Change of plans. I'll preface this tale by verifying that, as is often the case, the passenger seat's leather was excellent. The thought of stripping it off to install the Lseat cover in its stead made me physically ill. Nevertheless, if I wanted the two seats to match, I would have no choice. What to do? Providence interceded in the form of an email from eBay featuring drivers seats for sale. One in particular caught my eye. Out of a low-mileage totaled 996, it looked absolutely
perfect. I realized it was the solution to my problem: I wouldn't have to touch the passenger seat. So I bought it — $600 plus shipping. It arrived today.
Couple things. First, it's an 8-way powered seat, so I plan to swap frames, wiring, and controls with the original seat. I considered retaining the power feature but rejected the idea. I'm sure I could get it working
eventually, but I suspect it would involve lots of hair pulling getting the connections right. Besides, I want to keep my 986 as stock as possible. Second, the new seat is unheated. However, the original seat
was heated, so I stripped out the heater pads from the lower cushion and back insert. I'll slip them into the new seat and
presto! a heated seat. I already have the original seat back together after stealing its heater pads. I plan to start a new thread chronicling the heater pad installation in the new seat.
So that's the saga. I plan to sell the original seat, soon to be powered, as well as the unused Lseat covers, which will defray the cost of the new seat. True, I bailed on installing the Lseat covers, but I could have done it (I coulda been a contender). I know exactly how it's done, and maybe the knowledge will come in handy someday. I opted instead for a solution that's better all the way around.