Can I swap sport seat backs on to my existing comfort seats?

I've got a well-optioned 2002 with full leather, power, memory, heated seats. I bought a set of newly recovered sport seats with no heat and minimal power options, thinking I would use them. But the connectors are not plug and play, and then I started questioning losing all of the features my current seats have. So... If I have an interior shop swap the sport backs on to my existing comfort bottom, and swap over the new covers, will that work? Looking at the PET, the seat bottom "cushion carrier" part numbers are identical for both seats. The cover is a slightly different part number, but the images are identical. Possible? Anyone done this?

This isn't answering your question but if you want to move away from the 996 comfort seats, head for 9x7 sports seats. I've got 987s in my car and they are soooooo much better than the 996 ones. You sit in the seat, not on it and have more headroom too if you wind the seat down. Yuo do have to do some modifications for the connectors but they are well documented on here and if you want to retain heated seats its a bigger job again as you the 997 hs the delays in the dash, the 996 hs them in the seat itself. Not hard but getting hold of the loom/relays is a bit of a pain.

Short answer, yes. The whole frame (top & bottom) is the same for both comfort and sport seats. You can just swap over the outer elements of the sport seat back to your comfort seat. (Rear shell and front padding/leather.) Can can keep the upper center with your upper heat element, thus keeping your full heated seats. I considered doing this very thing but didn't because you can't keep the lumbar. Lumbar was never offered with the 996 sport seat most likely because they couldn't figure out how to fit all of the lumbar elements in thinner back. You don't mention lumbar so that might not be a concern for you.

Thanks. That's my conclusion too. I have lumbar, but have hesitated to use it the past few years.. 23 year old feature that, it it jams in a bad spot, would be a problem.

I'm in the same situation. I have fully optioned comfort seats that I want to replace with sport seats. The sport seats I have also have all the same features as comfort seats except the lumbar adjustment (both sets heated). Still, they are not plug and play so I would like to swap the whole backrest frame and all. Does anyone know if its possible or have experience swapping the complete backrest? In that case I would just need to plug(wire in) the heating elements and of course no need to plug the lumbar connector as there will not be any. For the bottom cushion I understand it is an easy swap.

I have gleamed from another forum that " its very complex (not a bolt like you might think, there are springs/leavers, and cogs in there ". So If someone has done this any help/guidance/photos would be greatly appreciated.

@KeyWest996 assuming that I would have to change the outer elements as you suggested (because changing the entire seatback with frame and all would be to complicated or impossible). Do you know if the lumbar mechanism can be removed from the comfort seatback frame allowing the sport cushion and rear shell cover to be installed successfully? Did you happen to notice/remember how much additional clearance would be needed if the lumbar mech. was retained in order to get the rear shell cover installed? Thanks much

Quotes source post: 19949254

If you can just switch backs then you should be able to buy the backs, foam then reupholster. Seems like about the same price as Sport seats on eBay.

sorry, I don't recall the details but as I mentioned above, Lumbar wasn't offered with the sports seats. Most likely as the mechanisms would not fit into the smaller/thinner sport shell.

I don’t have lumbar so that shouldn’t be a problem.