Premature Driver Seat Wear?

[Jayhawk5G]

I have a 2013 SR5 with clothe seats, and no running boards. I try very hard to step into the vehicle and lift myself up and on top of the driver seat but my leg still rubs on the side of the seat bottom. I have noticed that this section is starting to wear very fast in comparison to the rest of the seat.

Now I'm sure running boards would help, but I'm not sure if I want to buy them due to cost and I really like look of the SR5 without running boards. It's not a huge problem now, but I just hit 4k miles today and the seat is showing enough wear that I'm sure towards the end of the bumper to bumper warranty it's going to annoy me.

What are the chances that I can get the seat cover replaced under warranty? I feel like I was sold the vehicle in it's current state, and I shouldn't have to make changes to keep the seat bottom from wearing... It's strange because my wife had a 1997 Camry when I met her, and thos seats were both comfortable and tough as nails very thick seat cover material and strong stiches...

 

[thebwlife]

Same with me, I'm waiting to get wet-okie seat covers. At the current pace it won't be long.

 

[PGRunner]

I have 20k on mine and don't notice the wear on the seats. I have running boards but never use them to step in and I'm only 5'9". I just step in and rub the side of the seat all the time. Can you post a pic?

 

[simonj]

this may sound a little sarcastic - not my intention at all - but what would you consider normal wear?

The whole seat wears at the same rate?

Every single car i've owned shows wear on the seat bolsters. Its a fact of life. Its kinda like complaining you're getting stone chips on your front bumper.

 

[jspagna1]

I have 20k on mine and don't notice the wear on the seats. I have running boards but never use them to step in and I'm only 5'9". I just step in and rub the side of the seat all the time. Can you post a pic?

Same here. I don't use my running boards either (for the wife & mother-in law) and I'm 6" tall and have not noticed any wear. I'm at about 10,600 miles on my 2011. ?????

 

[JayceeP]

The leather edge/bolster in mine seems like it will wear quickly too.

 

[KCcarguy]

this may sound a little sarcastic - not my intention at all - but what would you consider normal wear?

The whole seat wears at the same rate?

Every single car i've owned shows wear on the seat bolsters. Its a fact of life. Its kinda like complaining you're getting stone chips on your front bumper.

I'm with Simon on this one. I've never had a vehicle that didn't show wear on the bolster faster than the rest of the seat. With the relatively high entry on the 4runner it only makes sense that it will be worse than a Camry. I would highly doubt that a warranty would cover this. If you're not happy with it, buy some nice seat covers (Wet Okole).

 

[QSVeilside]

Lose weight. Better MPG and less seat wear. :welcome: :thumb3:

 

[Shamish]

My 2010 SR5 did not have running boards and I used to "slide out" of my seat. When I traded the vehicle last fall at 32k miles, the edge of the seat cover showed some stretch.

My 2012 TE has running boards, and use those to lift my self up before I get out. So far, my seat cover looks fine.

 

[adam2562]

i believe the trail editions have a better more durable type of cloth than the sr5's.. just a thought

 

[Jayhawk5G]

Lose weight. Better MPG and less seat wear. :welcome: :thumb3:

6'1" and 211 lbs. I don't think my girth is destroying the seat...

The seat material is starting to lighten in comparison to the rest of the seat, and the stitching seems to be wearing. The truck was purchased in September and currently has 4,100 miles on it.

DO seat bolsters wear out, yes, should it be showing wear this quickly... no. If it gets worse though I would expect Toyota to replace the seat cover under the bumper to bumper warranty.

 

[cbreze]

My seat wear seems ok so far(3000 mi). I can see a certain cheapness in the quality tho compared to my 04 Tacoma which showed no wear in nine years of ownership. I sort of wish I had held out for the leather package now even tho I'm in a fairly cold climate. Hindsight's always 20/20.

 

[Paragon1]

I'm 6'4 and step right in, however the left bolster is significantly worn, wanted to see about replacing the seatpan since aftermarket seats are ridiculously expensive

 

[look171]

I have a limited with leather seats. My concern is the foam underneath is worn. The bucket or whatever that section that gets rub the most is complete flat. I am 170lbs, and try to not rub the seat or put too much weight on that side, but the foam is dead. I am thinking about talking to Toyota about it but do no think I will have any luck.

 

[Antman]

I have a limited with leather seats. My concern is the foam underneath is worn. The bucket or whatever that section that gets rub the most is complete flat. I am 170lbs, and try to not rub the seat or put too much weight on that side, but the foam is dead. I am thinking about talking to Toyota about it but do no think I will have any luck.

I know Dave ( [MENTION=6163]phillyd2[/MENTION] ) had the foam on his passenger seat bolster replaced under warranty because it did the same thing.

I'm not sure if he had to take the dealer hostage to get this done though. His dealership goes on lockdown every time he pulls into the service bay (or so I've heard). :hiding:

Take it in and see what happens!

 

[Jayhawk5G]

I know Dave ( [MENTION=6163]phillyd2[/MENTION] ) had the foam on his passenger seat bolster replaced under warranty because it did the same thing.

I'm not sure if he had to take the dealer hostage to get this done though. His dealership goes on lockdown every time he pulls into the service bay (or so I've heard). :hiding:

Take it in and see what happens!

I think when I take it in for it's first service I will talk to them and ask them to make a note about it on my account and then just watch it. I figure the sooner I make them aware the better, and then over time if it continues to get worse it should be easier to get them to take care of it...

In other news I had two unrelated things happen over the past day. Last night when getting ready to go to bed, we checked the garage and heard a faily loud "whirring" noise coming from the 4Runner, it appeared to be coming from underneath? My initial guess was the fuel pump, as the noise seemed to be the same as the few seconds before you start the ignition. Not sure how long it had been going on... put the key in the iginition turned to ac on, then turned off and the noise stopped. Then this morning, as I drove down the street to go to work, the seat belt chime went off though the passenger seat airbag off was illuminated and I had my seat belt on... these are the only issues I have had so far.

 

[veloindy]

Anyone recognize this runner? Found here in Saint Louis, but I'm pretty sure its not from Missouri.

2010 Toyota 4Runner SR5 | St Charles, Missouri | Schroeder Motors

If my driver seat looks that bad with only 33k miles, I'm going to be PISSED! It already looks pretty bad!

 

[veloindy]

My truck has 10k miles, and the seat is wearing too fast.

Take a look at this thread posted in the spotted thread, click, and scroll down.

2010 Toyota 4Runner SR5 | St Charles, Missouri | Schroeder Motors

I consider the driver seat too worn for 33k miles. My 4th gen didn't look as bad with 100k miles.

 

[eddiebx]

I think when I take it in for it's first service I will talk to them and ask them to make a note about it on my account and then just watch it. I figure the sooner I make them aware the better, and then over time if it continues to get worse it should be easier to get them to take care of it...

In other news I had two unrelated things happen over the past day. Last night when getting ready to go to bed, we checked the garage and heard a faily loud "whirring" noise coming from the 4Runner, it appeared to be coming from underneath? My initial guess was the fuel pump, as the noise seemed to be the same as the few seconds before you start the ignition. Not sure how long it had been going on... put the key in the iginition turned to ac on, then turned off and the noise stopped. Then this morning, as I drove down the street to go to work, the seat belt chime went off though the passenger seat airbag off was illuminated and I had my seat belt on... these are the only issues I have had so far.

Did you happen to have something like a bag rolling around on the passenger seat? This happens on most newer cars I've been in with passenger seat weight sensors. My problem is when my dog stands directly on the sensor, it makes the seat think there's a passenger on there.

Basically the chime goes off because all of a suddenly it thinks there's a passenger on the seat while you're driving, and the passenger airbag off light comes on because it thinks it's a really light weight kid on the seat.

If that's not the case then maybe have them inspect/calibrate the passenger seat sensor too while you're there having the seat looked at.

As far as your seat wear and tear goes, do you wear really rough pants? I would imagine a pair of burly jeans wearing the seat fabric down much faster than a pair of spandex sweat pants

 

[Jayhawk5G]

Did you happen to have something like a bag rolling around on the passenger seat? This happens on most newer cars I've been in with passenger seat weight sensors. My problem is when my dog stands directly on the sensor, it makes the seat think there's a passenger on there.

Basically the chime goes off because all of a suddenly it thinks there's a passenger on the seat while you're driving, and the passenger airbag off light comes on because it thinks it's a really light weight kid on the seat.

If that's not the case then maybe have them inspect/calibrate the passenger seat sensor too while you're there having the seat looked at.

As far as your seat wear and tear goes, do you wear really rough pants? I would imagine a pair of burly jeans wearing the seat fabric down much faster than a pair of spandex sweat pants

I did indeed have a bag on the passenger seat, it must have been in the perfect position because I always set my bag there, some times my bag plus groceries and this was the first time it ever happened.

I wear normal blue jeans regularly, the material is pretty smooth not a "rough" jean, the deformation is like the crumple shown in the white 4runner but not early as bad at this point. I think the lift made the existing problem even worse in that case.