removing the back seats

[etlsport]

im takin a 2 week trip to the beach on wednesday and decided since its just me and m'lady i only really need two seats and i might as well get some extra room (id just fold the seats up but i HATE the sound of the leather rubbing on the vinyl when the front seats are back and back seat is folded up) so anyway, i pulled the brackets off completely (locktite is a real mother! i had to use an impact wrench for the front of the back seat) then also pulled out the seat belts, and carseat anchors..... so now i have holes in my floor.. those of you who removed your back seats permanantly.. what did you do about the holes? i put aluminum tape over them for now to keep the bugs out.. but im worried about rust starting in the bolt holes (i will be on the beach) i guess i could always put the bolts back in.. but luggage sliding is much easier with a smooth floor

[mbeach]

I put the bolts back in.

Be careful with all of the bolts that go through the floor -I broke a tiedown bolt just torqueing it in by hand. I used to get nervous pulling the rear seats just for that reason.

[etlsport]

it was bugging me that tape was sealing holes in my vx, so i put the bolts back in place for now, thanks for the heads up mbeach, i will definately be careful when tightening them down when shes ready to get put back together.. lucky for me im not big enough to put any real torque on the bolts haha, i figured id check here to see if anyone else has come up with an ingenious way to plug the holes.. from what ive seen if all the VXers got together for a week, we could have an entirely new VX designed and built!

speaking of getting together if anyones gonna be in the deleware beach area over the next week or two and wants to meet up gimme a shout!

[nfpgasmask]

Hmmm, I have been thinking of doing this very thing also. I am a family of 2 (me and my wife) and I don't usually cart friends around often, and when I do, they can sit on the floor in the back I thought if I take the seats out.

So, I was thinking of pulling the seats and then buying some real thick rubber diamond plate matting and filing out the entire area with it.

But, now I'm wondering, sounds like pulling the seats leave actual holes to the outside in the floor? Is that what you guys are concerned about?

Bart

PS - I hate the rubbing leather sound too.

[etlsport]

yeah, i pulled the bolts out and while i was inside puttin the bolts into my toolbox so i wouldnt lose them i noticed the bottoms were pretty nasty, so i got to wondering where they led to, i looked in the back of the vx at the holes and wouldnt you know it, i was lookin at asphalt, so i put tape over them but realized the paint was probably stripped off inside the holes from the bolts, so i replaced them with a dab of lock tite to make sure they were sealed.. the last thing i need is rust

im definately thinking about just leaving them out now that theyre gone im lovin the room.. so i was looking for a more permenant solution than just leaving the bolts in place

[nfpgasmask]

im definately thinking about just leaving them out now that theyre gone im lovin the room.. so i was looking for a more permenant solution than just leaving the bolts in place

What about some sort of rubber plug or something? Something flat but with lips on it that you could seal off with silicone sealant? When you're back in there next time, would you mind taking some photos of how the back cargo area looks with the seats out and also some shots of the where the bolts stick out? This will save me some time and help make my decision up without doing the work you did!

Thanks -Bart

PS - It would be cool to make a stand or floor mount for your back seats so you can use them in the living room while they are not in your VX!!

[Tobert]

I pulled my seats out this weekend. I love all the space it freed up and the dog seems to enjoy it too. I'm thinking of making a small part to cover over the rear floorboard area and turn it into semi-hidden storage.

I just put the bolts right back in and didn't worry about sealant. When torqued down a little, they should seal just fine, since there shouldn't ever be any kind of pressure on the bottom side. I also pulled the seat belt bracket but left the seat latch for now.

I really like the rubber diamond plate idea.

[Ldub]

PS - It would be cool to make a stand or floor mount for your back seats so you can use them in the living room while they are not in your VX!!

Now THAT'S a good idea...my back seat has been wasting closet space since about three days after I purchaced my VX back in 03....brilliant!

[Chopper]

tape the holes from the bottom, then fill them with silicone RV sealer(the kind that stays rubbery) waterproof-no bumps-picks out in a snap to put the seats back.

[etlsport]

great ideas! ill leave these bolts in for the trip, and if i decide i like the vx better without the back seats ill probably use the silicon sealer

bart.. if you check my gallery i posted some photos of the back seat removed.. heres a breakdown of what they all came from

1. seat belt anchor
2.seat anchor (2 bolts)
3. seat anchor (2 bolts)
4. seat belt anchor
5. seat belt buckle (this is the one thats causing most of my frustration)
also peice sticking up next to it can be removed, but i left it to tie luggage down to
6&7 are the carseat anchors, they would be a pain if i didnt have the cargo mat

i took photos of all the bolts that i can email to you if you want, just didnt want to post them all

p.s. the fire extinguisher fits like glove! (back seats even fold up while its there)

[mbeach]

Ha,
That's the exact same place that I've mounted the fire extinguisher in both of my VXs.
I put them in after seeing that clip of the guy filming his car burning to the ground. A nice turbo Golf, he even saw the fire start -downpipe burnt sound deadening -he had a video camera but no fire extinguisher.

[nfpgasmask]

Hey, thanks for posting those pics. It looks nice back there without the seats actually. Hmmm, this maybe something I need to do. I told my wife I was thinking about doing it and she was concerned about carting friends around, but I was like, "Screw them, they can sit on the floor!".

LOL, I guess I do need to think about that, since the back seat can be a bumpy ride, especially without a seat. But, on the same token, the storage space gain would be nice, not to mention a nice new piece of furniture for my living room!

I see what you mean about the bolt. That would definitely need to be removed and sealed off in some other "flat" way.

Bart

great ideas! ill leave these bolts in for the trip, and if i decide i like the vx better without the back seats ill probably use the silicon sealer

bart.. if you check my gallery i posted some photos of the back seat removed.. heres a breakdown of what they all came from

1. seat belt anchor
2.seat anchor (2 bolts)
3. seat anchor (2 bolts)
4. seat belt anchor
5. seat belt buckle (this is the one thats causing most of my frustration)
also peice sticking up next to it can be removed, but i left it to tie luggage down to
6&7 are the carseat anchors, they would be a pain if i didnt have the cargo mat

i took photos of all the bolts that i can email to you if you want, just didnt want to post them all

p.s. the fire extinguisher fits like glove! (back seats even fold up while its there)

[nfpgasmask]

Car fires are scary. My buddy has video footage somewhere of a truck burning down at Attica on one of the trails. Not something I want happening to my VX. With the seats out, I bet you could make a nice spot for a fire extinguisher and an air tank like one of these:

http://www.4wheelair.com/

Bart

Ha,
That's the exact same place that I've mounted the fire extinguisher in both of my VXs.
I put them in after seeing that clip of the guy filming his car burning to the ground. A nice turbo Golf, he even saw the fire start -downpipe burnt sound deadening -he had a video camera but no fire extinguisher.

[kpaske]

I was just thinking the other day that it would be really cool to have something fabbed up to make the rear seat easily removable. I wonder if there would be a lot of people interested if we figured out a way to replace the spring loaded hinges with something similar, only with clamps that disconnect the whole seat from the floor (sort of like what is on the rear of the seat)? I really want to lose my back seat, but would like to be able to quickly throw it back in if needed. I was even thinking of attaching some attachment points for two car seats for the kids to clamp right into the floor. I wonder if that would be legal?

[etlsport]

even if it is legal i wouldnt do the car seat thing.... pretty sure being bolted to the floor in a car seat would equate to an awful ride, at least on the seats there minimal padding to absorb some of the bumps.

but i do recall seeing someone who replaced the pin in the hinges with a bolt and wingnut setup that made it relatively easy to just pull the seat out but leave the brackets in place

i was also considering bulding a subwoofer box along one of the sides of the cargo area that could double as a seat.. it would be easier to remove than the seats... accessable through the tail gate.. and supply me with some nice bass.... hmmmmmmmmmmmmm