wondering about swapping for some 4th gen seats. will all the power functions work on the seats after the swap? like the power lumbar and the side bolsters. i know the seats are basically unchanged except for the head restraint. the electrical connectors the same too? my GTA has those factory sport seats but the air bladders don't hold air too well.

 

I know there is some work to do, but it's doable. Do a search, I know theres more than a few Cars on here with 4thgen seats... Good luck!

 

Maybe it would be easier to just repair the original seats. if that is even possible? i've searched around a little about that and haven't found anything about anyone repairing these seats.

 

i have fourth gen seats and all my power functions work. you just need a power and ground to them.

 

The connectors on the harness differ from 3rd to 4th gens.The air line coupler is the same.The internals/seat frames are different as well.

 

It's not as simple as just wiring to power and ground. The 4th gen seat is wired to a hot at all times source via the 30 amp power seat / rear defogger circuit breaker. Be sure the power source you select is hot at all times, is fused to at least 30 amps, and use at least a 12 gauge wire to run power to your seat. The control switch for the 4th gen seat motor is the same as the 3rd gen, and they are interchangeable. The ground can be grounded to the chassis under the seat, or you can use a ring connector and ground it at one of the 4 seat mounting bolts. Make sure to leave enough slack in both wires for the seat to have full travel.

 

hmm...maybe it would be easier just to try to repair my factory seats? i just want the bladders to stay inflated. the motors work and they fill up with air, but the driver's side won't hold, and the passenger will for a short while.

 

If you're that concerned about the inflatable lumbar support, I would repair what you've got. 4th gen seats were no better about the bladders holding air, even when my 02 was brand new the driver's seat wouldn't hold the air for more than a day.

 

Swapping the seats is easy - as mentioned, just need a fused power source and a ground to the driver seat. Connectors might be different between years, but just cut them off and connect with butt connectors like any wiring job.

Question is ...

Are your seats repairable? I have no idea exactly how the air stuff works inside, and if any of that is repairable or replaceable.

If you do get 4th gen seats, just get them hooked to 12v before you buy and test them so you don't end up with the same problem again.

 

that's disappointing...
guess i'll have to see what would all be involved in making the repairs. at this point it seems like it could be fixed unless there's more to it.

i just think these seats are kinda neat and it bothers me that they don't work. if it's too much work and a pain i'll just have to deal with it, but at least i tried.

 

Tried what?
Take the seats apart, remove the bladders,fill with air,submerged in water.If they're leaking you'll see the bubbles.Mark the area & let them dry out.I fixed a pair of bladders in my old GTA seats a had years ago.A drop of crazy glue did the trick, but Im sure other methods wil work.

Another area of leakage is the manifold the air lines connect to under the seat.Sometimes the one way valves will leak as well.If your bladders dont leak.Then you can try checking there.The manifolds are somewhat "serviceable".

 

I went to a GM dealer to check for the air pump on a set of 02 T/A seats, I was surprised to see that there was a part number for the bladders and from looking at the diagram it didn't look like anything that would be to difficult to fix or replace. I guess what I'm saying is it looks like GM actually did replace these at one time which surprised me because I figured they would just replace the whole seat. I would also think guess my post is kind of pointless other than saying I agree with 841LE that it shouldn't be to difficult to repair your seats.

 

It's super easy, I have the 4th gen seats in my 89' bird. Just splice into your middle console light. run the hot and the ground through those two wires and your good, everything works. Ill take some pics and post them like in 10min.

 

I know its a easy and kinda cheap way to do it but hey it works.

 

I wouldn't recommend that method due to the possibility of overtaxing the circuit. At best you're going to blow fuses. At worst something could get a bit melty...

You really need to make sure you use a circuit with sufficient current and heavy enough gauge wire, or you're going to end up with problems. Use the 4th gen wiring diagrams as a guide, and make sure you match what size fuse they use. If it's larger than a 15 amp, then use no smaller than 12 gauge wire (gives you a safety margin). The 3rd and 4th gen power seats use the 30 amp Defogger circuit breaker for their power seat circuits. Here's a diagram for a 1995 Firebird; http://shbox.com/1/1995_firebird_pwr_seat_schematic.jpg

 

I havent had any problems for the 6 months Ive had it like that, But I did use wire caps and heavy gauge wire.

Just curious but would the cig lighter also work as a good enough source to run the seats?

 

Not really. The reason for using a heavy circuit breaker is the possibility of both seats using their power functions simultaneously and pulling too much current. This could lead to melted wires or a fire. Look at the 1995 Firebird diagram and you'll see just how many components that circuit is supplying current to. Now imagine all that being supplied at the same time over a 16 gauge wire. Wires and circuits are sized according to their loads to specifically prevent such things from happening. You've had it for 6 months and been lucky. Look at it this way...They used dirigibles with hydrogen in them for how long before the Hindenburg went up in a fireball?

 

aaa ok I see. Im not the best wiring guy lol im more into sheetmetal and body work (work sheet metal on F-15's) lol so the wiring for me is complicated lol.

probably the reason it has working for me with no incidents is that im the only one using seat and all I really do with it is just inflate the bladders to fit me better when im driving, besides that the seats never move to much.

I'll have to rewire it when I get a chance. thanks for the heads up.

 

Not a prob. I was an electronics technician (radar) surface fleet and cross-trained over to electronics technician (gyronavigational) sub fleet in the Navy.

You always want to build a circuit with a little bit of leeway in the load capacity. Running heavier wire will never hurt the way a circuit operates, but running too small a gauge will definitely cause problems. Fuses on the other hand should always be matched to the circuit load. This is why people that try to replace blown fuses with higher rated ones just end up eventually burning up components. If you stick with the 1995 diagram you should be fine, and it's only a little bit of re-wiring (I don't recommend them, but you can use crimp on jumpers to tie into your 30 amp Defogger circuit). You can also simply run the ground wire to the chassis from the seats, using a ring connector and either one of the seat to body bolts or with a self tapping screw.