M3 Seat conversion in a pre facelift e46 sedan

Tnd-_-b · 05-01-2011, 02:20 PM

Does any one have any idea if i would be able to install the seats from the 2005 M3 in my 2000 323i sedan?

Renboy · 05-01-2011, 08:12 PM

Front seats yes, they bolt right up. Rear seats no.

Tnd-_-b · 05-02-2011, 03:42 AM

Thanks. that's good news

andrew.k · 05-02-2011, 08:37 AM

What about if you don't have power seats to begin with, how do you power them in? Are there universal connectors under the seats that come with every car? I was thinking about doing the same thing.

Renboy · 05-02-2011, 09:05 AM

I forgot to mention, they have to be out of a coupe, vert won't work properly.

As for wiring, the connector under the seat is the same, and the wiring is the same too, if you have it. If your car doesn't have power seats, then you don't have the wiring for them, this you have to add yourself. I did it on my last e46, and it wasn't terribly hard. There's a couple good diy's on fanatics that will help immensely.

Tnd-_-b · 05-03-2011, 05:12 PM

Sorry, are you saying the M3 seats wont fit properly in a sedan?

Renboy · 05-03-2011, 06:46 PM

Physically the (front) seats fit from an M3 coupe fit fine in an E46 sedan. M3 convertible seats also fit, but you would then be left with two seat belts because the vert seats have the seat belts built in unlike the sedan/coupe which have them on the b-pillar. If you have power and heat in your seats, and you install seats with power/heat, then it will be completely plug/play. If you don't have power/heat currently, and the seats you're installing do have those options, then you will have to do some wiring to get those options to work (not to mention add the buttons for the heat settings in the centre console). If on the other hand you have the power/heat settings, but the seats you're installing don't have them, then it's still plug/play, but I would remove the fuses for those options simply for the sake of safety.

I hope I've explained it clearly.

Tnd-_-b · 05-04-2011, 11:47 AM

Thanks Sounds Good...

EMPIREM3 · 05-04-2011, 04:08 PM

negative, you need new rails due to seatbelt in your sedan.

http://forum.e46fanatics.com/showthr...light=m3+seats

Renboy · 05-04-2011, 04:54 PM

My mistake, I forgot all about the seatbelt on the sedan. It's just the outer (by the door) rails that need to be swapped over.

Goodtohave · 05-09-2011, 12:57 AM

I put coupe seats in my sedan, no need to swap rails, just a rivet to drill out and a nut and bolt to put on the rail.

They were plug and play for me as I had power heat and memory as did my new seats.

I put mynold seats in another sedan and added the power and heat. Took me a couple of hours but looked and worked as stock.

bmwmck · 12-08-2012, 07:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Renboy

My mistake, I forgot all about the seatbelt on the sedan. It's just the outer (by the door) rails that need to be swapped over.

Can you swap both the inner and outer rails from the sedan seat onto the M3 seat? I sourced some M3 coupe seats but there are no rails included