Issue with the seats

My heart rate was elevated as we approached the dealarship to pick up the car. This was about 4:00pm yesterday. The car was just being finished in prep. and we went over to look at it. It looked beautiful, except for one thing. On the driver's side seat cushion, the leather on the side bolsters was not smooth all the way back to the backrest. It showed considerable wrinkles and folds, as if it was not fitted properly. We looked at several other Caymans with the same seats and all of them had a nice smooth finish. The Service Director asked that we come back today to have it looked at by their detail specialist. We returned today and the detail guy, who has seen many Porsches but obviously his first Cayman S said that this was normal and that it would smooth out over time. He said the seats look this way when first used, but shrink up and lay smooth later. I was not so convinced. Mainly because all the other Caymans that were being preped had perfectly smooth seats. My wife even sat in one for half an hour just to see if it would look like ours. It did not. The way we left it is that we will wait 2 months. If my seats don't smooth out, and they can show me that with time all Caymans look the same as mine, I will accept this as just the way things are and live with it. If, on the other hand, other Caymans continue to have nice smooth cushions and mine continues to have folds and wrinkles, they will order new seat bottoms. I use plural because after my wife sat on the passenger side today going back to the dealer, the passenger side looked unsmooth just like the driver's side. Given that no other car seats looked like ours, even after sitting in them, I am not convinced that our car seats are not defective. I guess I will have to exercise patience and wait the 2 months. My guess is that the seats will remain as they are, and hopefully will be replaced. Comments of any similar experience or opinions on going forward will be appreciated.

I recall that there was a leather option that gave the soft look - I recall the salesperson telling me that part of its look are 'wrinkles' - I suspect this is not the case here since you had an expert look at it - I am sure they will resolve the problem for you !!!

kmns, 2 months is too long to wait. There is no way it should take that long, also this is the first time I have heard anyone mention that, except for the 'supple leather' which I don't think you have. Let's get the club's feedback on this and see if anyone else can confirm that it is not a flaw in the leather or workmanship. I just find it hard to believe that quality control would not have picked it up. I hope I am wrong and you start to see a change in days. Good luck, Russ

I'm going to move this thread to a new forum called 'Cayman Complaints' that I'm going to open up for issues related to the car.

Kmns, I have the same problem with my driver's seat. Not only is the left bolster leather wrinkled, the left back bolster is also wrinkled. From my prior Porsche ownership experience, the leather bolster will wrinkle when you sit on them or slide down into your seat. I have had this on every Porsche that I've own. Maybe it's because I'm short (5'7') and when someone tall gets in the car, they wedge themself in. What I do now is move the seat back to allow for more room when I know someone else is going to drive my car. I'm not saying that's the way it is but just my experience. I've learn to live with it. Just be glad you don't own a Vette, I've had seat wear through the leather in just 6 months. That has never happened with any of my Porsche. Sport seats with the higher bolsters seem to enhance the problem. Btw, I have the sport seats.

Louie, Can you send a picture of these wrinkled seats. I have no wrinkles on my Sport Seats. I would like to see what you are talking about. You should be completely satisfied with your leather seats and car and demand replacement seat cushions now rather than later. I can't imagine that these wrinkles are going to go away with time.

I saw one car at the dealership that had the supple leather option and it had the wrinkles. I wonder if this is simply one of the "features" of supple leather.

MaybeValmetinstalled supple leather cushions by mistake?

the supple leather option only puts 'wrinkles' in the leather in the middle (under you're butt and behind your back) of the seats, not on the bolsters - they should be smooth. The bolsters of your seats will wrinkle some over time - the driver's seat bolsters in my 996 turbo (non-sports seats) have some minor wrinkling, and the passenger seat has virtually none, because it get's used maybe 20% of the time the car is used. kmns - if you're spending this kind of money, and you've look at other Porsches on the lot (not just Caymans, because all the seats are the same across the model line) with he same type of seat, and same color of leather, and none of them are like this, then you should asl for a change... do it before you pay for the car and take it off the lot... you have no leverage, otherwise... brad

I was reading a magazine (I think it was R&T) and it had a picture of a club coupe, I noticed the drivers seat left side bolster was wrinkled? The rest of the seat and the passenger side were perfect. Now that this has been brought up I guess I am looking for it. Russ

kmns, Can you post some pics.

This is a minor seat complaint, not related to leather, but..... I have standard seats, and when I slide the the seat all the way back, and then try reclining, the head rest hits the roof. You can actually watch the headreast press down. I brought the seat back up, but just wanted to let you guys know in case someone doesn't see it and possibly damages the fabric on the roof. Minor, but worth noting!

You must have the seat way up there...all the cars I have seen where the seat is down as much as possible. The backrests on those are not even close to the roof.

When I hinge the seat forward (eg to hang something on the clothes hook) it hits the roof and sun visor. I havethe sport seats.

Why even wait. You just spent a lot of money for a car, I would want it right the first time! Tell them to order you new seat, or pull the seats from a car that is not purchased yet. They can replace those seats when the new ones come in. I think this is rediculous, I don't care what the dealer says, if it isn't what you want don't accept it...period. If they were all like that then that is another issue, but others aren't so I think you have a legitamate complaint for them to swap them out ASAP, no waiting.

Thank you all for your comments. A number of you have expressed that I should not have to accept these seats the way they are, especially since I looked at many others and none were like mine. I agree with you. On January 20, a Porsche factory rep. looked at pictures of my seats taken by the Service Director. He was also told by the Service Director how I felt and that I did not think this was normal. I had made it clear that since no other cars looked like mine, I wanted the seat bottoms replaced. I received a call on the 20th and the factory rep began to imply that many times this happens because no two pieces of leather are the same and mine were on the supple side. Knowing how I felt, however, he went on to say that he would authorize the replacement 'this one time' but that he would not guarantee that the new ones would be better. I did not make a big deal about his conditions because I strongly feel that since not one other car looked like mine, the chances are good the new ones will be much better. Nevertheless, I did not appreciate the condicending remark, and the 'we are doing you a big favor' attitude. As many have remarked, you should be entitled to what you pay for, especially at this price. They speculated that the replacements would take about 8 weeks to arrive, so it will be a bit of a wait to see the results. I suppose if I allowed a bit of paranoia to set in, I might suspect that they may select a pair with wrinkles just to make a point that this is normal. I will choose to be optimistic and expect the new ones to be smooth. Let me point out that the word wrinkled does not really describe the condition. It is more like an excess of material at that part of the bolster and therefore the leather does not lay smooth on the bating as it does on other cars. The attached pics may show what I mean. Let's hope they come in smooth, and the replacement is something routine enough so that I don't end up with any problems with the installation. Thanks again for your comments. Sensitive content, not recommended for those under 18 Show Content Sensitive content, not recommended for those under 18 Show Content

Thanks for posting the pictures. After seeing the wrinkles that you are referring to, getting a seat replacement is the correct decision. I had initially thought you were referring to creases in the leather after use. When the seat bottoms arrive, inspect them first, before having them installed. Also check for color match as different leather batch can have different shades of the same color. If you are not satisfied with the new bottoms, have them order you anotherset. Sorry for your woes. It will all work out.

My seats are wrinkled too, but not as much as yours. I'm OK with mine the way they are and I can see where yours might be a concern. Sensitive content, not recommended for those under 18 Show Content

karl, Thanks for the comparison pic. If mine were like yours I would definitely live with them. I don't think I would take the chance of getting something worst, and going through the risks, if any, of having them taken out, color match, etc. Mine seem a lot more extreme. Louie