4200 Drivers Seat Problem

PaulCambio

PaulCambio

Member
Messages
485
The tale of woe goes on with this car!

Got in to it yesterday, and went to start the car. Started fine, but the gearbox light came on, and when I put it in gear, there was a loud bang, and judder. The drivers seat then moved back of its own accord, and stopped as far back as it would go. Next, the awful smell of burning, and the seat won't now move. I suspect a burnt out seat motor.

Also, my wing mirrors won't now adjust, so I'm guessing the fuse may be the same as for the seat??

Is it easy to replace the seat motor, and is the part an 'arm and a leg'?

Cheers.
 
FIFTY

FIFTY

Member
Messages
3,100
If the 12v ciggerette lighter has gone too then it's the fuse as it's on the same circuit. Fuse box for it is behind the kick plate in the passenger footwell (while you are there check for coolant ingress if you have not had your heater matrix done)

Not sure about the gearbox light and banging/juddering though
 
conaero

conaero

Forum Owner
Messages
34,632
Seat motor is easy, you can get them new from Porsche (do a search on there) for about £30...and not the thousands Maserati want for the entire seat base.

Its simple to fix, just remove the seat (making sure you disconnect the battery when you disconnect the airbag seat pre tensioner or the light will come on and persist)

I would first do a battery reset (turn off for a couple of hours remembering to drop the drives window and not to shut the boot) A myriad of lights and errors is 9/10 a battery reset required due to the voltage dropping low from lack of use and confusing the complex electronics.

But it does sound like a motor has failed and the fuse has blown. Also, whilst you have the seat out, check the memory seat button. Water drops onto it and corrodes it. You can get a salvage unit from Trident Spares or David Askew for a tenner.
 
conaero

conaero

Forum Owner
Messages
34,632
Reset seat tilt memory

Open the driver's side door and QUICKLY (must all be completed within 5 seconds) click the fore/aft adjuster forward-backward-forward-backward (just click - you don't need to move the seat much at all), then release the seat back and tilt it all the way forward. The seat will then go through a calibration cycle sliding all the way forward and back twice.


Seat memory set
Adjust the seat to the desired position.
Turn on ignition but do not start the engine.
Tilt the seat forward.
With the seat still tilted forward, adjust the seat base as far forward as it will go.
Tilt the seat back.
The seat will then return to the desired position.
This reteaches the maximum movement of the seat to the memory.
This generally occurs when one of two things has happened. 1) the seat has been left in the tilt forward position for too long, or 2) the seat was in the tilt forward position when the ignition position was changed, either turned on or off.
 
safrane

safrane

Member
Messages
16,880
Bang and judder may be your brakes sticking on? As you tried to move forward you brake the bond between disc and pads.

Check the hand brake to see if it still operating.

Other possibilities are clutch?
 
davy83

davy83

Member
Messages
2,823
What he said, check the handbrake, it get s salty at this time of year and they lock up when left for any time, which is why its best to leave them set as loose as possible and never use the handbrake! :)

safrane said:
Bang and judder may be your brakes sticking on? As you tried to move forward you brake the bond between disc and pads.

Check the hand brake to see if it still operating.

Other possibilities are clutch?
Click to expand...
 
conaero

conaero

Forum Owner
Messages
34,632
Good shout Peter. You want to whip the calliper, disc of and see if the shoes have delaminated. If you don't check it, they can spin round on each other and lock the effective wheel...something you don't want to happen when pushing on.

You can get the shoes refurbed for about £40 for both sides.

Interestingly, the wife came back in the house on Monday morning said her Citroen had no drive...its was the handbrake sticking from all the salt. Rocked it and they went 'crack' and free'd.
 
PaulCambio

PaulCambio

Member
Messages
485
Thanks Matt and Fernando. I've bought a seat motor off Ebay for £60 including postage. The door mirrors are now working, so guess that was a battery issue. The car still has an overnight battery drain problem, and is going to an auto electrician in Bognor Regis next week, so hopefully they will identify the cause.
 
conaero

conaero

Forum Owner
Messages
34,632
PaulCambio said:
Thanks Matt and Fernando. I've bought a seat motor off Ebay for £60 including postage. The door mirrors are now working, so guess that was a battery issue. The car still has an overnight battery drain problem, and is going to an auto electrician in Bognor Regis next week, so hopefully they will identify the cause.
Click to expand...

Good to hear. I have a brilliant auto electrician called Pete here in Chichester...hes the man!

He works here but does mobile stuff: http://www.gravellanegarage.com

PM me if you want his mobile.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.