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RRUK
Site Supporter

Member Since: 31 Mar 2010
Location: Leicestershire
Posts: 2025

Rear CSW Seats removal: How to with pics

This is something many people seem to do and I also wanted to remove the rear forward facing seats in my CSW 90, to give me more room for dogs and shooting kit etc. Everyone on the forum says "It's easy" but that's only if you know how to attack it, with these guidelines it should make it easier for others.

Tools you will need:

This job will take about 90 mins max if you are taking your time and being as attentive to detail as I am.

Here's what you will be looking at to start with:

Click image to enlarge

So, the seat itself has two brackets on the top of the wheel boxes, each covered with plastic trims. The bracket nearest the rear door has a handle, slide off the plastic handle cover and remove the two tiny plastic rivets. They can be screwed out gently using the small philips screwdriver, I found mine stuck in so I put some pressure behind with a flat headed screwdriver to force it out more. Once both rivets are off the plastic covers simply lift off. They reveal the following. There is now a metal bracket each end and these are held down with 2 star bits each side which screw into captive threads in the bodywork. This makes life easier as you don't need an assistant and you can do all the work from within the cabin. I liberally sprayed all the exposed threads under the wheel arches with WD40 and attacked them briefly with a wire brush and more WD40 to make this easier for me.

Once the 4 star bits are undone the seat is now held in place by a captive bolt built into the bracket which passes through the wheel arch. There are now 2 nuts on the other side you can undo with your 13mm socket from above the tyre. I found mine slacked off easy, then got harder, then got slack again, probably as rusted thread made it's way off.

NOTE: Make sure you have folded the seat down onto its frame before undoing the last 2 nuts, as one end is spring loaded and it will move on its own. Best be safe than cause damage or injury.

Next, the seat is held to the lower frame with a check strap (as seen in the top picture). This is simply held onto the frame with a plastic rivet that can just be pulled out, it doesn't screw in. The seat can now be lifted out of the car - it's quite heavy so be careful of your footing when getting out of the boot.

Then it's time to remove the fold-down frame which is fixed to the side of the wheel arch and the floor.

Again, there are now 4 star bits size 40 with captive nuts in the bodywork, per side of the seat (8 in total). Remove them all and then the frame can be wiggled out of the carpet.

I cleaned up the now exposed bracket areas and squirted WD40 down the thread holes. I also squirted all the star bit threads with WD40. In a belt & braces fashion I also put a blob of copper grease on the threaded holes, so it sealed with the washer and bit.Then you can replace all the T Star bits into their captive thread holes - this serves 2 purposes: To seal the holes and to keep the screws where you can find them for if you want to put the seats back!

Click image to enlarge

You are left with 2 holes on the top of the wheel arch from the captive nut that was on the bracket each end of the seat. I filled these with a large enough nut (17mm) and bolt with washers and a spring washer to keep it tight, and sealed around the holes with copper grease. You can do this without an assistant if you place your socket ratchet on top of the bolt in the cabin, get underneath in the wheel arch with your washers and nut and start to tighten. Once the spring washer engages you can just ratchet it up.

Click image to enlarge

After doing each side I got under the wheel arch with my tub of copper grease and a stiff little brush and coated all the threads with it to ensure it is easy to undo for me or the next owner in many years to come.

Then just whip round with the hoover as there was bound to be some dog hair or dirt around the seat brackets. The end result is much more space, and now all I am going to do is fit a genuine pick up style rear rubber mat, to cover the floor and wheel boxes.

Hope that was helpful. It's an easy enough job for anyone with a socket set.

Click image to enlarge 2016 D4 HSE

1998 110 TUM HS FFR Hard Top XD WOLF

1982 Series 3 SWB Petrol

Last edited by RRUK on 10th Aug 2015 5:28pm. Edited 2 times in total

10th Aug 2015 6:59am

munch90

Member Since: 26 Oct 2013
Location: guildford
Posts: 3558

good write up , but bolts are T40 not T35

t35 may work but your risking damage to the bolt

t35 is quite a rare size and tends to be for tamperproof bolts

10th Aug 2015 8:17am

YOLO110

Member Since: 14 Feb 2015
Location: Perth Oz and Stansted UK
Posts: 1646

Following my recent 'poll' thread on whether to remove the seats or not, this is a brilliant and very useful post!

Many thanks.

Pete.

YOLO... You Only Live Once...

10th Aug 2015 8:21am

RRUK
Site Supporter

Member Since: 31 Mar 2010
Location: Leicestershire
Posts: 2025

munch90 wrote:
good write up , but bolts are T40 not T35

t35 may work but your risking damage to the bolt

t35 is quite a rare size and tends to be for tamperproof bolts

Just figured it out.

You are right, it is a T40. My bit set are the hollow star bits and in those, it took a T35.

I'll edit the post above 2016 D4 HSE

1998 110 TUM HS FFR Hard Top XD WOLF

1982 Series 3 SWB Petrol

Last edited by RRUK on 10th Aug 2015 8:53am. Edited 1 time in total

10th Aug 2015 8:44am

Bears Dad

Member Since: 09 Dec 2011
Location: Aylesbury
Posts: 43

2007 Defender 90 Puma 2.4 XS CSW Zermatt Silver

Good job!

10th Aug 2015 8:45am

RRUK
Site Supporter

Member Since: 31 Mar 2010
Location: Leicestershire
Posts: 2025

YOLO110 wrote:
Following my recent 'poll' thread on whether to remove the seats or not, this is a brilliant and very useful post!

Many thanks.

Pete.

It was your thread and others Pete that spurred me to write it up. Many newer Defender owners want to do this but are not keen on DIY stuff, I wanted to show it can be very easy. 2016 D4 HSE

1998 110 TUM HS FFR Hard Top XD WOLF

1982 Series 3 SWB Petrol

10th Aug 2015 8:45am

munch90

Member Since: 26 Oct 2013
Location: guildford
Posts: 3558

RRUK wrote:
munch90 wrote:
good write up , but bolts are T40 not T35

t35 may work but your risking damage to the bolt

t35 is quite a rare size and tends to be for tamperproof bolts

Just figured it out.

You are right, it is a T40. My bit set are the hollow star bits and in those, it took a T35.

I'll edit the post above

and just about to remove one of my seats ready for holiday to get bit extra room , I made a small shelf that bolts inplace of seat

10th Aug 2015 9:04am

RRUK
Site Supporter

Member Since: 31 Mar 2010
Location: Leicestershire
Posts: 2025

Munch90, you should post a pic of that, ideas for others are always handy. 2016 D4 HSE

1998 110 TUM HS FFR Hard Top XD WOLF

1982 Series 3 SWB Petrol

10th Aug 2015 9:39am

munch90

Member Since: 26 Oct 2013
Location: guildford
Posts: 3558

10th Aug 2015 10:08am

munch90

Member Since: 26 Oct 2013
Location: guildford
Posts: 3558

if I could add my two pence worth to write up

wire brush bolt exposed threads and nuts under wheel arch and spray with wd40 day before ( or few hours before )

the exposed threads could be rusty and either seize and snap or damage threads in fixed nuts in arch/floor

the threads in the fixed nut in the floor are not the best , when refitting the bolts make sure they screw in coulpe of threads by hand as there quite easy to cross thread

10th Aug 2015 10:14am

Pete4810

Member Since: 26 Dec 2013
Location: London
Posts: 9

2007 Defender 110 Puma 2.4 XS CSW Java Black

Ive just done it - and to remove the seats took apx 90 minutes.

You will need the T40, and you should make sure the seats are returned to the folded position just prior to removing the last bolts.

I now have loads of space in my 110 - prior to next weeks european road trip!

10th Aug 2015 3:21pm

Sadi

Member Since: 23 Jul 2015
Location: Windhoek
Posts: 334

2016 Defender 110 Puma 2.2 Heritage Edition SW Grasmere Green

Thank you for the nice write up !!

10th Aug 2015 5:19pm

AndyTunn

Member Since: 10 Jan 2015
Location: Auckland
Posts: 313

2008 Defender 90 Puma 2.4 SW Stornoway Grey

Nice write up! I've found you get quicker with practice. Also, if you don't need a totally flat floor space then it's a bit quicker to remove the hinge bolts from the brackets holding the fold-down frames, rather than remove the whole bracket.

Last tip: a cut-to-size bit of 15 or 18mm ply makes an ideal load platform, and provides a bit of "security space" for any items you want to keep out of sight...

Click image to enlarge
This one is fitted with M8 captive bolts that line up with the holes through the arches to hold it in place.

(See this post... http://www.defender2.net/forum/post424340.html#424340 for details if you're interested)

Admin note: this post has had its images recovered from a money grabbing photo hosting site and reinstated

11th Aug 2015 8:00am

Coatesyyy

Member Since: 07 Sep 2017
Location: Knutsford
Posts: 423

Very useful guide, thank you

7th Oct 2017 5:38pm

wyvern

Member Since: 13 Dec 2009
Location: Cornwall
Posts: 2118

2012 Defender 110 Puma 2.2 XS CSW Firenze Red

Many thanks to RRUK for this how to do it post ... very useful and easy to follow !

Poppy - TDCI (Puma) 110XS 2.2 - Camper conversion - see the build here - https://www.defender2.net/forum/topic56530.html
Elgar -TDCI(Puma) 110XS Dormobile - now sold
Devon & Cornwall 4x4 Response - DC126

6th Nov 2017 8:58am

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