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Should I buy a Tata Safari with captain chairs or a bench seat

17th May 2022, 14:12 by Rahul Nagaraj

If seat comfort were the only consideration for buying an SUV, which would be the better choice?

BHPian Safari Persona recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

I am planning on getting the new Tata Safari (Adventure Persona) but I'm really torn between the 6-seater (captain chairs) and the 7-seater (bench seats). Normally, I would go with the captain seat because seat comfort is paramount for me. However, I've heard conflicting reports on this with some saying that the captain seats are more comfortable because they have individual adjustability and provide better support and some others saying that the wider bench seats are more comfortable because they too can slide & recline and because the captain seats are too narrow.

If seat comfort were the only consideration, which would be the better choice? The captain seats or the bench seats? Can anyone who has spent time on both the captain and bench seats shed some light on this? Thank you.

Update: My use case for the car will be very specific. When I am travelling, I will be driving the car myself and there will be 3 additional passengers at most, so we will not really need the extra capacity that the bench seat provides. And when I am not travelling, it will be chauffeur-driven with just 2 additional passengers, so we will again not need the extra capacity that the bench seat provides. On the rare occasions that we need more capacity, it will be for short trips and we can make do with using the 3rd row. So seat comfort in the 2nd row is the only consideration over flexibility and utility.

When I went to check out the new Safari and tried reclining just the "boss seat" (the one behind the co-driver) in the 7-seater, I found that the non-reclining portion of the bench was jutting into my right shoulder. Maybe with some adjustment that may not be an issue, but that is what I remember noticing.
Indeed, the wider armrests and the cupholders are useful, with the one caveat that there is a shared armrest instead of an individual one.
This is the most important and maybe even only consideration for us. Glad to hear that the bench seats are very comfortable. Maybe we can't really go wrong with the bench seats considering there seem to be minimal or no compromises in comfort even with the added utility/flexibility.

Just a couple of quick questions.

From a family that uses seat belts for every seat that is occupied, have you had any discomfort with the seat belt buckles? I've always felt like the seat belt buckles in bench seats invade seating space and make sitting uncomfortable, particularly for the middle seat passengers but also for the rest of the 2nd-row passengers. One of the advantages of the captain chairs is that the seat belt buckles are completely out of the way and never intrude into the seating spaces.
How good is the lower back support for the bench seats? This has always been one of the USPs for captain seats and is an important consideration for who will be regularly occupying the 2nd-row seats in my family.

Here's what BHPian ramjiramu had to say on the matter:

6 seater have additional ventilated seats for middle row captain seats.
I find them very useful in my Safari Dark front seats.
Also, if the middle row seats are primarily occupied by elders then they will prefer wider bench seats for in between naps or leg stretches as per my observations.

Here's what BHPian narsingh had to say on the matter:

Dear Safari Persona,
I had the same dilemma and did extensive research on whether to have captain seats or bench seats in the middle row for my Safari. My conclusion was that a bench seat offers more flexibility as well as utility, for the following reasons:
In a bench seat arrangement, the seat on the left side (the one behind the co-driver seat) is as good as a captain seat; it can be folded separately from the part on the right (that comprises the longer part of the bench). So, you will not miss the captain seat if you use this one.
In a bench seat arrangement, the middle row is divided in a 40:60 ratio and they can be together or separately made to tumble to rest behind the front row seats. This gives you more space for going to the third row. In a captain seat arrangement, it is not so and therefore the space available for going to the third row is less.
In a bench seat, there is a broad armrest in the middle (with two cup holders) which is very useful. In a captain seat arrangement, the armrests are rather narrow.
In a bench seat, if you are not using the armrest, that space (in the middle of the bench)below the armrest can be used for keeping stuff like a book, laptop, iPad etc. This is not possible in a captain seat arrangement.
If there happen to be four passengers other than the driver, in a captain seat arrangement you have no option but to use the third-row seat, whereas in a bench arrangement you already have space for three passengers in the middle.
The middle seat of the bench is quite comfortable in the Safari and does not cause backache. Rather it gives the best view of the road in the front, from the middle row.
Comfort-wise, I personally find the bench to be better as one can even sit cross-legged on long journeys to ease the fatigue.
Since the entire middle row bench tumbles forward, the space available for storage is more in case a need arises, as compared to a captain seat arrangement.
I have owned a Safari XZA+ for about 3 months now and I am happy that I went for the bench seat. We used the middle seat of the bench on a long journey, and the person who sat there felt comfortable.
Update:
We have not had any issues with seat belt buckles.
Lower back support is pretty good in bench seats.
However, looking at your expected usage pattern, I think you can straightaway go for the captain seat option for the middle row, in which you also get the added advantage of ventilated seats, recently introduced in Tata Safari.

Here's what BHPian Contrapunto had to say on the matter: