Date: 26 Jan 1999 04:53:48 GMT From: nswnopsampan.net (Neil Weinstock) Subject: Re: 1999 9-5SE - Couple of questions
In article <77qtvi$rjm$1nopsam3t.infi.net>, Scott Turnamian <wahoo1nopsamnfi.net> wrote: >My driver-side seatback (power, heated & vented seats) is giving me trouble. >First of all, something in the lower portion seems to move around and poke >me in the back when cornering or coming to a complete stop. It feels like >something swinging around and then thumping me in the lower back. It seems >like some of the power mechanisms or possibly the head-restraint system may >be loose/broken. Not painful but damn annoying in a brand new $34K car. I have a similar symptom in mine (though it's minimal and I stopped noticing it after a month or two.) The cause seems clear enough (unconfirmed by any real investigation). The 9-5 has active head restraints, in which the headrest move forward to "catch" your head to prevent whiplash in the event of a rear-end collision. The headrest is one end of a lever; the other end extends into the seatback. When you get rear-ended, the seat is pushed into your back; this pushes the lever back, causing the headrest to move forward. So, it seems that the end that goes into the seatback has a little too much play, so that in sudden accelerations, you can feel it banging into your back. Annoying yes (though only at first), but it is the result of an unusual safety system, not anything broken. Disclaimer: As mentioned above, I have not confirmed the above explanation, because the seat no longer bothers me, and assuming my understanding of the active head restraints is correct, it describes the symptom perfectly without indicating any sort of failure. If anyone can convince me that the banging in the back is abnormal, and indicative of a failure or defect, I'll get it checked out. Hope this is helpful, - Neil --==--==--==--==--==--==--==--==--==--==--==--==--==--==--==-- Neil Weinstock See the Passat/A4 Wheel and Tire Page: nswnopsampan.net http://www.webspan.net/~nsw/Wtpage/
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