Warm car, Warm Bum and a bit of umph..

[BillyBoy]

Three questions in one basically, but it saves me cluttering up the board with lots of posts.

1) I have an E320CDI (2001) and inside the ash tray opening, there is a rocker switch that, according to the manual, is a booster heater that helps to warm the car up quickly if the outside temperature is below 8°C. Does anyone know how this works? Is it an electrical heater that warms the coolant? Is it like an electric fan heater element? I'm curious more than anything, but I'm sure I will need it over the next few weeks as winter starts to set in.

2) One thing I miss from my old Scorpio is the lack of heated seats on my Merc. Does anyone know how easy they are to retrofit? Likely costs etc? (the car has leather seats if that's relevent)

3) I have seen a few comments about a Brabus chip for the 320CDI engine that gives it a bit more umph (well quite a bit more apparently) Any ideas on what the costs of these kits are? Are they self fit or a professional job? How much difference do they make and what's the impact on fuel consumption etc?

Sorry to pile lots into one post, and thanks for any advice / comments that follow.

Cheers,

Bill

 

[guydewdney]

seats:- expensive. heating elements are built in. 1500? unless the heating element is already there, and it just needs wiring up wouldnt surprise me.

brabus chip or similar - some are self fit (plus into the loom as a piggyback) which are 700 quid IIRC - brabus is a different matter altogether.