Houston: We have a problem! Suburban SUV seat electrical connections.

[Mex-Busnut]

Dear Friends,

We are in the process of trying to get our pilot's seat set up. It was an electrical driver's seat out of a late-model Chevrolet Suburban.

We are trying to figure out the electrical connections. It has a bunch of connectors connected to it. One of my workers selected what he thought were the two most like candidates for the 13.6-volts D. C., and promptly exploded the built-in airbag on the left side!

So, dear friends: Does anybody have a clue which connectors do what? I just want the seat positions to work.

Thanks in advance!

[Mex-Busnut]

These are the two wires that triggered the airbag to explode, and the results.

[Mex-Busnut]

These are the three connectors that have us more confused than a mosquito in a nudist colony.

[buswarrior]

Well, you found the airbag wires...

Those seats will also have wires for built in heating pads.

And then the ones for the movement of the seat position.

The tag suggests August 2003 manufacture date, so either a late 2003 or an early 2004 model year?

Someone have a wiring schematic for a 2003 or 2004 Suburban?

happy coaching!
buswarrior

[Seangie]

Steve,

Googled a little for you and found this -

Try reading this post here - It might help you figure out where to start -
http://www.justanswer.com/chevy/3m6o9-2003-suburban-front-electronic-seat-will-not-move-backward.html

-Sean

[Eric]

I have access to Alldata if you need a schematic just PM me

[eagle19952]

Well the schematics don't fit the page here, but the web site at autoZone should help lots, maybe they would even print some if you went there.
Good luck, I was always told not to touch the yellow wires without disabling the air bag system, now you only have the seat.... not the rest of the sytem sensors and ECM's.







http://www.autozone.com/autozone/repairinfo/repairguide/repairGuideContent.jsp?pageId=0996b43f80370a2d

http://www.autozone.com/autozone/repairinfo/repairguide/repairGuideContent.jsp?pageId=0996b43f80370a19


these are only about 1/3 of the diagrams for a 2004 model GMC Yukon denali which is very similar, there are others for the restraint and seat position sensors.
BUT you can go here and register and Auto Zone will give you all you want,just follow through and add the vehicles to your register. Go to the repair help tab.
http://www.autozone.com/autozone/repairinfo/repairInfoLanding.jsp

[Mex-Busnut]

I have access to Alldata if you need a schematic just PM me

Thanks! I just sent you a PM!

Blessings!

[Mex-Busnut]

Steve,

Googled a little for you and found this -

Try reading this post here - It might help you figure out where to start -

-Sean

Thanks a million, Sean!

Be blessed!

[Jeremy]

I've been through this myself when installing Range Rover seats in other vehicles, and found it was best to throw the OEM wiring diagrams away and start again from first principles - just trace the wires manually to each motor (or the heating elements, lumbar compressor etc) and figure out what does what. Your photos don't appear to show the switches that operate the seats - I don't know whether they are integral with the seat on that model or not, but hopefully you do have them because they're more complicated than you might think.

Passenger electric seats are often vastly simpler to install than driver's seats, incidentally. Driver's seats often have a 'memory' function, which you'll soon learn to hate - rather than the various motors being wired directly to the switches, they instead go through an ECU, which also has connections to potentiometers fitted to each motor mechanism. On the Range Rover at least the memory ECU is also connected to other systems on the car, such as the wing mirrors motors, steering wheel motors, and the ECU which controls the central locking. The car has 'his and hers' key fobs, and depending on which one is used to open the doors, the seats, mirrors, steering wheel etc all move to different positions.

In short, if your seats have a memory function you'll almost certainly not be able to use it in your bus installation, so you'll end up having to re-wire everything anyway, to bypass the memory ECU and the potentiometers.

Jeremy

PS. The previous owner of my car blew the steering wheel airbag when installing a new stereo

[desi arnaz]

I would bet someone had to chage their underware .....

[eagle19952]

FWIW i also went to a bit of effort to help so either I am being ignored or not appreciated, is there a message here ?
Your welcome anyway.

[dukegrad98]

Interesting thread.  I am also looking at retrofitting some passenger car seats with integrated three-point belts into the coach I just bought, so this is good stuff for me to be thinking about.  I don't really care about the electrical adjustments, but getting the seat heaters going would be useful.  Oh, and of course not setting off the airbags.  Lucky no one was hurt -- it's frightening the force those can deploy.

Cheers, John

[Mex-Busnut]

Thanks again to each of you for your comments!

Here is a picture of the switch on the side of the seat. It came out of a 2008 Chevrolet Suburban.

[Mex-Busnut]

Here are two more pictures from the bottom.

Did you know all Suburbans and Tahoes are made in Mexico, at the Silao, Guanajuato GM plant? That is less than 2 hours away from our home town. I don't know if the Cadillac Escalade is as well.