WTB: E24 rear seats

[bimmerboy73]

e24 seat fitting

saw the thread and thought i'd offer a little heads up regarding the install. I've finished installing the seats in my coupe but havent updated the DIY thread i started in a while. It is a pretty straightforward job if you have a dremel and some patience. You'll probably spend more time cleaning up the mess from all the cutting than you will actually doing the work. I ended up having to replace the rear deck behind the seats because the top of the seat back left about a 1" gap between it and the rear bulkhead. No matter how much you cut out of the donors, you wont be able to get them to sit flush the way the stock seats do. This is partially due to the fact that the seats are a little taller and the contour a bit rounder. It wasnt a huge job... used the old deck as a template and simply cut it so that there was slightly more surface area to cover the gap. I was also able to create a nice fit between the deck and the e24 armrest (its a little shorter and again contoured differently, leaving about a 2.5" gap between it and the original deck edge). Like I said, not a big deal, just a little extra work if you want it to look as good as possible. If you plan on doing the rear deck replacement, you'll need a staple gun (.25" staples), some foam backing and of course some new material ( roughly 6'x2'worth ). A jigsaw will also come in handy if you have rear speakers that need to be cut in.

I'll post pictures soon.

 

[atan888]

Just an idea is to use the speaker covers for the E24 that covers the gap of the rear seats since they are a bit taller. They look pretty good in my opinion.

Thanks for the info Alvin! Never been a big fan of the BMW burgundy or Cardinal reds. Have always love the Mercedes red from the 60's and 70's though.

MBZ red same as the ones in the early SL (pagoda) or SE is a very nice color indeed.

 

[TodB]

arm rest

I am assuming I can still use the E9 arm rest with the E24 seats?

 

[bimmerboy73]

I am assuming I can still use the E9 arm rest with the E24 seats?

You absolutely can use the e9 rest. I opted for the e24 arm rest because it has the cutouts to receive the seat belt receptacles and it comes with an insert which fits between the seats and behind the armrest. It does a good job finishing off the install and giving an almost factory look. Without it, you'll be able to see the backs and sides of the seats (there will be a gap between the seat backs and the bulk head) - not sure if this is an issue at all if you never have the arm rest down. i'm thinking though that you can probably custom cut some material to drape in the opening if you want to stick with the e9 arm rest.

Quote - Just an idea is to use the speaker covers for the E24 that covers the gap of the rear seats since they are a bit taller. They look pretty good in my opinion.

Alvin,

i thought about that too but i think there are 2 issues. First, i think the covers are too deep to fit the e9 deck and second, the leading edge of the cover is contoured to meet the top edge of the e24 seat. When installed in the coupe, the top of the e24 seat sits about 3" above the deck ( you can get it down to about 2 by taking out more material along the bottom but i wouldnt recommend cutting too much more as you'll start to compromise the structural integrity of the seat) but i think its still too high to get it to meet correctly. Also, you may have an issue with the location of your rear speakers aligning with the covers. Mine are not centered on the seats which is what needs to happen for the covers to provide the proper look / function. Note, i didnt actually try to install the speaker covers - just an educated guess based on examining a couple of e24's close up.

Richard

 

[TodB]

Back to looking

The pair of rear seats I was looking at turned out to have different pleat counts for each seat and I certainly cannot have that. The horrors!

Back to looking for a set of black leather rears...

 

[verde2002]

I have a 1981 BMW 633csi I am parting out and it does have the black interior some are looking for in this thread. See the attached photos and let me know if interested PM me. Thank you.