Lumbar Support Failure

[puchak]

Recently in my 1998 C43 AMG, the lumbar support will just deflate after the car is on for like five minutes.

To my understanding this is routed back to the PSE pump with any tubes and items working under the seat. PSE pump located in the trunk.

I tried to look for a solution everywhere but couldn’t find a good relatable lead. Anyone have any clue? Perhaps some sort of reset is needed?

PSE pump will whine for a while when the seats are in use, then just gives out.

 

[puchak]

Problem appears to be exclusive to my passenger side seat when the lumbar is in use. Only noticed this when my girlfriend has been driving with me recently and asked: “What does this button do?”

Y-tube was disconnected behind the seat. There is a vacuum leak though, trying to find it.

 

[puchak]

The bag is definitely torn, I'm going to have to pull it out and repair it. Looks something like this.

Any recommendations on what I can use to repair before I do my own dive?

Also posting this here since there is practically no information anywhere on fixing these for the 202, and this is hands down the best Mercedes forum.

 

[puchak]

I finished this a while ago but never updated anyone reading this. To conclude the job...

I had removed the bags with the plastic hoses. I then dunked them in a bucket of water and pushed air into the bags to look for leaks.



There was a tiny hole by the seams. So, I cut off a little piece of roof sealant material and slapped it on. I figured if it is meant for keeping water from coming in, it'll keep air from getting out. I'm sure there is a better application but it proved to work down the line.



So, I tested by redunking it, pushing air, and found no leaks. To put the bag back in, I had to use a wire guiding tool to sneak it through the guts of the seats. It was not fun.

It ended up working flawlessly, you just have to be very careful re-inserting the bags as they can assumingly tear.

Thanks for following along if you did! Hopefully someone finds this helpful if their lumbar support is failing.

 

[doolar]

Great to know once the retrofitted orthopedic seat bags in my 500E spring a leak. They're still working fine, and I do appreciate the lower back support a lot.

 

[2phast]

Nice to know, my E320 has the same issue. Upon start up, bags inflate, then after a few minutes they deflate and will not inflate again unless I turn the car off/on

 

[WDB748372]

Great to know that worked