The Bolster Boost is a unique new device that makes everyday driving more exciting!
It literally hugs you tight to the seat so you feel more connected and in-tune with your car.
Being firmly attached to your car, you get a better feel of the handling so you become a more sensitive and precise driver.
All this new stimuli heightens your senses and keeps you focused in the moment. This quickens your reaction time and makes you a more alert and therefore, safer driver.
Driving fatigue is reduced because instead of tensing up, you can relax into the corners.
Rather than hanging on tight to the steering wheel for support, the Bolster Boost allows you to keep your touch light and sensitive.
During an emergency, you stay in better control as your body is kept in the proper driving posture and not sliding sideways.
For those with back issues, the Bolster Boost minimizes the strain by stopping the sideways motion. As it supports your sides, it lowers the pressure on the spine and can help reduce your discomfort.
Typical automobile upgrades improve the car’s performance, the Bolster Boost improves the driver’s performance.
The Problem
The Bolster Boost solves the common problem that standard car seats can’t provide enough lateral support for spirited cornering. This side to side swaying of your torso can be distracting, tiresome and eventually painful. Car seats are one-size-fits-all and designed so that you can slide out of them off to the side. So lateral support is compromised for ease of use.
When cornering, your torso is pushed to the side by the centrifugal force. The seat’s side bolster resists this movement. When the bolster is angled, like on a typical car seat, it’s holding power is limited and your torso will slide off to the side. When the side bolster is perpendicular, like on a racing seat, your torso is held tight.
Normal
With Bolster Boost
The centrifugal force (red) is resisted by the reaction force (black)
The Solution
The Bolster Boost fills in the gap between your torso and the side bolster, making a firm, yet well cushioned perpendicular surface to lean on. It’s a low-cost alternative to an expensive racing seat which is awkward for everyday use. With the Bolster Boost, you can add massive lateral support in seconds and keep your car stock!
In a way, the Bolster Boost is actually more comfortable than a racing seat with rigid sides because it’s custom-fit to conform to your body. The pads are highly adjustable and can be used in many positions. Unlike a racing seat, you can fine-tune the strength of the support force and the location where you want it.
How it Works
The Bolster Boost uses your body weight to power the holding force. When you lean back on the straps,
It pulls the pads toward the back of the seat.
Because the side bolsters are angled, the pads are pressed into your sides, giving you a gentle hug.
The secret sauce that makes it all work is a very high-tech material with extreme friction that grips the seat and does not slip, even under strong lateral loading.
The key component to car control is feedback. Your car is sending you signals, through direct pressure on your body, on how it is handling. You interpret this information and adjust your driving inputs. A car with strong feedback feels sporty, crisp and responsive.
Standard car seats are designed for everyday comfort and ease of use, not feedback, so the driving sensations are largely muted. You only have 3 contact points with your car: wheel, pedals and seat. Your car has much more information to share, yet you only feel a fraction of what’s available.
The Bolster Boost creates a large (48 sq in!) new contact area which transmits a massive amount of additional feedback. As you corner, this varying pressure becomes a very accurate lateral G force sensor.
With all this new information, you can more precisely judge the car handling, make better decisions and improve your mastery of driving. Like in any sport, increasing your skill level makes it more enjoyable and satisfying.
The design of the Bolster Boost evolved through experimenting on more than 40 different prototypes.
We’ve tested at many autocross, drifting, high-speed track and rally events. More than 100 drivers have tried it and the vast majority say it greatly improves car control and reduces fatigue. Many said it lowered their lap times because they were better able to concentrate on their driving, not being distracted by resisting the lateral forces.
We are very honored and fortunate to have a professional racer, Shields Bergstrom, with 17 championship titles, testing out the Bolster Boost. His years of winning races and his Vehicular Dynamics degree from Stanford allow him to analyze the performance of our device with expert clarity.
“That connectedness enables the transfer of high-quality information to the driver, which then can be interpreted more accurately and used to produce high-quality actions and reactions.”