[dr. ill]

I hope this DIY helps someone else looking to do the same.

Doing a seat swap on my 328d. It was spec'd with non heated, non lumbar support leatherette which has held up nicely, but I've always wanted red leather with heat...
A set showed up at a local scrap yard from a 2012 328. I bought the front and rear seats started doing research on the swap. The car was in a front end crash, but the seat airbags did not deploy.

Radio Panel Swap
I sourced a radio panel with the heated seat button from ebay for $40.
PN
9226784
The install was easy, minus removing the one connector. This video helped.

Rear Seat Swap
I started with the rear seats because I thought they would be trivial. Following the instructions on newtis and this guys youtube video , removing the seats was pretty easy. As I pulled the bottom cushion I realized there was something different...
The seats in my 328d are pass through. The red seats from the donor 328 are not... The main difference is the way the seat back mounts to the chassis. The bottom cushion mounting is the same, but the back has different brackets for the fold down release inside the trunk. It took me forever to find the part number for the non folding bracket, but I did.

Plan A) Source these brackets from the donor 328, forego pass through functionality. ~$30
Plan B) Source another set of red rear seats with pass through option. ~$400-500.

Im currently waiting to hear back from the scrap yard about these brackets. Pretty sure they still have them, want to get them shipped on Monday.

PNs for non folding brackets (#6 in pic):
52207346698
52207346699



Will update...

Front Seat Swap
I was a little more nervous to do the front seats as some forum posts detail coding, issues with compatibility, and driver restraint malfunctions. There is never really any conclusion to the posts which is concerning...
Anyways, I went for it.
Started with the driver side. Following instructions on newtis again.
My plan was to use the red seat's seat module they came with. The module itself looks exactly the same to my current module. There are two more connections into the module, 1 for heat, 1 for lumbar support. I swapped my belt tensioner onto the red seat and installed it.

Pic of red seat's module


Pic of current seat's module (two fewer connector going in).


After I bolted the seat down I reconnected the battery and crossed my fingers.
Immediately I got a driver restraint system malfunction warning and light. FUDGE. Checking other functionality, the seat would intermittently move forward/back and recline. The lumbar and bolster adjustment did not work. The heated seat button did not turn on when pressed (was not expecting it to as the consensus is this has to be coded on).
So my plan was to swap my original seat module onto the red seat. Removing the module was a little difficult. I had to bend some metal tabs to remove it.
I plugged in all the connectors (two additional compared to my orginal seat). Reinstalled. Connected battery.

Immediately I got a driver restraint system malfunction warning and light. FUDGE again. Checking other functionality, all adjustments work flawlessly. Lumbar support works, no coding required.

So, where to next... Looks like I will dive into the land of coding to try to reset/pair the seat. Im a little surprised to get the error using the same belt tensioner and seat module. There must be something else its not recognizing.
Here is info on the seat module (nothing super helpful, just thought i'd link)



Your thoughts/comments are welcome. Will update as I go.

[IK6SPEED]

Originally Posted by dr. ill

I hope this DIY helps someone else looking to do the same.

Doing a seat swap on my 328d. It was spec'd with non heated, non lumbar support leatherette which has held up nicely, but I've always wanted red leather with heat...
A set showed up at a local scrap yard from a 2012 328. I bought the front and rear seats started doing research on the swap. The car was in a front end crash, but the seat airbags did not deploy.

Immediately I got a driver restraint system malfunction warning and light. FUDGE again. Checking other functionality, all adjustments work flawlessly. Lumbar support works, no coding required.

Your thoughts/comments are welcome. Will update as I go.

Seat belt tensioner blow without airbag deployment.

Use your originals.

You imply this is all plug and play "very straight forward"

You do realize the ECU must be mated to the car....and the options coded into the car?

[dr. ill]

Thanks for the reply.

I am using my original tensioner. After swapping out my original seat module, the only option that doesn't work is the heat, which I've read needs to be coded on (from this thread post 12 'Added 494 to VO and coded all ecus'). The driver restraint warning light is still on.

I dont think I have to mate the seat module to the car because I swapped in my original. If I was using the donor module that might be the case? I figured it was easier to swap the module because my coding level is beginner.

[sportsnut235]

Any updates on this? Trying to do swap option for option but adding heat to my seat set. Got the airbags swapped. Swapped control unit. Tried VO coding, but still no activity on the heat. Wondering if you had to do any wiring or if it was all in coding?

[Michael340i]

Originally Posted by sportsnut235

Any updates on this? Trying to do swap option for option but adding heat to my seat set. Got the airbags swapped. Swapped control unit. Tried VO coding, but still no activity on the heat. Wondering if you had to do any wiring or if it was all in coding?

You need to install a power supply direct from the fuse box to each seat to give you heating. They will also need a separate power supply for seat adjustment if you have that. This second supply will also power the seat bolsters and lumbar support if you have those.

Then you need to connect the driver seat to the correct CAN network, you should do the connection to the FEM, but most people connect to the idrive controller between the seats.

Surprisingly, the passenger seat connects to a LIN connector on the REM, without this connector the passenger heating won't work.

Then you need to VO code the seats, was never able to find the individual codes to do the job with Bimmercode.

[Michael340i]

Originally Posted by dr. ill

Rear Seat Swap
As I pulled the bottom cushion I realized there was something different...
The seats in my 328d are pass through. The red seats from the donor 328 are not... The main difference is the way the seat back mounts to the chassis. The bottom cushion mounting is the same, but the back has different brackets for the fold down release inside the trunk. It took me forever to find the part number for the non folding bracket, but I did.

Plan A) Source these brackets from the donor 328, forego pass through functionality. ~$30
Plan B) Source another set of red rear seats with pass through option. ~$400-500.

Im currently waiting to hear back from the scrap yard about these brackets. Pretty sure they still have them, want to get them shipped on Monday.

PNs for non folding brackets (#6 in pic):
52207346698
52207346699

If the seat cushions are the same between your existing seats and the red ones, you might be able to transfer the foam/heater elements/leather from the new seats onto your old seat frames.

I did something similar with my fronts, its a bit awkward to do, but very possible.

[SergioLeitao]

Very beuatifull seats, with all functions,