Help! I can't stand another day of the wife complaining about the headrests in the 4G TL -- she wears her hair in a pony tail most of the time and says she can't lean back onto the head rests because they stick forward too much. Has anyone found a suitable replacement for the 4G head rests that don't lean forward as much? Thanks!

 

Umm...tell her to turn her head a little bit?

 

get some 2G headrests. they have a cut out in the middle. no idea if theyre interchangeable though...

 

Keep the headrests, replace the wife. lol JK

 

Very funny, but I can assure getting rid of the wife would be more expensive than any new head rest.

 

^

 

As for OEM replacements I dont think you will find something. I would suggest you look at aftermarket replacements. Most have TV's in them. These are nice and come three different color choices.http://www.amazon.com/Concept-CLD-70.../dp/B003152680 Real easy to change. Plus they are adjustable front to back. Of course they are universal for the poles.

Another option would be to take the headrest to an upholstery shop and have them re tool the OEM's. They could shave the foam and re upholster. Really depends on what make the wife comfortable.

 

anyone else? getting rid of the wife is not an option (sigh) :-), and the headrests melrob1 discusses above are a bit too much -- I don't need dual DVDs.

 

I think someone replaced with 2nd Gen TSX headrests.

 

I think one poster went to the dealership with a similar complaint about the headrest being uncomfortable. The mechanic simply turned the headrest around. Not sure if this works or not but it might be something to look into. Also, don't flame me for stating this is dangerous, UN-safe, or whatever I'm just passing on info.....

 

2g TL or CL head rests are flat with a cutout.

 

Any ideas where I could get a set of ebony 2g tl or cl headrests?

 

Did you try reversing the headrests? You can turn them around and use them that way.

 

EeeeeeeeBayyyyy......

http://shop.ebay.com/i.html?_nkw=Acu...286.m270.l1313

 

Acura wants > $300 per headrest for 2008 TL headrests. That's $660 to fix the car. Bizarre.

 

Fortunately we found this out at the test drive yesterday. Not a problem for me but my wife could not deal with the headrest problem. Loved the car an was ready to pull the trigger. It was to be her car so it was a deal killer. Found this discussion because the salesman said he had never heard this before. Apparently it is a common issue since I got quite a few hits when googling it.

She drove a new Audi A4 and the Mercedes C300 with no issues. Apparently it is an Acura problem.

 

it really isn't a problem but more of a way to help keep you safe. Most folks don't adjust their headrests properly from the get go and traditional head-rests can cause more damage to your body in the event of an accident vs. the acura ones.

However if you set these properly they shouldn't be much of an issue and as well they should protect you more than a regular headrest from whiplash and other injuries.

 

That's interesting because I have come across most brands having the same design nowadays, that's why I don't believe it's the head restraint itself that present a problem for some.

It's more of the head restaint in relation to the seat when it comes the TL, which positions your upper back and shoulders "back" into the seat for a more chest out, shoulders back position as a sport seat would. While some others have an upper protruding design to make the seat have a more flat seat-back surface where the the upper back and shoulders areas are always pushed out in relation to the lower back or are very flush top to bottom, so your are forced into a minor slouched position which gives you more clearance for the back of the head and the restraint but doesn't allow you sit or lean back into the seat as much, at the same time.

That is the case with the both the C class and the A4 seats but the C class does not have the same type of head restraint design that the TL and A4 do, it's the traditional flat kind. I take it that is why when you get an S4 with the sport seat design, similar to the TL's as I described above, it doesn't have an adjustable head restraint, it's instead integrated because of the conflict that type of seat position and new safety head restraint design could present.

Acura at least allows you to find a position that is comfortable and still give you the new safety design. Wost case, one can easily reverse them, which they are also actually designed to do, where many instead are not. When I checked out the A4 with a friend, the restraint was not designed for normal removal, so naturally it wasn't designed for an optional reverse position for those who may have had an issue with it.

Later, we did find on one of the forums that there was a trick to release it because a few people have issues with that design as well but there was no point in doing so. It's unfortunate and these head restraint designs, together with the seat, present problems in many cars, and seats in general are not countered to every person's shape or size, so I wouldn't say it's an Acura problem, at least not alone.

 

Has she tried reclining the seat back a little bit more?

 

A good place to find inexpensive parts is to call a quality used parts salvage yard. Headrests should be easy to find for a song.

 

 

these should fit.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/02-03...Q5fAccessories

 

Any 3G TL headrest or Accord headrest from the same era will fit in the TL. It will offer a less "tilted forward" type of support.

Thats what I did and love it. I can lean back, recline and be comfortable.

 

Why don't you just pull the headrest completely up, to it's highest position????

 

take a box cutter and cut a hole size of her pony tail in the headrest. another easier way is to remove headrest and sell it on ebay. If you are lazy to do either just take scissor while wife sleeping and cut pony tail then place scissor in wife's hand and leave the house for a day. return home and claim you had an emergency meeting with your boss in another town.

 

Ya it's gotta be a female thing? I have no issues with the headrestsin the TL, but my wife and my older daughter have bitched about them.

 

Thats what I was gonna say. I tie my hair up into a pony tail sometimes and I have no problem with the headrests. But I don't lean my head all the way back on the headrests like a passenger would. Worse comes to worse tell her to put her hair down. Or you can be the good hubby and buy a new headrest just for her

 

id say stick to this idea..

 

Hey Litt,
When you said "Accord from same era", did you mean 3rd Gen era? Or 2010/4th gen era? I have the same issue...own a 2010 TL and the head restraints make it uncomfortable. I was going to look on Ebay for some replacements.

Thanks.

 

I mean the headrest from a 3G Acura TL, or a similar Honda Accord. If you have black leather seats in your 4G, the older headrest won't look too out of place if it is also black leather.

I just got mine off of Ebay. At the time I didn't know if it would work, but i gambled and it did fit right in. It only cost about $50.

 

Tell her how much Acura wants for the headrest and have her decided if she want to pay $600 or change her hair do.

 

I bought a 2004 headrest and the poles are too narrow ('04 s 3rd gen, right?). Doesn't fit. What year did you buy?

 

Ok. I look on my ebay history. I bought
03-07 HONDA ACCORD HEADREST,HEAD RESTS OEM, LEATHER (270419873630)

It does fit right in. It is black leather and looks fine. I assumed its the same pole width as the Acura seat. Maybe that was incorrect.

 

Thanks. I just bought 2nd gen Acura ones, so I'll see if those fit. If not, I'll shoot for the 03-07 Accord ones.

 

Can you tell me if your headrests looks like this:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/03-07...s#ht_500wt_956

Or like this?


http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Honda...ht_1697wt_1060

 

The one that I bought looks like this. I hope I was of some help.


http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/03-07...s#ht_500wt_956

 

Thanks Litt. The 2nd gen TL fit in the holes, but were fairly loose. I ordered the one you showed me a pic of to see if that can fit fine. If it does, I'll look at reupholstering them. Otherwise, I may order the ones with the DVD screens in them.

 

Just wanted to update on my search for a suitable headrest/restraint replacement for the 4th Gen Acura TL.

Like the previous poster said, the 03-07 Honda Accord headrests fit perfectly in the TL. You just have to be careful because I think there are two types of headrests for the Accord, depending on the trim level. I bought a headrest that is shaped like a fat, upside "U". There seems to be some that are more block shaped...I haven't bought those, but they seem too boxy for the seat.

Now I just need to get it reupholstered because I have the taupe interior. Any suggestions on places that would sell matching leather??