What's up with young males and reclined seats?

[southpawboston]

i've noticed that a lot of young males (i'm talking 18 to late 20s maybe) think it's "cool" to sit in the front seat with the seatback really reclined (like 45 degrees!). their backs aren't even touching the seatback. they have to hold themselves up by holding the steering wheel. what's up with that??!! :confused: are they trying to go for the "laid back" look? to make things worse, to compensate for the extra disance between their backs and the seatback, they slide the seat forward more, positioning themselves closer to the steering wheel. i gave a co-worker friend of mine (who was in his mid-20s at the time) a hard time (jokingly hard time) about it when i had to ride in his car once and noticed his seatback at about a 45 degree angle... i asked him if he really thought he was cool sitting that way. he got really defensive and insisted it was more "comfortable" that way... yeah, right. i can only imagine the danger of submarining that that poses!!! not to mention that in a rear-end collision, your head protection is really compromised.

and living in the city now, i see this almost ALL the time.

do any of your DH's have the tendency to sit this way?

sometimes i just don't get young men... i mean, i was one once (not THAT long ago ;) ) but i never had the desire to put myself in an unsafe and uncomfortable position just to look "cool".

[remken]

I notice that here all the time and was wondering the same thing.

[Chameleon]

I've seen it too, and I don't get it. My DH sits back further than I do, but no where to that degree.

[Starlight]

I think it has something to do with Darwin... survival of the fittest.

Unfortunately, that can't be true, because then it would seem that parents don't want their kids to survive. I tell you, if I ever caught one of my boys driving like that, they wouldn't be able to sit for a week.

Of course, we don't spank, and even if we did, we certainly wouldn't be spanking 16 yr olds. But you get the idea.

I think its just a "cool" thing.

:shrug-shoulders:

[remken]

My h sits with his back also but not quite that bad.

[Yoshi]

Well, my DH is an old guy, LOL (56) and he sits up straight, hands on 10 and 2 o'clock.....so no comparisons there!:D

I think these young guys in those Honda Civics with the spoilers and low profile tires are doing that to achieve a real sports car feel, IMO. They look like they wish they could be driving a Lamborghini or something. Maybe that's it?

[cpsaddict]

It's not just guys around here. My sister was practically driving from the back seat of her Nissan and it's only slightly better in her VW Beetle. Not only laid back, but a little off to the side. So they end up not even near the airbag. She also insisted it was comfortable that way. Righttt.

I think they think they are "cool" or something. If I drove that way I'd never be able to reach the clutch!

[skaterbabscpst]

It's supposedly the "cool" way to ride. Sadly, I imagin there are a lot of serious injuries and ejections from it. There's no way thje seatbelt could protect them that way. And it's not just young men - high school & college age girls do it too.

[lynsgirl]

Dh and I have noticed this for a couple of years now and it drives me bonkers! As IF barely being able to see over the steering wheel and half-laying in the back seat is the "comfiest" way to drive. :rolleyes: No, it's more a "cool" thing that I think is soooo uncool :p. Kind of on par with those who still persist in wearing their pant-like garments (since I'm not sure all of what they're wearing IS pants all the time hehe) hanging off the end of their behind. You know - cool like that. :whistle:

[murphydog77]

Yeah, the cops around here have a nickname for it which I won't say in a public forum ;). Though I never would have thought it cool, the older I get, the more I shake my head.

[cmm7]

Girls do it here, too! But none of my friends... at least not when they're in a car with me. They know I would b***h them out!

[arly1983]

Its probably something that was in a music video and caught on..

[ThreeBeans]

It looks sooooo stupid, too :rolleyes:

[jn__]

ugh this annoys me. They lay back, and way off to the side, with their left arm at 12:00 and a dumb sneer...

my husband sits reclined and I hate it... but he has to because he's too tall for his little car, and if he wasn't a little reclined his head would be pressing against the roof. And yet somehow this didn't stop him from buying the car...

[arly1983]

ugh this annoys me. They lay back, and way off to the side, with their left arm at 12:00 and a dumb sneer...

my husband sits reclined and I hate it... but he has to because he's too tall for his little car, and if he wasn't a little reclined his head would be pressing against the roof. And yet somehow this didn't stop him from buying the car...

LOL, and my DH swears my Honda CRV is extremely too small for him:whistle: Well, his knees are in the dash.

[TheRealMacGyver]

I could never figure this out either. When I was younger a lot of people (mostly NY-ers) would lean over to the center of the car, hang their left hand over the wheel and think they just looked way too cool. I think it's kind of the same, just different position. I personally can't drive unless my seat is completely upright. This lying down posture just can't be safe though. Between that and the 1000 Amp 12" woofers, I think the jobs of the future will be in chiropractic and hearing doctors!

[southpawboston]

Not only laid back, but a little off to the side. So they end up not even near the airbag.

When I was younger a lot of people (mostly NY-ers) would lean over to the center of the car, hang their left hand over the wheel and think they just looked way too cool.

yep, i see that too... left hand on wheel, body leaning toward the center. when you're behind them it looks like their head is above the center console.

[XmasEve]

I don't think it's that new a fad. My brother's over 30 and he's been driving in a "near recline" since he had a learner's permit. I don't understand it. My dh does recline more than seems right to me, but he's really tall and says it's the only way he's not cramped. My bro, tho, is just over 5.5 feet tall... They both make fun of me for sitting bolt upright, but it's the only way I can see clearly over the dash :o

[joolsplus3]

We had a 19 yo nanny in L.A. that used to do that... the seat would be ALL reclined, headrests taken out of the back seats, and she took the carseats out of course, so she could haul all her friends from bar to bar....

I wonder if there are more ejections and submarining showing up in the injury and accident data? The vehicle manuals I've read are very clear that it's BAD to recline while the car is in motion (yeah, I know these kids aren't reading them, lol)

[MagnificentMama]

Yeah, the cops around here have a nickname for it which I won't say in a public forum ;).

:ROTFLMAO: Hehehe, I know the ssaayyinnngg. :ROTFLMAO: I just started reading this thread and now i'm singing Ridin' Dirty by Chamillionaire in my head (oh and FTR, i dislike the song, its just one of those easy songs to have wedged in my head) Have no fear though, everyone. I've honestly never seen anyone riding like that, WITH their seat belt on. I don't think it's possible to ride like that with a seatbelt on.

[broken4u05]

I have put my seat back a little when i am parked and than forgot about it when i start driving and i have to stop because it does not feel right. I do not like my seat all the way upright but just a little backward. My ex drives the way you are talking about and when i would drive his car i had to move it. Drived me crazy

[arly1983]

:ROTFLMAO: Hehehe, I know the ssaayyinnngg. :ROTFLMAO: I just started reading this thread and now i'm singing Ridin' Dirty by Chamillionaire in my head (oh and FTR, i dislike the song, its just one of those easy songs to have wedged in my head) Have no fear though, everyone. I've honestly never seen anyone riding like that, WITH their seat belt on. I don't think it's possible to ride like that with a seatbelt on.


Oh, no, I have that song stuck In my head now.

This morning when I first read this thread I got that ghost riders song shuck in my head from that special they did on that. :eek: Scary stuff!

[Loves2sing]

It is definaltley a "cool" thing, but next time, watch to see what kind of car they are driving. My 20 year old BIL just bought a 2007 Eclipse, he now sits right up where he should even though in his older car, a sunfire, he sat way back and reclined. Reason? He realizes now that he can drive his car much better in the proper position, and he can corner waaaay faster if he is actually being held in his seat. My husband was the same way before he bought his sports car back in 97, but now he sits like a normal person in his family mobile, because he knows he has nothing to prove. Unfortunatley most these kids will either learn the hard way, or just have to grow up. Except for my Dad. He thinks he's like 7' tall, even though he's not even 6'. So he "needs" his seat reclined way too far, but I think it's just because his gut is in the way!:p

[Lilsid]

I have seen it and I dont get it. DH and I are the same height so we never have to move the seat at all. All the cars have the seats in the perfect position for both of us.

I have friends that have 35-month-old twins and they drive like this. I was helping them get the boys in the car the other day and I freaked out. First of all they have to MA's FF for the boys who are yes almost 3 but they weigh 21lbs each and are failure to thrive babies. So they should still be RF. Then the two front seats are so reclined they have to remove the two front headrests so the kids don't kick them. (Oh I get it you want to be kicked in the head).:thumbsdown:

I just dont get it at all. I need to be in an almost upright position to see and concentrate on driving. My children’s lives are in my hands. I dont care what I look like driving. I want to be safe.

[Patriot201]

I don't understand it. It doesn't make sense at all.

[Simplysomething]

Yeah, the cops around here have a nickname for it which I won't say in a public forum ;).


Oh, great, pique our curiosity and then not post it. I imagine it's a taboo term..but dang! lol

[southpawboston]

It is definaltley a "cool" thing, but next time, watch to see what kind of car they are driving.

well, often it's a studded up, modded old civic, or some other old beater that the driver thinks is some mean street machine, but it can also be a newer more expensive car as well. my friend who had his seat that way had a brand new audi...

[skaterbabscpst]

We drink rice milk and a while back dh took great pleasure in posting a picture of a carton of it in a "rice burner" thread. :rolleyes: Around here it seems the type to sit that way drive that kind of car. :whistle:

[XmasEve]

well, often it's a studded up, modded old civic, or some other old beater that the driver thinks is some mean street machine, but it can also be a newer more expensive car as well. my friend who had his seat that way had a brand new audi...

LOL My "reclined driver" bro drives a '92 Mazda MPV, my old minivan! And to respond to a previous poster, he DOES buckle up. Not even sure why, since it seems the seatbelt would be merely eye candy as he slipped right through it in an accident...

I was thinking about this though, and think it all relates to body language. We all use body language so much on so many levels, and this could just be one facet of that. We use body language to signal our affiliation with a particular group. My bro never was a gang banger, but he was a very white kid in a gang-infested high school, so he HAD to fit in. And I think the timing also had to do with some serious conflict he was having with our dad at the time, and our dad is a straight up, hands at 10 and 2 kind of driver. So after several hours of pondering this thread (don't know whether to thank you or not for starting it, southpaw ;) ) I think my brother began doing it to make a statement about who he is. And he was probably never even aware he was making that statement purposely. And, well, he's older now, and try as he might he's the spitting image of my dad and both are hellbent on remaining stuck in their ways, so I see no chance that he'll ever raise his seat back. :(

I wonder if he gets really uncomfortable when he has to fly somewhere and they make him put his seat in the upright position for take off and landing? :p

[KAK22]

There was a news report recently about people not positioned correctly (seatbelts, seats too reclined, and headrests not correct.) It said you need to check your vehicle manual and do accordingly! Someone complained that the headrest needs to be moved if different people sit in different seats - so it's not that hard to move!

[Connor's Mom]

I am sooooooo glad that DH's car has 2 person programable seats as he drives with the seat reclined and I can just get in and push my button and it automatically goes back to my settings. I don't see how he is comfortable driving that way but he says he is, lol. Hate it when he drives my car cause he changes my seat all up, ugh.

[beebear23]

It's about as stupid and pathetic as the waist band of hte pants worn around the butt.. That is so GROSS!!!

[InTheWoods]

I haven't seen it.

Wonder if it has anything to do with low-riding pants.
Or maybe it's easier to fart with the seatback reclined.
Or it's an abdominal workout, doing a chronic crunch while driving.

Don't understand it. Why not just sit on a stool if you want to drive that way.