I took the car on a road trip this weekend and was really irritated by the head rests. I never noticed them before, because I don't really drive long distances or get the opportunity to slouch back and relax on the open road.

These things really are angled too far forward. I am sure they are to keep you from hurting yourself in some sort of crash, but I drive my car far more often then I plan on crashing it. I am considering looking to buy replacement ones similar to the factory ones I had on my TSX that followed the contour of the seat rather then angling back towards the driver.

What do you guys think about the head rests?

 

Interesting. I felt the exact opposite. I thought they were lacking in the 3g. Either way, they should make them to accomodate both of our comfort levels. :-)

 

Hmm, the head reast never bother me, but I hear this oomplaint from peopel on many different cars. To provide better whip lash rear impact protection many makes are angling the head reasts closer to your head. For best protect the forward most part of the head reast should line up roughtly with the futhers back part of your head, roughly eye level. May not be most comfortable, but in a crash you'll be glad it was there.

 

Yes, this seems to be a more and more common complaint with newer cars. A friend of mine was about to pull the trigger on a new Accord but refused to do so just because he felt the headrest was positioned too far forward. I haven't had any problems with it in my car and I'm very happy to know it'll do an infinitely better job protecting me in the event of a rear end collision than headrests that are positioned 4"-6" away from the back of your head when casually driving. Hey, it's more comfortable to drive without a seatbelt draped around you, but I'd feel naked now without a seatbelt on while the car was moving.

 

Stash, funny that you mention the head rest position and how it's uncomfortable. I'm enroute from south Florida to NJ and my wife complained today that the head rest was annoying and uncomfortable. We tried to adjust it up and down but she didn't seem to be happy with it in any position. I agree that the position and shape is probably based on optimum safety and functionality but shouldn't comfort also be included in the equation? Maybe Acura will redesign the headrest on later models, although I'm not hopeful. On past models the headrest rotated to allow for a more comfortable position.
Let me know if you see or hear of any alternatives.
Good luck.
Regards,
Barry

 

I thought it was going to be uncomfortable when i saw it at first

after testing it out , it definitely feels much better in person than how it looks, and i have taken long trips with the TL already few hours straight without any discomfort

 

honestly, it is fine on short trips and probably protects me from snapping my head back too much, but there are more comfortable ways to accomplish this. When I am slouching on a long trip there is nothing to support my neck. I think if I put a airplane neck pillow around me it would be perfect. However that isn't really a solution.

 

Just recline the seatback a bit... I'm having no problem with how forward it is, but I think the real problem is the headrest is quite firm... if it was softer and more compliant, it wouldn't feel so bad leaning on it over longer periods of time.

Just my 2 cents... cheers!

 

I refuse to have a car where the headrests do not touch the back of my head. When I adjust the seat to a proper racing posture, the headrest hits me perfect, just like my old S2000 did.
I once had a Camry where the headrests had a ratchet adjustment that was nice.

 

+1 -- recline your seatback if you want to slouch...having an unsupported lower back is bad juju on a long trip anyways.

 

Speaking of back support, I wish the TL's lumbar support had the ability to move up and down the seat back instead of just in and out.

 

The Genesis does that, but itis finky the way it does it, besides the Genesis seats are lame even with in/out up/down adjustment.

 

When I had my BMW 545i, it had Comfort Seats which had a ton of adjustments....lumbar support could go up/down/in/out, thigh support could be extended, the side bolsters could be adjusted to flare in or out, and even the headrests had its own mini side bolsters that were adjustable!......the best seats I've ever sat in!

 

I sat in a M5 in the BMW dealer by my house... the seats (including forward facing but soft-ish headrest) were by far THE most comfortable I've ever experienced. The '09 AWD TL's are very nice, but I still think about the M5's seat sometimes when someone tells me how comfortable my seats are.

 

Well, the M5 costs twice as much, so seating that is, say, twice as good sounds about right to me.

 

I thought my 93 Legend LS 6 speed coupe had the most comfortable seats of any car ... until I got my 2005 Acura RL. Those were the plushest, most comfortable seats I'd ever sat in, so when I picked up my 2009 TL I figured i'd be in for another ergonomically perfect Acura experience.

Wrong. The headrest pushes my head forward ... it is very uncomfortable. I just had a service and they gave me another 09 TL as a loaner (charcoal/black) Whaddya know, but the headrests on that car were a skosh more relaxed than the aggressive push your face toward the windshield delinquents I have the pleasure of in my car.

I complained to my dealer and they just gave me a funny look.

I'm very unhappy about my headrests.

 

I also find the head restraints/rests...call them what you will...very uncomfortable. I have tried adjusting them up and down as well as reclining the seat back more to compensate. None of which have been comfortable. My girlfriend also complained that on long road trips she cannot recline and sleep due to this.

Does anyone know if the Gen3's headrests are swappable w/ the Gen4's or have any other solution? My last car was a Pontiac G6 which had the same problem. Luckily the rear set head restraints were swappable w/ the fronts and provided a much straighter angle, unlike the forward tilted ones in the 09 TL.

 

I've seen other posts that say your head isn't supposed to touch the headrest while driving, but I also find it comfortable when you're sitting the proper position.

 

Well when you think about it all the years we were in school from elementary all the way up to graduate school none of the chairs we sit in for sometimes 8 hours a day don't have headrest. Even at work now none of the chairs have a headrest. So why should the car be any different?

 

Well, because the head restraints are supposed to protect you but do so without giving you headaches, perhaps?

And when was last time you got rear-ended in school? (cut and paste your gay jokes here).

The major angle and the push head foward feeling is awful when driving but it'll save you when crashing. I'm still playing with the adjustment levels so...I have a bit of experiencing to do.

 

I was thinking about gettin a 3G acura headrest too. Or checking a junkyard, used parts store.

 

Because none of the chairs you are talking about is the same as the driver's seat in TL (4G).
The front seat in TL has a unique outline that most of us don't notice. It looks like this >
So if you have your seat straight up, the headrest will push your head down. So you are looking down the feet while driving
If you have your seat reclining a bit so your head and lower back can be on the same straight line then you don't have support of the upper back.

If you are short and your head never touch the headrest then you don't have problem. Otherwise, remove the headrest will help.

 

I heard a rumor on the 4G you could take them out and turn them around. Haven't tried it yet.

 

It's possible. That's the first thing I tried but they don't provide any support that way and look silly IMO, b/c of the drastic angle. I am very disappointed w/ the head rests/restraints.

 

I actually like mine. Comparing them to my IS250 headrest, they sit so far back that you cant use them while your driving and are a bit uncomfortable.

 

I've found the headrest more tolerable with the following:
Move the headrest to the highest height, recline seat as much as comfortable.

Haven't taken a long trip but they don't bother me anymore with this adjustment.

 

The front headrests from the 3G ARE swappable with the ones in the 4G. I just installed the 3G ones in my 4G tonight and it is awesome.

I got some black leather front seat headrests off ebay. They just slide right in and even click. Now I can sit up straight without my head being pushed forward. It is like utopia. It looks like very similar leather.

Another side effect is that I can move the seat further back and still reach the wheel because I am sitting up straighter and my shoulders are further forward. My satisfaction with the car just increased a ton, because that was my only main complaint.

 

Pictures!!!!! How does the leather color match up?

 

How much did they go for? I too find the 4G's headrests prevent your head from leaning back.

 

If it is of any help, i put Mercedes Benz E-series ebay $30/pair headrests in my wife's Odyssey Touring for the same reason. The posts match perfectly. They tilt and have LCD monitor precuts on the inside of the backplate.

 

The ones I got are actually for a 2007 Honda Accord. But I figured what the heck it's got to be basically the same thing right? Black Leather. I just took some pictures. I will post them shortly.

I called the dealer and they wanted a serial number for a 2007 to order the part so that was a problem and they said it was $250.00 Canadian.

I found a buy it now auction on Ebay for 2007 Honda Accord black leather headrests, the whole set for $95.

 

My son put his shoes on the back of my seat.

The color matched really well. It is a little bit worn, not really noticeable in person. I would rather live with that then my head shoved forward.

 

I drove, from Central, NY to Key West and back. Never felt the head rest as everyone is mentioning.

I would never drive with my head rested back on a headrest anyways. I feel you shouldn't be that relaxed while driving anyways.

 

I wonder how well the color will match if it's not black.

 

actually....i believe the TL's headrest kinda mimic the one from volvo... it tries to reduce the blind spot for your passenger side with that convex shape at the back....

anyhow..... i love the headrest as it supports my head well when i drive for long distance.....

 

I cannot help being a little nervous about people replacing the head restraints.

The TL has an active head restraint system on the two front seats. In a crash, the head restrains are pushed up and forward, and I'd be afraid that your replacements wouldn't behave the way that the designers of the system intended.

 

It's on page 159 of the 2010 owners manual.

 

But Grandpa, I'm sure you've drove more than enough cars in your day that have not had active head restraints and still felt plenty safe in them. Sometimes a little form over function can be okay

 

I don't think the active head restraint system is in the headrest themselves but rather in the seat back. When hit hard enough, your body weight pushes into the seat back and forces a mechanism to push the headrest forward.

 

You're entirely correct. What I'm afraid of is that altering the shape of the headrest will alter how it performs and what it does to you when the squab attempts to push the headrest up and forward in an accident.