unexpected back and neck problems from A6

[A6 newbie]

Hi all, this may or may not be similar to another post by Cortecs on pedal and footrest issues but as Im desperate I will start my own post in case anyone can help with an update. I have driven many types and makes of car and vans in my life , including a 2019 A3 all around europe last year all with no problems and without even bothering to adjust the seats. I have also driven my own A4 for 96k miles with no problem. Recently I decided to by an A6 s line  , quattro which I really love except it really hates me! What happens is that after even a short time driving I start to get neck ache, hip ache which is then followed by a lot of dizziness once I have left the car. I have tried a wide range of seat adjustments to see what helps but no position seems to make any difference to the problem. Having done some research I have found some people complaining of offset pedals which may or may not be the issue so my question is has anyone got any ideas on what might cause such a strong reaction and if so then what is the solution ? It is so bad i haven't driven it for a week as advised by my chiropractor, any help or thoughts gratefully received as Im really keen to solve this problem) Many thanks. 

[mstv]

Hi Luke,

I went from owning 4 Skoda Superbs (MkIIs and then MkIIIs) into an A6 like yours. I found myself getting numbness under my thighs, and I was concerned in case it would turn out to be a showstopper. In my case, the solution was to have the seat much lower than I was previously used to. Once I'd reached that level of adjustment, I've had no further comfort issues. If you haven't tried this, it might be worth a go. Not suggesting for a moment this will resolve it for you or anyone else, it's just my experience. 

Have you tried also adjusting the lumbar support? I set that to the point where I could only just detect the pressure from it and no further.

You might also try going on the motorway (If you can get to one quickly from starting a drive) and seeing if the problem is less after a period driving with the cruise control only - so you have minimum pedal usage (easier if you have adaptive cruise control).

The only other thought is perhaps to go for a test drive in another identical model via the dealership in case there's something faulty about your specific driver's seat...

Good luck!

[A6 newbie]

Hi Mstv , thanks so much for sharing your experience which has at least given me a little hope that I won't have to get rid of the car . I will try again the lowered seat suggestion and I have played with lumbar support but mainly just to adjust it so I couldn't feel it at all but I will try that too. I do live near a motorway so that is an option  and your final suggestion is the best as that will indicate whether it is A6 in general or just mine but I can't help thinking it is unlikely my seat is wrongly installed but you never know. The part of this story that really confuses me is, as I said that I have driven my old A4 for years and another A3 for hundreds of miles all over europe with np problem at all , is it really possible that Audi dropped the ball with a car of this quality and price ? Thanks.

[cliffcoggin]

I wonder if the previous owner of the car was, shall we say, rather large, and has damaged the seat. Try the passenger seat for comparison.

[mstv]

Certainly some obviously feel it's not good - reading the other posts on this topic. Once I'd sorted out my own seat position, I was driving 150 miles a day 4 days a week for 9 months [until a job change reduced the commute significantly].

Edited August 23 by mstv

[FMOB]

Awful situation to be in, I suggest you keep a diary of the changes you make to the seat position and what affect it has as it is easy to lose yourself with adjustments.

For me, I ended up extending the foot rest with wooden blocks as this reduced the impact of the offset pedals a bit, intention was to closer align the footrest with the throttle pedal. The other change that helped me was extending the front of the seat squab out to support the back of the thigh.

I am rather stunned at just how !Removed! awful the seats and pedal positions are, considering how long people have been designing cars, !Removed! it up this badly is unbelievable.

[A6 newbie]

On 8/23/2024 at 5:34 PM, cliffcoggin said:

I wonder if the previous owner of the car was, shall we say, rather large, and has damaged the seat. Try the passenger seat for comparison.

thanks for that thought, seriously hadn't thought of that but to be honest the seats seem ok but I am going to do as you suggest and try the passenger seat whilst being driven around!

[A6 newbie]

Thanks @FMOB agreed about keeping note of the changes as its hard to tell otherwise although I would say that I have tried the seat with many positions now and (having never had to really bother in cars before) and none seems to make a difference which I think makes sense as the whole point is that my hips start to hurt and then my whole back and neck go which is a really strong reaction to such a seemingly small detail ...which I suspect may be due to the pedal issue you mention but with that said this is obviously not affecting every A6 owner but I can't see what would be different between mine and others since the seat just sits on a rail which presumably is put in uniformly. 

Thanks to @mstv for giving me some hope ! Apart from the costs of the chiropractor and discomfort I love it as a car so really don't want to get rid of it or even know what I would want to buy if I did ! 

[FMOB]

1 hour ago, A6 newbie said:

Thanks @FMOB agreed about keeping note of the changes as its hard to tell otherwise although I would say that I have tried the seat with many positions now and (having never had to really bother in cars before) and none seems to make a difference which I think makes sense as the whole point is that my hips start to hurt and then my whole back and neck go which is a really strong reaction to such a seemingly small detail ...which I suspect may be due to the pedal issue you mention but with that said this is obviously not affecting every A6 owner but I can't see what would be different between mine and others since the seat just sits on a rail which presumably is put in uniformly. 

Thanks to @mstv for giving me some hope ! Apart from the costs of the chiropractor and discomfort I love it as a car so really don't want to get rid of it or even know what I would want to buy if I did ! 

I don't usually have trouble getting comfortable in cars having rented many different cars over the years without issue and having owned several Audi's not experienced problems before. I am distinctly unimpressed with modern Audi vehicles and decided to buy a B7 RS4 to be a) comfortable and b) no annoying tech that doesn't work properly.