I posted this in another thread that's not AV-related but this part of the task should be familiar to anyone who's replaced rear-deck speakers, I would think. How is the rear-deck cover removed ? Or, does a speaker replacement just require removing the speaker grilles ?

For the record, I'm going to be replacing the outside, rear seat-belt and the spool portion of the seat belt fastens under this cover.

 

pretty easy.

1. remove C-pillar trim - just pops off
2. remove door sill trim (pops off)
3. remove both rear seat sides (one 10mm socket then lift up)
4. remove plastic trim on top of trunk opening (pry off, no clips, just friction)
5. remove child safety seat latches (10mm or 12mm) - mine has 3.
6. inside trunk - remove 4-8 brass colored screws - phillips around rear speakers for securing grills
7. remove third brake light by using a flat screwdriver to depress the plastic clips that hold it in place (it's a PITA getting it out and back in, just be patient).

then the whole thing should just lift off. i've had mine out a half dozen times.

 

you can click on my build log (link in sig) for some pics of what it looks like disassembled.

it will probably take you 60-90 minutes to take it off the first time, and 60-90 minutes to replace it the first time.

 

You call that easy ? Maybe that's why the dealer says 3 hours to replace the seat belt. Not counting the rear deck cover, I could probably do the job in 30-45 minutes.

 

easy as in there isn't any knuckle-breaking work, not a lot of tools required, it's fairly straightforward. the biggest trick is knowing where the fasteners are. the only real pain is the third brake light.

once the rear deck is out, the rear seat belt assembly comes out in 2 minutes with a 10mm or 12mm socket. you'll need a 14mm socket for the seat belt bolts at the floor.

i can get my rear deck out in about 15 minutes now... and i will be making a custom rear deck cover in the coming weeks.

 

In your opinion, think the belt assembly can be removed without removing the rear deck ? I realize I'd be operating a bit "blind", of course.

 

maybe. if you do steps 1-7 on the side in question you may be able to lift up the corner of the rear deck enough without actually removing it. it's just cardboard type material with a cloth covering, so you could easily break it if you lift it too much while leaving the fasteners on there. the seat belt assembly is close to the front, so you would be able to see it while using a socket.

 

Yeah, I tried but with a socket, the height seems to be pushing the limit and I'm afraid I'd break it. When I dive into it, I might try an open-end wrench before removing the entire deck.

I did get a sheet from the dealer I bought the seat-belt assembly from. Let me post it...

 

Here's what they sent me...

 

Guess what I finally did over the weekend ? Needless to say, the dealer's labor time was a bit on the excessive side. Even my wife was impressed. She knows I can do a lot of jobs like this but usually take twice as long as it "should". I don't think it took much more than an hour. I did NOT have to remove the rear-deck. I started too but with the rear speaker grille off, it allowed me to pull the deck up enough to access the assembly and the bolt. Worst part was I couldn't get much more than 15' of socket-wrench travel ! Took a lot of cranking.