Well I just finished installing the lumbar support on the drivers seat in my R60 with leatherette.

The only part I needed to order was
52109801327 (driver side)
52109801328 (passenger side)

they both came with the ****. I didn't know this and going from my R56 lumbar support DIY experience I ordered a pair of ***** as well. Oh well.

I ordered my stuff from ECS Tuning, they had the cheapest price by far.

So I would rate this a 6 out of 10. Unlike the R56 where you can simply unscrew several things or in case of R56 with leatherette just unzip the cover. In the R60 you have remove 1 screw on the bottom (to remove the plastic part out of the way) then pull the leatherette cover away from tabs. now this isn't the difficult part. the difficult part is that if you have sports package, you have to remove the plastic insert and drill a big hole.

Part #2 in the pic.



Start from the bottom of the seat and pull away until the tabs release. Once you get the leatherette off you have to remove 2 screws that hold the plastic frame, then remove the frame, (part #1 in the pic above) this gave me tons of more room. Next you can remove the useless lumbar support frame. Then on the right side (the side closest to the center of the car) there are 2 shiny torx screw that are holding the plastic insert. Remove the screws then pull the leatherette away and the foam padding and remove the plastic insert.

You'll have to remove the plastic that in inside the circle plus the little alignment tab. Once done, put the tiny cup looking item that came with your lumbar unit and put it in from the outside. Next using a knife, cut out the circle on the foam pad (it's obvious). Next install the new adjustable lumbar pad. Next put the plastic insert back in and secure it with the two torx screws you removed previously. Next use the two supplied screws and secure the adjustment part of the lumbar unit to the seat. This part is tricky since the padding is in the way and the leatherette wont go up any further.

Now put the plastic frame that you removed previously back and put the 2 screws back on.

Once this is done, put the leatherette back on, starting with the outside part first, they will click as they lock with the tab. Next do the same with the inside, they will also click but not as audible and they require a lot more force. Once this is done, do your best to pull the leatherette down as much as you can. I couldn't figure out how to put the clips on the bottom back on so I just left them but you can't tell that they aren't clipped on. I'll need to figure out if I need a special tool or something to do this.

At this point, I put the plastic cover back before I cut into the leatherette to create the hole for the ****. It's easy to tell where you have to make the cut since the plastic cup looking thingy sticks out a bit. I just made a quarter sized circle and trimmed as needed to make the **** fit in flush and rotate without interference. I would say a circle about the size of the new dollar coin should be about right. Don't panic if you see white padding after cutting the leatherette. It's just some fill they use, just cut that out of the way and the **** will fit right in.

It took me about 4hrs from start to finish with about 30min break for food. I will take photos once I start doing the passenger side but that probably wont be until this weekend. I wanted to at least post this and let everyone know that it's possible, if a major pain in the butt.

As always if you damage yourself or your car in the process of following this DIY, you are on your own.

 

Thanks for this. Very timely too; just saw the lumbar frame for sale on eBay today. I was wondering whether to tackle it or not. Looking forward to the pics.

John

 

We wanted the leatherette seats and were disappointed that the adjustable lumbar support was not available with that selection. Adding it has been a plan, and your work could make that more possible. Thanks.

 

Just bought a new driver side kit for $75 on eBay. Looking forward to the pics. Sounds like a "fun" job.

John

 

was it really worth it ???

 

I can only answer that question for myself. Yes it was. Due to the design of the seat I had lower back pain every time I drove the car for more than 15minutes. My commute is 1hr on good days and 1.5hrs on most days, thus it was well worth the time/effort/money for me. Your mileage may vary

 

Thanks for the write up and I'm awaiting your pics from the passenger side.

Can you tell me if the air bags are exposed/affected during this work?
You've got to be very careful working around live air bags. Should it go off, it could seriously harm/kill you if you're in the wrong place at the time.

 

no the air bags are not exposed. the air bags are present on the outside of the seats only. even if they did go off, it shouldn't harm you since you'd be behind the seat not right next to where the air bag is located. if you wanted to be extra careful, you can always disconnect the battery before starting.

 

mellow,

Any updates? I've got the part sitting in my garage, but was hoping to see some pics. Any additional help would be most appreciated! Thanks.

Also, is the **** sufficiently clear the optional armrest?

John

 

hi sorry, I've been busy with work and trying to negotiate on a house.

i have the optional armrest and it clears it with no problem. i do find it easier to raise the armrest when i need to adjust the lumbar.