Chill Out Your Ride with Cooled Seats

We’re in the thick of summer, so things are hot and sweaty in most parts of the country. Even with your air-conditioning running full blast, there’s the threat of bare skin hitting a scalding hot seat. Here’s the good news: there is a wide variety of seat-cooler solutions that can make your ride more comfortable. Check out these great solutions for cooled seats.

The Original Beaded Seat Cover

A beaded seat cover is perhaps the simplest approach for cooling and massaging your back. Long the secret of taxi drivers and long-haul truckers, these marvels are designed with small gaps between the beads allowing for air circulation to lower the temperature of your back and legs.  Installation is easy, and the rugged construction of a beaded seat cover will keep you comfortable for many years.

Cooled Seat Pads With Built-in Fans

These seat cushions can insulate you with built-in cooling fans, warm you in the winter with heat, and keep you happy all year long with a massage feature. They are easy to install by plugging into the 12-volt supply of power in your cabin. Built-in fans circulate air to your lower back and thighs. These inexpensive seat pads come in a variety of styles and colors and are compatible with just about any car or truck.

Cooled Seat Conversion Kits Add Ventilation

Seat cooling and heating kits can be installed in most car or truck seats. They are designed to work just like systems provided by automakers in new cars. They include ventilation fans for cooling and seat-heater elements that fit between the seat cover and cushion. These kits include all the switches and wiring needed to integrate them seamlessly into your seats.

This cooled seat solution requires a modest level of DIY skill. The process includes removing the existing seat covers, installing the cooling and heating components, and connecting the components to your cars electrical system.  These kits work best with either perforated leather or cloth seat covers so that the air can circulate.

Here’s an important tip for installing these seat coolers: If you disconnect the seat airbag, make sure to reconnect it before testing. Otherwise, you may trigger the airbag-error light. As you can see, these kits can be challenging to install, but the result matches the look of the original seat. For more details, check out this post on heated seat solutions.

Upgrade The Entire Seat

Rather than modifying the seat, how about replacing with it new ones that keep you cool? Manufacturers use standardized mounting points for their original-equipment seats. That makes it easy to swap out your existing car or truck seats with versions that have the cooling, heating, and massage features.

Many of these cooled seats have controls built into the seats. It’s easy to swap them out for new ones with airbags and other features for a plug-and-play solution.