Technical Removing headrests? How?

[S854]

My Spider has 3-point seatbelts and I’m wanting to install a guide at shoulder height to help corral the belts when not worn.

AutoRicambi has such guides…

“Remove headrest, install guide, replace headrest…” sounds simple enough… but I can’t figure how to remove the headrest… I car raise it to the position shown in the photo however it hits a hard stop at that point.

I don’t see any levers/buttons to push or pull, just the round receiver the headrest post slips into…

What am I missing?

 

[Mike1alike]

They did such an idiotic work with the headrest, not putting an easy way to get them out.
This is how they look on my Punto, I suspect yours are not much different.
I had the seat covers removed there and unlocked the headrest mechanism from inside.

 

[S854]

From the looks of it, that’s pretty much what I’m up against… bummer…

I was kinda hoping for a “point the car northwest, open both doors 37.5 degree, stand on your left foot and hold your tongue like this…”

 

[Mike1alike]

Good one!

 

[gengis]

There’s some idents on the back of the rods that “click” into some spring clip arrangement. So you just have to pull up to overcome the spring clip. I would put some lubricant down the rods to help if there really tight.

 

[Mike1alike]

I would put some lubricant down the rods to help if there really tight.

I thought of that myself. Wondered if it would help. It should.

 

[S854]

There’s some idents on the back of the rods that “click” into some spring clip arrangement. So you just have to pull up to overcome the spring clip. I would put some lubricant down the rods to help if there really tight.

The rods move easily enough, it’s the stop at the end that has me baffled…I’ve been as aggressive as I dare with a 57 year old car… feels like there’s a nut threaded on the rod bottoms, sounds like a hammer banging against a stop…

Maybe the correct size thin-walled tube - split to go around the rod and hold in whatever spring detent is down there… hmmm…

 

[124BC1]

Iirc, the way to remove the headrest is to push the headrest fully down and then pull the headrest quickly upwards without any hesitation, if you're quick and determined enough the spring clips won't have time to lock into the bottom grooves on the h/rest rods.

Here's a pic of the seat back with cover and foam removed revealing the tubes in which the rods of the headrest slide and the spring clips that retain them in each selected position. Note, this is the frontal view of the seat. i.e. it's what your sitting against. There aren't any nuts etc. just spring clips that engage with grooves on the headrest rods.

Here's another pic, this one is of the rear of the seat back with the cover removed, you can just see the spring clips through the 2 holes near the top. You can see where the spring clips sit into cut-outs in the tubes that carry the headrest rods and engage with the adjustment notches on the h/rest rods:-

These clips are similar to 'R' clips (Hairpin Cotter pins in U.S.?) but iirc are of square section wire, e.g. :-

Also, iirc, there may be a panel on the rear of seat back (there is on the Coupe model, not sure about the Spider) that can be removed (2? screws at bottom edge, then pull down to release) that might allow you to reach up to manually release the h/rest spring clips.

If you do happen to damage the plastic inserts that surround the headrest rods where they enter the top of the seat - these are still available (but at a cost!):-

 

[S854]

Iirc, the way to remove the headrest is to push the headrest fully down and then pull the headrest quickly upwards without any hesitation, if you're quick and determined enough the spring clips won't have time to lock into the bottom grooves on the h/rest rods.

Here's a pic of the seat back with cover and foam removed revealing the tubes in which the rods of the headrest slide and the spring clips that retain them in each selected position. Note, this is the frontal view of the seat. i.e. it's what your sitting against. There aren't any nuts etc. just spring clips that engage with grooves on the headrest rods.

View attachment 486682

Here's another pic, this one is of the rear of the seat back with the cover removed, you can just see the spring clips through the 2 holes near the top. You can see where the spring clips sit into cut-outs in the tubes that carry the headrest rods and engage with the adjustment notches on the h/rest rods:-

View attachment 486688


These clips are similar to 'R' clips (Hairpin Cotter pins in U.S.?) but iirc are of square section wire, e.g. :-

View attachment 486685

Also, iirc, there may be a panel on the rear of seat back (there is on the Coupe model, not sure about the Spider) that can be removed (2? screws at bottom edge, then pull down to release) that might allow you to reach up to manually release the h/rest spring clips.

If you do happen to damage the plastic inserts that surround the headrest rods where they enter the top of the seat - these are still available (but at a cost!):-

View attachment 486684

Thanks! A picture is worth a thousand words… I’ll give your suggestion a go…

 

[Slotman]

Those are excellant pics 124bc1! They will help with my welding project as well!
Good luck S854!