Comfort of FF seats

Back in July 2012 I picked up a 2012 FF Neiman Marcus edition car with low mileage. Car has diamond stitched pattern fully electric seats. My only groan is the width of the seat where bolsters rest against my thighs. To put things in perspective, I'm 6'2" at 330 lbs (former rugby player) with large thighs. My Maserati GT convertible seats were also a misery for drives more than 15-20 minutes (traded-in for FF). In FF the seat back width is fine but the seat bottom width is a nuisance. High hard side bolsters restrict leg position dramatically and reduce comfort for extended driving. I can't distinguish any movement of seat bottom with available adjustment to increase comfort. I had a guy who does vehicle pickup for my dealer comment that other FF that he's sat in had different (more comfortable) seats than the N-M edition. To anyone's knowledge did the N-M edition have different seats from standard FF? He also commented that he's seen customers swap out padding to get softer cushioning. Has anyone swapped padding or done other after delivery tweaks for their seats? Does Ferrari specifically ask customers about seat dimensions to ensure that you get the seat sizing that's best for you? I assumed that it's one-size fits all (no customization) except standard, daytona or diamond stitched styling and only true size specific option is for the S, M or XL in race seats offered in other models. Are there any FF owners of similar size to myself who found a good solution? I see comments in 458 forum about comfort of race seats but I was really wedged into race seats (thighs pressed together and the 'man parts' are squeezed). Obviously the race seats are for the 200 lbs or less crowd with waist sizes under 40". I still own a M-B S550 and the seat comfort is in sharp contrast to the FF. Only down-side to FF is the long-distance comfort. I typically drive 5 mile (10 minutes) stretch to work but I can't envision road trips.

Dave

 

Entropy:

When comparing the seats of FF to my MB S500 (very comfortable seat), the real issue starts in the seat span (flat portion of seat before bolsters) at seat rear which on FF starts at 10.5" and MB is generous 12". The MB also has flatter bolster styling so easier to expand legs over this additional area. The MB has dynamic bolsters which remain flat in normal driving and only expand in cornering, so a lot less intrusive. In FF, I'm always climbing over the hard 'hump' of the seat bolster when entering/exiting the vehicle (so annoying like a racing seat). In MB, the seat bolsters don't present as a 'barrier'. If I could get the bolster infra-structure reduced and flattened further I'd be happy camper to accommodate my wide hips. Not sure about removing padding at bolsters to create additional width (doesn't feel like significant padding). Thought of adding padding in seat base to raise central part of seat/flatten profile angle to bolsters. I already drive with seat at lowest position to floor and have head clearance to accommodate extra 1.5" of padding within seat bottom. Probably discuss with my Ferrari dealer and may look at 3rd party options. I'm a 60" chest but less obstructions in seat backing (I'm max'ed but not uncomfortable at shoulders).

Dave

 

I was loose head prop in rugby and I was 318 lbs when I got married. I did gain 10-15 lbs last year after having a distal biceps tear in right arm (heavy lifting injury) and needing the repair surgery. My issue is my hip bones touch the side bolsters in the FF due to their high angle and separating my legs (to a 'manly' position) means resting thighs on top of bolsters. I'm 32" inseam (not long legs) so I could potentially pull seat towards dashboard a bit which gives more flex/bend at knees (so less pressure on bolsters), but then my 'gorilla' length arms are constrained (40" sleeve) and less desirable position on steering wheel. If I could reduce fixed infrastructure in bolsters which would allow them to flatten under leg pressure I'd be at better comfort level.