[jnissen]

Well I'm half way into the project and removed the seat. The old seat back is ohming out to 35.4 ohms (a bit high but not open). The new heater is in the 6 ohm neighborhood on my DVM. I'm goiing to check the seat bottom as well while I'm in there. More to come...

 

[jnissen]

Well I'm half way into the project and removed the seat. The old seat back is ohming out to 35.4 ohms (a bit high but not open). The new heater is in the 6 ohm neighborhood on my DVM. I'm goiing to check the seat bottom as well while I'm in there. More to come...

Well I completed the seat back but didn't fix the issue. I sorta gambled that the back was an issue with the somewhat higher resistance. Now I need to go back into debug mode. Sometimes your the hammer and other days your the nail!

 

[jnissen]

As my other post stated I did replace the drivers side back on a whim as it was measuring higher resistance than specified. It was in the 36 ohm range when the new one was in the 6 ohm range. Did not fix the issue. My plan is to again look at the seat bottom heater now. I seems to be OK but if I am sitting in it it may open up? Worth a try. I'll be damned if I will pay $700 for the stupid controller in the dash.

 

[jnissen]

Yes finally nailed this one. It was an intermittent in the seat bottom heater. I initially thought it could be the rear heater since it was reading slightly high in resistance. Replaced it as shown.

Once I tested it the seat still would not heat or the light stay on. I tested the seat bottom at the time of the repair and it said it was good. Well that was without any one sitting in the chair. I played with the seat by adding some pressure and could make the thing come and go. Yep - an intermittent in the lower seat. I found the small break where there is a horizontal tie down going across the seat. Cut notches in the seat cover as shown similar to what Honda tells you to do for the upper seat heater. Only one side was bad so I soldered in a jumper wire from the old seat heater. The wire does not like to solder but with enough flux it eventually accepted a nice tinning of solder. Buttoned it all back up and now the seat heaters finally work! Yes this has only been out for about 5 years now! It's getting cool here and I will have to drive north in a few weeks. They will come in handy again.

 

[John Clark]

That's why you can't blindly follow a service bulletin. It only takes a minute to check the heaters. I read your other post about it and you mentioned reading a higher resistance. I bet you read both heaters in series instead of just the seat back. It's a good tip about putting some pressure in the seat, too, as that can definitely affect your test results.

 

[hitops]

Heated seat shuts off quickly

This is on behalf of another owner of a 2011 EX. He has a problem where the driver's heated seat will only activate for a brief period then shut off on it's own. Then when you turn it on again, it shuts off again after only a few seconds. Basically the sooner you turn it off after the last shut-off, the shorter it stays on. Passenger side is fine.

What is the best way to go about investigating, and is there a way to distinguish a bad switch from a bad element, or something else?

 

[m4gician]

This is on behalf of another owner of a 2011 EX. He has a problem where the driver's heated seat will only activate for a brief period then shut off on it's own. Then when you turn it on again, it shuts off again after only a few seconds. Basically the sooner you turn it off after the last shut-off, the shorter it stays on. Passenger side is fine.

What is the best way to go about investigating, and is there a way to distinguish a bad switch from a bad element, or something else?

there's a TSB from Honda on this issue.

It's a common fault with the wiring plus the seat heater element.

I have the same issue and trying to get dealer to fix for cheap

m4gician
2012 Touring (Canada)

 

[jnissen]

Look for the earlier wiring diagram in this post. There is a way to verify the seat back heater with a two pin connector (about 6 ohms between the two pins) and then a five pin connector for the seat bottom heater. Verify pins 2-5 show about 6 ohms then verify 1-2 is less than 0.5 ohms. Lastly check the thermistor between pins 3-4. Should be about 12-15K ohms (depends upon temperature). If you have opens on any of these checks then you likely need a new seat heating element for the bottom.

 

[m4gician]

Hey guys,

I've emailed my dealer as well as set-up an appointment. I've provided the TSB and the attached paper. Going to try to get this repair done for free. Will report back as my car is technically out of warranty for this issue.

 

[depalma]

I now have the exact same drivers seat heater issue with my 2011 Honda. I have not taken it to the Honda dealer yet. Please let me know what results you get from the dealer.
Can someone please provide the TSB or a link to get this TSB?

 

[Nick0703]

I now have the exact same drivers seat heater issue with my 2011 Honda. I have not taken it to the Honda dealer yet. Please let me know what results you get from the dealer.
Can someone please provide the TSB or a link to get this TSB?

Here is the TSB regarding the driver's seat heater. http://techinfo.honda.com/Rjanisis/pubs/SB/AH/A14-009/enu/A14-009.PDF

 

[aus]

I brought that to Honda World in Westminster and since I'm out of warranty it would be around $450.

 

[jnissen]

The repair was not all that bad. On a scale of 1-10, with 10 a nightmare repair, it was about a 4-5. Once you get the supplies and tools it's only a couple hours to repair.

 

[Matthew C Smith]

I just wanted to leave a quick comment here. I just replaced the upper heater section. Brand new element has 6 ohms across it. The one I pulled out had 28 ohms and was not working.

Not so difficult a repair honestly, just takes a little time. If you've done upholstery, this is an easy one.

Thanks everyone for the fantastic thread and information.

 

[aus]

One of you guys needs to make a Youtube vid or a detailed DIY for us people with cold butts!
.

 

[Our Odyssey]

So count me among the owners that have a heated seat (drivers) that isn't working. Going to test the continuity using post #18. Hopefully I can figure it out and just order the part from the dealer.

Question - is there a seat back heater element on the passenger side as well? Or is it only seat cushion on passenger side? 2011 Cdn Touring

 

[Our Odyssey]

Ok, I answered my own question. Looks like the drivers side (as we know) has two parts - seat back (p/n 81524-TK8-305) and seat cushion (p/n 81534-TK8-A41). Passenger side only has seat cushion - (p/n 81134-TK8-A41)

Parts are not expensive on the US site that I looked at so I'm hoping the Cdn parts are similarly priced.

 

[ody_family]

I finished replacing my driver seat heater elements last week. I took it in to the dealer for an unrelated recall and had the TSB in hand hoping they would give me one of those $100 deals to replace. NOT. $450ish... They quoted me $78 for each element part if I wanted to DIY- in stock! hehe
I declined and decided to do it myself. Thanks for the previous posts for the tips. It isn't a difficult job but just takes patience.

Highlights:
-Do order the bull ring pliers... makes all the difference in the world.
-Order your OEM honda parts online. . about half the cost. Don't forget the new upholstery rings.
-Follow the TSB carefully. Do disconnect the battery You are dealing with the side airbag assembly.

My seat back cushion was the culprit -- with the wire obviously broken in the 'valley' in the seat. I considered resoldering it but since I spent the time tearing down the seat, I didn't want to repeat this again.

Raise the seat up about halfway and the recline at a normal position before disconnecting. REMOVING the seat from the van is a must. I used two sawhorses and a small OSB panel as the table.. so I could work on the seat standing up.

The headrest posts / tubes are unlocked from underneath- they click in place. Just wait until you get the cover unzipped and you can see them.

Take lots of pics beforehand and as you go. It will come in handy. Especially with the airbag strapping. Take your time to figure out how the leather cover comes apart... Its like a puzzle. LOL
I used a big diagonal cutter to cut the factory rings instead of trying to pry them open. The wiring harness clamps under the seats do come off- no need to cut.

I replaced both pads and took about five hours [with lunch break ]- but I wasn't rushing. I wish the TSB had more detail on the actual disassembly of the covers to make it easier.

Its worth saving the $450. Now the wife has toasty buns as we go into winter soon.

 

[aus]

Here is the TSB regarding the driver's seat heater. LinkDeny

Link doesn't work. Anychange you can upload a PDF?
Thanks

 

[ody_family]

Try this:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1pV7oTp_oJUkJAO6YqTFg9qVoNF5vhNbb/view?usp=sharing