Anyone who’s ever driven for long periods of time knows how much strain it can cause on your body. When you step out after a long drive and stretch your legs, you can feel every muscle trying to cramp up on you. Your back, neck, and even your legs feel the effects of spending long hours seated and driving.
Thankfully, car massage seats can help alleviate some of the strain. How can they do this? Read on to learn more about the many benefits you can experience with a massaging car seat, what to look for in these seats, which cars have these features built-in, and what brands are best for consumers.
What Are the Benefits of Car Massage Seats?
Before we begin looking at the different types of car massage seats on the market, let’s first examine what the benefits are to having them. Some of the many health benefits you may experience from having a car massage seat include:
Improved Circulation
While scientific evidence on this can be slim, anecdotal accounts claim that certain massage techniques can improve your circulation. Deep tissue and Swedish massage are the techniques most well known for having this effect. Finding a car massage seat that offers a Swedish massage function might prove tricky, though, and you’ll certainly pay more for it.
Reduced Muscular Tension
The most obvious benefit to any car seat massager is reduced muscular tension. Most of us drive with our seat or backrest in the wrong position, which leads to extreme tension in our backs, necks, and legs. While we should take as many breaks as possible while on long drives, most of us try to get from one destination to the next in as few stops as possible.
Stress Reduction
Receiving a massage, no matter when, helps lower your stress levels. Driving can prove a high-stress experience, especially if you’re on the interstate for long stresses. What habitual driver wouldn’t benefit from reduced stress on the road? We know we would.
What to Look for In Your Car Massage Seats
Now that you understand the benefits of having a massaging seat in your car, let’s take a closer look at what you should look for when purchasing one for yourself. Some factors you may want to consider when making your purchase include:
Power
Car seat massagers often have the ability to be used in cars and in the home. If you want one that you can use both on the road and off, you’ll want one with multiple power connection options. You’ll need a cigarette lighter cord to use your massager in the car and a normal or USB power cord for in the home.
Comfort
The end goal of all massage seats should be your comfort. If the massager doesn’t improve your comfort levels, it’s worse than useless. So, you need to look for a car massage seat that has a soft but durable cover for the massaging technology. In addition, you’ll need to make sure the massager has proper lumbar support.
Heat
One of the ways that car massage seats can boost your circulation is with heat. Warmth helps your blood vessels dilate, allowing greater circulation. Improved circulation helps improve your muscular and skin health. It can also help prevent a common driver health issue: deep vein thrombosis, or blood clots deep in your calves and thighs.
Of course, this heat is anything but a boon on an already hot day, so look for models with optional heat.
Versatility
The best car massage seats have a host of features aside from your standard ‘vibrating massage’. Whether you want Shiatsu or a rolling massage, or some other technique, you can find something to suit your preference. Ideally, you’ll want a massager that can swap between these functions at will.
Price
As always, whenever you’re examining a purchase, price should be a deciding factor. You need to consider which car massage seat has the features that will benefit you the most while costing you the least. Depending on where they’re made, massaging car seats can run anywhere from twenty to thirty dollars to over a hundred dollars.
Are There Any Cars With Massaging Seats By Default?
With all this talk of external car massage seats, you might wonder if there are any luxury cars with massaging seats by default. Unfortunately, massage seats in luxury cars are a trend that has yet to catch on the way it should. However, some models do offer the feature in their premium models.
Which Car Massage Seats Are the Best?
With the benefits and features of car massage seats well-established, it’s time to take a deep dive into some of the best choices available to consumers. Below, we have some of the best-rated aftermarket car seat massagers, which include:
SNAILAX Shiatsu Back Massager With Heat
This incredible back massager from the SNAILAX brand offers a technology that can mimic the hands of a skilled therapist. How does it accomplish this? By using a special gel to cover the massaging nodes, it takes away some of the pressure points often found in cheaper massage seats.
Even better, this car massage seat offers vibration and shiatsu functions. It also allows you to spot massage your neck, lower back, or upper back. This model also has heat and an automatic shutoff to protect you from overheating. The only downside to this model is that it wears off rather quickly.
MoCuishle Shiatsu Neck Back Massager
Unlike the SNAILAX mentioned above, this MoCuishle is a simple neck or back cushion, rather than a full seat. It’s easy to install at the neck or lumbar area of your car seat, and may also be used in your home. It’s a touch loud but it offers a kneading massage and breathable fabric. It also has a longer shelf life than some similar products.
Zyllion Shiatsu Back and Neck Massager
The Zyllion massager is, like the MoCuishle above, a neck and back massager rather than a full massage seat. However, with its easy installation via a vegan leather strap, you can easily place it in problem areas where you need it most. It has a ninety-day warranty and offers up to a one-year replacement guarantee, so you know the company stands by its products. However, while it does have a heating option, the temperatures can get uncomfortably high.
Nursal Shiatsu Massage Seat Cushion
This Nursal massage cushion is so high-end, it could pass for one of those fancy massage chairs from a furniture store. Part of this high-end feel is due to its durable leather structure. The other part is due to its ergonomic structure and advanced massaging technology.
This whole-seat massager has four rotating massage nodes that can offer a deep, kneading massage to your tense back. It also offers a vibrating seat massage and heat therapy with an auto-shut-off feature. The only downside to this car massage seat is that, if you aren’t used to deep massages, it might be a bit painful.
Comfier Massage Seat Cushion With Heat
The Comfier massage seat cushion is not, like many others on this list, a Shiatsu massager. Rather, it’s a vibration-only massager. However, it has three intensities and five programmed modes of massage. This cushion also allows you to combine your massages in four areas: the seat, lower back, upper back, and neck.
Due to the complexity of its features, it comes with a manual to help you familiarize yourself with what it can do. It also has a heating mode, but the temperatures this model reaches are significantly higher than most on the market, putting the risk of overheating much higher. However, it does have automatic shut-off to help mitigate some of that risk.
One last thing you should note: It has been known to have some durability concerns as well, so keep that in mind before you buy.
SLOTHMORE Vibration Back Massager
The Slothmore seat massager, like the Comfier one, is a vibration-only cushion. It has ten vibrating massage nodes, extending its reach across the body.
It, like the Comfier model, has five massage modes and three vibration speeds. However, unlike the above cushion, it has a far greater degree of customizability. You can program it to massage your neck, thighs, hips, lumbar area, upper back, middle back, or lower back in any combination.
The Slothmore cushion also has the option for heat with a fifteen-minute shut-off. However, unlike its competitors, it has memory foam, giving it greater comfort and flexibility to your particular body profile.
Let’s Recap
Car massage seats can take a lot of the stress off of your body and mind while you’re driving. With a wide variety of aftermarket brands offering features that will help you melt stress away while on the road for long hours, you no longer need to live with severe neck and leg pain as a fact of your nomadic life.
If you need further tips on how you can relax on those long drives, feel free to check out our blog each day for more content like this!
