August 14th, 2011.

So I was fortunate enough to pick up a RHD drivers seat base a week back, the lack of power controls, especially height adjustment on my passenger seat (LHD) was incredibly frustrating. So Ladies & Gentlemen, here is the retrofit;

Tools;

The only out of the ordinary tool is a T50 Torx bit, which is needed for the seatbelt bolts, and the bolts that mount the seat back onto the base. 10mm socket for where the seat is bolted to the floor, 13mm socket & wrench for the bolts that hold the cushion to the frame.
Plus the usual screwdrivers, Swiss-Army Knife, pliers, etc... If your garage is poorly lit, you also need a torch. I prefer the big Maglite, cause you can also use it as a hammer!

Here's the new seat frame, also came with the side trim with switches, and the seat cushion (not pictured).


I got the seat base from a really nice bloke on ebay called Dave who was clearing out his garage. No he's not that Dave....
The airbag in the seatback had been deployed, I didn't get the seatback, Dave was kind enough to scrap it for me & only send the bottom half.I wasn't sure if the seatbelt pre-tensioner had fired, so I decided to change it out for my original one.

Here it's out;


Now this photo, despite being blurry, is very important, you'll find out why later...


Time to start pulling the existing seat out of the car

First, disconnet the neg cable from the battery;

This is important because you're going to be disconnecting the airbag in the seatback, you don't want it going off...

Now slide the seat back, and undo the bolts on the floor at the front of the seat;

Then slide the seat forwards, and remove the plastic covers with a philips head;

The you can get the four bolts from the back of the slide, these are all 10mm by the way;

Actually it just occured to me, if you already have an electric seat, you wan't to undo these bolts before you disconnect the battery...

Anyhow, moving on, you can now remove the side trim from the seat, I already mentioned this in another thread HERE
You can then unplug the switches and the heated seat module;

I have no idea what that grey orphaned plug is for, something for the weight sensor...

Next you need to get at the seatbelt mounting bolt, you can see the threads poking through here;

You have to get at it from the other side, with the T50 Torx bit;

It's a tough bar steward to get out, here's why;

Damn thing has a threadlock sealant on it...

Next you can tip the seat back & unplug the wiring that comes out of the floor to the seat frame.

By the way, that (6mm?) bolt is captive, figured that out after 30 seconds of unscrewing...
I also had to unplug my rear entertainment cable (the black one with a plasic snap lock cover).

Now you're ready to lift out the seat, be careful not to scratch the interior trim, and watch your back!

I put a blanket down on the floor to protect the leather against scratches, those of you with a proper workbench should do the same;

First thing is to remove the seatbelt buckle, same as before with the T50 Torx;

There is a plastic trim on that side, it's held on with a philips head screw;


Now you can remove the seat back, it's four (4) T50 Torx bolts.


You'll see how the cables to the junction under the seat are fed between the cushion an the frame, so now you need to disconnect those cables, and unbolt the cushion from the seat frame;


I find it pretty ironic that my existing passenger seat frame was marked with a drivers seat tag

So now everything is split up, you can start to bolt up the cushion to the "new" seat frame.
The squeaking on the old seat really got on my nerves, so lots of foam between the cushion & frame this time;


Don't forget, you have to feed the cables from the seatback in between the cushion & the frame!

Now you can start connecting up the wiring...there is a big rectangular plug, can only fit in one place, on the left;

The yellow plug is obvious;

As is the grey;

Now, there are four plugs for the electric motors, only one is colour coded, the other three can be mixed up;

So I decided to leave them loose & not tuck them away, in order to easily swap them around later.

 

Now you can bolt the seat back up to the frame, 4x T50 Torx bolts....

Also bolt on the seatbelt buckle, again T50...


Now it's time to put all the plugs together, oooopppss....which one goes where?

It's very important to get this right, because the yellow plug is for the airbag, you don't want to put power on it...
Luckily I had that photo...

Got the junction plug all together, and now go to mount it on the metal tab under the cushion, & it doesn't fit because there is an electric motor in the way. I didn't realise it earlier but the metal plate is in a different position...doh!

No big deal i'll just cable-tie it onto the frame...

OK now so one last check that everthing is tight, all connections done (except for the motors, which are left loose)


Time to lift the seat back into the car, damn it's about 20KG heavier than before...

Once the seat's in, just put a couple of bolts in (whichever you can), connect up the wiring...;


Take a deep breath, and reconnect the battery;

If all goes well, you'll hear the door locks cycle, and no airbag detonation...
Thankfully, that's how it was for me....

So, connect up the switches for a test;
$
WOW! IT WORKS! But in a crazy way....
A little trial & error with the plugs....;

And it's working perfectly, what a relief, but it's not the final test yet....there is power to the seats as soon as you re-connect the battery, but this is not the same as ignition on...another deep breath & turn the key to II...and it works, no worries, airbag light is functioning, everythings fine, I don't believe it....

So now, bolt the seat down correctly, Re-fit the seatbelt mounting bolt; Re-fit the trim, with the switches in, and the heated seat module. Put everything back as it should be, and here is the finished result;

Just needs a good clean & we're done