Okay here is the deal:

when i press the front half of the button down, my back warms up....
when i press the rear half of the button down, nothing happens........ not even after 10 minutes. i remember before one of the settings would warm my **** up too, now nothing

what does each half of the button do? is it normal for it to take 5 minutes to warm you up? the system is so ****ty, it warms you for 1 minute then it shuts down for 10 minutes and then warms you up for 1 minute again. any way to have it remain on?
someone educate me

 

Front position is "high" back position is "low". Should heat both the seatback and the bottom. Methinks maybe after ten years, yours may be operating less than properly...

I've never noticed mine cycling on and off, either....

Den
'01 AE

 

From what I understand with my heated seats, one is a low setting, and the other is a high setting. Both of my settings work, but I've noticed that it does an off-on cycle when it's on high, probably to regulate temperature, and for safety reasons to keep it from overheating and possibly melting and/or setting itself on fire. The low setting doesn't seem to do the on-off cycle, but rather stay at a constant temperature.

 

I have the same problem with my seats.... on high the back gets really hot, the bottom is cold... on low nothing happens.... I am staring to think that the lower heater pad is done... My passenger seat on the other hand works just fine... Anyone tried to repair the heating pads in the seats?

 

thanks for the replies, now I know what to expect......

so far i guess my LOW setting is completly gone, and of the Highs, only the back works and it cycles. how do you go about fixing these? is it even worth it? I mean i live in CA so its not that cold here but its a nice feature

 

It could be the switch itself, or it could be the actual heating elements/pads in the seat. I'd probably check the switch first. Getting a seat apart and put back together is a biaotch. Upholstry shops use special tools and fasteners to remove and reinstall the seat skins.

 

More than likely its just the age of the seat heaters, seen it happen over and over, customers come in and complain that the seat doesnt get as hot as it used to.

 

Try another set of switches?

 

I'd try a Wrecker switch. They're different for driver side and passenger.

Seems like you have a bad switch and possbly a bad element for the seat, or pinched wires

 

I suggest rapidly flipping to the off and then on position a few times to ensure the proper electrical contact is being made within the switch. Then, use the low setting for a while and then switch to the high setting to see if there's any improvement.

 

On my 5.5 front is high but back is low setting you can barely feel it

 

i will try to get my hands on a pair of switches and see if that helps. otherwise its no big deal. not worth tearing the seats open

 

Agreed. If I start off in low setting, it's bearly noticable. In high though, I can feel the warmth in about 2 minutes and it just keeps getting warmer until your **** and back are toasty.
I think Tuner is spot on with the switch/seat cushion element theory.

 

Have the same thing in my I30. I changed the switch and nothing improved. Someone on here a few years ago had a similar issue and took the seat pad off. He found that the heating wire in the seat pad was broken. I've been tempted but never had the time or energy to take my seat apart...maybe some day!

 

I have a set of I35 switches - they both work but pass. side doesn't light up. Also, they have horizontal illustration instead of vertical for the maxima. PM me.