[woodpecka]

This topic was a WIP research about how to do the electric seats retrofit. We discovered there are so many car configurations that it's impossible to do 1 guide for all. So, we prefer to share our notes and you must do your own research to validate your car and seats FROM -> TO configs.

**PLEASE read the complete topic before asking question.**

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Reference:
DIY Sport Seat swap into E90 without power seats http://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=229396
Heated Seat Retrofit http://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=192819
Part Numbers: realoem.com
Wiring diagrams: http://www.bmw-planet.com/diagrams/r.../e90/index.htm
E46 DIY: Power Seat Retrofit w/Memory http://forum.e46fanatics.com/showthread.php?t=348165

The ZSP Premium powered heated seats are coming with many features and if your car have been delivered with the basic seats, the seat harnesses are not completed for the missing options. So, the first thing to do is to understand the missing wires and adding them to the existing connectors or buying the expensive complete OEM harness from your dealers.

**I have done this DIY on my car but all cars are different so I am not responsible for any issue it can caused. You can use it at your own risk.

There is the list of features that are coming with the new seats:
1-Airbag sensor
2-Seat belt sensor
3-Heating system
4-4 motors for position adjustments
5-Side bolsters
6-Lumbar bolster

So, any seat are coming with at least option 1 and 2. I already have option 3 and I will add the option 4-5-6.

There are a few diagrams that represent how the seat systems are working:

Important information:
-Driver seat' connector is called x275
-Passenger seat' connector is called x279
-K_CAN connector in Junction Box is called x14271


It is important to understand what is the K_CAN. The K_CAN is the way the car is talking to the driver seat module to manage the memory.

So, based on my study there are the steps I have to go through to complete the harness:
1- Adding the K_CAN connection to the driver seat with twisted wire gage #18 - #21
1A- K_CAN H on x275 pin#2 / x14271 pin#46 (or any K_CAN H wiring in the car like the radio, heat or Idrive controler - green/orange wire)
1B- K_CAN L on x275 pin#3 / x14271 pin#10 (or any K_CAN L wiring in the car like the radio, heat or Idrive controler - green wire)

BMW connectors: 61131383776

2- Adding the 30A power on the driver seat with single wire gage #12
2A- 30A (+) on x275 pin#9 / x11006 pin#2 Fuse F37 (or connecting x275 pin#9 on pin#4)
2B- 30A (-) on x275 pin#13 / ground (or connecting x275 pin#13 on pin#8)
BMW connectors: 61138364844

3- Adding the 30A power on the driver seat with single wire gage #12
3A- 30A (+) on x279 pin#9 / x11006 pin#1 Fuse F33 (or connecting x279 pin#9 on pin#4)
3B- 30A (-) on x279 pin#13 / ground (or connecting x279 pin#13 on pin#8)
BMW connectors: 61138364844

4- Option coding is required to activating the memory function with keys

Sorry if the information is raw, I haven't finish my study. Any comments are welcome.

Question to answer if you have any expertise:
-There is a risk to reused the 30A connection from the heating / powered adjustment on the lumbar / side bolster? My understanding is that if the same cable/fuse can support the heating and 4 motors, I don't see why it could not also support the 2 seat pumps. Normally all of these will not work at the same time.
If I reuse the connection, the retrofit will be much easier as I will not have to rewire the passenger seat and playing in the fuse box.
(To be continued soon..)

[woodpecka]

Some files that can help..

[dasammy]

Really great work so far!

But your pictures can't bee shown!

Of course I like to help you with the DIY!
Currently I'm working on a terminal diagram that shows the connections of the pins from connector X275 / X279.
But there is still a lot missing ...

I will post the unfinished one, so you can have a look at it.


Greets,

Mario

EDIT:
The colors of the cables may be different!

The discriptions of the pins are translated 1:1 from German to English, so it could be that some of them could confuse you . If so, then just give me the correct discription ... thanks

[woodpecka]

Can you see the pictures now?

[dasammy]

Yes ... now I can see them!
Thanks!

[dasammy]

Short Update:

I updated the "terminal diagram" ... it's still unclear, but I will do a better one later.
Notice that the cable colors may be different!

There's one thing I found in the TIS:

If you have manual seats without memory-function, then your car has the seat-heating-module.
That means, your seat heater is powered by the Junction Box with a pulse-width-modulation signal
If you have power seats with memory-function, then your car has the seat-module.
That means, this module regulates the seat heater on its own. Without Junction Box.

******

Still wondering what Pin 6 and Pin 7 are for ...

[woodpecka]

Nice job, it help me to confirm the assumptions!

I agree, I have understood the same thing about the difference with/without memory. If you look into the heated seat retrofit document, they connect all the wiring regardless if you have the memory or not. So I think it’s safer to add the K_CAN but keeping all the legacy wires as described.

For the other pins #6 & #7, they could be unused on the E90 but used on other cars. It’s like the memory module, there is an empty slot. Do you know if BMW is offering other seat options on other models?

[dasammy]

Yes, they connect all wires ... I guess they want to make sure retrofitting is successful, regardless the configuration of the seats installed in the car.
Because it's possible to have power seats with memory but without heated seats just as well as having manual seats without heated seats.

Connecting the K_Can is the basis for a working memory, right?
So why should we not connect the K_Can?
There is actually no need to connect the K_Can if you have no memory ... or am I wrong?

Which legacy wires do you mean? I don't get it ...

Yes, I consider that possible!
But I don't know if BMW is offering other seat options on other models. The result of my short research is that other models also have other connectors ... but I keep at it

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So you are about to retrofit your seats?
What have you done until now?

I just saw a little failure in your text under "important information":
-Driver seat' connector is called x279

[dasammy]

Just another 2 questions:

- Does your X279 connector have wiring on Pin 2 and Pin 3?
- Do you think connecting PIN4 to PIN9 and PIN8 to PIN13 will make the seats work properly (ecept memory of course)?

[woodpecka]

I have fixed the error on x279.

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K_CAN is used by the car computer to manage the memory so you have to connect it if your seat has this option. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Controller_area_network

Controller–area network (CAN or CAN-bus) is a vehicle bus standard designed to allow microcontrollers and devices to communicate with each other within a vehicle without a host computer.
CAN is a message based protocol, designed specifically for automotive applications but now also used in other areas such as industrial automation and medical equipment.

Applications

[edit]Automotive
A modern automobile may have as many as 70 electronic control units (ECU) for various subsystems.[3] Typically the biggest processor is the engine control unit (also engine control module/ECM in automobiles); others are used for transmission, airbags, antilock braking, cruise control, audio systems, windows, doors, mirror adjustment, etc. Some of these form independent subsystems, but communications among others are essential. A subsystem may need to control actuators or receive feedback from sensors. The CAN standard was devised to fill this need.

So it need to be connected if you want to activate the memory function by programming.

My question is about the SHBF_PWN for the heating. I think that if your seat are powered with memory (K_CAN), you don't need it anymore. (It become a legacy)

But, as the heating seat retrofit is plugging this wire, I will not take any chance and I will do the same thing.

---------------

I have got my seat but I want to dye them before. I also want to be sure about what should I do. I gave all the information I found and your search is validating my assumption.

I still have 2 questions:
-Can we reused the power from pin #4 on pin #9? (I think the risk is if the seat is pulling more than 30A, the fuse will jump. Do you think like me that pin #4 is the power for the heating + adjustments motors? If yes, I would be surprised that we cannot add the side bolster + lumbar. Normally there are not working all at the same time.)

-There is a risk that x14271 pin#10 and #46 are already used by other options. If it's the case, I don't have a miniature connector so I plan to weld the wiring. Is it correct?

[dasammy]

OK ... that's just what I assumed and now, that you approved it - its clear to me.

SHBF_PWM is a abbreviation for:

Sitzheizung Beifahrer_Pulsweitenmodulation that means heated seat passenger_pulse-width-modulation. That's why I feel certain about the fact, that its not longer needed if you have memory. Becaus the seat-module then controls the seat heater ...
In my eyes, there's no need to connect it

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OK ... you want to dye them? Never heard of something like that is possible ... in which color?

To your questions:

- I think thats possible because other guys in our German Forum (e90-forum.de) done this before with great success. Both had manual seats with seat heater before and they retrofitted manual sport seats with side bolsters and lumbar. All they had to do is connecting Pin4 to Pin9 and Pin8 to Pin13.

Assumption: I think I read in one PDF (TIS), that side bolsters and lumbar have the same pump. So ... I think ... they even cannot act at the same time

- I'm not quite shure if connecting Pin4 to Pin9 and Pin8 to Pin13 is "all" the work (despite memory) for us. For manual seats, it would be ... after connecting them - side bolsters and lumbar will work properly.
But my assumption is that the seat-module regulates the power supply to all the actuators in the seat. So it might be enough to supply the seat module with power (and K_CAN) and the seat heater. The picture I attached strengthens this assumption ... BTW: Its a picture of a E63/E64 - but it might be the same for E9x

- I think there are 2 emtpy slots ... because every Pin has its own wiring. All other connectors have empty slots when a specific feature is missing. So why should there be a difference on x14271?

greetings

[woodpecka]

About x14271, I saw a retrofit document that show if you want to install the alarm system, you need to use the same pin # on the x14271 connector. They said that if the pin # is already used, you have to connect your cable with a miniature connector. (It looks like this crimp I think).
[img]http://t2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQl2KpzL10NCYLZdtByu-z94AIwRCo7RQqzi8XUQ_XeAHJyPjWm[3img]

Anyway, if it's the case, I had bad experience with this product so I would weld it instead.

Do you know which fuse # are connected to the lumbar and side bolster and the connector x#?

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I have ordered a black dye kit from this site: www.dynamixdyes.com. Look at the pictures if you are interested.

[dasammy]

Really?? Thats weird!

100% agree ... these connectors are not reliable. I also think soldering would be the better way of connecting the wires

In my eyes they are powered by the seat-module, so they maybe have no fuse its own. What do you think about that?

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Cool ... the results shown on the page look awesome! Good luck for dyeing!

[dasammy]

got it ... have a look at fuse #37 ... there is also another interesting thing to see: the missing Pin7 of X275 / X279 ^^

Just to correct my last post:

I now know for sure that lumbar and side bolsters are not controlled by the seat module. Just the electrical adjustment and seat heater are controlled by it. Its in the TIS ... if you have it, search for the seat module. I installed the TIS in German, so posting the PDF would be worthless ...

[woodpecka]

Fuse #37 is for what? The driver lumbar?

I confirm the driver seat module is only controlling the heating and the positions. Sorry, I didn't know that you was searching this info.

So, do you think it is safe to connect all the features on the same power wire?

-I don't know which fuses are used and
-I'm not sure about which connectors to use in the fuse box.

I feel it's safer and easier to just connect PIN4 to PIN9 and PIN8 to PIN13..

Thanks for your cooperation!

[dasammy]

@AoshichanX:

You're welcome
Hope you will be succesfull in retrofitting the missing features
Keep us up to date

@woodpecka

No Problem ...

Heres a PDF showing Fuse #37.
in short F37 is for:
- lumbar driver/passenger
- valve block lumbar driver/passenger
- side bolster driver/passenger
- valve block lumbar driver/passenger

---

I'm not sure if connecting all features to the same power wire is safe ... Im no electrician

OK .. that's a big disadvantage of the online WDS ... the original WDS is more informative.
I will post some PDFs concerning the fuses and connectors ...

Yes, of course its the easiest way to connect these pins. But I wasnt sure (and Im still not ) if the seat adjustement will work after connecting these pins. In our German Forum some guys managed to get the lumbar and sibolsters work. They have .. as I mentioned manual sport seats. So I was not sure if this "trick" is all the work for us.
I hope you understand what I try to say ^^ ... its so hard for me to explain in English ...

If you know what I try to say ... what do you think about that?

[woodpecka]

Guten morgen! (I lived 3 months in Berlin and this is the only word I learned, excepting "ein Bier bitte" ) Don't worry with you English, my first language is French.

FYI, I have download the 2gig 2006 TIS. But, I have never found the wiring diagram like you. Where did you found them?


So:
1- Adding the K_CAN connection to the driver seat with twisted wire gage #18 - #21
1A- K_CAN H on x275 pin#2 / x14271 pin#46 F?
1B- K_CAN L on x275 pin#3 / x14271 pin#10 F?
BMW connectors: 61138364832

2- Adding the 30A power on the driver seat with single wire gage #12
2A- 30A (+) on x275 pin#9 / x11006 pin#2 Fuse F37 (or connecting x275 pin#9 on pin#4)
2B- 30A (-) on x275 pin#13 / ground (or connecting x275 pin#13 on pin#8)
BMW connectors: 61138364844

3- Adding the 30A power on the driver seat with single wire gage #12
3A- 30A (+) on x279 pin#9 / x11006 pin#1 Fuse F33 (or connecting x279 pin#9 on pin#4)
3B- 30A (-) on x279 pin#13 / ground (or connecting x279 pin#13 on pin#8)
BMW connectors: 61138364844



Regarding F49, I'm confused! Do you understand why it show x279 #4 connected to x11006 #2 F49?! Is it for the same car configuration?
If you look into this document, F49 is used for the heating system. http://www.e90post.com/forums/attach...9&d=1295915760

I would like to see the schema of x14271, x15003, x15004 and x11006, do you have them? (I suspect a difference between 2 car configuration (US vs EUR?) cars!)

[dasammy]

... "ein Bier bitte" is the most important sentence in German

My French isnt really good ... I understand more than I can speak, but thats still not much . 4 years at school where quite not effective

Sorry ... that was a typing error ... I meant the WDS not the TIS. I can send you a link to the WDS per PM if you want.

To F49: The Document about retrofitting the heated seat and the diagram from the WDS don't show a difference in my eyes.
The parts of the retrofit also include the seat module ... so imho F49 is for the seat module. Thats the same information as the WDS puts over .... isnt it?

The schemata of the connectors X14271 and X11006 are not in the wds ... sorry
There are just drawings where they are situated und how much pins the connectors have

Here are connectors X15003 and X15004

BTW: fetched my seats today ... 550 Miles were worth every inch

Are your seats already dyed? So ... when's installation starting??

Can't wait any longer to see the results!!

[woodpecka]

"ich mag hefeweizen..dunkel"

Yes I would like to get the WDS, your diagrams are better than on the bmw-planet.

I got my dye kit and the result is amazing, near the new leather look. Just the cleaning did 80% of the job.

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I start the retrofit today. My goal was to install all the wiring and installing the seats in a few days. Finally, we have remove all the parts until the junction box and we haven't install anything. Removing the glovebox took too much time and we would have missed time to wire the wiring to the driver seat.

Also, we haven't been able to join the back of the fuse box because a few screws are very hard to remove. So, I have decided to connect the power on the pump on the same wire than the module like other peoples did. It is maybe safer like this.

Also, I can confirm that the K-CAN pin #10 and 46 are already used so I will soldier my wiring on it. Based on your last diagram, I understand that at least the moonroof is using it.

I hope I will install everything in 2 weeks..
You?

[dasammy]

Sent you the links!

Thats cool! Do you post the results here?
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Good to hear that you already startet retrofitting.
Have you made some pictures during removing? What was the difficulty about that?

You mean you connected Pin4 to Pin9?

ASAP! ... maybe next weekend.

[woodpecka]

Unfortunately, I have forgotten my camera but I will do it next time.

I haven't connected anything but I will connect pin #9 on #4. What will you do?

The pump is only using 1 motors so I would be surprised that the module (heat + position) cannot support this motor on the top.

[dasammy]

OK ... I think I will do the same ... it's the easiest way

Yes, and its unlikely that you would use the positioning and the pump at the same time ... but I think there must be a good reason that they separated it.

That brings me to another question: if the memory is working, does the lumbar and the side bolsters also adjust to the saved position refering to the different keys? Or is it just about the positioning?
EDIT: ... lumbar and side bolsters are not supported


Ive made pictures of the connectors today ... there are 2 questions i have ... can you help me with them?

What is Pin6 of X279 for and why are Pin2 and Pin3 also existing in X279??

EDIT: Found the answer to Pin2 and Pin3 ... they have to be there because of the heated seats

Next thing is ... I don't have Pin9 ... after a look (or two ) at the WDS. I found another interesting thing: Pin7 has to be connected to Pin4 to get lumbar and side bolsters working for cars between 03.2007 and 09.2007

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First 3 pictures: X279
Last 3 pictures: X275

Do your Connectors look the same?

Greetings!