Ventilated/AC Seats

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I’ve been searching for a comprehensive list of cars that have Ventilated/AC seats as an option as I’m looking for that feature for my next lease.

Aside from Lexus IS, Mazda CX-5 GTR and then high ticket cars like Porsche I’m clueless as to what cars offer this feature.

Anyone have any good experience with ventilated seats keeping you cool? I run hot as hell all the time lol

Thanks!

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Lexus IS has the best cooled seats I’ve come across… Cooled seats don’t even work right in most BMW’s… lol.

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I think actually there is a difference btw cooled seats and ventilated seats (I think the latter have fans that pull air away from your backside so that you feel cooler, but there isn’t an A/C mechanism in the seat).

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We have them in our CX5, as noted. Wife’s car but if I drove it a lot they could quickly become another gotta have feature for me. I’m a sweat machine and really like them.

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If you’re considering BMW, I wouldn’t obsess if you find a car that ticks all boxes except ventilated seats. They really just make fan noise behind your ear and do little to keep your body cool.

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Chrysler 300. Imagine a nice v8 with cooled seats. :slight_smile:

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The feature has become almost ubiquitous as an option.

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Hyundai/Kia/Genesis have them even in their cheaper models and they work well (had it on my Hyundai Genesis). Lexus also has them in all of their models and in most cars you will find in dealer lots. Again it works well based on my experience with our RX. Subaru/Toyota/Honda have them in most of their models’ top trims (limited and/or touring) but I don’t have a first hand experience on how they perform…

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Mine work great. Keep the back dry. It doesn’t cool you.

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Amen to that. GM cars also have pretty good cooled seats.

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BMW has ventilated seats, not cooled seats. They suck air in instead of blowing air out. The purpose being that it keeps you dry and dissipates heat emitted by your body. I’ve had a couple Lexus’s in the past with cooled seats and currently my X5 has ventilated seats, and I actually find the ventilated seats to be better than the cooled seats. The cooled seats would just make it feel like I wet myself.

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So which car are we talking about here? You said nice.

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My M5 has the ventilated seats and I barely notice them doing anything when turned on. I can hear the little fans pulling air, and that’s about it. My Rover has cooled seats and they actually cool me down when it’s really hot out.

A lot of higher end MOPARs have cooled seats too. My wife’s SRT Jeep has them and our RAM 3500 tow pig does as well. Both are very noticeable and I always use them on hot days.

One commented above about the cooled seats making them feel as though they wet themselves and I can definitely understand that haha.

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I’ve had ventilated seats in my X3 for almost a year now. As some have stated, the airflow is nice but it doesn’t cool the seat. I live in VA (it can get hot in the summer) and have used the setting infrequently.

If you ask me, focus on avoiding black interiors and find the car with the best AC system in general.

Probably not worth the money IMO. Opt upgraded sound systems instead :sunglasses:

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Piggybacking on this, I actually find the sound it makes quite annoying.

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Yep, I agree. Personally, I love black interior and am willing to sacrifice the hot surface for the look, but if black isn’t that important to you, skip it. Especially if you live in warm climate.

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BMW SensaTec (vinyl?) is the worst for me, especially in black. I use a black towel, and it makes a huge difference. In the hot socal summer, I wear shorts and a towel is way more comfortable. I would order cloth seats if I could. My Prius has black cloth seats and they are great at keeping you dry and cooler.

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Biggest help for this problem is ceramic tint on the windshield/windows. Gotta block that IR from getting in the car.

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In some ways, that’s the point. Evaporative cooling is probably not going to be as noticeable as having a cooling unit.

I sweat a decent amount and found A/C seats (not ventilated) to be kind of gross for the reason mentioned in a previous post. I felt wet.

I imagine for people who sweat a lot, ventilated seats might be more comfortable.

Ahem. That’s if windshield tinting is legal in your state. :wink: Do you have ceramic on the windshield? Do you get any distortion or color shifts (esp when wearing polarized sunglasses)?

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