Cooled seats not cooling

[GT Pony]

The inlet to the intake sock looks like it would block intake flow. Is there something keeping the intake sock opened up so it doesn't get collapsed when installed - that mesh like looking net material perhaps?

Your flow test was probably worse on the new TED unit because that intake sock restricts the intake air flow.

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[Darko66]

The inlet to the intake sock looks like it would block intake flow. Is there something keeping the intake sock opened up so it doesn't get collapsed when installed - that mesh like looking net material perhaps?

Your flow test was probably worse on the new TED unit because that intake sock restricts the intake air flow.

Yes, inside the sock there's a lattice structure that holds it open, but allows it to still be flexible. It looks like it can handle the bends in the seat w/o obstruction. The opening is 4"x7/16". That's roughly equivalent to the opening of a 3/4" round tube, I think. With the added lattice that certainly doesn't allow for much air intake.

I think two 3/4" round tubes or one 1" round tube is the minimum needed for the original units. I ended up using three 3/4" because I chose to use nips to attach them which cuts the intakes down to 5/8". Plus I wanted a little overhead.

I suppose the math works out, but I'm hesitant to think that it's just the sock that's the issue. If it were, the fan would likely be overheating which it doesn't appear to be. The only way to know for sure is to remove it, but I'm not ready to do that yet. I'll test it out some more as is for now. Perhaps I'll see how much the fan heats up on an original unit when I block off half the air.

 

[Cobra Jet]

Before ripping your seats open to do any real world testing with the revised unit you just bought and gave details on - can you simulate the confined portion of a seat where the unit would be approximately located, by say possibly using a pillow or say foam to see how the unit *might* perform?

That "sock" that Ford used is a very poor design. First of all, it is made out of breathable material, so the air that travels down the path of the sock (whether vented exhaust or circulatory air) is not in a single confined path like that of a solid plastic tube. Due to the material used, there's a breach and it's only allowing the air to leach out of the material and still dissipate into the confined area of the seat back.

Also not sure why when tested the fan speed would be lower? I'm also wondering if your test of the fan speed itself is "low" due to the fact that the fans are under a controller when tapped into the vehicles system and there is no way to replicate the speed variance outside of the system? I would have thought if you put power to the fan outside of the provisioned system, the fan would only operate at its "max" speed - maybe that is not true?

The colored wires on the harness, what do those represent in terms of hot, ground and other functions?

 

[USAF]

Weather hitting 100* yesterday in philly, with AC on high and seats on high still only feel (very little) from bottom seat NOTHING from seat back. My car was at dealer 4x and ford sent out a specialist that did absolutly nothing. I filed a complaint with BBB and I received one month payment however could have went further with it to court

 

[Wally]

I haven't read through this entire thread but is there anything the dealers can do to fix this problem? I saw there is a TSB around somewhere but is it even worth it to take it in for them to work on?

 

[Rich of So Cal]

I haven't read through this entire thread but is there anything the dealers can do to fix this problem? I saw there is a TSB around somewhere but is it even worth it to take it in for them to work on?

Not really. Some have said the tsb lowers the heat coming to your back, but does nothing to cool on the seat below.

Most likely you will be told it is working normally, as long as they can hear the fans blowing. Put your ear on the seat to hear them.

 

[ctlaw]

Not really. Some have said the tsb lowers the heat coming to your back, but does nothing to cool on the seat below.

Most likely you will be told it is working normally, as long as they can hear the fans blowing. Put your ear on the seat to hear them.

The seat bottom has generally cooled even before the TSB, not great, but generally moderate. I do not know about severe conditions (like leaving it out in the sun in 100 degree days). But in more normal conditions, on the three bar (high) setting it's been what I would expect from 2 bars (med).

The seat back cooling is almost nonexistent even with the TSB. under the very best conditions on 3 bars it gives what I would regard as one bar of cooling. Performance is substantially worse than other cars that merely have "ventilated seats" (no TED but drawing ac air through the seat).

 

[ctlaw]

Has anyone checked out the "ventilated" (not "cooled") seats in the 2016 Camaro?

They should be very poorly performing with no TED and no underseat rear passenger AC duct.

 

[Darko66]

Before ripping your seats open to do any real world testing with the revised unit you just bought and gave details on - can you simulate the confined portion of a seat where the unit would be approximately located, by say possibly using a pillow or say foam to see how the unit *might* perform?

That "sock" that Ford used is a very poor design. First of all, it is made out of breathable material, so the air that travels down the path of the sock (whether vented exhaust or circulatory air) is not in a single confined path like that of a solid plastic tube. Due to the material used, there's a breach and it's only allowing the air to leach out of the material and still dissipate into the confined area of the seat back.

Also not sure why when tested the fan speed would be lower? I'm also wondering if your test of the fan speed itself is "low" due to the fact that the fans are under a controller when tapped into the vehicles system and there is no way to replicate the speed variance outside of the system? I would have thought if you put power to the fan outside of the provisioned system, the fan would only operate at its "max" speed - maybe that is not true?

The colored wires on the harness, what do those represent in terms of hot, ground and other functions?

Sorry, guess I wasn't clear that I was being extremely literal when I said "outside the seat". It was plugged into the vehicle, but just hanging on the outside of the seat. It's hard to maneuver it much, because the cord is so short. I don't have a way to bench test it.

I did a quick test of the original unit with my attachment (but no hoses) and 2 of the 3 inputs blocked off. It took about 32 seconds to fill the garbage bag, so fairly close to the sock unit's time. The fan didn't get as hot as I thought it would, but with the unit out of the seat it can dissipate the heat better

I was just assuming a lower fan speed because of the output, but it could be just the restricted airflow. I am perhaps naively thinking they would match the fan to the sock.

I believe the entire inside of the outer sock is plastic lined, so it's not breathable. The interior mesh is actually quite nice. It's not very dense, so probably isn't too restrictive. A thicker version of it properly sealed and with end caps would be an excellent solution for what I'm trying to do. No idea what it is though and hard to say if it could be maneuvered easily under the seat.

 

[GT Jeff]

Had my car in for the TSB fix. Coolers are on backorder; waiting for the call from the dealer. Anyone else thats taken their car in for the fix experiencing this?

 

[RubyRed15]

Same

 

[millhouse]

Subscribed. Thought it was odd that my seat back wasn't cooling.

 

[Darko66]

Somewhat good news to report. I was able to successfully and fairly easily install my attachment to the blower without removing the unit from the seat. This is a much simpler and quicker way to go. Because of the limited space to work, I just used a small magnetic bit holder along with the T6 bit. The combo cost about $3.50 from Amazon. My primary concern with doing it this way, is the fear of losing the screws. They are very tiny and you have to be very patient and deliberate. My fingers aren't the nimblest, so it doesn't take precise skill.

I'm trying to see if I can find an economical source for replacement screws. If I do I could just include a few backups with each attachment.

I'm right handed and only did the driver's side, so the other concern is that since you can only access the passenger seat with your left arm, it might be more difficult to install.

I will try to put together some instructions this weekend so you can see what's involved.

 

[Darko66]

Additional TSB unit info

Not sure why I didn't think to test before, but thought I'd see how well the TSB modified blower with the intake sock performed on the lower fan speeds.

So, once again using the trash sack test to see how long it takes the blower to fill up the bag.

As I mentioned before it took about 32 seconds to fill on the highest setting (3 lights). On medium (2 lights) it took about 45 seconds and on low (1 light) it took maybe 60-75 seconds (its hard to tell exactly when the bag is full because there's so little airflow).

The original unmodified unit fills the bag in 18-20 seconds on high and 30-32 seconds on low. I didn't test on medium, but it should be right in the middle (25 seconds or so).

This perhaps could imply a slower speed fan in the new units like I originally thought, but maybe besides the sock being too small to let enough air in, it's also too restrictive to allow the fan to draw the air it needs even at the lower speeds.

 

[Darko66]

Anybody here in Phoenix?

Unfortunately, I did not do a good job of documenting my efforts, so I'll have to wing it a bit in my instructions. Although it's not all that difficult to do, I'm sure photos and a thorough description would be helpful to anyone considering the modification.

I'm going to do a write up this weekend with what photos I can, but was wondering if there was anyone in the Phoenix area who would be interested in helping me do a start to finish tutorial. You'd provide the vehicle and I'd provide all the parts.

Parameters:

• You would need to come to my office in Central Phoenix on a Saturday or Sunday morning.

• I would want to do some before and after measurements, so it would require running the vehicle for awhile and wasting your gas.

• It shouldn't take too long to do, but assume a couple hours to be safe.

• Your seats have to have the original unit without the white intake sock.

If anyone is interested, please PM me.

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