I have about 1800 miles to the end my 36K warranty on my 08 FEH w/ leather heated seats. I just bought the wife a 09 Focus w/ leather heated seats.

I have noticed mine seem to turn off the heat after about 10-15 minutes, but the activation light stays on. On her car, they stay on and it can be felt.

So my question is: Is this correct, do they shut down after a set time on the FEH? I like the seats for theraputic use, so the heat is welcome at times. Or do I need to get this to the dealership to have them look at? An ESP looks very appealing right now it seems.

 

In my '08, the heated seat will heat to almost hot after the initial button push and then drop to a more reasonable temperature. I think this is by design since once they do the initial heat up the rest of the cabin has had a chance to catch up. I think of the seat heaters as a bridge between a very cold cabin and when the ICE heat has a chance to warm the cabin air.

They may not be designed for the therapeutic use you're looking for.

 

Most modern day automotive seat heaters have a thermostat built into the seat cushion so that once the seat is initially heated your body heat takes over. There are a few out there in the market, mostly upscale, that have two heating positions wherein the HIGH mode bypasses the thermostat.

A sensible hybrid design would (SHOULD) ALWAYS include the thermostat whereas your wife may have CHEAP SEATS in that no thermostat is included.

 

And I am perfectly okay with that!! Just want to make sure of it before the actual bumper bumper warranty expires.

 

For the '08 & '09 owners: Did they finally move that button from the hidden location between the seat and the door? On my '06, I can't tell if the seat is on (particularly on the passenger side) because the button is buried. Also, it is easy to hit the switch on your way in/out so I sometimes notice the seats coming on in the summer!

Cheers,
rcomeau

 

Mine is below the radio/nav by the Aux Input, 12V and 110V out and I have a 2008.

 

Yep 09 FEHL also has the button on the dash not on the seats. Easy to tell if it's on or off. and I can't find any button in my 09 that I hit on the way in or out...... YET!

 

Are you guys actually needing the seat heat already? It's still 100+ here with a low (in the morning about 6am) of about 80

 

My wife constantly accidentally presses the button as she gets in our 2005 FEH 4WD. It has never happened to me, and I am not sure how she keeps doing it, but it happens often. Hopefully, the location of the button changed to prevent that from happening for others.

 

If you want more heat, turn it off and turn it on again right away. This will keep the seat warmer than just leaving it on "auto".