeah, I took it for a test drive and didn't get any back problems. Even after 1hr driving it home from the dealer my back was okay. But after driving it a little longer my lower back on my sacrum started to really ache more and more as if it was putting more and more strain on my back. The best way I can describe it is that the seat is not supporting my pelvis/lower back properly which is putting excess tension and strain on my muscles and tendons - this is especially noticeable when I get out the car and stand up.

No, I don’t sit with my wallet in my back pocket, but thanks for the suggestion.

I have the following seats.

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      11-27-2019, 02:16 PM   #10
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Quote:
Originally Posted by JasonP22 View Post
Thanks for all your replies.

Yeah, I took it for a test drive and didn't get any back problems. Even after 1hr driving it home from the dealer my back was okay. But after driving it a little longer my lower back on my sacrum started to really ache more and more as if it was putting more and more strain on my back. The best way I can describe it is that the seat is not supporting my pelvis/lower back properly which is putting excess tension and strain on my muscles and tendons - this is especially noticeable when I get out the car and stand up.

No, I don’t sit with my wallet in my back pocket, but thanks for the suggestion.

I have the following seats.

I can't tell from the picture. If you use one of the VIN identifier programs you can see which seats you have. I have the luxury seating package, e.g., and I can get very comfortable with the 20+ adjustments that are possible with them.
https://www.bmwvin.com/
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      11-27-2019, 03:48 PM   #11
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It may sound counter intuitive but my lumbar support was too far forward and was causing me lower back pain. I relaxed the support pretty much all the way back and the lower back pain went away and has not returned since.
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      11-27-2019, 03:57 PM   #12
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That is why it is an adjustable Lumbar support. Some would need and some would not. To my regret, I didn't opt for it but need it now
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      11-27-2019, 04:42 PM   #13
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Quote:
Originally Posted by SteveinArizona View Post
I can't tell from the picture. If you use one of the VIN identifier programs you can see which seats you have. I have the luxury seating package, e.g., and I can get very comfortable with the 20+ adjustments that are possible with them.
https://www.bmwvin.com/
In UK there are 3 seats to choose from:

1. Standard Seats (standard with SE (non M-Sport))
2. Sport Seats (standard on M-Sport)
3. Comfort Seats (20 way adjustment)

The OP has option 1.
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      11-27-2019, 06:43 PM   #14
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Looks like OP's seats don't have electric lumbar support (no button on the side)? In the US Sport seats (base version) all come with lumbar support. It's a must for me personally, as well as good bolstering for upper back, to support the driver in the seat during aggressive cornering. Seat comfort is very subjective.
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      12-27-2019, 12:09 PM   #15
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Quote:
Originally Posted by kitster View Post
In UK there are 3 seats to choose from:

1. Standard Seats (standard with SE (non M-Sport))
2. Sport Seats (standard on M-Sport)
3. Comfort Seats (20 way adjustment)

The OP has option 1.
there's also the factory optional lumbar support for 1 and 2
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      12-27-2019, 12:32 PM   #16
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Originally Posted by genesmasher View Post
Looks like OP's seats don't have electric lumbar support (no button on the side)? In the US Sport seats (base version) all come with lumbar support. It's a must for me personally, as well as good bolstering for upper back, to support the driver in the seat during aggressive cornering. Seat comfort is very subjective.
I agree. I can also tell from the picture that the OP doesn't have multicontour seats (which are 20 or 22 way adjustable...I forget which)

Given the realtively basic seats, without a lumbar adjustment, I am not confident that there is a fix for the OP other than switching out the driver seat or switching cars.

As to switching seats, I don't know whether anything other than the seat needs to be replaced/updated.
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      12-28-2019, 05:07 AM   #17
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He can retrofit adjustable lumbar support with the link above or the other options I mentioned above.
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      12-28-2019, 01:47 PM   #18
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Quote:
Originally Posted by SteveinArizona View Post
Quote:
Originally Posted by JasonP22 View Post
Thanks for all your replies.

Yeah, I took it for a test drive and didn't get any back problems. Even after 1hr driving it home from the dealer my back was okay. But after driving it a little longer my lower back on my sacrum started to really ache more and more as if it was putting more and more strain on my back. The best way I can describe it is that the seat is not supporting my pelvis/lower back properly which is putting excess tension and strain on my muscles and tendons - this is especially noticeable when I get out the car and stand up.

No, I don’t sit with my wallet in my back pocket, but thanks for the suggestion.

I have the following seats.

I can't tell from the picture. If you use one of the VIN identifier programs you can see which seats you have. I have the luxury seating package, e.g., and I can get very comfortable with the 20+ adjustments that are possible with them.
https://www.bmwvin.com/
They look like the 16 way sports seats to me.
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      12-28-2019, 07:30 PM   #19
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Quote:
Originally Posted by kitster View Post
Quote:
Originally Posted by SteveinArizona View Post
I can't tell from the picture. If you use one of the VIN identifier programs you can see which seats you have. I have the luxury seating package, e.g., and I can get very comfortable with the 20+ adjustments that are possible with them.
https://www.bmwvin.com/
In UK there are 3 seats to choose from:

1. Standard Seats (standard with SE (non M-Sport))
2. Sport Seats (standard on M-Sport)
3. Comfort Seats (20 way adjustment)

The OP has option 1.
Makes sense. Here in the US we don't get option 1. Option 2 sport seats 16 way with power lumbar and side bolsters are standard across the range.
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      12-29-2019, 01:49 AM   #20
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Hehe in uk, I have always bought SE models but then upgraded to sport seats. They are much more comfortable wish a wider range of adjustments. This doesn't help op, . I'm afraid. Seat swaps are day expensive unless you can find a good breakers and they don't see you coming
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      01-01-2020, 04:57 PM   #21
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Played golf with a guy this week who talked of severe back pain for he and his wife after driving his wife's 530 to Houston and back. I was surprized, because my seats are wonderfully comfortable on long trips. I have the 20 way adjustable ones in my M550. I did have some problem with the seats in my M4, but was able to adjust them to relieve it. Guess seat option is something I'll pay closer attention to in the future. I don't think changing seats would be a big deal, albeit possibly expensive.
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      01-01-2020, 05:30 PM   #22
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I finally got to test drive my next car (540) a few days ago, and compare various seat options that they are equipped with in the US. I could find a pretty comfortable position in both Sport and Comfort seats, with Comfort being marginally better. The only thing I didn't like in Sport seats were bottom cushion bolsters, which pinched me in a bit more than I like. Comfort seat bottom is a bit wider and bolsters lower. The back cushion of the Sport seats is very nicely bolstered and comfortable, but in the US these seats come with a 4-way electric lumbar support. I also liked the laterally-adjustable headrest in the Sport seats - genius feature! Headrest in Comfort seats is electric and only moves up/down, not forward/backward; which is compensated to an extent by the articulating upper back cushion. I still would have preferred the same headrest as with the Sport seats, but other than that I found really no faults with the Comfort seats. They still have good adjustable bolsters in the back cushion, which provide excellent lateral support for aggressive cornering (at least for my body type - 5'9", 185lb, average build). Finally, even though I'd be perfectly fine with either, my wife really appreciated Nappa leather and disliked Dakota, which made my choice simple - Nappa is only available with Comfort seats.
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