996 C4S Seat Install

[k996c4s]

I have a 2002 C4S that I'm about to swap the stock seats for sport seats. The stock seats are full electric, including lumbar, with memory on the door-sill. The sport seats are manual forward and back, with electric backs and height. I read a few posts that went over some of the issues, but I'm still not clear on the memory issue. Can I retain the memory function with the new seats for everything but forward and back? Is there a memory module that is transferable to the new seat? I'm also concerned about generating faults and want to avoid it.

I noticed on one post that Loren provided a schematic for the wiring. This is essential for creating the new harness. Anyone have it?

Any clues would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!

[k996c4s]

OK, OK.... Maybe it was a ridiculous question!

Got the sport seats today. They are manual forward and back as well as height, with electric backs.

I did the most difficult driver side only tonight. The install was very straightforward and easy. There's a lot of wire and plugs under the stock seat due to the memory function. I left the seatbelt wires and plugs intact after pulling the large plug apart to gain access to the small seatbelt plug located within it. I plugged the wire and plug from the seat directly into it and put a wire tie around it to keep it together. The sport seats only require 12vdc to power the backs. I cut the wires from the seat and soldered plugs on. I located 12vdc on the original large plug that's connected to the module in the car - cut the wires and again soldered plugs on. I didn't cut wire too close to the connectors so I could restore the original configuration if need be. The 12vdc wires are brown(-) and red(+). After connecting the plugs I had the electric backs working. The seatbelt indicator on the dash worked fine as well. A few tie-wraps and four bolts later I was ready for the road. The memory function is gone, but the seats weigh less and feel amazing. Total time: 2 hours. The passenger side should be a breeze! :clapping:

[Mark House]

Did you take pictures? I am making the same swap this spring.

Thanks, Mark

[k996c4s]

Did you take pictures? I am making the same swap this spring.

Thanks, Mark

Which seats are you taking out? Are they full power - with memory?

[Mark House]

Yes, Original seats are full power with memory and new are sport seats with power back only. I would prefer not to cut wires so I can retrofit if needed. I am hoping I can work around that.

Mark

[k996c4s]

Yes, Original seats are full power with memory and new are sport seats with power back only. I would prefer not to cut wires so I can retrofit if needed. I am hoping I can work around that.

Mark

Mark:

My car is a 2002 C4S. The sport seats I installed are from a 2005 GT3. Your situation may be somewhat different.

The passenger side was super easy. Because the passenger side has no memory, it turns out the plugs were the same. If you don't have them already, you'll need a special socket (external Torx) to remove the seat bolts that you can get at Sears. They only sold a complete set in my local store for what I think was about $39. If you can find singles, you'll need a size 12. Take out four bolts and unplug the electrical connection and the seat is out. Be careful pulling the plug apart. I believe I pulled the sides outward first to release it, and then you can disconnect the two sides. The seat bolts have Loctite on them so you'll need a little muscle to get them out. You may want to put some back on when re-installing to ensure they stay tight. Also, you should lay something down on the doorsill to protect it when removing or installing the seats. FYI: My back is still killing me a week after installation - You should consider having someone help.

The driver's side was a little more complicated. There are a couple of modules attached to the underside of the seat where all the wires connect. The plugs are a little tricky. If I remember correctly, I had about three plugs to remove from the front underside of the seat. Two were released by snapping something away and up on the front of the plug, and one had a sliding hold-down that I put a small flat screwdriver under and pulled up to release the plug. None of the plugs simply pulled off. Make sure you figure out how to release them before muscling it and breaking something. Because my seats were full power (Incl. lumbar) with memory (memory buttons on the doorsill), there were lots of wires coming from the seat. The plug for the sport seat did not fit the original plug. If you pull the sides of the original plug, it will free things up to work with the wires. The seat belt plug (small square) is located within the big plug, and will match up with the plug on the sport seat. You can simply plug them together, but they won't lock. I used a cable tie to keep them together. Power is the issue for the remainder of the install. I cut the power-plug off of the sport seat . The power wires are brown and red. With the key on, check the harness from the module on the floor to find the +/-12vdc wires in the connector. They are the thick brown and red wires. I cut them as well. Be sure to cut them one at a time and don't let them touch each other. If you leave enough to work with when cutting, you could easily restore the connections to reinstall the old seats when needed. You should be able to buy a suitable connector at Radio Shack for the new connection. Simply connect the red to red, and brown to brown. To see if things work before finalizing everything, you can simply twist them together and try the seat-back to ensure you have the polarity correct. Having them reversed won't hurt anything - the seat-back will simply work in reverse of the direction you push the switch. Don't leave the wires twisted together, and I would not recommend using wire-nuts. Buy the connector and do it right.

I hope this didn't sound too ridiculous. The install is really quite easy and straightforward. Just take your time and be patient with the connectors.

Good luck!

[Mark House]

K996c4s,

Thanks for the help. Much appreciated.

Mark