Friday, November 18, 2011

My Heated Seat

Before we get started, first go over to Run With Jill and sign up for the Holiday Blogger Gift Exchange. It is a blast – I did it last year. It’s like Secret Santa meets the blog world and they have babies, or something like that. What’s not to like?

The heat in my car is not working. This is a crisis for someone like me who is cold when I have on fleece pajamas, am sitting on a heating pad and am drinking hot tea. Sometimes I fart to warm myself up. It’s a survival mechanism.

P1110400

This is my best imitation of a peasant. If you call me “four eyes,” I’ll kill you

This got me to thinking/dreaming about buying a new car. I think about all of the things I would want in a car. Keyless entry, leather seats, 495 miles to the gallon, wipe warmer built into the console. But, what I want the most in my new car is heated seats. Have you ever ridden in a car with heated seats? There are many bonuses:

  • If you ass is sore from running it feels very good
  • If you pass gas, there is an exaggerated effect (if you like that sort of thing)
  • If you are slightly constipated, the heated seats sometimes move things along
  • You can switch your position to put any body part on the seat. The heat loosens the muscle and provides increased circulation
  • If you grilled cheese got cold, you could warm it up on the seat
  • If the heat goes out in your house, you could warm up yourself or the dog on the seat (just don’t forget to open the garage door. It would be a shame to die of carbon monoxide poisoning while heating your butt).

I think you buy this car at Target

I am sure there are many more advantages, but these are the ones that immediately came to mind.

Don’t get me wrong. My 2003 Explorer is fine and has been good to me over the years. It’s a decent car for my kids and their friends. It totes all of my workout shit and has a hitch for my bike rack. I can ignore the vomit stains my nephew left in the back and that sticky stuff on the floor.  If I can find a battery operated space heater I will be all set. I think that would be a very safe option.

What feature would you most want in a new car?

What do you drive? Is it a good athlete’s car?

SUAR

53 comments:

  1. I'm going to go buy a car with heated seats in the next hour or so. No, seriously, we were already planning to do that today, but now your post made me extra excited to go fart on some heated seats.

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  2. Driving the Xterra right now but looking at getting a Honda Element. Did a post about this recently.

    And the Element has what I would want and that is to have my bike INSIDE the car when I'm driving down the highway.

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  3. A lexus suv with a bike rack and heated seats....!

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  4. Remote starter thing. car would would be all nicce and warm by the time I got to it. Yay... a girl can dream.

    Sorry your bum is now cold

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  5. Lexus SUV with heated seats and NO bike rack :0 I just throw that bad boy in the back. My next car has to have air conditioned seats...A-mozing!

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  6. OK

    1. riding in my hubby's little Honda Accord always rocks because he has heated seats and I friggen love them.

    2. I'm always cold too. As I am wrapped in a blanket/shawl/snuggie type thing and post with a space heater pointed at my feet as I leave this post.

    3. I have the same pj bottoms.

    4. I'm sooo doing the blogging gift exchange -thanks for the 411.

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  7. I always drove a really crappy car until this year when I finally broken down and bought a used Hyundai Sonata. Yes, it's the nicest car I've ever owned.

    I'm likely a total cheapskate (I prefer the word "frugal") but I just can't make myself spend money on cars.

    I've always LOATHED heated seats. My parents have had a few cars with heated seats and every time I've ever turned them on I got extremely uncomfortable. There was something about the temperature of my ass being warmer than the rest of my body that I just couldn't deal with. I felt so awkward.

    Anyway, have an awesome weekend Beth!

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  8. A Honday Odyssey. It has heated seats and they are AWESOME. They feel great after a long run, my ass is toasy by the time I get to work, and the only time I am fully warm is while driving this beautiful monster. It holds everything I could possibly need. The only thing I don't like about it is that I resisted the minivan for so long. My life would have been much better if I had just bought it long long ago. I love this van almost to the point of inappropriateness. I feel sure that a log truck will run over it next week as a punishment from on high for having such feelings about a material good.

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  9. I love my heated seats on race day...keep the glutes and hammys warm and ready to go. Mmmm...did somebody say "Ham"?
    OK...back on point-I'm not a bells and whistles kinda guy but I would get these again in my next car.

    And how have you not invested in the Forever Lazy lounge wear? It speaks to us all...and that is sad.
    https://www.orderforeverlazy.com/

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  10. I drive a Hyundai Santa Fe with a hitch so I can put my bike rack on the back. No heated seats, though. I think this is mostly a problem if you have leather seats, which I do not.

    We used the back of the car to transport our dogs so now I feel justified throwing whatever I want back there. Also comes in handy for transporting smelly running club buddies after a race :-) Just kidding. Kind of.

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  11. Heated seats are literally the only bright spot to my car (2004 VW Passat wagon), which otherwise is a total money pit (the engine light has been on again for weeks...I'm igoring it and this seems to be working well, at least for our banking account). I love my husband's Subaru Forester (which also has heated seats, AWD and a decent amount of leg room & cargo space for a small SUV) and am thinking that we will either replace my hunk o' German junk with an Outback or another Forester when it finally up and dies.

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  12. My heated seats are a godsend. I am always cold and am not too proud to admit I've used them even in summer months!

    I'll never go without heated seats again.

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  13. Yeah... I bought a 1999 Audi A4. The absolute selling point was the heated seats. They rock so hard.

    Side note: they are also awesome if you have cramps because it's the girl time of the month. Seriously. I am tempted to go for a drive a 3AM sometimes because of this.

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  14. Subaru Forester - Yes heated seats, 4WD room for all my hiking gear, running stuffage, roof rack for kayaks (bikes can fit inside with back seat down). Plus almost 30 mpg. Also fun to drive

    If the stuff can't fit in the back of the Forester, I just take the Dakota, haul everything you need to trailhead or campground/basecamp just no heated seats and a lot worse gas mileage.

    Be careful if you have no heat in Explorer, when I had one and it did that was the Thermostat and waterpump went a little bit later.

    H

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  15. Heated seats rock and I will never have a car without them again.

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  16. My heated seat, only on the fricken drivers side, broke last year. It's miserable in the cold and long Wisconsin winter.

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  17. I got heated seats b/c it came with the turbo package I wanted (great for passing trucks on rural mountain roads when going 75, which I needed - but premium gas yikes!). I grew up in the cold Midwest and thought heated seats were for sissies (grow up on black vinyl seats in the Midwest - ice or sizzle) but I fell in love with them. They are also great for backaches and cramps. Hate turning them off. Love my Subaru Forester but the turbo scoop pulls cold air into the cabin in the winter so you NEED the heated seats.

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  18. I LOVE MY HEATED SEATS! They are the best for warming up the buns after a cold/hard run!

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  19. I LOVE my car. And it has heated seats :) I have a Honda Odyssey minivan. And to all you haters out there... minivans ROCK!!!!!! I swore I would never ever drive one, but it is spacious and comfortable, handles great, you can fit a million bikes in there without putting all of the seats (just some) down, you can change your clothes in there without flashing the entire world, the mileage isn't horrible, it's kind of like getting into an airplane with an aisle up the middle and a little dvd player swinging down for your entertaining pleasure... And the automatic opening doors rock my world. So yeah... heated seats.

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  20. Funny story about heated seats...around Christmas time about 10 years ago we were visiting my in-laws in Montana. Heated seats were just really starting to become available and she had just bought a totally loaded Tahoe, which came with them, but I didn't know that. So while on the way to church Christmas Eve she apparently turned the heated seats on, as the seat got warmer I started squirming in my seat seriously afraid I had just peed on my mother-in-law's brand new tan leather seat! Imagine my relief to find out it was just the seat warmer! I chuckle to myself every time I'm in a car with them :)

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  21. I love my heated seats. Would I would really want in a new car is a heated steering wheel!!

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  22. heated seats is the first option my wife chose when she bought her RAV4. As for me, I have a MINI Cooper, which is an excellent athlete's car, but a lousy hauling people around car.

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  23. A friend with heated seats in her new car accidentally turned them on in July and was sweating so bad she thought she had started having hot flashes before she figured out they were on. The most important feature to me is three door stops. I hate when a car only has two door stops - one when it's only open about a foot and the other when the door is wide open. That makes it hard to get out in a parking lot next to another car if your hands are full without the door trying to slam on you. I'll also never be able to own a car again with headlights that don't shut off automatically. Oh oh, and it must have a recirculate air option. I hate sucking exhaust fumes when I get stuck behind some smelly truck.

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  24. Heated seats are nice. I own a VW Cabrio that has heated seats. Helps with achy muscles after a hard workout. Feels great on cold mornings too! It is a win win!

    For the feature I want most in a new car - tinted windows, iPod/iPhone dock, GPS, Temperature and direction thingy, for it to be newer and bigger than the one I have now so I can put my surfboard, bike, and snowboard in it instead of on top if I am flying solo.

    I really, really, really want a new car. Three years to go before I get out of grad school. In the meantime I salivate.

    Let us know what you decide on! :-)

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  25. I drive a Yukon SUV with CLOTH seats....leather seats and seat warmers are the LAST thing you want in a car in Southern California....just saying

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  26. Our truck (tundra) has heated seats. It's awesome. My friends car has heated AND cooling seats. Which is pretty important in the SC summer... I think they need to also invent a heated steering wheel. I know, first-world problems...

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  27. The seat warmers are by far my favorite car feature. I go out for drives simply to heat my seat.

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  28. an old BMW wagon with heated seats and a sunroof so I can look at the sky while farting on heated seats:)
    two words-PAID FOR (I'll be driving this for a while)

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  29. I have never owned an automatic so my number one feature that a car has to have is that it has to be a stick. I don't want to ruin my streak.

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  30. Mazda CX9. I just got a "pre-owned" 2010. yes, the leather seats had probably been farted on, but I'm not picky. After all, I was driving a Toyota Sienna around for 10 years. The back seats fold right down to store a bike and gym bag. It was very affordable, looks great. Heated seats and bluetooth to listen to my favorite running podcasts. RunRunLive anyone?

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  31. I own (left over from a POS truck) a seat wormer that can either plug into the power adapter in the car or you can use 4 AA batteries in a little compartment on the side. It was a GODSEND in my old POS. Now, my new(er) car, a 2006 Kia Sportage, has a remote start that I'm in love with. It has a TON of room for all of my crap. I practically live out of it.

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  32. PS - "Sometimes I fart to warm myself up: It's a survival mechanism." ... HIlarious. But. If my boyfriend starts using that as an excuse, I'm blaming you. lol

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  33. I drive a Jeep Wrangler which is great for someone like me that accidentally hits things. It's a sturdy little sucker.

    I drove a car without heat once. It was a '92 plymouth sundance. That was awful. It's just not OK when you can see your breath INSIDE of the car.

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  34. Readers want to know......who took that picture of you and how did they do it with out laughing their a$$ off!!

    If I asked my hubby or kids to do that they would die.....so did you just use a timer and run?

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  35. My car doesn't have heated seats, so I have an electric blanket in the car. It plugs into the cigarette lighter! I love it!
    If I ever bought a car with heated seats, they would also have to be air conditioned seats for my boyfriend. I tease him that I love him for his body heat!

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  36. If you have leather seats, seat warmers are a must-have!! I actually like cloth seats better, but nothing beats that seat warmer...especially after a cold run!!

    My Honda Pilot has a nice smush in the back bumper and front fender....so pretty, but the seat warmers do work!

    Thanks for the shout-out, girlfriend!! Happy Weekend!

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  37. We have a Mazda 3 and when my husband said we could afford the package that included heated seats I was ecstatic! Best thing ever since he never wants to have the vents on high heat. :) I'm also thrilled that it has air conditioning since our last car's died about 2 years before we got rid of it... I'm sure you could attach racks to it, but since we don't have bikes it doesn't much matter.

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  38. Man, everyone and their dog linked Jill's post today! I thought I was the only one. :) I know what it is like to be in Colorado and not have heat...sucks! Heat is a must when you live there.

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  39. Oh you need to have heated seats living here. But I am a weenie Southern California so take that into account. I have the new Explorer with heated seats and air conditioned seats. That sounds pretty cool but really it just freezes your crotch and nothing else. I am not sure who designed that and why they thought the crotch region was where the cold air should concentrate. I would think your back would be better, but hey what do I know? If you like your Explorer you should look at the new models. I have been pretty happy with it and it gets good mileage for its size.

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  40. I would LOVE heated seats and 40+MPG! Right now I drive what I think is a great athlete vehicle- a '98 Subaru Imprezza Outback Sport- 4dr, all wheel drive hatchback. Bought it 3.5 years ago or so for real cheap all it needed was an engine (my Bro in law is a mechanic- $150 engine and free labor). I love it!!

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  41. We have an 04 Honda Accord. Not the top of the line model, or we would have had heated seats. Love the car. I don't miss the heated seats. We had them in a rental once, and I didn't tell my wife. She kept on telling me to turn the heat down (it was winter), and she wouldn't let me turn on the air conditioning because it was winter. I nearly peed myself laughing at her till she figured it out.

    It's a reasonably good athletes car. I can get my bike and all my try gear into the trunk only taking the front wheel off, if the back seat is down. It's reliable with a capital R.

    My problem is that I want a bunch of different vehicles. A little smart car for commuting downtown. A minivan to take all my crap to spin class and races. A big ass pickup when I need to haul some stuff around.

    I'd suggest for you getting one of those seat pads that plug into the lighter. We've got one. I'm going to put it in the car this weekend, since we're finally getting into cooler weather.

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  42. I drive an Element and I love it. I will drive it until it literally falls apart. New engine, new whatever, I will do it. Thus far it is over 150,000 miles (I drive a lot) and is going great. It makes me so happy I've talked other family members into buying them as well.

    I love the thing most when we go camping. Not only can you fit anything in it (including a new stove in the box, though that was not for camping and the guys at the appliance store did not believe me until they saw it) but you can spray it out when it is dirty. Plastic floor.

    Plus you can put foam toast coming out of the top and make people laugh. It totally looks like a toaster. I have no pride. None at all.

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  43. Heated seats are the best things EVAR. We have heated seats in our Mazda 5, and I just love how it warms our lower back as well as our bums. I have been tempted when my lower back is sore or even just cold to go out there and run the car engine so I can sit on my heated seat. Having to go out in the street to get to my car is not cool tho, coz it's usually too cold!!!

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  44. oh man, i HATE being cold. and i hate being overly hot, can u say weather weenie? i would LOVE heated seats...except sometimes they come on in people's car and for a second i get scared that i wet myself. :P

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  45. I drove an Explorer for many years...I really like it but it just become to undependable now I have a Murano (used)..I like it a lot..no seat warmers though. I had a Datsun way back when that had no heat...no bueno when it starts to snow and you can't defrost your window...especially in freezing rain....

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  46. It was the only way I would agree to buy a mini-van.....and that thing is my baby! I have never freaking loved a car so much...heated seats dual zone thermostats tons of room and a dvd player with head phones when I really just need a minute on long trips :) Im not sure a late 20 something should love a Honda Odyssey as much as I do!

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  47. You could do it a lot cheaper by buying a few of those wheat heat packs and a car battery operated microwave.

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  48. I have an old Pathfinder and love it--I really hope it never dies cause I'll truly be heartbroken! Plenty of space for my gear, my pup, a ski rack on top, and a bike rack on back. Oh....and heated seats :) SCORE!

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  49. I bought my husband a heated seat cushion for his car (plugs into the console) and then he bought a new VW jetta...with heated seats. Want it? I'm pretty sure I still have it. No, I'm not kidding. email longdazeshortyears at zoominternet dot net. If I can find it, it's yours.

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  50. you can actually get a seat warmer that plugs into your car!! look at target - this one is less than $40, so you can fart and heat to your heart's content!! http://www.target.com/p/Wagan-Heated-Magnetic-Massage-Cushion/-/A-10734453?reco=Rec_pdp_10734453_ClickEV_Banner

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  51. Please don't think I am a total Douche Bag. (maybe I am?) But I drive a Denali XL which has remote start,with heated seats, and I still get irritated in the morning, because the steering wheel heater will not automatically turn on with the auto start, so when I get in the car, the damn steering wheel is cold. I know. I suck. :-( If it helps, we have like 8 months of winter in Montana.....

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  52. Love reading your blog! I'm looking into new car options too. Never thought about all the bonuses of heated seats.... exaggerated effect eh? I've never been able to dutch oven my husband, but maybe this will work.

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