I went to the dealer today and dropped off my car to get the seatbelt fixed (recall). I specifically told them not to wash my car but they did anyways. Not only did they do a ****ty job, whatever they used stripped all the wax off the paint . Also, I noticed that all the memory seat settings aren't there anymore. Now I have to go program and link the seats again . Why the hell were the settings erased?

 

Because they felt that you did not trust them enough and they performed a S#$%ty job so they are out to F#$% with you.

 

I wonder if they disconnected the battery. Was your radio stations presets off to? Otherwise, it does not make sense.

 

maybe they removed the seat, which could mean they needed to disconnect the battery so it dont trip up the SRS stuff. Where did you have it done at?

 

If they remove your battery (disconnect) wouldn't you have to enter you 'code' for your radio too?

 

My radio presets are fine which is the weird thing. Also, the driver seat headrest was also raised up. I got it done at Tustin Acura. All the work form said was that they inspected the front buckles and replaced one of them.

 

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe that the radio has a backup battery to retain radio presets; however, a battery disconnect (or similar power loss to memory seat) will reset the memory seat settings. Even if disconnecting the battery supposedly erases your radio presets, I know for a fact that--while I had to re-program the memory seat settings after getting my car back from the dealer--I didn't have to punch in the code for the radio.

Tony

 

They probably adjusted the seat after starting the car to move it into or out of the garage. If you move the seat after the car is started the memory is deleted...poor design if you ask me.

 

I may be wrong or perhaps misinterpreting what you're saying...but the memory isn't deleted if you move the seat positioning after the car is started--it's still there, just that pressing the memory seat presets have no effect once the engine is running (purportedly for safety reasons). You have to turn off the ignition, then turn it back to the "on" (not "start") position before you can press the memory seat presets.

Why the memory seat presets don't work while the car is running is beyond me, since I believe you can still make manual seat adjustments even while car is running; doesn't make much sense from a logical standpoint.

Tony

 

The weird thing is that not only were the positions deleted, the remotes were also unlinked

 

I'm 99% sure they disconnected the battery. That would explain the memory seat settings and the unlinked remotes.

As far as the radio: The service manual (which dealers also reference) always mentions, as step 1 in any procedure which involves disconnecting the battery, to "write down the customer's radio presets". They're able to look up your radio code by the VIN number and then they may have just reset your original presets.

 

Two questions, if the radio code can be looked up from the VIN than what good does the code do? Second, what part of disconnecting the battery is needed to inspect seat belt buckles?

 

Anyone with access can get the radio code using the car's VIN -- I know this for a fact. This obviously falls under the realm of information that is not given to just anyone.

As far as the seat belt buckle "inspection" -- I had one done on my 2000 TL which they told me would take 2 hours as it involved removing the seat. As the seats have side airbags, the SRS light would illuminate if they were removed when the battery was still connected.

Obviously if you were there waiting for them to complete the inspection and it only took 15 minutes then they didn't remove the seat and my theory is wrong. However, if you're just going by a line item on your repair order, the term "inspect" could entail just about anything.

 

The car can be running but not in gear. The car must be in Park (neutral may work also, but not sure). The reason is simple -- for safety reasons they don't want a 6'2" husband to accidently push the memory for his 4'11" wife while he's fumbling to lock the doors or something, possibly causing an accident while he's thinking "WTF is going on!". Or the opposite -- the 4'11" wife suddenly can't reach the pedals or steering wheel anymore.

Anyway, does the auto-up and down feature still work on your window? I seem to remember the same thing happened to me when my car was serviced. Neither the auto feature nor the seat memory was working. I don't remember for sure, but I believe you put the driver's window all the way down and all the way back up, and the auto feature and seat memories re-engage. Check you owners manual, it should tell you how to do it in there.

 

My dealer done the same thing. First, I told them NOT to wash my car 'cuz I touch-up couple stone chips and waiting for dry so I can do wet sanding; but they washed. Second, driver seat and mirrors had been moved/changed. (I did the same thing today, seat belt recall.) Well.. but my memory link works OK.

Did you leave your car there or did you wait? I found out dealer actually drove my car for 6 miles today. (Before 3991 miles, after 3997 miles.)

Sometimes they might just play around with your car or just drive your car out for lunch or something... you never know if you leave it there.

 

That has always been my fear, I make it obvious that I am writing down the mileage when I drop it off. There would be some explaining to do if I discovered they had driven it 6 miles, that BS !!

 

If the battery was disconnected the radio stations will have to be reprogramed. The homelink would not have been affected by the battery. Trust me, I found out all this the hard way.

 

Redlined--

I lost you on the auto-up/down window feature part; how is that feature related to the seat memory issue? AFAIK the auto-up/down works by some sort of switch or something--when you push/pull the driver's window button all the way down or up, you can feel something catch (I don't know how to technically explain/describe it but you'll know when you push the window button all the way down untill you feel it "catch" something).

Tony

 

1) It is standard practice to cut off power to the area one is working on. The mart way is to pull the fuse - the technician way is to disconnect the neg battery cable. You have to understand that these guys work under time constraints, and do their best to get the work done right, and quickly. Otherwise, the next post would be "They kept my car overnight just to fix the buckle".

2) I believe many radios now have a very large, low voltage capacitor in parallel with the power supply from the fusebox. This keeps the "standby" memory alive for quite a while. I used to have a gizmo that connected through the cig lighter with a 9v batt to do the same thing. Worked well on cars that do not have switched lighter circuits (like American cars).

 

I lost both the auto up/down and the seat memory. I put the window all the way down and all the way up, then both worked. I then looked in the owners manual and that's what it said to do to reset.