Manual to Electric Seats?

[mcorbo]

Is it possible to install electric seats from a 99 Eddie Bauer into a 95 base model. My seat track cracked and I got a good deal on the electric seat, but from what I understand, there is no wiring for it.

 

[budwich]

If your replacement electric seat came with the switches (ie. up down, back forth) and the motors (ie. in the seat rails) then you are basically there.... all you need to do is run your own wire from battery to switches on pin 2 (in my 96 drawings). The drawing shows that there is a tap off the same fuse used for power door locks (I guess they figure you won't be trying to lock / unlock the door and move your seat all at the same time...)

 

[mcorbo]

If your replacement electric seat came with the switches (ie. up down, back forth) and the motors (ie. in the seat rails) then you are basically there.... all you need to do is run your own wire from battery to switches on pin 2 (in my 96 drawings). The drawing shows that there is a tap off the same fuse used for power door locks (I guess they figure you won't be trying to lock / unlock the door and move your seat all at the same time...)

Thanks for the quick reply. Yes, the seats were just unbolted from the floor of the EB model. By the way, my mistake, mine is a 96, not a 95. I am not that technical, but I assume you mean just to run a wire from the fuse block to the 2 terminal connector that is under the seat. (not sure what from battery to switches on pin 2 means) and another from the connector to a ground? I appreciate any help you can give me. I was already resigned to unbolting the motorized rails and using my old ones, since where the seat bolted to the rails was the part that broke, but this would be better.

 

[chrisis]

before you wire anything check if you already have the plug under the seat.

my 2000 xls it came with manual seats, but i already had the plug for the electric seats underneath driver`s seat and you can just take power from this plug for both driver`s and passenger seat.

 

[budwich]

mcorbo... you got it.... the BK wire is ground (on my original post, I assume ground would show up from the bolting of the seat... but it obviously has a "made for sure" ground) and the BK/W is power...that's assume you have the wiring.... if not pin 4 is ground and 2 is power (at least in 96) As for your model.... doesn't really matter I don't think as they are likely to be the same or close for most ex (I think). As Chrisis noted, check for the wiring as it might already be there.

 

[Josh]

Compare your set frames. I got a couple of electric seats from a 98 and they are different mounting wise. The bolt patterns were completely different but I have a 91 so maybe they changed the floorpan between gens. I ended up just bolting the new seats to the old frame without the electronics. I needed new seats.

 

[PedroDaGr8]

Hmmm I am about to start on this, they didn't do the full wiring in 98 so I am going to have to wire it myself. I still have mroe research to do, but I think I can pull it off. I have the connector that is needed. I just need to figure out the wiring. I'm sure in a bit I'll get confident enough to get it done right.

 

[Josh]

First did you make sure the seat frames have the same bolt pattern? The wiring part should be easy. You just need a 12 volt source and a ground. I beleive my seat was only a 2 wire hookup.

 

[PedroDaGr8]

INteresting, I got my chair out of a 2000 after my 98 manual chair broke right infront of the chair retention mechanism. THey exchange perfectly, though I temporarily swapped out the power unit with the manual unit for my old chair. DOes anyone know which fuse I should run it through, or if I am going to add a fuse, how many amps the fuse needs to be. Maybe, I'll document my full work, if I can get everything together because I have seen this question asked many times and a step by step manual would serve good to refer to. Mine has a 6pin connector and somehow it hooks up to the 8pin controls I'm gonna have to take the seat out tomorrow and look underneth if there are more wires attached. Otherwise I am going to have some thininkg to do.

 

[Josh]

I wouldnt bother trying to run it through the fuse panel. Just run power to it and throw in an inline fuse. It looks like on the 1st gens ita 20 amp fuse but not sure. Your owners manual might tell you what it is.

 

[budwich]

From my 96 drawings, yes, the connection at the controls is 8 pins..... however, 6 of those go from the controls to the motors in the seat rack / guides. Only two 2,4 are for powering. As suggested, use an in-line fuse if there is no 2 pin connector "around" that was already wired.... or use a "take off" from the fuse running the power locks which in 96 is where the seat gets its power (30 amps).

 

[mcorbo]

Another question, under the seat there seem to be 2 "power" connectors, the black one ,which I assume is power, since it has wires to the switches and motors and a yellow one, that looks like some sort of sensor or something, it's a just a closed end connector mounted there. Any idea what it might be?

 

[Josh]

Probably a seat belt sensor. Some cars have alarms that go off if you don't put your seatbelt on.