Removing front seat trim

[tinius]

I need to remove the driver's seat.

How do I remove the plastic trim over the rails so I can get to the two front Torx bolts holding the rails to the floor?
Running the seat all the way back doesn't reveal the bolts.

http://i66.tinypic.com/n1vz84.jpg

Thanks,

[RVAE34]

Try raising the seat all the way up first. I don't recall having to remove any trim to access those torx but it has been a while.

[scma528]

I addressed the seat twist last week, I took off the trim on the side of the left side to get to the one on the left, the one on the right I could not successfully remove the trim so I forced it up and to the side to get to the bolt.
There may be a more proper way to get to them, but that worked for me and went back together well

[Qsilver7]

There is a very good front seat removal DIY on www.e38.org . Go there and do a page search for "Rhett's front heated seat installation". Yes, the DIY is about heated seats...but there's a step-by-step (with a pic tutorial) on how to remove the front seats.

The front seats for the e38/e39 are the same...so don't let that stop you either. Good luck. :)


{here's a teaser pic as an example of how well the DIY was done as far as tools required and steps to take}

http://www.bimmerboard.com/members/rhett/DSCF0762%20(Medium).JPG

[RVAE34]

Ahh, I remember that piece now. I think I ripped all mine off because my interior comes apart so often. I am helping a friend fix his cable seat twist on his 03 M5 Saturday so this will come in handy.

Here is the link Qsilver mentioned btw.

http://www.bimmerboard.com/forums/posts/135542

[lesguy]

was just reviewing some updated seat twist threads, and seems an updated method appears to be fairly effective and requires no seat removal. You simply locate the offending cable, use snips to clip away 1/4 inch of the black vinyl sheathing (do NOT cut the actual metal cable within the sheathing), then using needle nose pliers, push the metal cable part back into the motor housing. Seems to be an effective fix for those who've tried it

[geargrinder]

I need to remove the driver's seat.

How do I remove the plastic trim over the rails so I can get to the two front Torx bolts holding the rails to the floor?
Running the seat all the way back doesn't reveal the bolts.

http://i66.tinypic.com/n1vz84.jpg

Thanks,

As always Q7 posted spot on key info but if you mean specifically the blue highlighted "upper rail" trim bits (freakin seats have a crapload of rail trim if you ask me...) they have 1 little torx screws each that hold them down, then once those wre out sort of a snap/hook-in kind of geometry to finesse out too. The little screws can be a beyotch so you raise seat as high as it goes and find best f/r spot, take screws out, then comes off pretty easy, the long one needs a bit of finessing with as it kinda hooks in at the back.

I think maybe i have used torx bits w a 1/4 ratchet to remove the screw maybe, they can be pita to get to until you sort out your system.

Btw the full trim set for the seats is surprisingly not that brutally expensive.


was just reviewing some updated seat twist threads, and seems an updated method appears to be fairly effective and requires no seat removal. You simply locate the offending cable, use snips to clip away 1/4 inch of the black vinyl sheathing (do NOT cut the actual metal cable within the sheathing), then using needle nose pliers, push the metal cable part back into the motor housing. Seems to be an effective fix for those who've tried it

yeah. Not a fan. There are 2 techniques i dont like... Some guys advocate not taking seat out by using the "just gorilla yank the cables like a mofo" method of taking the cables out... Id rather take few minutes to loosen the motor screws and get cable end out properly then just hack away at yanking it and possibly break stuff..

Other guys have suggested dont pull the cable at all but try to trim sheath in place around the cable core. And i dont like the "try to trim sheathing off cable without removing it" so much either. Too much chance of nicking up the inner cable. And you then have a sheath with a slice in it which just seems hack to me.

Id be more open minded if the right way was harder, but its not hard to do it right really as long as you have a decent working space to pull the seats into and 12V to power them up while you work. The difficulty of monkeying w the motor and cable retaining bolts is moderate but not as bad as some make out. Both approaches just seem lazy hacker kludges to me. Maybe if you dont have a full set of tools to deal w the difficult bolt locations ok but if you have tools and experience its not quite that horrible as people make out.

[tinius]

Yes, I do mean the blue highlighted trim pieces, which are bolted to the seat frame, not to the floor rails, and which move back and forth with the seat.
Even with the seat all the way to the rear, they still cover the heads of the Torx bolts which attach the rails to the floor.
Here's a photo of the driver's seat, front raised and seat all the way back. The Torx bolt is at the tip of the arrow.

https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7003/27220249726_f1b7142ae6_h_d.jpg

Here's the view from the inside; the head of the Torx bolt is visible at the tip of the arrow.

https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7470/27220250046_62dad3157d_h_d.jpg

And here's the inside rail next to the console. Again, the trim covers the head of the Torx bolt.

https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7048/27156892012_a5054036f0_h_d.jpg

I believe geargrinder has it right, there is a single, smaller Torx bolt holding each of these trim pieces down. The bolts are only accessible when the seat skirts are removed. I have to remove the outside skirt anyway to replace a broken bracket inside. I guess I'll do the same on the console side, too.

BTW, the reason I want to unbolt the seat and tip it backward is to work on the control cables for the back. I have read every post on the subject I can find and will figure out which method to use when I get there.

The photos of the E38 rails in the article which Q7 cited show the floor bolt head exposed when the seat is moved full back, unlike the E39.
http://www.bimmerboard.com/members/rhett/DSCF0761%20(Medium).JPG


Thanks for the tips and helpful responses.

[geargrinder]

You dont need to "believe GG is right ", he is right, iz fact not opinion.
please. Trust me i have taken E39 seats in/out something between 6-8 times.

I still refer to them as rail trim as they are more or less "upper rail" trim that covers the rails and mechanism gap around rails from above and is distinctly difft from the seat trim.

You do NOT remove seat trim to get them off. I cannot emphasize this strongly enough. This is a fact not a thing to believe or not believe. Taking the side trim off in situ is basically impossible anyway and that is a fools errand to chase. It is secured in part in addition to top accessible screws, by plastic snap rivets from below which are a nightmare to try to deal with without the seat out.

I am on an ipad so not easy to annotate photos and reload but in pix above the round screw hole for the upper rail trim is clearly evident in the first 2 pix.

You just need to have a small 1/4" socket setup with the right torx bit. A screwdriver type bit driver with 1/4" socket attachment is what i use but real torx socket like pictured for the big seat bolts might work but it needs to be small enough to get in the space obv .

oh yeah i said that already. :^} Both trims should be off within 3 minutes with that tool setup.

[tinius]

In my toolbox I found a mini-ratchet and a T30 Torx bit, perfect for removing the single bolt holding each rail cover in place beneath the seat skirt. The hole in the outboard cover is visible next to the bit.

https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7253/26668687434_12e2c67373_z_d.jpg
https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7782/27000142150_9c4aa63e69_z_d.jpg

Here's the inboard rail cover.
https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7497/27000143290_9e60c2e224_z_d.jpg

And the larger rail Torx bolt heads are now exposed.
https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7366/26668691374_dc8d33a4c9_z_d.jpg

The outboard bolt can be accessed without actually removing the rail cover. Unhook the aft end and just set it aside.
https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7412/26668692274_10597fde0d_z_d.jpg

Leaning the seat backward to work on the cables from the backrest and rear bench motors under the front edge of the bench.
https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7489/27000147650_d5e0e4e13a_z_d.jpg

I raised the back ends of the rails on several blocks of wood so I can lean the whole seat back further for better access to the underside.
https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7327/27179071822_6c1a19afae_z_d.jpg

Tomorrow I'll tackle fixing the two drive cables.

Regards,

[geargrinder]

Exactly it!

hinestly tinman i suggest pull the seat. The extra 3-4 mins wrestling it out and in is more than paid back by how easy the job is w seat up on a workbench. Only trick is having 12V power to fire it up - i use various thngs but a jump pack can work great w a little homebrew fused jumper setup.