I wanted to add heated seats to our LJ, so I purchased the Dorman 628-40 universal heated seat kit. Here's a write-up on how I installed them.
Installation:
Remove the negative cable from the battery for safety. We have airbags in the dash and other wiring so be safe.
The Parts! Mopar sends you everything from the seat heaters to the hog rings needed to put things back together.
Hog Ring Pliers are essential! Proceed forward at your own peril without them! Yes you could use channel locks or pliers but you must be a master of patience that I am not. Hog Ring pliers are about 14 bucks at a decent hardware store, you can also get them online. You could also probably make your own. They have an indentation on the jaws that hold the hog ring while you install it and they help close them up nicely.
So to get started, remove the top cover near the windshield on the dash. This just pops up, its held in with a few clips.
Remove the two Phillips screws on the top of the the center bezel. With these removed you can pull the center bezel up and forward while also pulling forward on the bottom. Note the bottom is held in at the bottom with the same clips as the cover on the dash.
Remove the cigarette lighter setup by removing the screws on the sides.
You will see something like this depending on if you have other switches or accessory power. You need to remove the plug for the cigarette lighter.
Now take the cable from the Mopar kit and install it between the cigarette lighter and the cable just removed.
This cable you need to route somewhere that you can easily route the seats to. I chose the inside left of the glove box. The glove boxes flips down and out when you remove the side strap from the box. To get the cable routed, you may have to temporarily remove the Heater control panel and route the wiring behind it. You can now attach the cable junction to the cable you just attached. At this point I moved to the seats.
On the rear bolt nearest the center console a T-50 torx will be needed. Otherwise a 1/2 inch socket will suffice for the other bolts.
Remove the seat and place it in an area where you can work on it comfortably.
You will see 4 plastic tabs securing the seat fabric to the frame of the seat. I started by removing the front one first, followed by the sides and the back one. The back one can be a bit tricky and a long screwdriver can help with this.
Now pull the fabric up on the front of the seat slowly and carefully. It is attached with hog rings which need to be removed to install the seat heater. Using a pair of pliers, I used angled needle nose, remove the first pair of hog rings.
After the first pair of hog rings are removed you will need to separate the fabric from the Velcro strip that holds it to the foam. Once complete, use the pair of pliers to remove the next two pairs of hog rings.
At this point there is enough room to install the bottom seat heater. This one has the cable attachment for the back on it and does not have the label calling it the back heater. Route the cable through the back of the seat, this is why you need to remove the clip on the back holding the fabric to the frame. Peel the backing and stick, the heater is installed.
The seat back now needs its heater installed. Remove the back plastic clip from the front piece by separating the 3 plastic clips. I found a screw driver helpful.
Peal the seat cover up, I found it easier to remove the two hog rings holding the two steel rods to the frame. Note: These two rods must go back into the holes midway up the seat if they fall out or they will stick out on the seat, easy to fix just make a note. Peal and stick your seat heater and route the cable out the the bottom. It fits nicely between the plastic clips that hold the seat together on reassembly.
Hog ring pliers, if you don't have them, this is going to suck. If you do have them here is how they work. Take a hog ring from the Mopar kit and place it between the jaws. Notice how it holds the ring nicely. See your channel locks do that <grin>
Starting with the bottom seat start to put the cover back into place. Where you removed the hog rings you need to replace them. Taking the pliers and the hog ring as just shown and clip the seat cover back to the bar in the seat. Squeeze the pliers far enough to wrap the ring into a circle around itself. Do this for each hog ring and stick the cover to the Velcro when you get there. Be sure to get all the hog rings replaced. On the seat back make sure you get the bars back into the holes further up and reattach them to the seat frame.
Reattach all of the plastic clips holding the cover to the seat frame. Note the sides and the back may need some gentle help with a screwdriver to reattach them.
Repeat for the other seat.
Before installing the seats, route the green wiring from the seat location under the carpet up to your location in the dash where you attached the cable junction and attaching each cable to the correct side. Be sure to cable tie the wiring out of the way.
Reinstall the seats in the vehicle and torque the seat bolts to factory spec. On my '05 FSM, it shows rear Outboard bolt to 33 Nm or 25ft lbs, inboard rear to 74 Nm or 55 ft lbs, front bolts to 33 Nm or 25 ft lbs. Check your service manual for your vehicle.
Attach wiring in the floor you just installed to the connector on the seat. Make sure to cable tie excess cabling out of the way so the seat can move without interfering with the wires.
I left the switch until last as I was deciding location. I chose the flat area to the right of my switches and cigarette lighter. Using the template provided, I used a Dremel with a cut off wheel and cut a hole matching the template. You may have to use a grinding tip to round it off nicely.
Clean the plastic with the provided wipes. Once complete you can insert the cable through the new hole and stick the switch to the plastic. Then attach the bezel around the switch. Attach the cable to the junction block and you are ready to close things up. Make sure all wires are tied up and not obstructing anything, this is critical under the seats, you do not want to run over your electric cable for your seats when you move them. Reattach the cigarette lighter assembly, the AC controls if removed, the bezel and the top strip. Reattach the battery cable. You are now ready to test out your heated seats.
JK installation would be very similar, instructions for the JK come with the Mopar Kit.
Installation:
Remove the negative cable from the battery for safety. We have airbags in the dash and other wiring so be safe.
The Parts! Mopar sends you everything from the seat heaters to the hog rings needed to put things back together.
Hog Ring Pliers are essential! Proceed forward at your own peril without them! Yes you could use channel locks or pliers but you must be a master of patience that I am not. Hog Ring pliers are about 14 bucks at a decent hardware store, you can also get them online. You could also probably make your own. They have an indentation on the jaws that hold the hog ring while you install it and they help close them up nicely.
So to get started, remove the top cover near the windshield on the dash. This just pops up, its held in with a few clips.
Remove the two Phillips screws on the top of the the center bezel. With these removed you can pull the center bezel up and forward while also pulling forward on the bottom. Note the bottom is held in at the bottom with the same clips as the cover on the dash.
Remove the cigarette lighter setup by removing the screws on the sides.
You will see something like this depending on if you have other switches or accessory power. You need to remove the plug for the cigarette lighter.
Now take the cable from the Mopar kit and install it between the cigarette lighter and the cable just removed.
This cable you need to route somewhere that you can easily route the seats to. I chose the inside left of the glove box. The glove boxes flips down and out when you remove the side strap from the box. To get the cable routed, you may have to temporarily remove the Heater control panel and route the wiring behind it. You can now attach the cable junction to the cable you just attached. At this point I moved to the seats.
On the rear bolt nearest the center console a T-50 torx will be needed. Otherwise a 1/2 inch socket will suffice for the other bolts.
Remove the seat and place it in an area where you can work on it comfortably.
You will see 4 plastic tabs securing the seat fabric to the frame of the seat. I started by removing the front one first, followed by the sides and the back one. The back one can be a bit tricky and a long screwdriver can help with this.
Now pull the fabric up on the front of the seat slowly and carefully. It is attached with hog rings which need to be removed to install the seat heater. Using a pair of pliers, I used angled needle nose, remove the first pair of hog rings.
After the first pair of hog rings are removed you will need to separate the fabric from the Velcro strip that holds it to the foam. Once complete, use the pair of pliers to remove the next two pairs of hog rings.
At this point there is enough room to install the bottom seat heater. This one has the cable attachment for the back on it and does not have the label calling it the back heater. Route the cable through the back of the seat, this is why you need to remove the clip on the back holding the fabric to the frame. Peel the backing and stick, the heater is installed.
The seat back now needs its heater installed. Remove the back plastic clip from the front piece by separating the 3 plastic clips. I found a screw driver helpful.
Peal the seat cover up, I found it easier to remove the two hog rings holding the two steel rods to the frame. Note: These two rods must go back into the holes midway up the seat if they fall out or they will stick out on the seat, easy to fix just make a note. Peal and stick your seat heater and route the cable out the the bottom. It fits nicely between the plastic clips that hold the seat together on reassembly.
Hog ring pliers, if you don't have them, this is going to suck. If you do have them here is how they work. Take a hog ring from the Mopar kit and place it between the jaws. Notice how it holds the ring nicely. See your channel locks do that <grin>
Starting with the bottom seat start to put the cover back into place. Where you removed the hog rings you need to replace them. Taking the pliers and the hog ring as just shown and clip the seat cover back to the bar in the seat. Squeeze the pliers far enough to wrap the ring into a circle around itself. Do this for each hog ring and stick the cover to the Velcro when you get there. Be sure to get all the hog rings replaced. On the seat back make sure you get the bars back into the holes further up and reattach them to the seat frame.
Reattach all of the plastic clips holding the cover to the seat frame. Note the sides and the back may need some gentle help with a screwdriver to reattach them.
Repeat for the other seat.
Before installing the seats, route the green wiring from the seat location under the carpet up to your location in the dash where you attached the cable junction and attaching each cable to the correct side. Be sure to cable tie the wiring out of the way.
Reinstall the seats in the vehicle and torque the seat bolts to factory spec. On my '05 FSM, it shows rear Outboard bolt to 33 Nm or 25ft lbs, inboard rear to 74 Nm or 55 ft lbs, front bolts to 33 Nm or 25 ft lbs. Check your service manual for your vehicle.
Attach wiring in the floor you just installed to the connector on the seat. Make sure to cable tie excess cabling out of the way so the seat can move without interfering with the wires.
I left the switch until last as I was deciding location. I chose the flat area to the right of my switches and cigarette lighter. Using the template provided, I used a Dremel with a cut off wheel and cut a hole matching the template. You may have to use a grinding tip to round it off nicely.
Clean the plastic with the provided wipes. Once complete you can insert the cable through the new hole and stick the switch to the plastic. Then attach the bezel around the switch. Attach the cable to the junction block and you are ready to close things up. Make sure all wires are tied up and not obstructing anything, this is critical under the seats, you do not want to run over your electric cable for your seats when you move them. Reattach the cigarette lighter assembly, the AC controls if removed, the bezel and the top strip. Reattach the battery cable. You are now ready to test out your heated seats.
JK installation would be very similar, instructions for the JK come with the Mopar Kit.
