changing manual seats for power seats

S

scootr

Senior member
 USA
Hello - New owner of a base model 2010 Z with manual leatherette seats looking to upgrade. I found a pair locally
Seats are advertised 2010-2014 and show some type of electric module and seat belt parts. See pics
I have a few questions about this.
Seller indicates seats include tracks so so I assume they will bolt right in, is that correct?
Is the wire harness for power present under my manual seats ? (the manual seats do have heat)
What is the electric module shown in the picture? It looks like it has been cut out of a car. Is that a problem?
Can the sagging leather on the passenger seat back be fixed without dismantling the seat?

I have also looked at all the aftermarket seats. But these all seem to be for track use which we are not doing.
Our use is touring and some spirited driving. I'm tall and wanting the extended thigh and adjustable lumbar support
Thanks in advance for any help on this project
 

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Hi Ive changed my SE to sports seats. Mine were a like for like swap (manual adjustment + heated) I believe these cars are not prewired for the electric seats. I was lucky that the seats were from a low mileage car and so were like new (no sagging). Took me about an hour per seat to swap over (I found the BMW technical instructions online), they fit in the same position as the other seats (use new BMW powerlok bolts). Drop the roof and then disconnect the battery (don't shut the boot like I did! :oops: ), make sure that the seat belt pre-tensioners are fine before you start (easy swap from your existing seats) and once everything fitted back in and connected you shouldn't get an airbag warning light on the dash! The other + point is that the electric bolsters work without any further wiring adjustment (must run off the connection for the heated element?). This post might help you: https://z4-forum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=23&t=92671seats.jpg
 
Thank you for your reply, Zed. Your input and the thread you linked are very helpful. I think Clarker was having a fit because his original seats had no power heat like his new seats.
My manual seats have heat. I'm after the thigh extension and the lumbar support. Looks like the thigh support is manual. And the lumbar may just need a + and - if it's not already there. The thing that scares me is the electric box with all the cut off wires sitting in the seat.
WTF is that ? :roll:
 
I had no power at all so had to create everything from scratch. That might be the module but it seems a bit.larger than I remember and they are normally just connected to the bottom of the seat..

As its next to the yellow connector I think that probably is the module.. but it's very strange that it's been taken off..

I used a heat gun to remove some sagging from my seats which worked ok but you have to be careful not to cook the leather!
 
Hey there, thank you for commenting. I read your thread, you hung in there and did a great job sorting everything out and getting everything to work. I think I read in another thread ( maybe another forum) that the Lumbar compressor will work if the car had heated seats before, which mine does. I dunno, that makes it sound like a plug and play exchange? Mine is a 2010 and these are 2012-16
I'm more comfortable with mechanics than electronics but, I'm game with a bit of support.
I wonder if this in the module. I have lots of dummy questions. Why one module and 2 seats? Why is the module cut out of the donor car and not unplugged? Are the seats really worth the asking price $700usd with 60,000 miles on them?
 
scootr said:
Hey there, thank you for commenting. I read your thread, you hung in there and did a great job sorting everything out and getting everything to work. I think I read in another thread ( maybe another forum) that the Lumbar compressor will work if the car had heated seats before, which mine does. I dunno, that makes it sound like a plug and play exchange? Mine is a 2010 and these are 2012-16
I'm more comfortable with mechanics than electronics but, I'm game with a bit of support.
I wonder if this in the module. I have lots of dummy questions. Why one module and 2 seats? Why is the module cut out of the donor car and not unplugged? Are the seats really worth the asking price $700usd with 60,000 miles on them?
Click to expand...
Yes I think it will work without mods, although worst case its one more connection to do and its pretty easy (you don't really need amazing electrical skills for this one). I have the wiring diagram somewhere which will tell me, but I'm pretty sure you wont need it. 700 USD is not too bad if they are fully electric (movement and heating), although the sagging looks worse than mine (see attached) before I smoothed it out - it looks better from this angle than in reality!

Found a picture of a Z4 seat module and it does look like thats what it is. Not sure why the harness is cut though because this would normally all be connected to the bottom of the seat with no reason to remove it - all very strange!

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/283465899260

Next time use the quote button to reply and I'll be notified you've responded! :thumbsup:
 

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Thanks for the encouragement. :thumbsup:
I will pursue this. I need the support for an old back. The color matches.
I'm gonna guess they came out of a wrecked car and a scrapper cut the control out to make sure he had it all.
I'm curious as to why there is one control and 2 seats? how's that work?

It's a long drive to look. But sounds like I should gas up the van and go see. I'd love premium seats.
 
scootr said:
Thanks for the encouragement. :thumbsup:
I will pursue this. I need the support for an old back. The color matches.
I'm gonna guess they came out of a wrecked car and a scrapper cut the control out to make sure he had it all.
I'm curious as to why there is one control and 2 seats? how's that work?

It's a long drive to look. But sounds like I should gas up the van and go see. I'd love premium seats.
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there's one per seat! I'd ask for a photo of each underneath. that will tell you..they "should" be connected. I'm sure I can find a photo somewhere..
 
should look something like this... one each side. This is a 3 series but they are very very similar..ignore the green arrow :D
 

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Okay I see - Seller says he is selling for his son who left them. I will ask for underside pics :thumbsup:
 
Just checked on mine and there is one large module on the drivers side, and just a small box on the passenger side so that seems fine!
 
Do you think it's worth the cost and effort to upgrade the seats. Old seats are in fine condition. The leatherette covering is very durable and shows no wear in 9 years.
 
scootr said:
Do you think it's worth the cost and effort to upgrade the seats. Old seats are in fine condition. The leatherette covering is very durable and shows no wear in 9 years.
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Hi Scootr, how many times will you adjust the seats once you have them fixed to your driving position? The SE seats are fine but not as nice as the sports ones, when I swapped my seats over I luckily sold my old ones to someone who had cloth seats, so that reduced the cost of the project.
 
2 things about the electric seats I think I want. #1 is the thigh extension - I think I need this because uhm, people tell me i do. and #2 is the adjustable lumbar support which I totally get this, I have a bad back and more or more importantly adjustable support could be beneficial.
These are the reasons I'm considering the upgrade. I can sit like 2 hours in the car now but would like to make longer trips.
 
I dont find the thigh extension any use at all.. and have never used them. In regards to lumbar support my seats have inflatable bolsters but not lumbar. This seems to be common.

I've had all three seats.. the cloth, then basic leather, and then msports. The msport seats are by far the best for lateral support and comfort. I'd like lumbar as even the msports seats are relatively hard at the base of the back.. so make sure it does have that.

Well worth the upgrade in my opinion!
 
Thank you for your opinion. Lateral support - yes! I would love more lateral support... Lumbar and lateral support would be optimal.
Which got me looking at aftermarket seats.
Pretty soon my head was spinning from all the options :|
 
scootr said:
Thank you for your opinion. Lateral support - yes! I would love more lateral support... Lumbar and lateral support would be optimal.
Which got me looking at aftermarket seats.
Pretty soon my head was spinning from all the options :|
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Yes its not easy to understand all the options....Keep us updated with your progress :thumbsup:
 
Even in my 2.3is I found cornering 'interesting' in the SE seats...(and less grippy than the cloth ones) so if you have those, you'll be much better off! :D
 
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