Caddy, from what I've been able to tell from the available service bulletins only the 2009 Enclave has the problem, and there was a fix via a program change to the ECM (or something like that). I don't think the 2012's would have such problems. Anyway, I usually make it a point not to try to push someone towards something that they already have established concerns over, so will leave it there. I just found the Enclave, and to a lesser extent, the Flex and pretty nice vehicles.

I agree with others... hoping you can get your back in order and remain an LS430 owner. Maybe Recarco has a replacement for the 430 front seats.

 

Ahem....I happen to be quite fond of aforementioned generation....

 

After some more thought, IF I decide to make a change, I think I'd kick myself if I didn't buy a pickup of some sort. A new F-150 King Ranch would be awesome, but a Ridgeline, Tacoma, or Frontier(?) would be more practical for my needs and garage space.

 

(chant) King Ranch , King Ranch, King Ranch.......!!!

 

Pickups have never been my thing, but the current F-150 looks sick! I personally would go for the SVT Raptor trim.......

 

I took a couple of test drives today and was generally disappointed.

Ridgeline RTS: Liked the size, dual-action tailgate, and trunk. Suspension and handling were good on rough pavement. Power was sufficient, but not great. The truck felt well put-together. However, the driving position was tight and awkward. The steering column adjusts up/down but does not telescope. The driver's legroom is minimal - even with the seat fully back and up. It's like "Is that all there is?" I don't know if I can live with that. Seat cushion length seemed short. (Of course, my legs were bent up due to lack of legroom.) Dealer will sell it for $2K off MSRP for 2012, $2.5K off for 2011.

F150 Lariat Supercrew ecoboost: Liked the interior room and driving position. Steering column has up/down adjust and wide range of telescope. Rear seat legroom / storage was ridiculously large. Could feel the seat cooling within a few seconds. (ahem, LS430) Suspension and handling were OK on rough roads, though not as planted as the Ridgeline. Powertrain seemed to hunt for the right gear and had lash. Radio, nav, and steering wheel were awash with small buttons. Lots of (maybe distracting) info on the driver display. Center stack had the ugliest wood trim I've ever seen. It looked like a cheap aftermarket kit. Huge center console, but very little storage space in it. Power fold on right mirror did not work. Mirror adjustments didn't work well, either. (Taking lessons from LS430). Inside lower door edges had uneven bends / welds / and appeared rough (like rusted) under paint. It would only seem to make sense to lease this truck for the duration of the warranty period. Thankfully, a Z-Plan lease (BIL is a Ford retiree) with $0 down, 36 months, and 10.5K miles per year is only a bit over $400 per month for this $50K truck. As much as I wanted to like the truck, it just felt too big and tall for my needs and had lots of wasted space. Also, as comfortable as the truck was while driving it, I could feel my back afterwards. Carguy, they had a 6.2L Raptor there, but I didn't take it out.

My first choice remains my LS430.

 

i say Volvos..hehe biased

 

I know that this is not quite what you're looking for, but I would suggest the Mercedes S550. Easily the most comfortable car I've ever sat in (at this yr's auto show), and I make an effort to sit in as many cars as possible. Those seats just form so perfectly to your body and they have tons of adjustments. Definitely more comfy/supportive than the 430 seats.

 

have you thought of reupholstering your seats so you can add more lumbar support.

 

caddy owner don't give up on your back, here are a couple of important things for you to remember, you prob already know. Make sure your doctor is a board certified md. Don't waist your time with a DO. If you don't get satisfaction from a sports med doc, you need to find a specialist that is a board certified MD. Prob a back surgeon or othopeed. Lots of people give up after seeing a family doctor and not having much luck, but they don't realize that family docs know very little about these issues, they are used to treating the sniffles and physicals, they don't deal with backs everyday, and this is why you want to have a specialist. Take care, and don't mess around with your back. Your a good guy! You don't need back problems

 

Update:

- NOT selling LS430 or Prius. Been having positive results with additional LS seat adjustments and removing all lumbar support (thanks cliffc).

- Considering ADDING a used utility vehicle such as a pickup or SUV. Currently thinking 00-04 LX/LC, 06-08 Ridgeline, or 02-04 Sierra Denali like I used to have.

 

YEEHAW! Now you're talkin'.

 

Glad to hear you're sticking around for a little longer! Never been a huge SUV guy but always liked the LX470 a lot, something about it's simplicity (same reason why I like the pre-facelifted Range Rover). Here's a 470 at my local dealer, mileage is kinda high but these things should go on for a while. I'll keep an eye out for it when I go in for my service Thurs.

http://www.lexusofannarbor.com/Vehic...-MI/1472825693

 

caddyowner, good to see that you finally found a comfortable setting of the lumbar supports.
In your case: out of the way, as I understand.

The main reason for buying the LS430 for me has been the seats. I am normal built and not tall and was used to the comfort of my Renault Safrane. Since that car was over 18 years old, I started looking for a replacement and was appalled by the lack of seating comfort in virtually all cars, including the newer Renault and Citroen types. I tried the Renault Vel Satis, which was the successor of the Safrane and their top model, but, although a reasonable comfortable and good road-holding car, it has some quirks I could not step over. Also in the reliability department there is room for improvement....
Looking further I also tried an LS430 and this was the only car with (for me) acceptable seats. And I tried several dozen.
More specifically, the dual lumbar support made all the difference for my bad back.
After a lot of adjusting I found a position with good support.
The car does not appear to be as comfortable as the Renault, but on (relatively) longer hauls, my back responds better.
For me the side support could have been better. The seats are just loo large for my posture.
But, again, one of the probably few that makes driving possible for me.
I would have preferred a non-leather version, but since the leather is of top quality, I can live with that.

It is different for everyone, I guess.

Jac

 

Seats are one of the toughest things to engineer in a modern passenger car. The designers have to design based on multiple mutually conflicting requirements that each force a compromise... safety, weight, cost, size, adjust ability - all over a huge potential range of driver sizes, heights, and weights. Its no wonder the typical seat really fits no one correctly. It would be much better if we could change out seats at the dealer by size of owner/driver but that will never happen.

I used to own a 1999 RL which I dearly loved in every way except for the seats - they were hard as a rock new and just never got any better, they were 10 way adjustable...unfortunately all of ways more uncomfortable then the than the one before.