Rear Seats Be Gone !!

[mountaindesert]

I'm a single guy and have no use for the rear seats so I took them out.

They're in the way more than they're any help for me. And I probably save 100 lb.

I also can use the latch points where the seats used to attach to as additional latch points to hook things into such as dogs etc.

I'm going to be building a basic platform to make the rear completely flat. And some storage underneath

Has anyone done this or have the plans for a platform?

Also does anyone know of a company that makes custom rubber mats?

Ideally I would like to have one that covers the entire rear after I build the platform to make it flat.

Cheers Russ

 

[mountaindesert]

 

[Dave]

I'm a single guy and have no use for the rear seats so I took them out.

They're in the way more than they're any help for me. And I probably save 100 lb.

I also can use the latch points where the seats used to attach to as additional latch points to hook things into such as dogs etc.

I'm going to be building a basic platform to make the rear completely flat. And some storage underneath

Has anyone done this or have the plans for a platform?

Also does anyone know of a company that makes custom rubber mats?

Ideally I would like to have one that covers the entire rear after I build the platform to make it flat.

Cheers Russ

Good morning Russ

There are loads of level platforms with draws underneath and a bed platform on youtube none yet specific to the new LC but the 4 runner ideas will give insperation i,m doing the same here in the UK when Iget my my LC be great to see what you have done
Cheers Dave

 

[cruisemtb]

Cool, this is the first I've seen of someone removing the rear seats! How difficult was it to remove them? Just a few bolts or more involved? Are there any seatbelt alarms or anything that need to be disabled? Thanks!

 

[EOD Guy]

Baby playroom mats come in 24" interlocking high density foam squares. The squares can be taped on the bottom side and will stay connected until you remove the tape. The ones I have used are 1" thick, weigh very little and easily cut to shape with a sharp knife. Should a square get damaged, it's easily replaceable. While they are heavy duty, dense foam, if heavy objects are placed on them for long periods of time, the foam will indent and leave an impression.

Pro tip: there is a pattern in the interlocking sides, so I assemble the entire oversized piece, use painters tape to mark the side(s) to be trimmed, then cut to size. Accidently rotating a piece 90 degrees and trimming the wrong edge will result in you making another piece (don't ask how I know this). After all the trimming is completed, lock it together, flip it over and apply gaffers tape on the seams.

Anti fatigue mat may be a good choice for a two piece, full length mat. The drawback it's very heavy.

 

[mountaindesert]

Good morning Russ

There are loads of level platforms with draws underneath and a bed platform on youtube none yet specific to the new LC but the 4 runner ideas will give insperation i,m doing the same here in the UK when Iget my my LC be great to see what you have done
Cheers Dave

Thank you Dave. I'll check those out.

 

[mountaindesert]

Cool, this is the first I've seen of someone removing the rear seats! How difficult was it to remove them? Just a few bolts or more involved? Are there any seatbelt alarms or anything that need to be disabled? Thanks!

It works for me because I have no use for them. And it makes the space much larger and the vehicle lighter.

It was pretty simple. There were four bolts and one screw per seat.

First, I removed the plastic covers on the front and back of the base of each seat.

Then that will expose a wire and plug that's attached.

I unplugged the wire plug attachment and then unscrewed the bolts and then pulled the seat out.

It's surprising how heavy each of the seats are.

Now it's just about finding a platform situation to put in there. That's the project I'll have to do in a few weeks...

Also, after turning the car on I did not see any warning lights or other issues... I'll let you know if that changes.

 

[mountaindesert]

Baby playroom mats come in 24" interlocking high density foam squares. The squares can be taped on the bottom side and will stay connected until you remove the tape. The ones I have used are 1" thick, weigh very little and easily cut to shape with a sharp knife. Should a square get damaged, it's easily replaceable. While they are heavy duty, dense foam, if heavy objects are placed on them for long periods of time, the foam will indent and leave an impression.

Pro tip: there is a pattern in the interlocking sides, so I assemble the entire oversized piece, use painters tape to mark the side(s) to be trimmed, then cut to size. Accidently rotating a piece 90 degrees and trimming the wrong edge will result in you making another piece (don't ask how I know this). After all the trimming is completed, lock it together, flip it over and apply gaffers tape on the seams.

Anti fatigue mat may be a good choice for a two piece, full length mat. The drawback it's very heavy.

Thanks for that great tip.

I Transport a lot of dogs who unfortunately get car sick sometimes. So ideally I have a rubberized mat with no seams that covers the entire space. I would imagine if I made a template a company could customize a rubber mat of some sort.


However, I'm not aware of any of these companies and I've never done that before which is why I was reaching out and asking if anyone else has.


However, your solution will probably be helpful to many people. Thank you

 

[BigMF]

I'm not sure how wide/long you need but my local Home Depot sells some HEAVY duty rubber mats that are 42"x72". These things are 3/4" thick and sold to use in gyms or stalls (horses, etc.) so they are very durable.

Really glad to hear you got no warning lights. Did you actually drive it around with no warning lights or just turn it on? I can see a possibility that the check for the SRS sensors in seats is not active unless you are in D or R.

When I go on my overlanding trips, I take out the middle row (LX570 has 3 rows and rear row has been gone for 5 years) and if you don't MacGyver a resistor onto the sensor wire, you get a warning on the dashboard that is extremely annoying when you are driving for 12 hours in a day to get to your destination.

 

[mountaindesert]

I'm not sure how wide/long you need but my local Home Depot sells some HEAVY duty rubber mats that are 42"x72". These things are 3/4" thick and sold to use in gyms or stalls (horses, etc.) so they are very durable.

Really glad to hear you got no warning lights. Did you actually drive it around with no warning lights or just turn it on? I can see a possibility that the check for the SRS sensors in seats is not active unless you are in D or R.

When I go on my overlanding trips, I take out the middle row (LX570 has 3 rows and rear row has been gone for 5 years) and if you don't MacGyver a resistor onto the sensor wire, you get a warning on the dashboard that is extremely annoying when you are driving for 12 hours in a day to get to your destination.

That's a great point.

I Have not driven it around without the seats installed yet. I simply turned on the vehicle after I removed the seats to check if there were any lights or warnings.

However, I have read about the resistors needed to be connected after the removal of seats to prevent all these warning lights going off.


I'll reply to this thread and let you know after I drive it around this week to see if there are any changes with regard to warning lights or other issues pertaining to the seat removal.

Russ

 

[mountaindesert]

I'm not sure how wide/long you need but my local Home Depot sells some HEAVY duty rubber mats that are 42"x72". These things are 3/4" thick and sold to use in gyms or stalls (horses, etc.) so they are very durable.

Really glad to hear you got no warning lights. Did you actually drive it around with no warning lights or just turn it on? I can see a possibility that the check for the SRS sensors in seats is not active unless you are in D or R.

When I go on my overlanding trips, I take out the middle row (LX570 has 3 rows and rear row has been gone for 5 years) and if you don't MacGyver a resistor onto the sensor wire, you get a warning on the dashboard that is extremely annoying when you are driving for 12 hours in a day to get to your destination.

Yes, I might have to go this route if I don't find a company that can do it for me...

Thank you for your post

 

[mountaindesert]

I'm not sure how wide/long you need but my local Home Depot sells some HEAVY duty rubber mats that are 42"x72". These things are 3/4" thick and sold to use in gyms or stalls (horses, etc.) so they are very durable.

Really glad to hear you got no warning lights. Did you actually drive it around with no warning lights or just turn it on? I can see a possibility that the check for the SRS sensors in seats is not active unless you are in D or R.

When I go on my overlanding trips, I take out the middle row (LX570 has 3 rows and rear row has been gone for 5 years) and if you don't MacGyver a resistor onto the sensor wire, you get a warning on the dashboard that is extremely annoying when you are driving for 12 hours in a day to get to your destination.

I can now confirm that I have received NO warning lights or beeps. Nothing on the dash at all on my 1958 LC. I drove it around a few miles this morning so that is great to know that I wont need a resistor for each seats plug that I disconnected.

 

[BigMF]

I can now confirm that I have received NO warning lights or beeps. Nothing on the dash at all on my 1958 LC. I drove it around a few miles this morning so that is great to know that I wont need a resistor for each seats plug that I disconnected.

Awesome! Thanks for verifying!

 

[EOD Guy]

I saw a "cargo cover" for a GX550 that appeared to cover the 2nd row seat area. It appeared to be a heavy duty rubber mat

 

[BigMF]

I saw a "cargo cover" for a GX550 that appeared to cover the 2nd row seat area. It appeared to be a heavy duty rubber mat

If you are going to go this route, you might as well get the Land Cruiser version for roughly the same price. It probably fits a tad better since the GX550 is not hybrid and the LC version may take that into account in some way.

 

[mountaindesert]

I saw a "cargo cover" for a GX550 that appeared to cover the 2nd row seat area. It appeared to be a heavy duty rubber mat

View attachment 3481

Thank you. You have a link for this product and will it fit the LC exactly?

 

[mountaindesert]

If you are going to go this route, you might as well get the Land Cruiser version for roughly the same price. It probably fits a tad better since the GX550 is not hybrid and the LC version may take that into account in some way.

View attachment 3495

Thank you. However, in the image this seems not to go over the rear of the second row seats. Eventually I will be building a platform to make a flat cargo space that is flush with the hybrid battery where the second row seats used to be. Therefore, I'm looking for a waterproof mat solution to cover that entire area.


I Might just buy a thick rubber mat from a gym and cut it myself.

 

[BigMF]

Thank you. You have a link for this product and will it fit the LC exactly?

I think this is what he was referring to:

GX550 cargo mat

 

[mountaindesert]

I think this is what he was referring to:

GX550 cargo mat

Thank you

 

[mountaindesert]

Just spoke with goose gear today and they informed me that they are in the process of making a flat platform Base plate for the LC when the second row seat is removed. They said it would be out in about 2 to 3 months.