Davew77

I can't stand my OEM seat ventilation system any longer. I'm not going to wait for Lexus to get off of their butts and implement a proper fix for the heat issue. I'm doubting that they will fix it anyway, but if they do it will most likely still have weak airflow.

I would like to know what aftermarket options are available. I don't want comparable options, the OEM ventilation is too weak for my taste even when it doesn't get hot. I want the ventilation to be very strong when on the high setting, not barely noticeable.


Edit: I own a 2015 RC F.

mjeds

there are several aftermarket systems out there.
http://www.championseatheaters.com/content/about.html

I suspect however you won't find them to be any better than OEM, I don't believe the issue is with the fans, but rather with the seat material, nuluxe, pleather, etc are crappy materials when used in conjunction with heat and cooling elements. perforated suede or leather are the best.

Davew77

Any system that I install will have to use the existing power switches. I want it done tastefully and so that I will be the only person to know it was changed.

If I can't get more air.. okay. But I don't want heat when it should be cool.

mjeds

yeah I get that, the heat issue you describe.. I don't have that problem, but in general I feel the fans are useless, while they do 'cool' the seat material they do not cool me.

in my Avalanche I had the GM OEM system and you could feel the air coming through the perforated leather on the seat back and the fans were ultra quiet.

in my Camaro I installed the above system I linked since it didn't have the ventilated seat as an option, and since I had similar perforated leather that the Avalanche had, it worked well and I could feel the air.

in the Lexus I cannot feel the air and the fans are very loud.

The system is essentially 2 - 12 volt computer fans, the kit I pointed to above can be used with the factory switches, you basically swap the connectors they provide with the OEM Lexus connectors on the OEM fans.

lexual_rc

I would talk to Lexus. Also what's your weight? I still feel cold air 8 months later each and every time while using the max cool setting and although it's mainly on the lower seat, I feel it on my back too.

08Lex450h

For those of us who have heated & ventilated seats, is there a way to make them more powerful?

It seems that with all the mods, jumpers, patches, and further customizations this simple fix would have been covered long ago.

Suggestions?

Davew77

I feel the same airflow and it's cool, except for the random times when it gets hot. The seat bottom airflow is okay, but the back is very poor.

I'm 6'1" 179 lbs. I'm not overweight if that's what you were getting at.

lexual_rc

lol! Exactly what I was trying to say although I wasn't trying to be rude...if your heavier it obviously wont work as well. I don't think you can do anything about improving the back of the seat...annoys me too. But I do get what others are saying too. I rented a GMC denali on a business trip I was on last week which was black on black and baking in the sun all day. Within a few minutes the seat felt ice cold with their proprietary system. I wish the lex could do that.

GearHead69

Hey All,

I'm the one that did the video showing the band that gets hot on the seat. Since it has been over 110 here lately I've been using the bi-level AC and have found that the back of the seat is blowing cold.

What you all have to remember is that there are only fans in the seat and it only picks up the surrounding air. If you use bi-level, at the coldest setting and have the fan set to a 3 or 4 you can feel the cold air coming out of the seat.

Give it a try.

lexusrus

I'll give it a try. Thanks.

Also if you get 3M Crystalline (or similar) for all the windows and the front windshield then the inside of the car is not hot at all.

Davew77

All of the other vehicles equipped with ventilated seats that I've ever rode in had better ventilation than my RC F. I wouldn't trade my RC F because of the poor design though. But I will get it working better when I either find more time to mess with it myself or I get an itch to hire someplace locally to do it for me.

I may even consider having the seats re-upholstered if I can find a place that can replicate the design, including the "F" on the headrest portion, to allow more air to pass through. At this point I'm considering a power inverter and an electric leaf blower...

I've been running it in bi-level for about 2 weeks now. I still get the random heat between the shoulder blades (maybe 5% of the time).

However, I do notice a little improvement using bi-level. It improves the temperature of the lower back area (lumbar) if I get in the car during the day and it's not already cooled down inside.

Davew77

I may be getting my seats reupholstered soon. So I'm going to look into materials better suited for ventilation as well as more resilient to wear. The side of my drivers seat has already nearly worn all the way through the material from me getting in and out and rubbing on it... I just noticed it today.

kymbakitty

I've tried the fixes, but no matter what I do, I can't get the hot air from coming from the middle area of the back. So no matter how cool air might come from various areas of the seats, it doesn't stop the hot air so it is pointless, for me anyway.

I would not consider an after market fix for this feature. It is just not that important of a feature to spend any money or time for me. I have lived this long without this feature (heated seats in many cars--first one with cooled seats though)...so it's not like I had something for years and then no longer had it.

Although if Lexus did offer a fix, I would be first in line because I still think it is a pretty nifty feature. But I am not optimistic that this will be coming down the pike any time soon. Mostly because it is not a safety feature.

Davew77

This is why I'm going to get my seats upholstered.



I can live without the ventilated seats. However, it's worth it to me to have them working good. If money was tight it might not be worth it. But if money was that tight I would have considered a different vehicle.

Money is not the issue at the moment, time is. I will likely wait until I am done working here in NC before I do anything about any of my seat issues.

kymbakitty

Wow....your seats did not wear very well at all. Too bad you couldn't switch them out until the other one wore down. My husband got his seat reupholstered in his 98 Mark VIII. I think it was $750. It looks great.

Money has nothing to do with it for me....I just don't care enough about the cooling seat feature. My car note is down to $13k so I am super excited to have this puppy paid off much quicker than originally planned. I HATE CAR PAYMENTS!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Good luck!