I too have a bad disk in my back. I purchased a lumbar roll for the seat and I am good now. here is a link so something similar to what I have

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...9RX0MZGMBJRJWR

 

None, in my estimation. I have compressed peripheral nerves in the lumbar at three vertebrae and in the cervical at two more. And I have a pinched spinal cord at one vertebra. We bought the Porsche 22 months ago and I've had no problem at all. I admit I do use the stiffer setting with the PASM only at the rare track day.

I haven't found the BMW's, especially the M series cars, to ride especially well. "Stiff as a buckboard" was my wife's comment the last time we considered them. That may be a false impression formed in the short time of a test drive however. We've never owned one of those. But we do own this Porsche and have no complaints. (Cindy has back problems as well.)

I should say that we found the 996 with sport suspension to be intolerable in a test drive. If we owned that, I would have complaints constantly. That might be the combination that caused comments you've heard, but the PASM on our 997.2's is a great combination of supple for daily driving and more taut than the older sport suspension when you push a button. Love it.

One other tip. Power seats? With those, I have the seat adjusted upward a couple of inches from where I might put it for track work. Near the top of the range. I did that automatically to reduce the in-and-out effort because I have arthritis in my knees as well. Adjusted that way, I have no concern about getting in and out.

For what it's worth, that's my advice as a long term back sufferer. That, and a good neurologist.

Gary

 

i agree that an M might not necessarily fix the problem. i've not driven the F10, obviously, but on my E90 M3 the ride is not too different or softer than a C4S (both are, however, noticeably softer than my GT3's ). my M3 doesn't have the comp package/adjustable dampers though, so i'm not sure if that would be the answer at the softest settings.

if you are looking for a really plush ride that retains a modicum of handling, i get driven around quite often in a 740i and i think that might fit the bill...don't expect handling anywhere near any of the other mentioned cars, though.

another thing that i would agree with other posters is that the seats make a huge difference. i've taken both the GT3 and the M3 on long drives, and shockingly, the GT3 has far better seats (adaptives) IMO. in the M3 i would get fatigued and sore and have to shift my weight often, while the GT3's seats - albeit much firmer - gave me no such problem

 

OP:
Is your Porsche a stick or PDK? Driving stick is known to be hard on the back. But if driving PDK is still painful, then I agree, you need to test drive whatever you have your eyes on and experience it yourself.