heated seats not working, 03 yukon

[highrollin113]

hi i have a 03 yukon slt and would appreciate any help if someone could tell me why when i press my heated seat buttons on either side they shut off almost immediately, is there any easy fix? i see a lot of posts online of others with this problem but no cures

 

[jdpromo33]

hi i have a 03 yukon slt and would appreciate any help if someone could tell me why when i press my heated seat buttons on either side they shut off almost immediately, is there any easy fix? i see a lot of posts online of others with this problem but no cures

Yes this has been covered many times on this forum.

See my response below for fix info

 

[highrollin113]

thx, i have noticed if im in the passanger seat they work, and if im in the driver seat and all the all the way forward they do as well but as soon as i move back it trips, is this consistent with what you think the problem is? nice ride by the way, i am looking at those rims also for mine they look great it sure good to see what they look like on before i purchase, are they boss?

 

[jdpromo33]

thx, i have noticed if im in the passanger seat they work, and if im in the driver seat and all the all the way forward they do as well but as soon as i move back it trips, is this consistent with what you think the problem is? nice ride by the way, i am looking at those rims also for mine they look great it sure good to see what they look like on before i purchase, are they boss?

I did some research and found out that this is the problem.
It's the heat seater element under the drivers seat and because it's connected to the passenger side seat, when it shorts out it then shorts the passenger side also
Here's how to fix the problem

The heating element is like a piece of fabric that sits under the leather. Its held in place front and back by what amounts to tape to the foam. The new one comes with it - peel and stick like a band-aid.

To change, you unscrew the seat control switches and plastic panel on the side of the seat. The switches or connectors unscrew from the inside of the panel also IIRC. With the switches out of the way, the leather is pulled off the seat cushion. Its held on by way of plastic channels that are part of the cover that sit over the edge of the metal frame. Pull the channel off the metal and up it comes to reveal the heating element. I didn't completely remove the cushion leather from the seat and left it attached in the back. I pulled the element up (ripping an insignificant amount of foam with it due to adhesive). The element wires snake through the back of the seat and simply plug into the truck harness. If you are looking underneath the seat, the connector is bright green. I used a long pick to pull the wires to where I could reach them with my hand. The key is to lay the new element as flat as possible when sticking the adhesive to the foam. The "right way" is probably to take the seat apart or at least to fully remove the leather from the cushion in order to get it perfectly flat in the back where the seat cushion and seat back come together but I was able to get it pretty flat just pushing it back with my fingertips then peeling the adhesive strip. Installation of the leather and switches is reverse of removal.

Its really a piece of cake job. Budget 30 minutes. The old one should look burnt up in spots which will confirm that its the issue. Element was like $90 through a friend in the industry.

 

[highrollin113]

thanks a lot, thats a lot cheaper than the module

 

[jdpromo33]

thanks a lot, thats a lot cheaper than the module

No worries.
As for my wheels, I'm actually fitting a new pair on this weekend and selling the Boss 313 wheels.

Here are the new one's going on

 

[yargnits]

This got me to thinking about my heated seats. It seems that I only get heat on the back and not the seat. So I guess my passenger seat would be out too? I checked last night and it is indeed the case. So I'll pull the driver cushion and test the wire. If it's an open circuit I know I've got a problem. If not I'll check the pass side.

This brings me to a point I've always made to wife1.0. I told her that she should only have the heat heater on when she's in it. Leave it off when she gets out for over a few minutes. My thought is that the body consumes a lot of the heat being generated. If there's nothing there (the ass) to conduct the heat away, it will burn itself up. That's why I wouldn't endorse a remote start system turning on the heated seats for you. Anyway... My 2 cents.

 

[jdpromo33]

This got me to thinking about my heated seats. It seems that I only get heat on the back and not the seat. So I guess my passenger seat would be out too? I checked last night and it is indeed the case. So I'll pull the driver cushion and test the wire. If it's an open circuit I know I've got a problem. If not I'll check the pass side.

This brings me to a point I've always made to wife1.0. I told her that she should only have the heat heater on when she's in it. Leave it off when she gets out for over a few minutes. My thought is that the body consumes a lot of the heat being generated. If there's nothing there (the ass) to conduct the heat away, it will burn itself up. That's why I wouldn't endorse a remote start system turning on the heated seats for you. Anyway... My 2 cents.

Here you go Dave. All explained here

http://www.tahoeyukonforum.com/forum/showthread.php?t=10791

 

[yargnits]

Here you go Dave. All explained here

http://www.tahoeyukonforum.com/forum/showthread.php?t=10791

Sweet... I looked it over. Question - Did your back still heat even though the seat was out?

 

[jdpromo33]

Sweet... I looked it over. Question - Did your back still heat even though the seat was out?

I didnt take the seat out. I just removed the heat pad and still waiting for the new one to be delivered.

The back of the seat always worked fine even when the seat cushion was acting up.
What however did concern me was that this could have easily resulted in the seat catching fire and destroying the truck had I not dealt with it.

I always used to wonder why the seat cushion used to get so hot that I could feel it burning my ass!

Now I know why!