Hatchback seat compatability

[Frostybear]

Hi,

Do Mk3 facelift seats from a 5dr hatchback fit in the mk3 facelift estate?
From what I can see, all facelifts come with a load hatch/ski hatch in the centre seat. Some of the prefacelift don't have this.

I have cloth seats in my estate at the moment, thinking of upgrading to leather or half leather half alcantara (very hard to find these in Ireland).

Cheers

 

[Cainy1989]

I know the Ski hatch was an option on the Irish cars, I had a loaded FR and even that didn't have it for some odd reason, not sure if the facelift seats had a different spot to unlatch the seat back, In the newer cars theres a lever in the boot not on the seat itself, but other than that they should fit

 

[LeylandVCDS]

Yes they do, they are a direct fit. I've done this very job on my facelift ST estate, with a half leather/half alcantara FR interior that I previously had in my 5 door pre-facelift hatch. Interior was originally taken out of asalvage pre-facelift 5 door FR hatchback

The only difference is the estate has the extra seat back releases in the boot area, the locking catches are different in that they don't have the extra bits to attach the cables from the boot area release - BUT - it is an easy enough job to swap over the latches between the seats.

Potential problem - the estate seats have a black plastic blanking plug in the side of the squab to access where these estate cables fit onto the latches. The hatchback seats don't have this access. - BUT - again, it's easy enough to fold out the fabric to attach the cable, either that or cut the fabric , attach the cable and clip in the plastic cover from your original seats. I personally didn't bother cutting the fabric, I've just put the cable in and put the fabric back over.

A little bit of fiddling about, but yes the job is 100% compatible.

The first pic are the original cloth interior I took out, second is the FR interior I put in, and the other two show where the access hole is and where the cable goes into the seat back. Last photo is a close up of the seat back of the original estate rear seat, with the access hole for the release cable that is covered on the hatch seats

Hope that helps.

 

[Frostybear]

I know the Ski hatch was an option on the Irish cars, I had a loaded FR and even that didn't have it for some odd reason, not sure if the facelift seats had a different spot to unlatch the seat back, In the newer cars theres a lever in the boot not on the seat itself, but other than that they should fit

Ok that's good info. To be honest the ski hatch is not a dealbreaker for me. I don't think I've ever used it on any car. And it's an estate so it's not like the seats don't fold flat already.

Yes they do, they are a direct fit. I've done this very job on my facelift ST estate, with a half leather/half alcantara FR interior that I previously had in my 5 door pre-facelift hatch. Interior was originally taken out of asalvage pre-facelift 5 door FR hatchback

The only difference is the estate has the extra seat back releases in the boot area, the locking catches are different in that they don't have the extra bits to attach the cables from the boot area release - BUT - it is an easy enough job to swap over the latches between the seats.

Potential problem - the estate seats have a black plastic blanking plug in the side of the squab to access where these estate cables fit onto the latches. The hatchback seats don't have this access. - BUT - again, it's easy enough to fold out the fabric to attach the cable, either that or cut the fabric , attach the cable and clip in the plastic cover from your original seats. I personally didn't bother cutting the fabric, I've just put the cable in and put the fabric back over.

A little bit of fiddling about, but yes the job is 100% compatible.

The first pic are the original cloth interior I took out, second is the FR interior I put in, and the other two show where the access hole is and where the cable goes into the seat back. Last photo is a close up of the seat back of the original estate rear seat, with the access hole for the release cable that is covered on the hatch seats

Hope that helps.

That is massively helpful!! Good to know facelift/pre-facelift/hatch/estate are compatible. I think that 3 door seats are not compatible with 5 door models?
I actually have the same cloth seats as you used to have. How do you find the new seats in comparison?

 

[LeylandVCDS]

That is massively helpful!! Good to know facelift/pre-facelift/hatch/estate are compatible. I think that 3 door seats are not compatible with 5 door models?
I actually have the same cloth seats as you used to have. How do you find the new seats in comparison?

The 3 door seats are different in that they have folding backrests, so folks can get in the back. Physically they will fit, as it's only the seat backs that are different.
@Cainy1989 - you're correct in that the estate has seat back releases in the boot area, but these are in addition to the exact same releases on the top of the seat backs that the hatchback has. You've still got the seat top releases in the estate, so it's not the end of the world if you even leave the boot mounted releases disconnected if you put a hatch seat in and estate. My OCD said otherwise though....
My original 64 plate preFL was an SE Tech 5 door hatch, with standard cloth trim. I sourced an interior from a salvage FR, which are the half leather/half alcantara with red stitching (paid £275 for the seats). They are massively more supportive and comfortable than the standard seats, and look so much better too. When I sold this SE Tech, I swapped the interior back to standard, not 100% knowing I'd be able to use my upgraded seats in the facelift 19 plate SE Dynamic estate I was changing to. But no issues whatsoever. The only thing I would suggest would be to first remove the rear seat, then slide the old fronts out, and the new fronts in, through the boot area, as it is so easy to badly scratch the sills with the seat runners if you try to manoeuvre the seats through the front door opening. Its really easy to do it this way.
Also, what I have done is install a universal seat heater kit in the upgraded seats, with great success, they work beautifully

 

[LeylandVCDS]

@Frostybear
One of a few sets on ebay at the moment

 

[Frostybear]

@Frostybear
One of a few sets on ebay at the moment

I'm in Ireland. It'd cost me more than £250 to go collect them or get them delivered here!

 

[Frostybear]

The 3 door seats are different in that they have folding backrests, so folks can get in the back. Physically they will fit, as it's only the seat backs that are different.
@Cainy1989 - you're correct in that the estate has seat back releases in the boot area, but these are in addition to the exact same releases on the top of the seat backs that the hatchback has. You've still got the seat top releases in the estate, so it's not the end of the world if you even leave the boot mounted releases disconnected if you put a hatch seat in and estate. My OCD said otherwise though....
My original 64 plate preFL was an SE Tech 5 door hatch, with standard cloth trim. I sourced an interior from a salvage FR, which are the half leather/half alcantara with red stitching (paid £275 for the seats). They are massively more supportive and comfortable than the standard seats, and look so much better too. When I sold this SE Tech, I swapped the interior back to standard, not 100% knowing I'd be able to use my upgraded seats in the facelift 19 plate SE Dynamic estate I was changing to. But no issues whatsoever. The only thing I would suggest would be to first remove the rear seat, then slide the old fronts out, and the new fronts in, through the boot area, as it is so easy to badly scratch the sills with the seat runners if you try to manoeuvre the seats through the front door opening. Its really easy to do it this way.
Also, what I have done is install a universal seat heater kit in the upgraded seats, with great success, they work beautifully

Yes once you use your head and think about the 3 door seats folding it makes sense.

I actually saw your seat heater upgrade, very clean and simple I plan to do the same! Just the hunt for new seats first.

I'd be a little tempted to avoid the alcantara...I have kids so would be a little worried of staining.

 

[Frostybear]

Might be on the verge of buying some mk7 golf GTD front seats. Anyone know if these would fit in the boot of an ST with the rear seats folded down? Don't want to go collect some hours away and then realise I can't get them home!

 

[Cainy1989]

Managed to get a 55" TV with the box in the back of mine with the seats down, so Id say with some Tetris level stacking they would fit. you might just have to drive with your seat all the way forward!

 

[Frostybear]

Managed to get a 55" TV with the box in the back of mine with the seats down, so Id say with some Tetris level stacking they would fit. you might just have to drive with your seat all the way forward!

Thanks yeah just watched a quick vid of someone removing the seats, they're small enough once out!

 

[LeylandVCDS]

Might be on the verge of buying some mk7 golf GTD front seats. Anyone know if these would fit in the boot of an ST with the rear seats folded down? Don't want to go collect some hours away and then realise I can't get them home!

Full front and rear seats fit into the boot space of a hatchback no problem, so even less worries with an estate! Just fully recline the front seats and lie them flat

 

[VioleST]

Yes they do, they are a direct fit. I've done this very job on my facelift ST estate, with a half leather/half alcantara FR interior that I previously had in my 5 door pre-facelift hatch. Interior was originally taken out of asalvage pre-facelift 5 door FR hatchback

The only difference is the estate has the extra seat back releases in the boot area, the locking catches are different in that they don't have the extra bits to attach the cables from the boot area release - BUT - it is an easy enough job to swap over the latches between the seats.

Potential problem - the estate seats have a black plastic blanking plug in the side of the squab to access where these estate cables fit onto the latches. The hatchback seats don't have this access. - BUT - again, it's easy enough to fold out the fabric to attach the cable, either that or cut the fabric , attach the cable and clip in the plastic cover from your original seats. I personally didn't bother cutting the fabric, I've just put the cable in and put the fabric back over.

A little bit of fiddling about, but yes the job is 100% compatible.

The first pic are the original cloth interior I took out, second is the FR interior I put in, and the other two show where the access hole is and where the cable goes into the seat back. Last photo is a close up of the seat back of the original estate rear seat, with the access hole for the release cable that is covered on the hatch seats

Hope that helps.

Hi, looking at doing the exact same swap as you have. Is the hardware inside the hatchback seats the same as the estate? I.e the cable attachment point behind the plastic panel in the estate (from what you've said it seems that it's still there in the hatchback seats, just not readily accessible like in the estate seats)

Thank you!

 

[LeylandVCDS]

Hi, looking at doing the exact same swap as you have. Is the hardware inside the hatchback seats the same as the estate? I.e the cable attachment point behind the plastic panel in the estate (from what you've said it seems that it's still there in the hatchback seats, just not readily accessible like in the estate seats)

Thank you!

No, the latches on the hatch seats don't have the mounting point for the release cables that the estate seats have, but it is an easy job (3 screws from memory) to swap the complete latches over between the seats, then open the seat fabric to expose where the cables mount. Once the holes are cut in the seat fabric, just use the blanking plates from your existing estate seats, or buy a couple of new plates from the dealers, part number is 5GO 886 296, and are currently £1.18+ vat (£1.38 inc) each

 

[VioleST]

No, the latches on the hatch seats don't have the mounting point for the release cables that the estate seats have, but it is an easy job (3 screws from memory) to swap the complete latches over between the seats, then open the seat fabric to expose where the cables mount. Once the holes are cut in the seat fabric, just use the blanking plates from your existing estate seats, or buy a couple of new plates from the dealers, part number is 5GO 886 296, and are currently £1.18+ vat (£1.38 inc) each

Ah ok cool, doesn't sound too involved (he says).
Did you swap them over or just tuck the cable into the seat for aesthetics?

 

[Frostybear]

Ah ok cool, doesn't sound too involved (he says).
Did you swap them over or just tuck the cable into the seat for aesthetics?

I didn't bother cutting holes in the new seats for the blanking covers. It works perfectly fine without them. So you can skip this step if you want

 

[VioleST]

I didn't bother cutting holes in the new seats for the blanking covers. It works perfectly fine without them. So you can skip this step if you want

Ok cool, but the seat pull tabs in the boot still work ok?

 

[Frostybear]

Ok cool, but the seat pull tabs in the boot still work ok?

You have swap the springs from the hinge point in the hatch seats to the ST seats, and also swap the cable. Then the pull tabs in the boot work perfectly

 

[LeylandVCDS]

You have swap the springs from the hinge point in the hatch seats to the ST seats, and also swap the cable. Then the pull tabs in the boot work perfectly

Springs don't need touching, boot release tabs work perfectly simply swapping seats over without any modification at all.
For the boot release tabs, just swap over the locks at the top corner of the backrests, and feed the cables from the releases in the boot up through the backrest to connect.
Far easier making the holes in the seat fabric to do this and adding the genuine blanking plugs than trying to attach the cables without the access - for less than £3 for the pair its not worth not doing it

 

[Frostybear]

Springs don't need touching, boot release tabs work perfectly simply swapping seats over without any modification at all.
For the boot release tabs, just swap over the locks at the top corner of the backrests, and feed the cables from the releases in the boot up through the backrest to connect.
Far easier making the holes in the seat fabric to do this and adding the genuine blanking plugs than trying to attach the cables without the access - for less than £3 for the pair its not worth not doing it

I disagree on the springs. Without them when you pull the handle in the boot the seats don't fall down. So if you're taking hatchback seats and putting them in a ST, swap the springs over.

Fair enough on the blanking plugs!