Hello...I'm looking for suggestions on how to remove the black trim panel in the trunk that lies beneath the parcel shelf. This is to gain access to the bottom of the parcel shelf to remove an unwanted metal child seat anchor. Removing this panel and the insulation above it should give me the access I need. I have tried freeing it from the slot that it sits in by moving it forward, but there isn't enough room to free it up. Any suggestions would be much appreciated.

 

Hi, the sunroof motor must come off first, but to remove the sunroof motor the rear seat must be removed from the car first. But first you must remove the cardboard and yute insulation panel below the parcel shelf in the trunk side. And first you must disconnect the sunroof motor wires.

then you must first disconnect the worm gear cables from the sunroof motor, which will result in possible adjustment problems later.

then first remove the 4 nuts and washers holding the sunroof motor in place. If someone is not waiting for it on the trunk side, the motor will fall hard. Keep that in mind.

then you must first remove the metal water pan, first disconnecting a drain hose on each side of the pan. To remove the metal catch pan, you need to remove all the nuts and washers around its perimeter.

then you need to carefully pull the pan down because it is glued with a mastic seal to prevent water leaks. when the pan finally comes off, inspect the 4 hanging metal vent flaps to make sure they have a rubber piece glued on them to prevent the classic "cowbell" noise. Might as well clean and wash the inside of the pan.

As you can figure, everything must be done first.
then finally you can see under the parcel shelf.

 

Hi Jose, thanks for the quick reply. I think all I need to do is remove the cardboard and jute insulation panel below the parcel shelf on the trunk side. It sounds like removal of the sunroof motor is required, and to do that you also have to remove the back seat? I guess it is bolted in from the inside of the car. It definitely sounds like a bit of a project, but not too difficult. Cheers.

 

exjayess,
I suspect the nut holding the child seat anchor will be under the, and covered by, the metal splash pan, so it would have to come off too.

It is a very involved job. Yes, the rear seat Back must be removed to access to sunroof motor nuts and cables, and to remove the rear seat Back, the rear SEAT must come off first. Lot of disassembly.

I have done this job several times so I know how difficult it is. The splash metal pan will not come off with the sunroof motor in place.

Regardless, this is the best opportunity to clean the inside of the metal pan, you might find lots of debris inside and to inspect for rust. I sprayed the inside of mine with waterproof Truck Bed Coating to prevent it from rusting since it it a water-collecting pan that doesn't always dry out.

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Thanks again Jose. It does sound like quite a bit of disassembly. It does make me wonder why someone went to so much trouble to install this when there are factory made holes in the parcel shelf for this purpose. Who knows...anyways, it will be a project for me. Cheers.

 

you're welcome exjayess. To me it's a wonder to learn how these cars were assembled with so many intricate and difficult steps.

Have you tried turning that anchor counterclockwise to see if it is a machine screw instead of a bolt ?

 

Jose, I'm not sure if you can tell from the pic, but the bolt doesn't have a pattern for a screwdriver. It is just a round top bolt.It must have a nut underneath unfortunately.

 

try to turn it and see if it can be moved counterclockwise. If too tight, use a screwdriver through the ring hole for leverage to try to loosen it. Can't hurt trying even if it has a nut it can be loosened.

 

Jose, I can turn the bolt with a pair of small vice grips, but it doesn't loosen up. I think I will have to access the nut from underneath unfortunately.

 

ohh darn ! another possibility is to leave it alone and find a cover to snap on it.

 

Perhaps you could adapt the covers used on the X308’s although you might have to cut down or bend the bracket itself… That way you would still have a proper child seat anchor fitted.

 

Not a bad thought Jose. Also, I was thinking about how the installer decided to do this. I think it is extremely unlikely that he took the time to dismantle the trunk to install the anchor. I think it might be worth my while to remove the back seat, shoulder belts, and attempt to remove the black vinyl trim that makes up the parcel shelf. I wouldn't be surprised if the bolt is just through the trim panel and not through the steel. Or maybe this is wishful thinking, but it's a lot less work than going through the boot.

 

Thanks Ken. Those caps definitely make the anchors look more tidy. I guess they didn't think of that with the Series III. It might be worth trying to retrofit one from a newer car.

 

the vinyl covered Vent piece where the anchor is, is a piece of molded / shaped fiberglass covered with a layer of thin foam and then vinyl. I doubt the anchor is held just by that Vent piece since there is no strength to it, it is stapled to the board !

 

You are absolutely right Jose. Today I removed the back seat which was easy enough, and then I was able to remove the two screws that secure the front of the centre black trim on the shelf. I couldn't remove it as it is firmly held in place by the anchor, but I was able to peek under it and confirm that the bolt goes through the black pan underneath the parcel shelf (black plastic I think). If I can access the bottom of the black pan, I am good to go. I just need to remove the cardboard trim in the trunk I think. I'm assuming I don't need to remove the pan or the sunroof motor. Interestingly, there is a piece of wood supporting the centre trim section to avoid it being crushed when the nut is tightened. Whoever did it did a pretty good job.Any suggestions on removing the trim panel in the trunk? I think it has to come out rearwards as there is no room to move it forwards as it comes up against the seat back. The part of the trunk lip that it sits in look difficult to remove.

 

the trim panel covered in carpet in the trunk ?

that panel is held by two plastic screws with large plastic washers. Use a wide enough tool to turn them. Behind that panel you have many electrical components including the engine computer.

once the two plastic screws are removed the panel will come off.
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No problem with that panel. The panel I would like to remove is a black hardboard panel that sits directly under the extractor and holds a think mat of soundproofing. Removing that will give me access to the bottom of the extractor and the nut that I would like to remove.

 

yes, that black cardboard panel with jute insulation is held in place without any fasteners, you need to move it to the back to get it to slide out from under the rear lip of the metal pan.
Try grabbing it with one hand on each side and pulling down gently. It is somewhat flexible, it will bend slightly. The cutout at the rear of the cardboard panel goes towards the sunroof motor.

 

Thanks for the info Jose. It's good to know that the trim panel can be removed easily. This morning, I had success with squeezing a small hacksaw under the black parcel shelf trim and I managed to cut the bolt and remove the unwanted child seat anchor. I'll cover the hole with a matching plug and put the seats back in. Done! Thanks very much for your help. I learned a lot actually. Now I know where a lot of things are, where the trunk meets the back seat. I now know about the "air extractor", how to remove the back seats, the "cow bell" noise and a litany of other things. Cheers and thanks again for your time.

 

good job !