M Sport seats installed!

wdb · 07-10-2016, 02:46 PM

I lucked into a set of M Sport seats on eBay last winter. They came from a car with a build date within 6 months of my car so the color match was dead on. Now that the weather is warm I treated them with Leatherique and put them in the car. w00t!

Installation was fairly straightforward. I had to swap seat belt tensioners from my standard seats onto the M Sports because the car they came from had seen an impact and the tensioners had been actuated - they're one-time use items, just like an airbag. I had a bit of fun figuring out how to get the hard-wired sensor out of the connector assembly, but eventually figured it out and threaded all of the wires through the labyrinth. If I had not had to do that the job would have been plug&play. It took me about 3 hours to swap the seats; without the tensioner work I estimate it would have been about half that.

Hints, tricks, lessons learned:

raise the seat up to ensure clearance when removing/installing the seat belt fixing bolt
the seat belt shoulder guides open up so that the belt can easily be removed/inserted; the standard seats have a screwed on cover, the M Sports pop out at the top (hinged at the bottom)
I have power seats; I kept them powered up and moved them front/back to remove/install bolts
DISCONNECT BATTERY BEFORE UNPLUGGING THE SEATS or else you'll get an airbag fault/light
I had a loose connection on one of the tensioners and ended up with an airbag light anyway :/ but my iCarSoft gizmo cleared it
lift the bottom of the seat out first then angle the top through the door
do the opposite going in - top of seat first followed by the bottom

First impressions:

oof! these are not likely to be fun for those of wide berth
I really like the side-to-side support - these are the first seats I've had in any car with this much lateral support
the seat cushion is firmer - there is a noticeably higher 'butt feel' coming through the ol' gluteus maximus
comfort on longer drives is still to be determined - the standard seats are all-day comfy for me, I sure hope these at least come close

Beedub · 07-10-2016, 03:33 PM

i love these seats, they have been the last piece of my car to see modification for a reason, they's pretty much nothing wrong with them, some of the best stock bmw seats around for sure... i just WISH they were alittle lighter and had alittle more support for track work...

Tlarkk · 07-12-2016, 07:41 PM

I just picked up a set of imola sport seats that another member was selling, so I will be doing this conversion soon. So thanks for the write up! I shouldn't have to do the tensioner, so it should be a straightforward installation.

wdb · 07-12-2016, 09:39 PM

Ah-ha, so you're the lucky buyer. Those are nice looking seats. If you run into any issues please feel free to reach out, maybe I can help. But it should be a pretty easy swap.

Tlarkk · 07-13-2016, 06:13 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by wdb

Ah-ha, so you're the lucky buyer. Those are nice looking seats. If you run into any issues please feel free to reach out, maybe I can help. But it should be a pretty easy swap.

Yes, very lucky buyer indeed. But yeah I will let you know if I run into anything. If not, expect some pictures! Haha

07-10-2016, 02:46 PM	#1
wdb dances with roads 4718 Rep 4,094 Posts Drives: '07 E86, '02 996, '95 Seven Join Date: Jul 2015 Location: the perimeter iTrader: (4)	M Sport seats installed! I lucked into a set of M Sport seats on eBay last winter. They came from a car with a build date within 6 months of my car so the color match was dead on. Now that the weather is warm I treated them with Leatherique and put them in the car. w00t! Installation was fairly straightforward. I had to swap seat belt tensioners from my standard seats onto the M Sports because the car they came from had seen an impact and the tensioners had been actuated - they're one-time use items, just like an airbag. I had a bit of fun figuring out how to get the hard-wired sensor out of the connector assembly, but eventually figured it out and threaded all of the wires through the labyrinth. If I had not had to do that the job would have been plug&play. It took me about 3 hours to swap the seats; without the tensioner work I estimate it would have been about half that. Hints, tricks, lessons learned: raise the seat up to ensure clearance when removing/installing the seat belt fixing bolt the seat belt shoulder guides open up so that the belt can easily be removed/inserted; the standard seats have a screwed on cover, the M Sports pop out at the top (hinged at the bottom) I have power seats; I kept them powered up and moved them front/back to remove/install bolts DISCONNECT BATTERY BEFORE UNPLUGGING THE SEATS or else you'll get an airbag fault/light I had a loose connection on one of the tensioners and ended up with an airbag light anyway :/ but my iCarSoft gizmo cleared it lift the bottom of the seat out first then angle the top through the door do the opposite going in - top of seat first followed by the bottom First impressions: oof! these are not likely to be fun for those of wide berth I really like the side-to-side support - these are the first seats I've had in any car with this much lateral support the seat cushion is firmer - there is a noticeably higher 'butt feel' coming through the ol' gluteus maximus comfort on longer drives is still to be determined - the standard seats are all-day comfy for me, I sure hope these at least come close Attached Images Last edited by wdb; 07-10-2016 at 03:51 PM..
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07-10-2016, 03:33 PM	#2
Beedub Major General 423 Rep 5,327 Posts Drives: 2007 Z4 M roadster vt2-500 Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: UK iTrader: (0)	i love these seats, they have been the last piece of my car to see modification for a reason, they's pretty much nothing wrong with them, some of the best stock bmw seats around for sure... i just WISH they were alittle lighter and had alittle more support for track work... __________________ Z4MR VT2 - Clubsport build. Multi award winning Detailing \| Wrap \| PPF specialists UK based - www.topwrapz.com
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07-12-2016, 07:41 PM	#3
Tlarkk Private 33 Rep 79 Posts Drives: E91 and e368 M Coupe Join Date: May 2015 Location: New Jersey iTrader: (1)	I just picked up a set of imola sport seats that another member was selling, so I will be doing this conversion soon. So thanks for the write up! I shouldn't have to do the tensioner, so it should be a straightforward installation.
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07-12-2016, 09:39 PM	#4
wdb dances with roads 4718 Rep 4,094 Posts Drives: '07 E86, '02 996, '95 Seven Join Date: Jul 2015 Location: the perimeter iTrader: (4)	Ah-ha, so you're the lucky buyer. Those are nice looking seats. If you run into any issues please feel free to reach out, maybe I can help. But it should be a pretty easy swap.
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