[champagnepak1]

I will be spending 1-1.5 hours per day minimum in my G80 and am torn between the beautiful carbon buckets and standard seats.

There are hundreds of threads with people on both sides arguing their carbon buckets are comfortable, others that say they are miserable.

My question: Who actually regularly drives with their carbon buckets? How long have you been doing it? How long is your average drive on a day you drive? Would you do it again, or switch back to regular seats?

Thank you all.

[M_Chronos]

My soon to be daily driver is ordered with carbon buckets and I didn't even think twice about it. But I daily drove a Lotus. Power steering? Weaklings. Water tight roof? Wimps.

You have got to go spend time in the seat on your own; subjectivity matters here. Don't just add up which way the responses are going for your answer.

[champagnepak1]

Originally Posted by M_Chronos

My soon to be daily driver is ordered with carbon buckets and I didn't even think twice about it. But I daily drove a Lotus. Power steering? Weaklings. Water tight roof? Wimps.

You have got to go spend time in the seat on your own; subjectivity matters here. Don't just add up which way the responses are going for your answer.

That's the hard part. No dealerships in a 50-100 mile radius have carbon buckets.. there is an M2 on Turo for $300/day but blegh, just so much hassle to try them out.

[Burrcold]

Have you ever driven a car with an aggressive bucket type seat before? It's hard for anyone to say if they are comfortable or not, since it very much depends on body type, age/back issues, do you have passengers often, etc.

[BlkGS]

There are two schools of thought here.

1) They're excessive for a daily driver and not ideal for one.

2) They're worth more used than the upcharge costs, so you could get them, sell them, and replace them with sport seats if you don't like them.

I personally would just go with ventilated sport seats.

[Jhanksm3]

IMHO, I had no issues with my buckets in my 23'. The problem comes from getting in and out. Once you are in they are pretty comfortable. Im 6'2" and 208 lbs for reference. I now have a 24' and my main reason for not getting buckets was because of my family. Do I noticed a difference in spirited driving? Absolutely, however im more than happy with sport seats

[Wolf 335]

1h-1.5h per day meaning in total or combined trips such as 2x30min or 3x20min trips?

From logical point of view, you should not get bucket seats.
Bucket seats are designed to hold you in place as you navigate hard corners on a track.
You're going to be daily drving the car on city roads.

Many factors to consider such as body weight, age, heath condition and so on. Burrcold was spot on with his statement.

Bucket seats are a great option for a toy that you take out on the weekends.

[BlkGS]

Anecdotal point.

On the used market, I only ever see carbon buckets on automatic M3s. The actual driving enthusiasts buying manuals appear to be buying the regular sport seats, whereas the people buying automatics appear to be buying the carbon buckets more.

To me, that says the carbon buckets are more about appearance than function. Admittedly, it could be that the people buying manuals with carbon buckets aren't selling their cars too.

[///MPhatic]

It's a hard decision for sure, and hard to get a true answer. I remember searching for seats for my F87 and finding all these praising posts about the Recaro Sportster's, but actually getting in and out of them over and over, and driving with them, they were way too aggressive for me. It seems Nissan thought the same thing because they totally redesigned the seat for their Nismo 370Z.

Sport seats for comfort IMO, carbon buckets for the look and if you're not in the car much.

[Burrcold]

The nice thing is that you aren't penalized for the Sport Seats, they still look very good and fairly aggressive for a "comfort seat". If you got the same standard looking seat as you find in the M340i, I would probably suck it up and get the carbon buckets at that point.

[NYG]

I don't daily it but I drive it a lot and I'm more comfortable in buckets than I am in the sport seats. If you like to lean your seat back like a sofa and one arm it with a lean then buckets may not be great. If you like a generally normal seating position - not necessarily in a racing position, then I find that buckets keep my back feeling better. There's definitely people who feel the opposite.

[champagnepak1]

Originally Posted by BlkGS

Anecdotal point.

On the used market, I only ever see carbon buckets on automatic M3s. The actual driving enthusiasts buying manuals appear to be buying the regular sport seats, whereas the people buying automatics appear to be buying the carbon buckets more.

To me, that says the carbon buckets are more about appearance than function. Admittedly, it could be that the people buying manuals with carbon buckets aren't selling their cars too.

This is a very interesting observation. I'm spec'ing mine in 6MT but agree, the allure to them for even myself is the aesthetics, not the form or utility.

[DrVenture]

Originally Posted by M_Chronos

My soon to be daily driver is ordered with carbon buckets and I didn't even think twice about it. But I daily drove a Lotus. Power steering? Weaklings. Water tight roof? Wimps.

You have got to go spend time in the seat on your own; subjectivity matters here. Don't just add up which way the responses are going for your answer.

Plus, it makes the garage kept survivors so much more valuable, as the rest smell funny and have no floor boards.

[LeggoRacing]

Yes and don’t mind them at all. 6ft tall and 240lb (not small ). My wife (petite) also steals the car often and loves the seats.
Once you get used to getting in and out with methods not to put all your weight on the bolster you’ll be golden. I’ve done 5hr stints in them without any discomfort.

[nunzo]

Originally Posted by BlkGS

Anecdotal point.

On the used market, I only ever see carbon buckets on automatic M3s. The actual driving enthusiasts buying manuals appear to be buying the regular sport seats, whereas the people buying automatics appear to be buying the carbon buckets more.

To me, that says the carbon buckets are more about appearance than function. Admittedly, it could be that the people buying manuals with carbon buckets aren't selling their cars too.

Manual bucket car guy here and I absolutely love them. Yes it’s annoying to get in and out if you care about the bolsters. But I’ve driven 5+ hours multiple times and they’re super comfortable.

[BlkGS]

Originally Posted by nunzo

Manual bucket car guy here and I absolutely love them. Yes it’s annoying to get in and out if you care about the bolsters. But I’ve driven 5+ hours multiple times and they’re super comfortable.

My biggest beef with the buckets is not being able to get them cooled. That's kind of a must have in FL. Especially for a car you can't remote start with a manual. Honestly, not being able to remote start is borderline deal breaker down here, lol.

I know it's got the big cutouts, but if they had the centers in alcantara or suede I think that would help a lot. My cars with alcantara inserts never give swamp ass despite not having ventilation in the seats.

[NickyC]

That's about to be a yes. Will install a set I just purchased today in the next day or so, absolutely loved these seats when I had a G82. In fact, it's the only part of the car I miss.

BMW makes incredible seats. I've never not been comfortable in any of the many BMWs I've owned. The buckets really were my favorite, however. Incredible support and the most comfortable seat I've ever sat in. Not everyone will have the same experience due to body type, but I love 'em and would never spec a G8x car without them. Not to mention the fact they look 10x better than the sofas. For the initial price on the build sheet, it's a complete no brainer. If you wind up not liking them, you can always swap out the sofa seats with another owner who wants the buckets and probably pocket an additional $8k+ in cash. You can't lose when you include them in your initial build.

[MJBO]

My current G81 has the Sport seats, and I’m intending to order buckets in my late 2025 G81. My dealer is going to lend me a car with buckets for the weekend at some point so I can put a bit of decent seat time in them to make sure of my choice.

[mjr24]

Yep I have them in my M8 and they are comfortable. No, not as comfortable as the normal seats but, hey, you only live once.

I’m 6 foot 1, 175….

As mentioned, you can’t get ventilated seats. Another plus is they are thin….so I have more backseat room (I have the M8 GC).

[TargaM2]

Originally Posted by BlkGS

Anecdotal point.

On the used market, I only ever see carbon buckets on automatic M3s. The actual driving enthusiasts buying manuals appear to be buying the regular sport seats, whereas the people buying automatics appear to be buying the carbon buckets more.

To me, that says the carbon buckets are more about appearance than function. Admittedly, it could be that the people buying manuals with carbon buckets aren't selling their cars too.

The general consensus is that the cod piece on the buckets is a PITA for use with 3 pedals. I think thats likely the reason you dont see them much on manual cars.
For a 2 pedal car i think the buckets are a ‘must have’ option.
The 1 piece buckets in the CSL are the ‘real deal’ though.

[NickyC]

Just to reinforce, 100% on buckets for a DD. Just installed mine today and couldn't be happier. Woot!

[nunzo]

Originally Posted by mjr24

Yep I have them in my M8 and they are comfortable. No, not as comfortable as the normal seats but, hey, you only live once.

I’m 6 foot 1, 175….

As mentioned, you can’t get ventilated seats. Another plus is they are thin….so I have more backseat room (I have the M8 GC).

M8 CF buckets are wider than the G8X, would be nice to have that base on our seats.

Originally Posted by TargaM2

The general consensus is that the cod piece on the buckets is a PITA for use with 3 pedals. I think thats likely the reason you dont see them much on manual cars.
For a 2 pedal car i think the buckets are a ‘must have’ option.
The 1 piece buckets in the CSL are the ‘real deal’ though.

I don't run into that issue but I also keep the seat bottom tilted down for how I drive stick. I wear a 13 so with most shoes (NB/Adidas/Yeezy) I have to drive with a crooked foot.

Originally Posted by BlkGS

My biggest beef with the buckets is not being able to get them cooled. That's kind of a must have in FL. Especially for a car you can't remote start with a manual. Honestly, not being able to remote start is borderline deal breaker down here, lol.

I know it's got the big cutouts, but if they had the centers in alcantara or suede I think that would help a lot. My cars with alcantara inserts never give swamp ass despite not having ventilation in the seats.

Just drove 5 hours in 90+ degree heat wearing pants and was surprised at the ventilation of the back holes and the perforations. zero swamp ass