2025 CX-5 Carbon Turbo Seats Causing Hip and Back Pain

W

Wheat6517

Hello all,

My wife and I recently purchased a brand new 2025 CX-5 Carbon Turbo at the end of the last year. The test drive went fine and my wife loved it so we purchased it. Unfortunately there seems to be some bio-mechanical issue with my body and the position/angle of the seats because they cause my hip flexors to tighten up almost immediately and start causing a dull ache to form in my upper glutes / very lower back. After 30 minutes of this I am in agonozing pain. I have never experienced this in any other car I have sat in in my entire life. It is as bewildering as it is frustrating.

I have tried as many different seat adjustments as possible, a dozen different cushions/supports from amazon. I have found one that mildly reduces the pain but even then it's a coin flip as to if my hips will start to spasm or not.

I'm at a loss for what to do. The silver lining is this is my wife's daily driver and not mine, so I can avoid driving in it for the most part but unfortunately her car was meant to be the vehicle we take on road trips and now that is clearly off the table.

Has anyone else experienced anything similar to this and if so, came up with any solutions? I am 6" tall and 185lbs. I am in good shape, work out often and have even begun going to PT specifically to work on my hips. I do not want to take a 20% loss on this car if we were to trade it in, but I'm running out of ideas at this point as it is not feasible to never drive in my wife's car for the next 10 years.

Any help with this would be greatly appreciated!
 
Wow; I'm not a fan of CX-5 seats, but your situation sounds off the charts! Just to clarify, does this happen in both seats, whether you driving or the passenger?
 
Yes , unfortunately its a known problem with Cx5 from 2019 till today. Lots of complaints if you search this forum. I have posted pictures of the foam in another thread if you want to look.

D

Post in thread 'Ventilated seats cushion close up view'

Interesting! Maybe body type makes a difference. I'm under 130lbs and wish my vented front seats (2022, <60k kms or 37k miles) to be a bit softer.
  • Like

The seating cushion/foam is too small and heavily bolstered on the sides. Particularly the side bolsters are the problem and they are also super hard. They could squeeze you and you sit on top of them and it pressures hips area. This twists your whole lower body position.
Will have lower back pain and hips/legs pain if driving for long. Its like a torture device for some people.

The only solution is to cut bolsters a bit closer to the seating area and refill with batting/dacron. If you like the car look for auto upholstery shop that wants to do it. It is doable just not all shops want to do it. Cheaper than buying new car for sure.
 
Last edited:
Wheat6517 said:
Hello all,

My wife and I recently purchased a brand new 2025 CX-5 Carbon Turbo at the end of the last year. The test drive went fine and my wife loved it so we purchased it. Unfortunately there seems to be some bio-mechanical issue with my body and the position/angle of the seats because they cause my hip flexors to tighten up almost immediately and start causing a dull ache to form in my upper glutes / very lower back. After 30 minutes of this I am in agonozing pain. I have never experienced this in any other car I have sat in in my entire life. It is as bewildering as it is frustrating.

I have tried as many different seat adjustments as possible, a dozen different cushions/supports from amazon. I have found one that mildly reduces the pain but even then it's a coin flip as to if my hips will start to spasm or not.

I'm at a loss for what to do. The silver lining is this is my wife's daily driver and not mine, so I can avoid driving in it for the most part but unfortunately her car was meant to be the vehicle we take on road trips and now that is clearly off the table.

Has anyone else experienced anything similar to this and if so, came up with any solutions? I am 6" tall and 185lbs. I am in good shape, work out often and have even begun going to PT specifically to work on my hips. I do not want to take a 20% loss on this car if we were to trade it in, but I'm running out of ideas at this point as it is not feasible to never drive in my wife's car for the next 10 years.

Any help with this would be greatly appreciated!
Click to expand...
You sound pretty articulate and are a brand new member - So why would you buy a vehicle that as one of it most well known attributes is an extremely firm suspension ?
I recommend -- sell or donate the car and buy a vehicle like a Cadillac El Dorado - 72 had a super soft ride and bench seat - Thats my recommendation -
 
paris1 said:
Wow; I'm not a fan of CX-5 seats, but your situation sounds off the charts! Just to clarify, does this happen in both seats, whether you driving or the passenger?
Click to expand...
It happens in both seats. It's extremely strange. I feel due to the driver having two additional movement settings I can fine tune it more there but regardless the issue still remains unfortunately.
 
GTXT23 said:
You sound pretty articulate and are a brand new member - So why would you buy a vehicle that as one of it most well known attributes is an extremely firm suspension ?
I recommend -- sell or donate the car and buy a vehicle like a Cadillac El Dorado - 72 had a super soft ride and bench seat - Thats my recommendation -
Click to expand...
Not sure if you're trolling or not. Outside of the seat issue I love the car, didn't mention anything about the suspension.
 
cz5gt said:
Yes , unfortunately its a known problem with Cx5 from 2019 till today. Lots of complaints if you search this forum. I have posted pictures of the foam in another thread if you want to look.

D

Post in thread 'Ventilated seats cushion close up view'

Interesting! Maybe body type makes a difference. I'm under 130lbs and wish my vented front seats (2022, <60k kms or 37k miles) to be a bit softer.
  • Like

The seating cushion/foam is too small and heavily bolstered on the sides. Particularly the side bolsters are the problem and they are also super hard. They could squeeze you and you sit on top of them and it pressures hips area. This twists your whole lower body position.
Will have lower back pain and hips/legs pain if driving for long. Its like a torture device for some people.

The only solution is to cut bolsters a bit closer to the seating area and refill with batting/dacron. If you like the car look for auto upholstery shop that wants to do it. It is doable just not all shops want to do it. Cheaper than buying new car for sure.
Click to expand...
I see. That is interesting and something that I could feasibly do. You found after doing this to your own CX-5 that it resolved the issue?
 
I think Edmaz hired a shop to re-do his with memory foam, especially the side bolsters.
It is true that seating can affect the geometry of peoples bones, etc and that can cause hip pain.
I've read that flat bench seating is better for this aspect, not bucket seats. So they should have a flat seat and the side bolster only keep you from sliding around.
 
Day-to-day driving I'm okay but any longer driving I bought foam cushion(s). One for shorter drives and two on top of the other for longer drives. I also, bought a center console cover since my elbow would hurt after resting it on the console.
 
Wheat6517 said:
I see. That is interesting and something that I could feasibly do. You found after doing this to your own CX-5 that it resolved the issue?
Click to expand...
Yes. Tthat will help a lot to make the seat tolerable but not fully sort the seating being narrow and cramped.
The CX5 seating just doesnt fit well some people.

Otherwise its a great car. I find it funny that one should buy a seat cushion for a brand new car.

Hope they fix the seats in 2026 or at least bring back the alcantara trims which were the best along the cloth seats.
 
My experience with uncomfortable seats in any setting is that if the backrest is too upright, and that, combined with seat rake being wrong, and maximising the lumbar support, is the key to getting comfortable. This applies in seats in the office environment and vehicles.

You should be able to find a physiotherapist who is expert in setting up seats and ergonomics to help you find the best seat position to suit you.

Car salesmen are probably the most useless at this so ignore them.

CX5 seats and suspension are firm, thats the design philosophy. But set up right, most people will find them very acceptable.
 
I'm not clear if you're the driver or passenger when in your wife's car. But if you're the passenger, have you tried the back seat? Not adjustable (except for two backrest positions) but maybe it will fit better?
 
Last edited:
I will concede that the cx5 suspension is probably firmest in its class, but pretty wimpy compared to my Mustang GT and F350...
My GT is very comfortable, the truck will wreck your neck after an hour or two of bouncing around the city.
 
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