ibgm Posted March 4, 2010 Report Share Posted March 4, 2010 Hi all- First timer here. I have an '02 Monte SS. Leather heated seats. Driver side quit on me. Before they quit completely, I noticed that the bottom had a hot spot. I suspect the bottom element failed. To fix this, GM wants me to buy a whole new bottom seat cover, the cover has the element built in to it. it's > $400! Is there any way to make it so that only the back will work? That's all that I care about, I have back problems, and that lumbar heater helped me big time! Has anyone attempted this? Can I just take the power wires and apply them to the back only? or will they draw too much current and burn up? Anyone have any ideas on this one? From what I hear, this is a common problem on this car. Thanks in advance and this looks like a great website! I just gave my son my '96 Monte that had 240,000 miles on it, still running and the AC is still ice cold! In a way, I miss that car, it NEVER left me stranded. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1990lumina Posted March 4, 2010 Report Share Posted March 4, 2010 You could probably bypass the lower element, but ya I'm not really sure if it would burn up or not. GM heat elements don't like getting lots of voltage through them. If anything I'd try and find out the resistance of a good lower element, and then put that must resistance (with a resistor) in the circuit to the back element. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LukeZ34 Posted March 4, 2010 Report Share Posted March 4, 2010 It's a broken heat element wire, happens very often on the Impala and Monte Carlo Seats. There's a write up on NAIOA on how to fix this.. I'll find it and post it here for you. I had to fix both of the heat elements in my 04 Impala. One of the wires on the backrest elements was broken in each seat, which causes them not to work. Wasn't a hard job, just difficult to wrestle with the leather covers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LukeZ34 Posted March 4, 2010 Report Share Posted March 4, 2010 You do not have to remove the seat or any of the mounting bolts to fix the broken element wire, but having a friend handy for closing the seat cover back up will be helpful. You also do not need a soldering iron. Solder is probably best, but for those who don't have the tools or the skill, you can use a crimp connector. I would recommend disconnecting the negative battery terminal for safety, but I did not do this since I was in a hurry. It's no excuse, I know. 1. Tip the seat as far forward as it will go, reach underneath the seat back, and unzip/unhook the seat cover closure. If you have trouble, make sure your lumbar support is at its minimum setting. Have a friend push on the front of the seat in the lumbar area to loosen the tension on the cover if necessary. 2. Once the cover is unfastened, tip the seat as far back as it will go and peel the seatback cover up from the botton a few inches, exposing the element connections. The burn marks should be noticeable at this point. Peel back the cloth/foam adhesive pad to expose the connections. You should see a burnt wire with broken connection. 3. Make your repairs, being sure to trim both ends of the wire far enough back to get to clean, unburned wire. The connection you see is the thick wire coming from the underseat harness soldered to the thin wire connecting to the element. If you have to remove a significant amount of wire, you may need to splice in some extra to bridge the gap. I did not use a soldering iron, but rather a non-insulated round crimp connector. Be sure to use a small enough connector that the wires will make good contact and the crimp will be tight. Use electrical tape or heat shrink tubing to insulate the connection. Be sure the two connections do not touch each other. 4. Test your work by reconnecting the battery If you disconnected it and turning on the vehicle. Try the low setting first, keeping an eye on your connections for sparks, smoke, or other bad news. You should be able to feel the elements through the seat cover warning up in about 20-30 seconds. Test the high setting as well. If all goes well, you're ready to put everything back together. 5. Replace the adhesive cloth/foam pad as best you can, being sure that the two connections do not touch. I covered this with a large piece of duct tape to hold everything in place. 6. Tuck the bottom of the seat cover into the seam between seat back and seat bottom as far as you can. Tip the seat as far forward as it will go and set your lumbar support to its minimum level. Go to the back of the seat and reconnect the two pieces of the seat cover by hooking the back side trim into the front side slot. This is where you need a friend to push on the lumbar area to give you extra slack in the seat cover. I actually did the pushing while my wife reconnected the cover since she had smaller hands. Pictures of the carnage can be see here, middle of the page: http://www.naioa.com/v2/modules.php?name=Forums&file=viewtopic&t=11532&postdays=0&postorder=asc&highlight=heated+seats&start=45 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ibgm Posted March 4, 2010 Author Report Share Posted March 4, 2010 Thanks guys, all this info is GOLD. I really didn't think I would be able to get in there and fix it, but from what I have read, it looks like I might have a chance. Appreciate the fast feedback. Jim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IRONDOG442 Posted March 4, 2010 Report Share Posted March 4, 2010 Gotta do this on the Intrigue! Thanks LUKE !!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rtsdeup Posted October 14, 2011 Report Share Posted October 14, 2011 You are the man did this in 20 minutes by myself! Thanks for posting the fix! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Schurkey Posted October 15, 2011 Report Share Posted October 15, 2011 Are these seat heaters NOT like the ones in my Trailblazer? The Trailblazer seat heaters are a thin pad with wires zig-zagged around in it. The wires break (usually in the same place--where the pad is folded to fit the main seat foam), burn a localized spot in the main seat cushion similar to the photos in the link--but--instead of repairing the wire, the "fix" is to simply replace the heater pad. The pads for the Trailblazer were about $180 through GM; or about $80 in the aftermarket. Comes with an installation pliers (useless junk) and fresh hog rings. From Summit: http://www.summitracing.com/parts/RNB-641-107/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
urbex Posted October 15, 2011 Report Share Posted October 15, 2011 Hmm...if anyone wants to get me a Christmas present.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cully77 Posted October 15, 2011 Report Share Posted October 15, 2011 Welcome! Post up a intro thread with pics when you get a chance Hope the heater fix works for you. I love mine... didn't know what I was missing in my old car Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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