Help! How do I remove/replace seat belt receptacle

[lejolierogue]

Dear enthusiasts,

Please provide me with instructions to remove the driver-side seat belt receptacle and in particular, the cable that attaches to it.

Please advice and thanks in advance.

-jack sparrow

[RandallNeighbour]

It's not hard. Take a deep breath and dive in with these instructions:

Before you do this repair, find your radio code. You'll need it if you disconnect the battery.

1. Remove negative battery terminal and insure your key is in your pocket, out of the ignition.
2. Go drink a beer and wait a half hour unless your airbag light is already on, which is a fairly sure assumption or you wouldn't be asking for this, huh?
3. Remove the four bolts that secure the seat to the floor of the car.
4. Gently lift the seat up a little and push the seatback toward the passenger side so you can get under it with a flashlight. Tilting the back portion forward with the release is helpful for doing this maneuver.
5. Disconnect the main wiring harness by prying up the bar on the side with your thumbnail or a flathead screwdriver. As you pull it out, it forces the two halves to come apart. Remember this for later when you reinstall it as you'll have to push in on the bar to secure the two parts together. This is really hard to describe in a forum thread, but if you examine it you'll see what I mean.
6. Now you can carefully remove the seat from the car and take it inside or on your shop table and you'll see where the seat belt connector bolts to the seat frame. Remove that bolt.
7. Next, follow the black plastic covered wires to the wiring harness and locate them in the pin configuration.
8. There is a plastic retaining pin holding it in place and it's blue if I'm not mistaken. You will have to remove this with a small flathead screwdriver and keep it safe to put back in later. When it's removed, the plastic end of the wire will slide right out.
9. Take the old wiring out by fishing it through the underbelly of the seat.
10. Drink another beer. You're halfway done.
11. Install the new seat belt receptacle by bolting it on the frame (which is specific to the driver's side, so make sure you didn't buy the passenger seat one or you'll still have that doggone airbag light on).
12. It's a pain in the arse, but you should do this next bit right and get the wiring to go the same way the old one was by putting it inside the clips and getting it to the wiring harness the same way the old one was installed.
13. Put it into the harness and put that retaining pin back in place.
14. Call your wife or girlfriend out to see what you did and how complicated it looks under the seat. Tell her you are saving over well $100 by doing this yourself and ask for something special later in appreciation.
15. Put the seat back in the boxster, tilt it back toward the passenger side, reconnect the wiring harness and press in on the retaining bar to secure it tight. Bolt the seat back in place.
16. Put negative terminal back on battery.
17. Turn key to ACC and check to see if your seat electronics still work. They should.

Last, if your airbag light is on before this mod, you still have to take it to someone with a PST tool and have them turn it off... dealer should do this for little to nothing as goodwill for you, but some are real jerks and won't, so be prepared to pay.

Plan on doing the passenger side soon... they both go out and throw an airbag light. Sadly, from what I hear Porsche is STILL manufacturing cheap seat belt receptacles that throw airbags in the new models. Grrrr!

[hockenheim]

Bumping this old thread.

Excellent instructions, thanks for posting. I am stuck on Step 8. I have removed the blue retaining clip but the blue plastic end of the connector will not budge. Any suggestions on how to remove it?

Originally Posted by RandallNeighbour

It's not hard. Take a deep breath and dive in with these instructions:

Before you do this repair, find your radio code. You'll need it if you disconnect the battery.

1. Remove negative battery terminal and insure your key is in your pocket, out of the ignition.
2. Go drink a beer and wait a half hour unless your airbag light is already on, which is a fairly sure assumption or you wouldn't be asking for this, huh?
3. Remove the four bolts that secure the seat to the floor of the car.
4. Gently lift the seat up a little and push the seatback toward the passenger side so you can get under it with a flashlight. Tilting the back portion forward with the release is helpful for doing this maneuver.
5. Disconnect the main wiring harness by prying up the bar on the side with your thumbnail or a flathead screwdriver. As you pull it out, it forces the two halves to come apart. Remember this for later when you reinstall it as you'll have to push in on the bar to secure the two parts together. This is really hard to describe in a forum thread, but if you examine it you'll see what I mean.
6. Now you can carefully remove the seat from the car and take it inside or on your shop table and you'll see where the seat belt connector bolts to the seat frame. Remove that bolt.
7. Next, follow the black plastic covered wires to the wiring harness and locate them in the pin configuration.
8. There is a plastic retaining pin holding it in place and it's blue if I'm not mistaken. You will have to remove this with a small flathead screwdriver and keep it safe to put back in later. When it's removed, the plastic end of the wire will slide right out.
9. Take the old wiring out by fishing it through the underbelly of the seat.
10. Drink another beer. You're halfway done.
11. Install the new seat belt receptacle by bolting it on the frame (which is specific to the driver's side, so make sure you didn't buy the passenger seat one or you'll still have that doggone airbag light on).
12. It's a pain in the arse, but you should do this next bit right and get the wiring to go the same way the old one was by putting it inside the clips and getting it to the wiring harness the same way the old one was installed.
13. Put it into the harness and put that retaining pin back in place.
14. Call your wife or girlfriend out to see what you did and how complicated it looks under the seat. Tell her you are saving over well $100 by doing this yourself and ask for something special later in appreciation.
15. Put the seat back in the boxster, tilt it back toward the passenger side, reconnect the wiring harness and press in on the retaining bar to secure it tight. Bolt the seat back in place.
16. Put negative terminal back on battery.
17. Turn key to ACC and check to see if your seat electronics still work. They should.

Last, if your airbag light is on before this mod, you still have to take it to someone with a PST tool and have them turn it off... dealer should do this for little to nothing as goodwill for you, but some are real jerks and won't, so be prepared to pay.

Plan on doing the passenger side soon... they both go out and throw an airbag light. Sadly, from what I hear Porsche is STILL manufacturing cheap seat belt receptacles that throw airbags in the new models. Grrrr!

[Starter986]

Originally Posted by hockenheim

Bumping this old thread.

Excellent instructions, thanks for posting. I am stuck on Step 8. I have removed the blue retaining clip but the blue plastic end of the connector will not budge. Any suggestions on how to remove it?

The middle photo... the part that has stamped on it "AMP" and then some numbers. It appears to be a clip that you could remove with a flat head. Almost looks like it's channeled and you could slide it off. I'm guessing.

If you can remove that "AMP" part it app-ears the piece with wires would just pop out.

Could be incorrect. Trying to help. Best of luck.

[hockenheim]

Originally Posted by Starter986

The middle photo... the part that has stamped on it "AMP" and then some numbers. It appears to be a clip that you could remove with a flat head. Almost looks like it's channeled and you could slide it off. I'm guessing.

If you can remove that "AMP" part it app-ears the piece with wires would just pop out.

Could be incorrect. Trying to help. Best of luck.

You are spot-on . I initially thought the enclosure was a monolithic part but no, a flat-blade screwdriver will slide the cover up (i.e. toward the wiring harness side) and then the connector can be removed. Clever - almost too clever for me .

Also kudos to the seller of the seat belt receptacle - I forgot his handle but I think it is David (Freswick?). He replied to my text asking for help within minutes, notwithstanding the fact that I purchased the part a few weeks ago and only now got around to installing it. Love this community.

[Starter986]

Originally Posted by hockenheim

Love this community.

I'd be in the poor-house if it weren't for this forum. Post an inquiry... and BOOM... you're near back on the road.

Glad that worked out for you... and that my guess was correct. See you soon!