[Richard Cook]

I have just had a couple of Recaro seats installed in my 2004, pkg #8 PRIUS. The installer did not connect the electrical power leads from the seat to the because he did not understand the Prius wiring and did not want to compromise himself or damage the car. On my recommendation he rigged a temporary connection to the accessory outlet (under the dash) since it is 12V and 15 amps - and it does work fine for the seat movement functions. But as soon as I tried the seat's heating element, the fuze blew, which was easily replaced once I discovered where the auxiliary fuze box was (under the dash to the left of the steering column). I've downloaded the wiring diagrams from techonline.com for reference. Any Recommendations??? Has anyone done this or a something similar to thier Prius?

The Recaro seats are great.

 

[Richard Cook]

On Seat Connectivity

I forgot to say that the dealer said it was out of scope for him - I suspect warrantee and liability issues are going unstated.

 

[Bob Allen]

Good thing you didn't connect the ejection seat mechanisms.

 

[Richard Cook]

Ejection mechanism

Thanks for the humor Bob, but at this point I don't know whether to just laugh and say hakuna matata (which won't influence the seats much), have a fit of anger and do something I might regret (counterproductive), or try to do it myself (at the risk of blowing the transport mechanism on the AB bus -- really scary).

RC

 

[RSnyder]

If you want to use your seat heaters instead of the PTC electric heaters, you could probably disconnect the PTC leads and connect the seat heater leads to that fuse. I'm not sure if it's one or two fuses, but you could probably get 30 amps from it/them.

This is not a job for a novice and there almost certainly are warranty issues. So don't do this if you aren't confident in the installer.

 

[kenmce]

I have just had a couple of Recaro seats installed in my 2004, pkg #8 PRIUS... as soon as I tried the seat's heating element, the (15 Amp) fuze blew, .. I've downloaded the wiring diagrams from techonline.com for reference. Any Recommendations??? Has anyone done this or a something similar to thier Prius?

Dang, thought you were wiring in a high voltage Utah moose guard or something (G). OK, so the heater takes more than 15 Amps. Find something with a bigger fuse and hook in there. Try something like the AC that you won't use at the same time as the seat heat. Or maybe you have an unused fog light fuse? Any unused slots where you can put in your own fuse? If you can't find a 20 or 30, see if you can find where the fuse box gets its positive connection, bypass the box, wire in your own 30 (or whatever the seat heat calls for) and run it in parellel with the box. It'd be nice if each seat had its own heat fuse.

 

[kenmce]

I have just had a couple of Recaro seats installed in my 2004, pkg #8 PRIUS... as soon as I tried the seat's heating element, the (15 Amp) fuze blew, .. I've downloaded the wiring diagrams from techonline.com for reference. Any Recommendations??? Has anyone done this or a something similar to thier Prius?

Dang, thought you were wiring in a high voltage Utah moose guard or something (G). OK, so the heater takes more than 15 Amps. Find something with a bigger fuse and hook in there. Try something like the AC that you won't use at the same time as the seat heat. Or maybe you have an unused fog light fuse? Any unused slots where you can put in your own fuse? If you can't find a 20 or 30, see if you can find where the fuse box gets its positive connection, bypass the box, wire in your own 30 (or whatever the seat heat calls for) and run it in parellel with the box. It'd be nice if each seat had its own heat fuse.

 

[Prz]

Try something like the AC that you won't use at the same time as the seat heat.

I agree with the train of thought, however the AC automatically kicks-on when the windshield defroster is turned on. This way the dehumidified air can clear up fogged windows faster. I think that many people in the North use the defroster to melt snow (when the deated seat is on).

 

[gary91]

Richard,

The best way to get power to your seats is to run a 12 or 10 gauge wire directly to the 12v battery in the trunk (I think there is a 12v input lug on the underhood fuse box that would also work) with a fuse located within 12" from the battery. That sould work for the entire seat (motors and heater)

For something that draws more than 15-20 amps the only right way to tap into a wire is solder and heat shrink (don't use fuse box taps, t-taps, or scotch locks), but why would you cut a factory wire when you could spend a little more time and go to the battery.