Customer Reviews

Wagan IN9738 Black 12V Heated Seat Cushion

5 star:		(111)
4 star:		(79)
3 star:		(32)
2 star:		(28)
1 star:		(53)

 

 

I was looking for a heated seat cushion for my Subaru Forester to go through the hard winters we have here in Michigan. This one sold by Amazon is a winner! I honestly haven't found a better price, even for similar brands, around the net. I paid $17.99 (october 2006) for it plus free shipping since I bought more stuff to go over $25. Anyways...

This heated cushion is pretty powerful and I usually set it to HI just to warm up quickly and 5 minutes later I switch it to LOW or OFF because it's hot enough. Most of the time I just let it on LOW mode and it's pretty comfortable.

If you're looking for something that you don't need to pay an arm and a leg for it, but still does its job of keeping your bottom toasty, you should give this product a try.

NOTE: I have been using it for 2 weeks now. I'll update this review sometime in January 2007 when the winter here is really bad, to tell you guys whether I'm still happy with my purchase or not. But so far so good (temps here are already close to 32... :( )

FEB-09.2007:
Product still working like new. I actually bought a second one for my other car. Like other people said, the plastic clamps are not that great, I agree. But it's a small trade-off for something priced at $18, I think.

The seat does get hot quickly, which is the good part. However, as mentioned by other reviewers, the elastic bands fastening the seat to your car seat break easily, so the cusion can start to get bunched up and will not hold its shape well. Finally as another reviewer mentioned, this WILL drain your battery if you leave it on... nice idea and price, but watch the limitations.

I live on the north slope of Pikes Peak, at 8,000 feet, and my older SUV doesn't live in a garage -- so a seat warmer makes a HUGE difference to my comfort level. When I saw this Wagan Tech seat warmer selling for less than $20, I figured I wouldn't get much, especially as I was replacing a seat warmer that cost many times more. I'm happy to say this product works as well as its more expensive cousins, and I particularly like having more than one setting to choose from.

The product definitely does what it says, but I'm undecided if I am going to keep it. Although, for $20 I may as well. I just started using it in my 2002 Subaru Outback Sport. It does heat up quickly and keeps you toasty, but the padding is a bit too thick for me. It sat me up much higher and further forward than I am used to. You will most likely have to do some maneuvering of your seat settings to get back to your preferred seating height.
Unfortunately it looks like all the seat heaters out there have a fair amount of padding, which I imagine is necessary to have for the heating element. I realize it is a "universal fit", but the top portion does bow forward away from the back of my bucket seat with the two straps around the back. Hopefully this will mold itself to fit better over time. Not crazy about the fit & padding, but it keeps you comfortably warm which is better than nothing! If we could choose half stars, I'd give it 3 1/2 stars.

UPDATE: 11/14/08
I was really loving my seat warmer, and then yesterday it stopped working! No more heat. Unfortunately, I am past my Amazon return window. But it does have a 90 day limited warranty, so I emailed Wagan to see what they could do. I will update if I get a response.

Update: 11/18/08
I received a quick response from Wagan with a RA# to return for a replacement. They also said there is a 1 year warranty on this item when the Amazon product page said it was only 90 days. It will take 3 weeks or so to process, so hopefully I will have my replacement before it gets too cold. Good customer service though!

Love this. Very toasty, heats up fast. My husband has heated car seats and I wanted them for my van but an install job is very expensive. This is just as good and a lot less money!

Y'know, I wonder if products like this ever get field tested!? The crappy straps broke almost instantly and I was prepared to accept that rather than deal with going through the hassle of returning it. Now one of my units stopped working completely.

Even if the company comes through with an equitable returns policy, I'm leaving this feedback as is because it's a fair reflection of the quality of it.

I read the slightly negative reviews of this item before I purchased it, but they didn't seem too bad so I went ahead. The high setting is very toasty, though the low setting doesn't really seem to do much. Considering how much the car manufacturers charge for the heated seat option, this is ideal. I did accidentally leave it plugged in and "on" one day. Someone else wrote that this would drain your battery in three hours. That didn't happen (mine was plugged in for more than 8 hours) - perhaps the battery was already weak. An "auto-off" would be a nice added feature, but other than that, it's great. I actually placed it underneath my seat cover to eliminate the "bunching". No problems.

The seat cushion is dangerous, as it malfunctioned after only two weeks of intermittend use and correct installaton. It burned my wife's back, my fingers and burned a hole in my car seat.

This thing puts out some awesome heat, and it heats up very quickly, only takes a minute or so. However, within 2 weeks, the main elastic band that holds the back on to the seat broke. Not really a huge deal, as most if not all of the heat is concentrated under your...eh, bottom.

This seat cushion is great. I always wished I had heated seats, so when I saw this item I had to try it. Living in Iowa, we have very cold nights and mornings. I've only had it for a couple days, but wow talk about nice item to have when you get in a cold car to go to work in the morning! It heats up so quick you are toasty in no time.