Alternative Relay ( seat heat )

[flmont]

Hello,..I'am curious if there is a alternative relay's for my seat heater,..I've looked around, these are not that easy to find,..only a used one for 90.00 on e-bay, I was hoping there would be one from a Audi or a VW that would work on a 2002 Boxster, Thank's ! Frank

[KevinH1990]

https://youtu.be/M60earBPZAw?si=1IqwC3rAPfibjOx-

Here's a video showing how to use generic relays. The downsides of this method appear to be (1) You only have one heat level, and (2) The generic relays will take up more space than the OEM relay.

[flmont]

Thank's for that KevinH1990 I checked that out today at work,..looks like it should work for me, Frank

[KevinH1990]

I used some VW parts when I retrofitted seat heaters in my 2000 Boxster using Dennis Vogel's instructions: https://www.dennisvogel.com/heatedseats/#parts (The parts list says Audi, but the Audi parts were available at the VW dealer.)

My initial reaction was that there could be an Audi or VW equivalent for the Porsche part, but Dennis Vogel didn't list one. The relay cost $52 when Dennis wrote his instructions, and either (1) there was no VW/Audi equivalent or (2) the cost saving wasn't substantial. I searched and a new Porsche relay is about $230 today. I don't know whether anyone with Audi/VW parts knowledge has made a thorough search, but it seems like there could be a financial incentive to find the part if it exists. Of course, Audi and VW parts aren't cheap.

Good luck with your repair.