DIY: removing front seats

[BreezyM3]

i have removed my passenger seat only at the moment and tried disconnecting the tensioner cable but couldn't disconnect it, does anyone have a picture of the screw that needs to be turned to disarm it, have had no lights pop up on the dash since having the seat out and spoke to someone who also took their seats out and he said if there are no wires underneath the seat connecting it to the car i can just undo the 4 bolts and remove the seat, and thats what i did!

[D Boyd]

i have removed my passenger seat only at the moment and tried disconnecting the tensioner cable but couldn't disconnect it, does anyone have a picture of the screw that needs to be turned to disarm it, have had no lights pop up on the dash since having the seat out and spoke to someone who also took their seats out and he said if there are no wires underneath the seat connecting it to the car i can just undo the 4 bolts and remove the seat, and thats what i did!

Non electric seats you need to disconnect the outer cable housing from the clip on the seat by turning it 90degrees thus preventing the inner cable from releasing the spring in the tensioner. Re-connect cable housing when finished.

and thanks to whoever posted the pic of the screw on the elec seats I looked all over for it and couldn't find it but it looks like you have to get the seat part way out to access the side of the tensioner before you can access the screw or sight glass.

[Maca]

Once you remove the torx bolt attaching the seatbelt to the seat, should you just be able to pull the seatbelt out? I can't get mine out. The other torx bolt has nothing to do with this, right?

Ok, I got it. I used a screwdriver to maneuver the plastic that was blocking the release of the seatbelt.

[almostM]

. how do you do this if the car has no power to move the seat back and forward?

I second this question. The car is partially disassembled and I think I can hook a battery up to move the drivers seat but the passenger door has been pushed into the pass seat and it will not move, any ideas?

[XtremeE36]

. how do you do this if the car has no power to move the seat back and forward?

yes i am having the same problem too....i am trying to replace my passsenger seat switch and my switch is broken and my seat is moved all the way to the front and i can't take out the 2 front screws. is there any way you could move the seat manually without the switch?? any advice would be helpful and appreciated.

[Crashj]

I'm having a hell of a time trying to remove those first nuts. Not even my big plug-in power drill could get them to budge after spraying them with WD40. Do I need a special tool?

For loosening nuts, get Kroil from Kano Labs, online. WD40 = kerosene.

[95 325iS Bimmer]

ok i had this problem and it didnt look like anybody answered so ill just tell all how i got mine out. first off i threw my old one away which helped cause i didnt care of condition if your in this position then just disconnect the wires from the motor in the center under the chair to the gears on the tracks then turn them a $h!t load and then you can tell they start to move takes awhile though. if you want to keep your old seats it just wont move or you wana clean the carpet idc whatever floats your boat then you can try same thing but i doubt you can get the wires back in just fyi so on to the next solution if you hear the motor turning but the seats dont move then you need to take the 2 bolts you can access off to add leverage to the seat then you need to get a torx screw driver and take apart both "gear boxes" to see which on ehas the broken gears if you dont already know. next you should probably regrease them or not whatever but replace old gears then it should work. if you dont even hear you seat motor thing turning on then your screwed ha jk but idk i didnt have that problem but iv heard you can just go to say a junkyard and pick one up and it fits right in there you just disconnect old and connect new but i have not experienced this problem yet so the motor not working is merely speculation. hope this helps if not then i can try to explain your specific problem in more detail other wise good luck!

[95 325iS Bimmer]

lolwut? I just want to take the seats out and clean the carpet.

I feel like it should consist of 3 things:

1. Remove bolts
2. Unplug Wiring
3. Clean Carpet/Replace Seats

I just don't want to set off airbag sensor (so I intend to keep the keys out of the ignition), and I don't want to mess with the seat belt tensioner so I don't plan on touching it.

Am I good doing it like this?

ya you are but you should disconnect the battery just in case and it keeps a charge for like 15 min or so, so just chill for a sec after that but i was mostly referring to the others whos seats are broken haha

[myblackcar]

Just don't turn on the ignition and you will be fine. Electric seats have an extra plug compared to the sport seats or the pre 94 passenger seats without the airbag. As an added note, torque back the bolts and nuts at 55nm (41 ft/lb) per the Bentley manual.

[brmsam]

I'm removing a driver's front seat from a 1997 BMW 328i. I have disconnected wiring and removed seat and have it laying on back seat. But the seat belt is attached to the seat. How do I detach the seat belt so I can get the seat completely out of the car?

[dlumi]

Hello i have a 96 bmw 318i and the driver seat only slides forward when i apply the brakes, so far I've heard that it could be the seat bushings. BTW my seat is NOT electric, its self adjusting withe the three latches on the side.

[jathon0815]

I hate to resurrect old wounds by posting to this thread :-D

I've just stumbled upon all the good information today. I've been able to remove my driver side seat and check everything out and all "looks" good. My issue is that the back of my seat will not tilt/lean forward. It will lean back further, just not forward. Has anyone had experience fixing this issue or an issue similar to this?

Before I forget, I have a '97 328i with sport seats and they are electric.

Thanks in advance for any help or pointers to other threads that might be offered.

[jsolares]

I hate to resurrect old wounds by posting to this thread :-D

I've just stumbled upon all the good information today. I've been able to remove my driver side seat and check everything out and all "looks" good. My issue is that the back of my seat will not tilt/lean forward. It will lean back further, just not forward. Has anyone had experience fixing this issue or an issue similar to this?

Before I forget, I have a '97 328i with sport seats and they are electric.

Thanks in advance for any help or pointers to other threads that might be offered.

You might want to check the replacing gears post

Edit: just had my seats changed from powered to manual, it seems that at least on early model E36 the SRS doesn't do anything with the front seats, didn't connect a thing and the light turns off as usual after starting the car. the conectors on the bottom of the manual vaders were different as well.

[talon4567]

I can't move my seat forward as the power motor doesnt work for them.... how do I get around that?

Fixed it, we pulled a switch from the other seat and put it on the passenger seat to make it move. This works if your motor and gears work correctly, but the switch is broken.

[dmorrisbmw]

I have a 99 318ti with sport seats. I removed the drivers seat and disconnected four wires. 2 wires are unique so I know what plugs they go into. However, two wires are the same, the difference being one has a brown and green/white pair and the other has a brown and red/white pair. Which goes on the outside (i.e. the left) of the car-- the red/white or the green/white?