Headrest solutions?

[SMS]

My sister-in-law bought a 2011 Honda Accord a few months ago and has been struggling to find a solution to those absurd headrests. Right now she has them all reversed, and I helped her notch the opposite post so they latch in. This helped, except for the center rear headrest which is very small and has short posts because of the fold down console, and when reversed is totally non-functional. This is the seat she would like her 7 y.o. to sit in, but the child's head is now reaching the headrest, and it's so uncomfortable that the child was squawking about how it hurt.

I see a large number of complaints about the Honda headrests, but no good solutions. Some people say reclining the seat further helps. Some say using a cushion behind you to push the rest of your body forward helps. Some say to take them to an auto upholstery shop and have them modified. Some suggest after-market LCD headrests that don't jut forward. I've seen the Pyle LCD headrests which aren't all that expensive (about $63 each) even if you don't use the 7" LCD. They come with 1/2" post sleeves which are needed for the Honda (some LCD screen headrests don't have large enough diameter posts, and there have been complaints by Honda owners that bought them that they don't latch in). However from the specifications on this headrest, it may not allow the posts to be close enough together to replace the middle headrest in the back.

What are others doing? I tried sitting in her Accord with the headrest facing forward and it's incredibly uncomfortable. She also has a Honda Pilot, and that vehicle does not have this issue, but the headrests are not interchangeable (besides being the wrong color and material).

I know the reason Honda did the headrests like this, but personally this is more than enough to prevent me from buying an Accord. She would not have bought the Accord if she had realized how bad the head rests were.

 

[jim beam]

My sister-in-law bought a 2011 Honda Accord a few months ago and has been struggling to find a solution to those absurd headrests. Right now she has them all reversed, and I helped her notch the opposite post so they latch in. This helped, except for the center rear headrest which is very small and has short posts because of the fold down console, and when reversed is totally non-functional. This is the seat she would like her 7 y.o. to sit in, but the child's head is now reaching the headrest, and it's so uncomfortable that the child was squawking about how it hurt.

I see a large number of complaints about the Honda headrests, but no good solutions. Some people say reclining the seat further helps. Some say using a cushion behind you to push the rest of your body forward helps. Some say to take them to an auto upholstery shop and have them modified. Some suggest after-market LCD headrests that don't jut forward. I've seen the Pyle LCD headrests which aren't all that expensive (about $63 each) even if you don't use the 7" LCD. They come with 1/2" post sleeves which are needed for the Honda (some LCD screen headrests don't have large enough diameter posts, and there have been complaints by Honda owners that bought them that they don't latch in). However from the specifications on this headrest, it may not allow the posts to be close enough together to replace the middle headrest in the back.

What are others doing? I tried sitting in her Accord with the headrest facing forward and it's incredibly uncomfortable. She also has a Honda Pilot, and that vehicle does not have this issue, but the headrests are not interchangeable (besides being the wrong color and material).

I know the reason Honda did the headrests like this, but personally this is more than enough to prevent me from buying an Accord. She would not have bought the Accord if she had realized how bad the head rests were.

did she not test drive it??? instead of wasting electrons here, why don't you write to honda corporate and say she wants to return the car and get her money back? if nobody says anything, nothing will happen. if everybody does something, that thing will get fixed quicker than you'd believe. y'all only have all y'all to blame if y'don't do nuthin'.

 

[tww1491]

"SMS" wrote:
My sister-in-law bought a 2011 Honda Accord a few months ago and has been struggling to find a solution to those absurd headrests. Right now she has them all reversed, and I helped her notch the opposite post so they latch in. This helped, except for the center rear headrest which is very small and has short posts because of the fold down console, and when reversed is totally non-functional. This is the seat she would like her 7 y.o. to sit in, but the child's head is now reaching the headrest, and it's so uncomfortable that the child was squawking about how it hurt.

I see a large number of complaints about the Honda headrests, but no good solutions. Some people say reclining the seat further helps. Some say using a cushion behind you to push the rest of your body forward helps. Some say to take them to an auto upholstery shop and have them modified. Some suggest after-market LCD headrests that don't jut forward. I've seen the Pyle LCD headrests which aren't all that expensive (about $63 each) even if you don't use the 7" LCD. They come with 1/2" post sleeves which are needed for the Honda (some LCD screen headrests don't have large enough diameter posts, and there have been complaints by Honda owners that bought them that they don't latch in). However from the specifications on this headrest, it may not allow the posts to be close enough together to replace the middle headrest in the back.

The complaints I have seen talk to the seats being uncomfortable on long drives. By comparison, the seats in my 06 coupe are very comfortable. I suppose there must have been a major redesign for the supposed better.

What are others doing? I tried sitting in her Accord with the headrest facing forward and it's incredibly uncomfortable. She also has a Honda Pilot, and that vehicle does not have this issue, but the headrests are not interchangeable (besides being the wrong color and material).

I know the reason Honda did the headrests like this, but personally this is more than enough to prevent me from buying an Accord. She would not have bought the Accord if she had realized how bad the head rests were.

 

[W.T. O'Niel]

My sister-in-law bought a 2011 Honda Accord a few months ago and has been struggling to find a solution to those absurd headrests.

Not sure what her problem is but mine are fine. In fact, one of the reasons I bought my Accord is that the seats are so damned comfortable.

Surprised she didn't notice the incompatibility between her ass and the Accord seat right off when she sat in the car in the showroom, much less on the test drive...

 

[Elmo P. Shagnasty]

My sister-in-law bought a 2011 Honda Accord a few months ago and has been struggling to find a solution to those absurd headrests.

Why the **** did she buy the car knowing that was a problem?

I refuse to buy any more Hondas, for a number of reasons, and that's one of the top ones.

I know--just like a typical woman, she figured she'd marry the car now and change it later, no problem.

 

[Elmo P. Shagnasty]

I see a large number of complaints about the Honda headrests, but no good solutions. Some people say reclining the seat further helps.

It does. It's not perfect, but you get used to it.

No need to go all gangsta lean; just put it back a bit.

 

[Elmo P. Shagnasty]

did she not test drive it??? instead of wasting electrons here, why don't you write to honda corporate and say she wants to return the car and get her money back? if nobody says anything, nothing will happen. if everybody does something, that thing will get fixed quicker than you'd believe. y'all only have all y'all to blame if y'don't do nuthin'.

Worse: in American Honda's minds, she justified their decision by buying the car in the first place.

American Honda needs to be put in its place, but stupid people keep doing stupid things that move money from their pockets to American Honda's pockets.

 

[SMS]

American Honda needs to be put in its place, but stupid people keep doing stupid things that move money from their pockets to American Honda's pockets.

This is true.

I had the first year CR-V (I know, big mistake buying the first year of anything). The cruise control had a design flaw that every owner experienced if they ever drove on a highway that wasn't flat. Honda acknowledged the problem, explained what caused it, and said that they would not fix it. In subsequent years of the same generation they did correct the problem. But that was my last Honda, I just didn't like the company's whole attitude.

In any case, I wasn't looking for a lecture on the subject of how dumb someone was for not realizing the problem (she already admits how dumb it was), I was hoping that given how big a seller the Accord is, and given that all recent Accord buyers have the same problem (unless they are vertically challenged), that someone would have some ideas for a solution.

Apparently it's not limited to the Accord, as Civic owners have also complained. The foam solution worked for one, <http://www.hybridcars.com/forums/headrest-solutions-t1274.html>, and on the CR-V <http://www.hybridcars.com/forums/headrest-solutions-t1274.html>.

As to why it wasn't noticed on the test drive, I think that last URL represents the experience of many of the owners that are complaining, they just didn't realize the problem until it was too late.

Apparently some other vehicles have the same issue because the jutting forward headrests are part of the restraint system. So the best solution that doesn't mess with the headrests is probably to add foam padding to the seat back. Some people put on seat covers over the foam but that's a bad idea on the Accord because there are airbags in the seats.

 

[Elmo P. Shagnasty]

Apparently it's not limited to the Accord, as Civic owners have also complained.

I noticed it right away when I got into the Insight when it was (re)introduced. My long-time salesman warned me, this is the direction Honda is going.

Really. Well.

 

[SMS]

I noticed it right away when I got into the Insight when it was (re)introduced. My long-time salesman warned me, this is the direction Honda is going.

Really. Well.

Some people (many people) buy cars (and other products) on emotion without doing sufficient research.

What's ironic about this case is that my sister-in-law complained about the head rests in our 2007 Camry which are not nearly as horrible as what Honda has done in the Accord.

Personally, if it were my vehicle, I would buy the after-market headrests with the LCD screens for at least the front seats (whether I wanted the LCDs or not). I would not reverse the headrests as many people have done to "fix" the problem. I would take the risk that the after-market headrests were less protective in a crash. The seats are so incredibly uncomfortable when the headrest pushes your head so far forward that I would not tolerate it. On a $19,000 vehicle, another $140 is lost in the noise.

<http://www.edmunds.com/honda/accord/2008/consumer-reviews/seats-headrests-are-uncomfortable.html?style=100939053&sub=&reviewId=96061777>

 

[Seth (2)]

On 6/26/2011 2:45 PM, Elmo P. Shagnasty wrote:

In any case, I wasn't looking for a lecture on the subject of how dumb someone was for not realizing the problem (she already admits how dumb it was), I was hoping that given how big a seller the Accord is, and given that all recent Accord buyers have the same problem (unless they are vertically challenged), that someone would have some ideas for a solution.

I'm 5'11" and have zero discomfort on my 2011 EX-L (maybe trim level is part of the equation?). My wife at 5'5". older daughter at 5'6" and youngster at 5'2" have also not complained.

 

[jim beam]

Some people (many people) buy cars (and other products) on emotion without doing sufficient research.

What's ironic about this case is that my sister-in-law complained about the head rests in our 2007 Camry which are not nearly as horrible as what Honda has done in the Accord.

Personally, if it were my vehicle, I would buy the after-market headrests with the LCD screens for at least the front seats (whether I wanted the LCDs or not). I would not reverse the headrests as many people have done to "fix" the problem. I would take the risk that the after-market headrests were less protective in a crash. The seats are so incredibly uncomfortable when the headrest pushes your head so far forward that I would not tolerate it. On a $19,000 vehicle, another $140 is lost in the noise.

<http://www.edmunds.com/honda/accord/2008/consumer-reviews/seats-headrests-are-uncomfortable.html?style=100939053&sub=&reviewId=96061777>

so, are you going to write to honda corporate or not? what part of the management principle of "not being able to correct a mistake if nobody says anything" is difficult to understand? or are honda execs supposed to trawl the whole of usenet for one bleating and take that as an emergency requiring a full recall and immediate corrective action?

 

[SMS]

I'm 5'11" and have zero discomfort on my 2011 EX-L (maybe trim level is part of the equation?). My wife at 5'5". older daughter at 5'6" and youngster at 5'2" have also not complained.

No, the EX-L is what she got as well. I'm 5'10" and could not stand the front seats or the right and left back seats.

One thing that makes a difference is whether or not your own head juts forward. If your head doesn't jut forward to match the headrest then your back can't be against the back of the seat, there's a big gap between your back and the seat. That's why some people added foam to solve the problem. Part of the problem is that the lower lumbar support is too thick, and some people have had upholstery shops modify the seats.

There's a good thread here
<http://townhall-talk.edmunds.com/WebX?14@@.f194d64/0> on the various things that owners have done to solve the problem, and some are very elaborate.

Some people want to bend the support rods for the headrests to be straight, but I think this would weaken them.

What's scary is the person that wrote: "I had the same problem with the CRV. When I mentioned it to the salesman, the pulled the headrest out and flipped it around. That position was more comfortable than the original position." Uh, can you imagine the liability that dealer now faces?

 

[jim beam]

No, the EX-L is what she got as well. I'm 5'10" and could not stand the front seats or the right and left back seats.

One thing that makes a difference is whether or not your own head juts forward. If your head doesn't jut forward to match the headrest then your back can't be against the back of the seat, there's a big gap between your back and the seat. That's why some people added foam to solve the problem. Part of the problem is that the lower lumbar support is too thick, and some people have had upholstery shops modify the seats.

There's a good thread here
<http://townhall-talk.edmunds.com/WebX?14@@.f194d64/0> on the various things that owners have done to solve the problem, and some are very elaborate.

Some people want to bend the support rods for the headrests to be straight, but I think this would weaken them.

What's scary is the person that wrote: "I had the same problem with the CRV. When I mentioned it to the salesman, the pulled the headrest out and flipped it around. That position was more comfortable than the original position." Uh, can you imagine the liability that dealer now faces?

message still not getting through. try this:

imagine it's warm and sunny, and you're running a lemonade stand. you make your lemonade, and you sell it to the other kids on the street. but no one ever comes back to buy a second one. would you not want to know why? the answer is probably yes, unless you think that going back to mom and asking for a raise in your allowance to compensate for your business [and lemonade] failure is an acceptable solution.

now, imagine you're the head of honda usa. would you want to know why your repeat sales are dropping or not? put yourself in their shoes and make a decision about what /you/ would want done to ensure you don't piss your customers off.

you gonna write now? or is carrying on whining to people that care less than mom the solution?

 

[SMS]

No, the EX-L is what she got as well. I'm 5'10" and could not stand the front seats or the right and left back seats.

Actually she didn't get the EX-L, she got the EX. Maybe the leather seats are not the same seats just covered with leather, but a different seat entirely.

 

[C. E. White]

It is not just Honda that has headrests that annoy people. Both of my sons complain about the headrest in my 2009 F150. Interestingly, they don't seem to bother me but I am older and sit higher in the seats than my older son, and my youinger son complains about everything.....

I think this is one you can blame on the IIHS. Having the headrest jut forward improves the score on the IIHS head restraint evaluation. See http://www.iihs.org/ratings/head_restraints/headrestraints.aspx?honda . Older Accords only got the acceptable rating. The newer models get a good ranting. Of course the ratings don't take into account what happens when the Custoemr modifies the headrests to fix them.

Ed

 

[jim beam]

It is not just Honda that has headrests that annoy people. Both of my sons complain about the headrest in my 2009 F150. Interestingly, they don't seem to bother me but I am older and sit higher in the seats than my older son, and my youinger son complains about everything.....

I think this is one you can blame on the IIHS. Having the headrest jut forward improves the score on the IIHS head restraint evaluation. See http://www.iihs.org/ratings/head_restraints/headrestraints.aspx?honda . Older Accords only got the acceptable rating. The newer models get a good ranting.

indeed they do ed, indeed they do.

 

[SMS]

It is not just Honda that has headrests that annoy people. Both of my sons complain about the headrest in my 2009 F150. Interestingly, they don't seem to bother me but I am older and sit higher in the seats than my older son, and my youinger son complains about everything.....

I think this is one you can blame on the IIHS. Having the headrest jut forward improves the score on the IIHS head restraint evaluation. See http://www.iihs.org/ratings/head_restraints/headrestraints.aspx?honda . Older Accords only got the acceptable rating. The newer models get a good ranting. Of course the ratings don't take into account what happens when the Custoemr modifies the headrests to fix them.

Right, and technically they are not headrests, they are head restraints.

There's a reason why they (and some other manufacturers) did what they did, but the side effects of this are pretty crappy. Honda seems to be among the worst though. I went peering into a bunch of parked cars to compare, and many don't have the problem that Honda has (though I did not compare IIHS scores on the vehicles).

And of course despite those head restraints, the Accord was still not a top safety pick for IIHS, the agency whose ratings are much more relevant than NHTSA ratings. <http://www.iihs.org/ratings/>.

 

[tww1491]

"SMS" wrote:
My sister-in-law bought a 2011 Honda Accord a few months ago and has been struggling to find a solution to those absurd headrests. Right now she has them all reversed, and I helped her notch the opposite post so they latch in. This helped, except for the center rear headrest which is very small and has short posts because of the fold down console, and when reversed is totally non-functional. This is the seat she would like her 7 y.o. to sit in, but the child's head is now reaching the headrest, and it's so uncomfortable that the child was squawking about how it hurt.

I see a large number of complaints about the Honda headrests, but no good solutions. Some people say reclining the seat further helps. Some say using a cushion behind you to push the rest of your body forward helps. Some say to take them to an auto upholstery shop and have them modified. Some suggest after-market LCD headrests that don't jut forward. I've seen the Pyle LCD headrests which aren't all that expensive (about $63 each) even if you don't use the 7" LCD. They come with 1/2" post sleeves which are needed for the Honda (some LCD screen headrests don't have large enough diameter posts, and there have been complaints by Honda owners that bought them that they don't latch in). However from the specifications on this headrest, it may not allow the posts to be close enough together to replace the middle headrest in the back.

What are others doing? I tried sitting in her Accord with the headrest facing forward and it's incredibly uncomfortable. She also has a Honda Pilot, and that vehicle does not have this issue, but the headrests are not interchangeable (besides being the wrong color and material).

I know the reason Honda did the headrests like this, but personally this is more than enough to prevent me from buying an Accord. She would not have bought the Accord if she had realized how bad the head rests were.

Anyone on this thread who remembers old Morgan Plus 4s from the early 60s -- inflatable bladders on wood with a coal cart ride. And we loved it.

 

[J.L.Hemmer]

My sister-in-law bought a 2011 Honda Accord a few months ago and has been struggling to find a solution to those absurd headrests. Right now she has them all reversed, and I helped her notch the opposite post so they latch in. This helped, except for the center rear headrest which is very small and has short posts because of the fold down console, and when reversed is totally non-functional. This is the seat she would like her 7 y.o. to sit in, but the child's head is now reaching the headrest, and it's so uncomfortable that the child was squawking about how it hurt.

Several months ago, a similar discussion was going on. One person mentioned that the headrests from the 2007 series seats would fit (the posts are the same spacing). The headrests in that model don't have the severe forward tilt as the ones that have "active" head restraints.