Godawful headrests...
- Thread starter MGDavis
- Start date
J T
New member
No, the sedan. I guess that would make a difference then. I thought some of the people complaining about the head rests had sedans, too.
J T
New member
Guess that's the benefit of ordering transparent aluminum interior....
Maybe I should reword that..."...whose view isn't hindered by the headrests."
sbpphoenix
New member
I can see fine with headrests in.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I727 using Tapatalk 2
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I727 using Tapatalk 2
J T
New member
corbetts67
New member
what the euro headrests look like compared to stock bulky ones.. more visibility out of the rear window
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LS1notFOUND
New member
not gonna lie, have actually started to like them. If you get the seat adjusted right they are ok, good posture promoting or something blah blah.
stimpy2301
New member
I am now following this thread too -- the more I drive my Sonic, the more I hate these headrests. For short drives, it's no big deal -- but my commute is 76 miles each way, and these stupid headrests forcing me to hunch my head/neck forward is getting really annoying & uncomfortable. Every so often I have to slide forward in the seat so I can restraighten my neck. We must find a solution!
I've been wondering, as discussed about the Volt, if any of the other cars -- perhaps previous model years before this "safer" forward-pitched design -- have better ones that might fit?
The real trouble here could be for those of us with the colored stitching; might be hard to match that up.
Not a wise solution -- the purpose of the headrest is NOT to rest your head, but rather, to help prevent whiplash in an accident.
Even though I removed the rear headrests for visibility, I keep them in the spare/cargo area for the times I have backseat passengers -- I can quickly install it for them.
Do these euro ones fit in the front? They appear to have a more favorable angle to them.
I've been wondering, as discussed about the Volt, if any of the other cars -- perhaps previous model years before this "safer" forward-pitched design -- have better ones that might fit?
The real trouble here could be for those of us with the colored stitching; might be hard to match that up.
Not a wise solution -- the purpose of the headrest is NOT to rest your head, but rather, to help prevent whiplash in an accident.
Even though I removed the rear headrests for visibility, I keep them in the spare/cargo area for the times I have backseat passengers -- I can quickly install it for them.
Do these euro ones fit in the front? They appear to have a more favorable angle to them.
Swordsmith
242hp/252 ft-lbs BNR EFI
I ripped the driver and rear passenger rests out. I'll take my chances on the whiplash, I'm a pretty short guy and my head hits the seat back anyway. My son is a giant, 9" taller than me, so I have the passenger rest in, but reversed. When he starts learning to drive, we'll just swap the rest over to driver's side. They come out and go back in very easily. I'm not opposed to having them in, but reversed they don't do much good unless you're just the right height, and forward, well, there's a small chance of a crippling accident with them out, but I'm certain a week of driving with them in and I'd be headed to the Chiropractor.
I can't figure out how to get the upholstery off of them, it seems to me the simple solution would be to bend the pipe so they sit straight up, instead of leaning forward or, reversed, backwards, to the point of uselessness in either direction. Don't want to destroy them trying, though.
I can't figure out how to get the upholstery off of them, it seems to me the simple solution would be to bend the pipe so they sit straight up, instead of leaning forward or, reversed, backwards, to the point of uselessness in either direction. Don't want to destroy them trying, though.
stimpy2301
New member
Bumping this thread ... it's been almost a year, anyone have any luck with this?
laborsmith
New member
As they are designed to meet federal safety standards, I am not sure what answer you are seeking, other than Swordsmith;s, which is to just remove them.
Laborsmith
Laborsmith
PlayCrackTheSky
Member
It's all about safety. We use a very similar headrest at Honda and on the Acura. This is called an 'active headrest' at Honda and it is a spring loaded system. In the event of a collision the headrest will actually move forward due to the force. One the rear seats of the Odyssey and Fit we use a similar design as the rear Euro sonic headrests. This has no built in safety feature, other than the fact that it is so uncomfortable when left down that you are forced to raise it. i guess that is actually a fairly decent safety feature after all...
As far as I can tell, there is nothing 'active' about the Sonic headrests. One must consider that this is also a 15-20k vehicle and not a 40k one also. This puts a lot of things that I question about my Sonic in perspective.
Swordsmith, I'm not sure about the other models...but the RS headrest trim just J-clips on. Very easy to remove. As far as bending the pillars...they are usually hollow, so I wouldn't recommend it.
I'm sure no one cares, seeing as this is a long lost thread. Just my thoughts.
As far as I can tell, there is nothing 'active' about the Sonic headrests. One must consider that this is also a 15-20k vehicle and not a 40k one also. This puts a lot of things that I question about my Sonic in perspective.
Swordsmith, I'm not sure about the other models...but the RS headrest trim just J-clips on. Very easy to remove. As far as bending the pillars...they are usually hollow, so I wouldn't recommend it.
I'm sure no one cares, seeing as this is a long lost thread. Just my thoughts.
Last edited:
J T
New member
(now that you're back, I'll respond to this)
I took them out a while ago and now I'm used to them not being there.
Unlike others (and I'm not sure if I've already mentioned this in the thread), I don't have any issues with the front seat headrests. I keep my seat quite upright while driving, and being 6'3", my head rests perfectly against the headrest on the driver's seat. Call me crazy, but I actually really like the feeling of that.
stimpy2301
New member
After picking up my freshly-oil-changed Sonic from the dealership yesterday, on a whim I decided to take a look at headrests in the other models. I still hate the awkward forward-canted position of the Sonic headrests, which make long drives ridiculously uncomfortable because I can’t straighten my neck.
First important note: EVERY model I looked had the same size/spacing of the posts. Very encouraging.
Next important note: Many have different size/shape headrests -- so there is hope that one might be more comfortable.
I apologize for not having pictures of every one, nor comparison pics of Sonic-vs-[OtherModel]. This was an impromptu reconnaissance mission, and it was cold out. I’ll likely go back again for a more thorough investigation. In the meantime, here’s what I’ve found, with a few pictures
Spark – Fwd headrests appear the same as Sonic. Rear headrests are that funny L-shaped ‘euro’ style we discussed earlier in this thread. I tried the rear headrest in the Sonic, but it still pushes your head fairly far forward, due to its design to sit over the forward face of the seat. And it looked ridiculously stupid on the front seat.
Cruze – Fwd headrests appear the same. Rear headrests are slightly smaller. Unfortunately, despite being smaller, it still had a significant forward-cant to it, so it didn’t really feel much better. Here is a photo of comparison of the Cruze front-to-rear.
Malibu – Fwd headrest move up and down on fixed posts, so this won’t work. (i.e., instead of the headrest & posts being a single unit, the front SEAT and & posts are a single unit.) Reference pic below showing the headrests; you’ll note the button on the side of the front headrest – this is the release that allows you to move it up and down. Rear headrests, are normal (posts/headrests are one unit) but somewhat small. Installed in the Sonic, it feels slightly straighter, but (for me) the only way it was really comfortable was all the way down – when I could lean my head up over the top of it. Not the safest position, since it really should be up behind your head. Looked somewhat goofy too, being so small compared to the seat. Pics below showing Malibu rear seat headrest in Sonic.
Impala – Same front seat headrest style as Malibu. Rear headrests normal style, and were wider and flatter than the Malibu’s. However, in the Sonic, they’re stupidly uncomfortable, because for some reason, they’re very stiff and hard.
Equinox – This was the last one I tried, as I was not dressed for the cold weather and was getting uncomfortable. The front headrests show some promise – they seemed somewhat straighter than the Sonic’s. Still felt a little more forward-canted than I’d prefer, but did feel significantly more comfortable than the Sonic’s. I also tried this one installed backward, and this could work too, but was a little too far back-tilted for my liking too. Yet, by this point I’d messed around with my seat settings so many times, I’m not even sure if I was in my ideal driving position anymore. This one warrants another test for sure. I was unable to detach the rear headrests in the Equinox (they’re different the fwds), but will try again later. I was cold and didn’t want to fight it anymore! Pics below of the fwd headrest installed in the Sonic – first one installed fwd, second installed backward.
There are a few other models there I’ll have to go back and try, but I’m hopeful I’ll find something that works better than the Sonic’s. Of course, interior color is an additional challenge – my headrest is the black leather with red stitching, and I don’t know if that scheme will be available in whatever I find. Still, something ‘close enough’ (e.g., black leather with black stitching) would be more than worth it for the comfort.
More to follow, next opportunity I have to try out more.
First important note: EVERY model I looked had the same size/spacing of the posts. Very encouraging.
Next important note: Many have different size/shape headrests -- so there is hope that one might be more comfortable.
I apologize for not having pictures of every one, nor comparison pics of Sonic-vs-[OtherModel]. This was an impromptu reconnaissance mission, and it was cold out. I’ll likely go back again for a more thorough investigation. In the meantime, here’s what I’ve found, with a few pictures
Spark – Fwd headrests appear the same as Sonic. Rear headrests are that funny L-shaped ‘euro’ style we discussed earlier in this thread. I tried the rear headrest in the Sonic, but it still pushes your head fairly far forward, due to its design to sit over the forward face of the seat. And it looked ridiculously stupid on the front seat.
Cruze – Fwd headrests appear the same. Rear headrests are slightly smaller. Unfortunately, despite being smaller, it still had a significant forward-cant to it, so it didn’t really feel much better. Here is a photo of comparison of the Cruze front-to-rear.
Cruze headrest comparison
Malibu – Fwd headrest move up and down on fixed posts, so this won’t work. (i.e., instead of the headrest & posts being a single unit, the front SEAT and & posts are a single unit.) Reference pic below showing the headrests; you’ll note the button on the side of the front headrest – this is the release that allows you to move it up and down. Rear headrests, are normal (posts/headrests are one unit) but somewhat small. Installed in the Sonic, it feels slightly straighter, but (for me) the only way it was really comfortable was all the way down – when I could lean my head up over the top of it. Not the safest position, since it really should be up behind your head. Looked somewhat goofy too, being so small compared to the seat. Pics below showing Malibu rear seat headrest in Sonic.
Malibu comparison
Malibu backseat 1
Malibu backseat 2
Malibu backseat 2
Impala – Same front seat headrest style as Malibu. Rear headrests normal style, and were wider and flatter than the Malibu’s. However, in the Sonic, they’re stupidly uncomfortable, because for some reason, they’re very stiff and hard.
Impala backseat
Equinox – This was the last one I tried, as I was not dressed for the cold weather and was getting uncomfortable. The front headrests show some promise – they seemed somewhat straighter than the Sonic’s. Still felt a little more forward-canted than I’d prefer, but did feel significantly more comfortable than the Sonic’s. I also tried this one installed backward, and this could work too, but was a little too far back-tilted for my liking too. Yet, by this point I’d messed around with my seat settings so many times, I’m not even sure if I was in my ideal driving position anymore. This one warrants another test for sure. I was unable to detach the rear headrests in the Equinox (they’re different the fwds), but will try again later. I was cold and didn’t want to fight it anymore! Pics below of the fwd headrest installed in the Sonic – first one installed fwd, second installed backward.
Equinox
Equinox inst backward
There are a few other models there I’ll have to go back and try, but I’m hopeful I’ll find something that works better than the Sonic’s. Of course, interior color is an additional challenge – my headrest is the black leather with red stitching, and I don’t know if that scheme will be available in whatever I find. Still, something ‘close enough’ (e.g., black leather with black stitching) would be more than worth it for the comfort.
More to follow, next opportunity I have to try out more.