Short In Seat Controls

[BALOO BELLE]

I have a 02 300 and the back contor control button has shorted out. when i got the car you had to push it in the right spot to get it to work. :( that and the butt warmer help my back soo much.

anyone taken the side panel off yet or know if you can get to the wire harness from underneat in the back seat? i actually need to get to the connection under the button? has anyone see a DYI for this?

[gbhrps]

BalooBelle,

Typically the seats are installed as one piece into the car. What I mean is, the seats are swung into the interior of the car, the wiring harnesses to the seat heaters and power seat controls are connected, and then the seats are lowered to the floor and the 4 bolts tightened down, one at each corner.

So to ensure that the plastic side panels and switches are removed correctly without breaking them, I would remove the entire seat from the car. Once its out of the car it can be turned upside down on a clean surface. The fasteners for the side panel and the switches should be quite visible then.

As well, I suspect that you may find that your switch is just dirty. Many times over the years I've found that spraying the interior of a switch with electrical contact cleaner, and then cycling the switch quickly several times, often cures the problem. Just make sure the key is turned off, and then wait several minutes for the cleaning fluid to evaporate before you test it.

Stubborn switches can often be taken apart and the interior contacts cleaned. Be careful with this method, as small pieces can get flung into dark corners of the garage where you'll never find them. If I choose this route, I put the switch and both of my hands into a large ZipLock bag to prevent parts loss.

If none of the above solves the problem, you could opt for a used one or spring more bucks free for a new one. And then again, you may find that the switch is fine and that you have a corroded or disconnected harness connector, or a broken wire. Good Luck!

[BALOO BELLE]

yeah its magic the switch is working agian and i didnt do anything. im not sur ei want to mess w this if it is so involved. im not trying to take the seat out or mess around w the air bag. lame

[BALOO BELLE]

does the electrical cleaner come w a tiny spray straw like wd40. can i spray into the cracks around the button or will this not be good for the other components? they are all electrical and it will dry. i can manage taking the chair out my self if i have the tool and strength to unbolt it. but with the air bag being in there im a little scared.

if i am going to take the chair out should i just replace the switch w a new one?

[gbhrps]

You are correct. The electrical contact cleaner spray can be fired into the openings and seams of any switch with that little straw attachment, in an attempt to clean up the contacts .... if that is the issue. I've used it many times on power window switches and the like, and it usually does the job. As I stated last post, sometimes it will be necessary to take the switch apart to do the cleaning, and sometimes the switch is just too far gone and a new one is required.

The spray shouldn't hurt any of the nearby components, but I would suggest keeping it away from the leather. I did have a case many years ago when I got some of the spray onto the dial face of a speedometer I was working on. It quickly removed some of the numbers on the dial face and made them run.

The airbags in your car (dash, ceiling, side of the seat) won't fire if you disconnect the battery, and then wait 20 minutes or so for the capacitors to lose their electrical charge. They are perfectly safe to handle afterward, as long as you keep them away from any electrical sources.

That's what the dealership would do. You have the choice to try to clean up the old switch and save some money if you can, or just replace it. Personally I would try to fix it if I could. You may find that a new one will be a lot of bucks.

Once you have the switch out, using a multimeter its very easy to see if the switch is defective or not, or if the cleaning job fixed the problem.

By the way, it may be possible to remove the side panel from the seat, and the switch as well, without removing the seat. Try raising the seat up as high as it will go, and then use a flashlight to see if from the front or rear you can see how the side panel is fastened to the steel frame. A couple of screws or spring clips may be all that's involved. Then again, maybe not. Good Luck!

[BALOO BELLE]

didnt make it far enough to even start looking to figure out to raise the seat. lol i know what im messin w this weekend. my mechanic looked and said he will do it for me w out taking it out. i dont think im strong enough to safely remove the seat by myself w no damage.

do I need to remove the cover to spray the connectors behind the button? is it safe for me to spraying through the cracks to the connectors behind the button to try to skip disassembly if its not needed. it seems to be the actual button trigger. you have always had to hit it in the right spot. i struggled w it when it went out the first time. or could it possibly be a connection to the switch?

[gbhrps]

You have a different body style than my wife's 04, so I can't say whether you will have any success spraying the cleaning fluid into the seams around the switch. Try it and see?

As for the problem in the first place? It could be a dirty switch, the connector to the switch, a frayed wire, or even a bad brush or connection in the pump motor that fills the bladder. You won't know until you investigate, but a dirty switch is the first thing to suspect, as it occurs frequently in many automotive switches from all manufacturers. Good Luck!