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5th Gen Accord USDM: Heated Seats (from 1G Acura CL)


James Matteu

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How to put these:

Thermistor034.jpg

 

in your car and for them to actually do somthing other than fill a hole in the console.

 

Parts:

New Parts:

 

Clips:

Honda P/N 91566-SP0-003

These clips will likely break in the process of removing the Seat Cover, buy 4 from your local dealership.

 

Used Parts Source: 1997-99 Acura 2.2/2.3/3.0 CL Premium or otherwise equiped with heated seats

 

Connections:

Connection 255 (C255) - this is under the engine bay fuse box

Option Connector (a/k/a Rear Window Defogger Coil Connection B for Acura CLs, a/k/a C525 for Accords), see below. The brown connector with one wire coming out.

Whenever you disconnect any of the following components, keep both the connector and some wire

Seats001.jpg

 

Relays:

Left Heated Seat Unit, Mitsuba Heated Seat Relay RZ-0054 ($165.03) Acura P/N 38536-SS8-A81

Right Heated Seat Unit, Mitsuba Heated Seat Relay RZ-0054 ($165.03) Acura P/N 38536-SF1-S01

4P Power Relay Assembly, Mitsuba RC-2201 ($38.00) Acura P/N 39797-SE0-004

 

Switches:

#17 Heated Seat (TEC) Switch Assembly ($60.65) Acura P/N 38535-SM4-S01

 

13sy80_b1110.gif

 

Heaters:

Right Front Seat-Back Heater ($226.80) Acura P/N 81124-SS8-A81

Right Front Seat Cushion Heater ($212.63) Acura P/N 81134-SS8-A81

Left Front Seat-Back Heater ($206.07) Acura P/N 81524-SS8-A81

Left Front Cushion Heater ($133.78) Acura P/N 81534-SS8-A81

 

Total List Price: $1268.64 (1998-99 switches)

 

I sourced all the above from my local salvage yard for $25.60.

 

Special Tool:

 

Hog Ring Pliers:

 

Pliers_held_med.jpg

 

 

Installation Part One: Battery to Seats

 

Connection Nomenclature 101

As you should have seen above, Honda labels each connection with a letter C and a number. Each ground is labeled in a similar fashion, with a G supplanting the C. The Acura manuals do not always number the connections or grounds, and the naming system varies by location in the vehicle.

 

Colors

Honda uses the following abbreviations for the colors they use to identify their wires, so will I:

BLK………...black

BLU………...blue

BRN………...brown

GRN………..green

GRY………..gray

LT BLU……light blue

LT GRN……light green

ORN………..orange

PNK………...pink

PUR………...purple

RED………...red

WHT………..white

YEL…………yellow

When I refer to a wire, the first color listed for a particular wire is the color of the wire, the second color is the color of the stripe running down the length of the wire. In the photo immediately below, there is a BLU/RED wire, an ORN/BLK wire, and a ground wire, the black wire.

 

Thermistor008.jpg

 

Now we can continue with the procedure.

 

DISCONNECT YOUR BATTERY BEFORE PROCEEDING

 

1. Fuse 22:

Remove the cover on the Under-Hood Fuse/Relay Box. Remove C921, it's the one on the far right that has wires coming out of it. Unbolt (8mm)/Unscrew (Philips) the Alternator and Battery cables from the Under-Hood Fuse/Relay Box. Remove the Under-Hood Fuse/Relay Box.

On my Accord, there was only one 10mm bolt in the front of the Under-Hood Fuse/Relay Box and tabs in the back, but in Service Manual P/N 61SV405, the same Under-Hood Fuse/Relay Box is shown with three bolts securing the Under-Hood Fuse/Relay Box. Either way, remove the Under-Hood Fuse/Relay Box and disconnect the 4 connectors under the Under-Hood Fuse/Relay Box, next we will add a fifth, see the photo below.

 

Seats004.jpg

 

Plug in C255 in the fifth spot under Under-Hood Fuse/Relay Box, see photo directly above. Prepare one 1.5m aliquot of 18 AWG wire. Route the wire through the grommet directly beneath the Under-Hood Fuse/Relay Box by using a PaperMate ball point pen. I.e.: remove the tip/ink cartridge, cut approximately 1 cm from the opposite end of the pen to create a hard plastic cylinder that is open at both ends. Remove any burs or sharp edges. Spray the pen cylinder with some silicone spray. Push the pen cylinder through the grommet to the cabin side, and then pass the aliquot of wire through the cylinder. The wire will fall down behind the Blower Assembly Housing.

You may need to reach up behind Blower Assembly Housing and grab the wire.

Pull the pen cylinder from the grommet, leaving the wire behind. Solder and shrink-wrap the wire aliquot to C255. Pull on the wire from the cabin side to adjust the length of wire leading to C255. Replace any electrical tape removed and then reinstall the Under-Hood Fuse/Relay Box. Insert a 15A fuse into the Fuse #22 spot.

 

2. Fuse 7:

Solder and shrink wrap a 1m aliquot of 20 AWG wire to the option connection (a/k/a C525), see below. Plug C525 into C909 on the Under-Dash Fuse/Relay Box. Route this wire to the Center Console.

 

Seats001.jpg

 

3. Rear Console removal:

Cup holder first, then the little door (or CD holder) under the arm rest. Remove 3 screws (not the two that were directly beneath the cup holder), and then pull up and back (toward the rear seats). The console should come right out.

 

4. Front Console Panel/Contents removal:

Take out your ash tray, then remove 3 screws and pull back and up. There are 6 retainer clips holding the front console in; if the metal part pops off, pull it out and slide it back on the Front Console Panel. Once the panel is removed, loosen the two screws holding the radio/pocket bracket. The stereo/pocket should come loose, now unplug the DIN, Antenna Lead, and C444.

 

5. Front Console removal:

Remove the Steering Column Lower Cover. Open the Glove Box, insert a quarter into the right side slot and turn counter-clockwise (the peg should come out), pull up on the tab on the left and remove that peg. The glove box should drop down. Remove the 6 screws holding the Front Console in: 2 black screws on the left (they were covered by the Steering Column Lower Cover), 2 black screws on the right (they were covered by the Glove Box), 2 silver screws in the middle (they were covered by the Front Console Panel).

 

6. Seat Heater Main Relay:

There are 4 places for relays inside the Center Console, pic one of these spots (there should be two available).

1 WHT/BLK - C255

2 YEL/BLK - C909

3 BLK/GRN - there are two wires here, one for each Seat Heater Switch

4 BLK - Ground, crimp a loop onto the end of the black wire and bolt to the metallic Center Console support

 

7. Seat Heater Switches:

Each Seat Heater Switches is to be wired in the exact same way, I will describe the wiring for one of the two Seat Heater Switches, see first photo.

1 BLK - G403

2 Empty

3 RED - run a wire to the RED wire on the defogger switch

4 WHT/BLK or WHT/GRN - Seat Heater Relay, pin 6

5 RED/BLK - run a wire to the RED/BLK wire on the defogger switch

6 BLK/GRN - Seat Heater Main Relay, pin 3

Run the wire coming from pin 4 under the carpet and out through the vent opening under the seats.

 

8. Reinstall the: Front Console, Front Console Panel, and Rear Console; in the reverse order as listed above.

 

 

Installation Part Two: the Seats

Wiring

 

The harnesses should be entact from the donor CL; if not, I have also included a pin out below.

 

Seat Heater Relay:

Each Seat Heater Relay is to be wired in the exact same way, I will describe the wiring for one of the two Seat Heater Relays.

1 Positive for Seat Cushion Heater high switch

2 Empty

3 G531

4 Negative for the Seat Back Heater

5 Positive for Seat Cushion Heater low switch

6 Positive from Fuse 22 via Seat Heater Main Relay and Seat Heater Switches

 

Seat Cushion Heater:

WHT - Seat Heater Relay, pin 1

ORN/BLK - Seat Heater Relay, pin 5

BRN - G531

BLU - C2, pin 1

 

Seat Back Heater (C2):

1 BLK - connects with BLU from Seat Cushion Heater

2 BLU - Seat Heater Relay, pin 4

 

1. Seat Removal:

Remove the headrest. Slide the seat backward. Remove the Seat Track End Covers, and then remove the two 14mm bolts. Slide the seat forward. Remove the Seat Track End Covers, and then remove the two 14mm bolts. Lift the seat backwards and disconnect any connectors you already have there. Remove the seat through the front door opening.

 

2. Seat Back Cover Removal:

Remove the Back Cover by pulling up on the bottom of the Back Cover and then down to unhook the top of the Back Cover.

Given the age of all 5th Gen Accords, the two clips (P/N 91566-SP0-003) at the bottom will likely snap off in the process of removing the Back Cover.

Remove all Plastic Hooks, Inside Springs, and Hog Rings. Save the Hog Rings for the re-installation of the Seat-Back Cover. Turn the Seat-Back Cover inside out, at this point, the Seat-Back Cover is only held in place by the Headrest Guides.

Move on to step 4 and then come back to step 3.

 

3. Seat Cushion Cover Removal:

Remove the Recline Knob. Remove the Cap from the Recline Cover. Remove the two Philips head screws. Remove the Recline Cover. Remove the two Bracket Cover Philips head screws, remove the Bracket Cover. Remove the four 14mm bolts from the Inner Seat Track, and then separate the Seat Cushion from the Seat Track. Remove all Plastic Hooks, Inside Springs, and Hog Rings. Save the Hog Rings for the re-installation of the Seat Cushion Cover. Turn the Seat Cushion Cover inside out and separate it from the foam and metal seat frame.

Continue on to step 4 and then proceed to step 5, step 6, etc.

 

4. Heater installation:

The donor CL had the Heaters attached to the leather covers with the type of plastic tag you find attached to a new article of clothing holding a paper where the size or price is listed.

I used a heavy duty needle in conjunction with thread used for sewing weave onto braids. If your female significant other recently switched to dreadlocks, then you too may have lots of hair weave products lying around. Otherwise, I would suggest using regular thread; just make sure you double up the thread.

Make room for the springs by cutting between the wires in the Heater, see below.

 

Seats007.jpg

Seats008.jpg

 

 

Then sew the Heaters onto the Cover, see below.

 

Seats009.jpg

 

 

5. Seat Back Cover Installation:

Pull the leather back down around the foam. With some pliers, pull the springs through the holes in the foam and re-install them as you found them. Use two standard pliers to straighten out the hog rings. Then situate the hog ring in the hog ring plier with the open end facing out. Grab two support rods, and while holding the rods close together, bend the hog ring around them by squeezing the hog ring pliers. The hog ring might look oblong at this point. Rotate the ring so that you can give it a second squeeze with the hog ring pliers, the hog ring should be circular now. Smooth the Cover by hand, then snap all the plastic Hooks back into place.

 

6. Seat Cushion Cover Installation:

Situate the foam and metal frame as they will be in the seat, start with the Seat Cushion Cover inside out, and pull the Seat Cushion Cover down around the foam and frame. With some pliers, pull the springs through the holes in the foam and re-install them as you found them. Use two standard pliers to straighten out the hog rings. Then situate the hog ring in the hog ring pliers with the open end facing out. Grab two support rods at a time and while holding them close together, bend the hog ring around them by squeezing the hog ring pliers. The hog ring might look oblong at this point. Rotate the ring so that you can give it a second squeeze with the hog ring pliers, the hog ring should be circular now. Smooth the Seat Cushion Cover by hand, and then snap all the plastic Hooks back into place.

 

7. Seat Installation:

Place the seat in the car through the front door opening. Lift the seat backwards and plug in all connectors, including the new 2 pin Seat Heater connection.

Replace the four 14mm bolts.

You may need to have someone help you adjust the Inner and Outer Seat Track in order to line them up with the attachment points inside the cabin.

Replace the three Seat Track End Covers. Finally, reinstall the Headrest.

 

 

Other:

 

Reasons for adding Honda OEM seats from an Acura CL:

1. $26 versus $160+ for aftermarket heaters of unknown quality

2. 5G Accords were born for this upgrade (see C255 in your engine bay fuse box)

3. Heated seats are cool.

 

How it works:

The main relay only receives 12V at 7.5A when the ignition key is in the ON position. With the key in the ON position, the dash switches are able to switch on the two under seat relays which provide 12V at 15A to the heating elements.

The heating elements get hot since the 12V at 15A comes in from the battery via 18AWG wire, where the heating elements themselves are wired with 24 or 26 AWG. Resistance is a function of the specific resistivity (a/k/a rho) of a material and its size; a copper wire 1mm wide will have less resistance than a copper wire 0.5mm wide. As current passes through a material with greater resistance, the material gets hotter. Imagine a bottle of water with a hole in it; imagine you keep filling the bottle to top it off as it drains through the hole. The water is the electrons coming from the battery; your topping off the bottle is the 15A the battery supplies to the circuit. The hole is the resistor (the seat heaters), and the water (the electrons) rubbing the edges of the hole as they leave the bottle creates the heat felt in the seat heaters when they are switched on.

 

Other Applications:

If someone where to wire in a 15A fusible link from the battery, and collect other materials found in any Acura or Honda with heated seats, I think it is possible to put Honda OEM Heated Seats in any Honda, for $26.

Edited by James Matteu
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I need batteries for my camera. The heaters I bought were in really bad shape. I am drying them out right now (I had to soak them with Febreeze). I bought some fabric at Walmart, I will reposition the wires with some thread and then use upholstery glue to recover the wires.

 

Also, someone yanked out the security system in the car I pulled the parts from, this pulled the element wire out of the thermoswitch, I have to repair that and check connectivity before I install.

 

I should have instructions and pictures up by next weekend.

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Alright, got some batteries.

 

Here are some before after for the kids.

 

Here is the gang I pulled from the bone yard. Check out the years of spilt drinks and the wires hanging out of the one at the bottom.

 

Heater002.jpg

 

 

I had to hold the wires in the right position before using this

 

Heater005.jpg

 

to put some new fabric,

 

Heater006.jpg

 

nothing a little Elmer's can't handle.

 

Heater004.jpg

 

Ready for new fabric!

 

Heater003.jpg

 

Looks great! They all look great! And they don't smell or feel like they are about to fall apart.

 

Heater007.jpg

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Well I wired everything...

 

Seats005.jpg

 

Then tidied up...

 

Seats006.jpg

 

Only to test the Heaters and find that one of them is a dud; the one that had the wires cut (big surprise).

 

I have to trouble shoot this before installing it in the driver's seat, the passenger side is in and there is no more wiring to be done behind the dash. I can really feel the heat, which I am sure I will appreciate more fully in winter.

 

I will keep you guys up to date. Bump on the instructions, they are almost finished.

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wow! very cooooool! gooood work James :D

 

just a quick question: it might be there but I didn't see it...is there a safety kill switch or something that would be accessible to cut off power, in case anything goes wrong?

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just a quick question: it might be there but I didn't see it...is there a safety kill switch or something that would be accessible to cut off power, in case anything goes wrong?

Yes, if something goes wrong, turn the car off.

 

The Seat Heater Main Relay controls voltage going to the Seat Heater Switch, which controls voltage going to the Seat Heater Relay, which controls voltage going to the Seat Heaters.

 

The Seat Heater Main Relay gets its voltage from C909 and C909 is hot only in the ON ignition position, so the Seat Heaters see 15A when both a) the ignition is in the ON position and b) the Seat Heater Switch is closed.

 

So if something goes wrong, I turn the car off.

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  • 1 year later...

If you have heated seats, and there is a fuse in that fuse holder position you describe, you will also find a switch that looks like a seat with some wavy lines. This turns a heating element on that resides under the seating surface, which in turn warms the seat surface. Used primarily when it get colder. All Hondas do not have them as it falls into an option category on some models/trim and not available on others.

 

Regards

 

 

Long Island Concrete | Master Spa Products | North Carolina Relocation Information

Edited by openking89
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  • 1 year later...
  • 1 year later...
  • 6 months later...

There are absolutely no Acura CLs I can source from in my area; while I have most of the parts I need, I'm completely unable to find the relays that are used in this guide because I have nowhere to source it from.

 

Is it possible to use a relay from another model? Or a generic one? I don't know enough about electrical systems to guess and check.

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  • 2 months later...

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