Retrofit front passenger seat lumbar support

[qprdude]

Anyone ever done this or had it done? Unfortunately, the Citroen DS5 , you know the one supposed to be the premium marque, doesn't have one. The lowly C5 had one and swimbo is not amused. Long journeys are few and far between, but a bit of a trial without lumbar support.

[GiveMeABreak]

Hi Rick - well I've just looked at your specs and according to that you already have it! For the Passenger side too:

DRIVER SEAT CONTROL:	DRIVERS FRT SEAT ELEC CONTROL
FRONT PASSENGER SEAT CONTROL:	PASSENGER FRT SEAT ELEC CNTRL
FRONT PASSENGER SEAT ADJUSTMENT:	PASSENGER’S LUMBAR SUPPORT

So according to the manual it is supposed to be these buttons - arrowed at (3)

[qprdude]

Yeah, I wish!

[GiveMeABreak]

That is intriguing - is it at all possible they were swapped out prior to you owning it? It wouldn’t be the first time I’ve seen parts swapped over from another car.

It’s just very odd that your VIN code says these are on your car....

[qprdude]

One owner. Bought from main dealer
Can't see why anyone would take the seat apart to get a lumbar support, then change the side for one without a switch hole. Another crazy option from Citroen? Who knows. Maybe the lumbar support and wiring are there but no switch?

[GiveMeABreak]

Sorry Rick, I wasn’t very clear, I meant the complete seats swapping over. It would not be practical or feasible to try and do what you suggested realistically.

But unclipping the connectors and unbolting the seat and taking it out can be done quite quickly. It was just a thought, as I’ve not found (to date) any specification sheet from a VIN that has been wrong. Unless the factory worker requisitioned the wrong part!! As for retrofitting, by the time you’ve put in the electronics, motor and the lumbar rollers plus the switches and wiring which means taking the whole seat part to get to, it would be cheaper to get a second hand seat (s) and swap it over. You’d need to check that the intermediate wiring harness is the correct one (unlike earlier C5s, the X7 as an example does have a multitude of harnesses depending on options and build, telematics etc.) so this may also be the case with the DS. It is still a mystery to me.

[Paul-R]

If it's supposed to be part of the specification of the car and if the car is under three years old could a warranty claim be made?

[GiveMeABreak]

Well, this has been bugging me still - but I have come to the conclusion that due to cuts they couldn't be arsed to include electric lumbar (or even manual) on the passenger side of the DS5. So that's another minus for the DS5 Rick, as my X7 has the electric lumbar and the shoulder section adjustment on both front seats, with massage on driver side only.

I've scoured the brochures and other resources and certainly for the 2012-13 years there would only seem to be lumber adjustment for the Driver's side.

On the earlier 2012-13 manual below it does seem only to mention 'Driver's Lumbar' at point (3) in the notes below and no other page for the passenger seat - so that would appear to be it!

So my seat-swapping conspiracy theory probably doesn't hold water and has leaked away on account of the option that was never implemented.

I suspect it is a mistake - just like the MyWay head unit that was supposed to play MP3 files from the SD card - well-documented in the owner handbook, but never actually functioned in reality and was subsequently removed in later versions of the manual! No doubt another cost-reducing measure taken by Carlos Tavares - the same numpty who decided to knock our Hydractive suspension on the head.

[xantia_v6]

Does the seat require electronics to control it, or could a LHD drivers seat be fitted?

[qprdude]

I can't think of anything the DS5 has that the C5 didn't. I suppose the directional Xenon's and the hydraulic bonnet struts. It has lost so many of the C5 luxuries. The overhead switches are a waste of time as I find it dangerous to look at them while driving, ( too close to my head) and they are badly set out to go by feel.
The passenger seat has electric f/ back, height and heated. There are companies that fit air balloons and electric pumps but probably cost an arm and a leg. Looks like the old office chair lumbar cushion will have to do. One unrelated question. My upgraded Sat Nav works well with the postcode search but Still no Street names on the audio, like the C5 had. There is also a function that I can't remember from the C5 and that's when auto lights are selected and only when it gets dark, the Sat Nav screen loses the bright blue background colour and becomes black and white (ish). Presumably to cut out the glare , and it certainly works well, but did my old system have this function? I know you could change the background colour, but this is all automatic.

[KennyW]

Just for info removing and changing items on new or used cars at main dealerships is a regular occurrence, especially if a car has been sold and they can't get the part on time.

Kenny

[GiveMeABreak]

I can't think of anything the DS5 has that the C5 didn't. I suppose the directional Xenon's

The Bi-Directional Xenon's were available on the C5 too as part of the Visibility Pack - I have them

and the hydraulic bonnet struts.

That is one feature I DO miss on the X7 that was available on earlier C5s

One unrelated question. My upgraded Sat Nav works well with the postcode search but Still no Street names on the audio, like the C5 had.

This should be available - but may be hidden in another menu. You may need to have a destination being navigated and select one of the shortcut buttons to access the context - related menu and it may be there. It isn't documented in the manual, but is an option on the NG4 too. It may be on Map settings or ROUTE OPTIONS - buried in there, but should be something like Announce STREET NAMES or STREET NAMES or similar.

There is also a function that I can't remember from the C5 and that's when auto lights are selected and only when it gets dark, the Sat Nav screen loses the bright blue background colour and becomes black and white (ish). Presumably to cut out the glare , and it certainly works well, but did my old system have this function? I know you could change the background colour, but this is all automatic.

You should be able to change this - it is a function of the RT6 (eMyWay). Go to SETUP, then select DISPLAY CONFIGURATION, then CHOOSE COLOUR. You should be able to select the screen colours here and the either DAY MODE, NIGHT MODE or AUTO / DAY / NIGHT Mode.

Auto obviously switches the Map display to darker colours for night driving when the lights are switched on manually or on Auto mode. (I actually get stars in the sky on my NG4!) There should also be a setting where you can adjust the brightness / luminosity of the screen too.

[GiveMeABreak]

Does the seat require electronics to control it, or could a LHD drivers seat be fitted?

I very much doubt it - several reasons:
The Driver's seat has a control module ECU and memorisation unit that also authorises the passenger seat electrics - so you can't have 2 'master' units. So a non-starter there, but in addition there would no doubt be issues if AFIL (Lane Wandering) was fitted and not to forget that the harness also provides data and power for the specific seat airbags and this may possibly trigger the wrong airbag in an impact.

It may of been possible on much older cars without multiplexed CAN networks that just had basic electrical adjustment.

[qprdude]

I have a feeling that the wiring may be present. It looks pretty much the same under the passenger seat but I suppose an auto electrician would need to look.
I've Searched all the Nav, Media and settings menus with no reference to Street names. Tried each option and it WAS set on auto day/night so I changed that to day. I've kept the colour but toned down the brightness a little.
As an experiment, I have also changed the voice from male to female. I already have one back seat driver so I thought adding another one wouldn't be such a big deal.

[Hell Razor5543]

I wonder if it might be worth looking for a written off DS5 from the period when the passenger seat had the lumber support fitted. If you were to find such a car it might (assuming it matched the other seating) be worth finding out if you can buy that seat and get it swapped over (assuming your car will fully accept it).