Heated MGF Seats Vitesse Mk2

[Paul H]

Last year I purchased a set of leather MGF seats ( 2001) for my Vitesse Saloon, completed the modifications and they work well. The missus is best pleased as the seats are very comfortable making longer journeys easier.

Im now upgrading the electrics including adding modern fuse boxes and this makes  accessories easier and safer to include, so adding heated seat pads to the MGF seats .

Waeco heated seats  cost about £90

Britpart heated seats cost about £60 

Ebay copy of Britpart ( doesnt have the posh box but 99% certain the contents are the same ) £30

I chose the Britpart because of cost as only found the non branded version recently , but wouldnt hesitate if purchasing again 

There is an excellent MGF forum which gives details how to fit the Waeco Heated Pads here . All the heated seats are similar though Waeco are handed so Ive added a few photos if using Britpart 

Its best to read in detail the MGF forum advice first then fill in with my photos etc below if using the Britpart version / unbranded       LINK

Dismantling the seats involves using a Torx 50 socket and you probably wont have one this big so simply use a reversed screwdriver attachment. The pics explain . A bit unconventional but worked for me  

With the Torx bolts removed the seat is in 2 parts . The back is easy and fitting the pad is a doddle though you will need the trim the heated panel by approx 140 mm so follow the MGF forum advice

The Pads can be trimmed by up to 150mm 

The seat squab is a different story and working on a bench will make life easier - removal of the leather top is covered in detail by the MGF Forum

The power cable come out of the back of the seat and the picture shows the heat pad in place the removable securing tape removed up to the blue ink line so secured to the foam. The 6 punched holes are where Hog ties were situated . The hog ties being replaced with cable ties . The pads can have sections removed . the max size hole being 200 mm wide and 50 mm deep providing the side wires are not cut 

The seat show has all the cable ties in place to fix to the leather cover . Working from the back of the seat secure the cable ties up to the first cross section 

The above pic show the first 3 fixings which go across the seat completed . The yellow plastic trim sits in a foam recess . Now its a case of securing all the remaining ties and refitting the top leather cover. This takes some manual persuasion though the cover will go back looking this this . Note the cable exit is by the prop tunnel 

Now refit the Torx bolts and you have the seats ready to go back 

Please excuse the additional furniture , its far too cold to work in the garage its currently minus 1 !!! 

The next pic show the exit cables - 1 per pad 

I then tested the seats by a temp fitting of the cabling - The seat switch covers both seats, pushing right turn the drivers seat on  to high heat , pushing right again gives low heat, pushing again switches off the right seat. Pushing the left hand side operates the passenger seat  - I like the idea of having 1 switch as easier to place and currently the switch location is a modified rectangular switch bracket which will be fitted in a central location under the dash - The appearance isnt classic though pleased with the look -  The switch illuminates red , then orange for the 2 power levels - There is also a night light which i havent tried yet  

I tested the seats in a cold conservatory about 6 C and with my Aldi heat gun recorded 23 c and pretty sure there was more heat to come - Earlier in the week when the wood burner in the conservatory was on and temps of 18 C the first seat went up to 34C 

The Britpart quoted output is 44 watts on low and 90 watts on high

An inline 15 amps fuse is fitted and the control box has a relay included + temp guard to prevent overheating 

Now I need to refit the seats and permanently wire them in 

Hope this helps 

Paul 

 

 

 

[Guest]

That is excellent Paul and thanks for posting.

I've got MGF seats in my Vitesse and Alpine, have to say (as you know) transforms the driving experience completely along with the added safety factor such as the headrest.

MGF seats are still VFM compared to the over inflated asking price of the Mazda units, that said MGF seats will soon reach those dizzy heights.

Regards.

Richard.

[TomL]

I fitted seat-heaters, too, to my seats, also MGF.  I would rate seat-heaters as one of the best mods for our cars.  I used Mazda RX7 rocker switches as I didn't particularly like the switches that came with the kit.  The heating pads on mine definitely could not be trimmed, but I understand that some of the newer ones can be trimmed, though quite how this works when you're cutting though what looks like the element, I don't know.  Anyway, Paul, please follow up with your impressions of how you find them in use.

Tom