MarkDawn Houlahan
Active Member
The Rostra Power Lumbar Kit comes with everything you see here. A lumbar bladder, motor and vent assembly (in a padded pouch to keep it quiet), a wire harness, OEM type switch, and a parts bag.
Though it isn’t necessary for installation, I decided to remove both front seats to see what I was doing and for better pictures. Four metric bolts retain the seats. The rears are covered with plastic beauty covers; pull them straight off to prevent breaking them. The seat belt buckle guide can either stay with the seat (remove the Torx bolt from the floor pan) or you can unbolt the buckle guide from the seat (one nut and one bolt) and leave it in the truck.
If you decide to remove your seats don’t forget to unplug the power seat connector at the rear (if so equipped).
The plastic side trim panel will need to be removed to route the switch wiring. Three Phillips screws (one at the rear under the upholstery) and two clips retain the side panel. The clips are part of the threaded screw bracket, simply pull the clip down with a pair of pliers or pry it carefully with a screwdriver.
The seat back upholstery will need to be opened to mount the lumbar bladder. The base of the seat back is where the material is connected via this plastic J-channel. Simply push the two halves inward and then pry the channel open.
The seat back material can be rolled up about 4-6 inches, which is all you will need. Notice the black strip in this photo in the lower section of seat foam. This is a strip of hook and loop fasteners and this is how the seat gets its “tucked†look. You will have to pull the seat material away here to allow room for the lumbar bladder.
The lumbar bladder can be retained by the included push pins, tie wraps, or by its adhesive mounting strips. According to the instructions the seats found in the Explorer (including the Sport Trac) are all foam and have no wire support inside, thus the adhesive mounting is the only option. Decide where you want the bladder (I hooked ours up temporarily before removing the seat), pull back the adhesive covering and slide the bladder into place. Once you have it where you want it (ours was right up against the upper hook and loop strip) push it into place to set the adhesive. Finally, route the airline into the corner of the seat and put the upholstery back.
The pump is mounted inside a foam lined vinyl pouch, which keeps it quiet and makes for an easy installation. Simply place the pouch under the seat (clear of the power or manual tracks) and tie wrap it to the seat cushion springs. You can see here we’ve also routed the plastic hose to the bag and connected them.
The wire harness provided is quite long. Long enough to reach the fuse box according to the instructions. But since the lumbar kit is only a five-amp circuit, and Ford’s OE connection is to the power seat wiring, I decided to do the same thing. The power seat plug has two black wires, one with a white stripe. The black with white stripe is power and the other is ground. The harness simply plugs in. If you have manual seats follow the directions or see what I did for the passenger seat in this project.
Probably the most daunting task for me was mounting the seat switch. I made sure my wife could reach it easily and then I carefully marked the plastic panel using the included template.
The OEM style switch blends right in with the rest of the interior and does not look out of place at all. Snap the switch into the seat and route the wire pigtail to the main lumbar harness. Make sure you go between the seat and the track mounting area, and not between the two parts of the track.
With the seat back in the Sport Trac the only noticeably difference is that the lower “tuck†line is not in as far as the upper one, but that is a small price to pay for the great feeling of power lumbar.
Another shot of the switch with the seat reinstalled. Looks factory doesn’t it.
For the passenger side (or if you have a manual driver’s seat) you can carefully route the wiring under the floor mat to the front of the console (high series console) or to the dash (low series console) and connect the power and ground wires to the auxiliary power outlet. Insulation displacement connectors (not included) work fine for this low amperage inside circuit.
Though it isn’t necessary for installation, I decided to remove both front seats to see what I was doing and for better pictures. Four metric bolts retain the seats. The rears are covered with plastic beauty covers; pull them straight off to prevent breaking them. The seat belt buckle guide can either stay with the seat (remove the Torx bolt from the floor pan) or you can unbolt the buckle guide from the seat (one nut and one bolt) and leave it in the truck.
If you decide to remove your seats don’t forget to unplug the power seat connector at the rear (if so equipped).
The plastic side trim panel will need to be removed to route the switch wiring. Three Phillips screws (one at the rear under the upholstery) and two clips retain the side panel. The clips are part of the threaded screw bracket, simply pull the clip down with a pair of pliers or pry it carefully with a screwdriver.
The seat back upholstery will need to be opened to mount the lumbar bladder. The base of the seat back is where the material is connected via this plastic J-channel. Simply push the two halves inward and then pry the channel open.
The seat back material can be rolled up about 4-6 inches, which is all you will need. Notice the black strip in this photo in the lower section of seat foam. This is a strip of hook and loop fasteners and this is how the seat gets its “tucked†look. You will have to pull the seat material away here to allow room for the lumbar bladder.
The lumbar bladder can be retained by the included push pins, tie wraps, or by its adhesive mounting strips. According to the instructions the seats found in the Explorer (including the Sport Trac) are all foam and have no wire support inside, thus the adhesive mounting is the only option. Decide where you want the bladder (I hooked ours up temporarily before removing the seat), pull back the adhesive covering and slide the bladder into place. Once you have it where you want it (ours was right up against the upper hook and loop strip) push it into place to set the adhesive. Finally, route the airline into the corner of the seat and put the upholstery back.
The pump is mounted inside a foam lined vinyl pouch, which keeps it quiet and makes for an easy installation. Simply place the pouch under the seat (clear of the power or manual tracks) and tie wrap it to the seat cushion springs. You can see here we’ve also routed the plastic hose to the bag and connected them.
The wire harness provided is quite long. Long enough to reach the fuse box according to the instructions. But since the lumbar kit is only a five-amp circuit, and Ford’s OE connection is to the power seat wiring, I decided to do the same thing. The power seat plug has two black wires, one with a white stripe. The black with white stripe is power and the other is ground. The harness simply plugs in. If you have manual seats follow the directions or see what I did for the passenger seat in this project.
Probably the most daunting task for me was mounting the seat switch. I made sure my wife could reach it easily and then I carefully marked the plastic panel using the included template.
The OEM style switch blends right in with the rest of the interior and does not look out of place at all. Snap the switch into the seat and route the wire pigtail to the main lumbar harness. Make sure you go between the seat and the track mounting area, and not between the two parts of the track.
With the seat back in the Sport Trac the only noticeably difference is that the lower “tuck†line is not in as far as the upper one, but that is a small price to pay for the great feeling of power lumbar.
Another shot of the switch with the seat reinstalled. Looks factory doesn’t it.
For the passenger side (or if you have a manual driver’s seat) you can carefully route the wiring under the floor mat to the front of the console (high series console) or to the dash (low series console) and connect the power and ground wires to the auxiliary power outlet. Insulation displacement connectors (not included) work fine for this low amperage inside circuit.
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