Greetings,
I've been searching the archives for tips on fixing my passenger-side power seat. I've tried contact cleaner on the Start/Stop switch and I've reflowed it's solder joints as well. I also reflowed the solder on the relay (Matsushita JV1aPF-12V).

I found this post from SPOOK who advises:
"On the circuit board, there is a relay. It is marked, Matsushita JV1aPF-12v. This relay fails. When it fails, no power passes from the circuit board, on which the seat control switches are sited - to the seat motors. The seat will not move.

You have several options:
(a) go to salvage yard. There is no guarantee that relay will be any better.
(b) if you're handy with a soldering iron, remove the relay from the board, and bridge it out, with two short wires
(c) buy a new switch.

BTW, these relays are still made. I'm thinking of buying a couple of them, and putting them back on the circuit boards. The relays protect the seat motors against current surges, which might damage the motors, if the seat motors are in operation at the instant the surge hits."

I am not sure where to place jumper wires should I try to "bridge-out" the relay as suggested in option B (above).

Although I have an ohm meter, I also don't have mush experience using a meter to determine whether the relay is actually the problem.

I uploaded a photo showing the backside of the circuit board ()and I numbered the contact points of the relay. If I do decide to try to "bridge" the relay as per SPOOK's advice, can anyone tell me: Do I connect A to B? And then C to D? Or B to C?

Any tips for things to try before attempting this?

Many thanks in advance,
kkoch

I figured out that the problem is the relay. I jumped B and C and Wallah! The power seat is working! Now I need to find a new relay!

Dear Ozzy Oz,

Hope you're well. A few years ago I bought some of these relays from an outfit in New Jersey (USA): www.relayspec.com . The company is still in business, but I do not know if the specific relay is still in the supply chain.

After I removed the relay and bridged the contacts, I haven't had occasion to install the replacement relays.

Hope this helps.

Yours faithfully,

Spook

p.s. The French exclamation to which you refer is "voilà", which translate literally as "See it" but colloquially as "Look at That", "Behold", "Presto". It is pronounced - in US English - as V'wah-lah.

Happy Sunday Spook!

That is the correct pronunciation for voila. I've noticed that most Americans ignore the "v" and pronounce it as wah-lah....

Jim

Hi,

I have exactly the same thing, I am not sure where to find that JV1aPF-12V relay!