Lost objects under seats
Thread Starter
Intermediate
Joined: Oct 2013
Posts: 29
Likes: 2
From: Union County NJ
Lost objects under seats
Small objects that fallen under the seats are lost to the ages unless you remove the seat. Very tight place. Almost impossible to retrieve by hand unless you are lucky. A small money clip slipped from my hands and went into this "well". It was a wedding present from my wife many, many years ago. I had to reclaim it from the dead zone. Could not even see it...no less try to grab is. Finally resorted to removing the seat. This might be a cmmon occurrence for others......SO...fair warning.
You will need a 15 mm deep socket, a ratchet and 8+ inch extension to remove the 4 hold down nuts. Removal of the plastic covers over the front bolts is not difficult. From the rear side of the cover pull up and forward and the one attachment clip releases easily. Remove the 4 nuts and you are ready to lift the seat up. Seat is heavier than expected; and the most difficult part of the task is aligning the seat back onto the bolts for re-assembly. I was able to manage it myself, but an extra set of hands would make it an easier job. Total turn around time is less than 15 minutes. As for me.....no more small objects in my pockets while in this car.
You will need a 15 mm deep socket, a ratchet and 8+ inch extension to remove the 4 hold down nuts. Removal of the plastic covers over the front bolts is not difficult. From the rear side of the cover pull up and forward and the one attachment clip releases easily. Remove the 4 nuts and you are ready to lift the seat up. Seat is heavier than expected; and the most difficult part of the task is aligning the seat back onto the bolts for re-assembly. I was able to manage it myself, but an extra set of hands would make it an easier job. Total turn around time is less than 15 minutes. As for me.....no more small objects in my pockets while in this car.
Le Mans Master
Joined: Sep 2012
Posts: 7,146
Likes: 1,940
From: Hagerstown MD
St. Jude Donor '15-'16,'18
Small objects that fallen under the seats are lost to the ages unless you remove the seat. Very tight place. Almost impossible to retrieve by hand unless you are lucky. A small money clip slipped from my hands and went into this "well". It was a wedding present from my wife many, many years ago. I had to reclaim it from the dead zone. Could not even see it...no less try to grab is. Finally resorted to removing the seat. This might be a cmmon occurrence for others......SO...fair warning.
You will need a 15 mm deep socket, a ratchet and 8+ inch extension to remove the 4 hold down nuts. Removal of the plastic covers over the front bolts is not difficult. From the rear side of the cover pull up and forward and the one attachment clip releases easily. Remove the 4 nuts and you are ready to lift the seat up. Seat is heavier than expected; and the most difficult part of the task is aligning the seat back onto the bolts for re-assembly. I was able to manage it myself, but an extra set of hands would make it an easier job. Total turn around time is less than 15 minutes. As for me.....no more small objects in my pockets while in this car.
You will need a 15 mm deep socket, a ratchet and 8+ inch extension to remove the 4 hold down nuts. Removal of the plastic covers over the front bolts is not difficult. From the rear side of the cover pull up and forward and the one attachment clip releases easily. Remove the 4 nuts and you are ready to lift the seat up. Seat is heavier than expected; and the most difficult part of the task is aligning the seat back onto the bolts for re-assembly. I was able to manage it myself, but an extra set of hands would make it an easier job. Total turn around time is less than 15 minutes. As for me.....no more small objects in my pockets while in this car.
Safety Car
Joined: Jan 2015
Posts: 3,941
Likes: 499
From: Northern Virginia
Try rubber banding a piece of window screen over the end of a vacuum cleaner hose and sliding it under there. If what you seek isn't too heavy, you might be able to retrieve it that way.
E-Ray, 3LZ, ZER, LIFT
Joined: Sep 2007
Posts: 34,864
Likes: 12,295
From: NE South Carolina
Made a suggestion to the last fellow who lost his girlfriends ring under the seat but he went to the Chevy dealer instead. The Vette brakes are so good you can easily hit over one "g" on a quick stop. That's like tilting the car 45 degrees from the horizontal. There is a chance it will shoot to the front. Easy to try. Now if you find a 20 degree hill and really slam on the brakes going downhill sure you get the equivalent of a 60 degree tilt from the horizontal!
Thread Starter
Intermediate
Joined: Oct 2013
Posts: 29
Likes: 2
From: Union County NJ
Did not touch the electricals. No need. Sufficient slack in wire harness to lift the seat up 3-5 inches and get a clear view and access. As I said, 2 sets of hands would have made the job easier. No need to remove the seat from the vehicle.
Thread Starter
Intermediate
Joined: Oct 2013
Posts: 29
Likes: 2
From: Union County NJ
Good idea. But I'd just let my large canister vac suck it up then get it from the canister.
Made a suggestion to the last fellow who lost his girlfriends ring under the seat but he went to the Chevy dealer instead. The Vette brakes are so good you can easily hit over one "g" on a quick stop. That's like tilting the car 45 degrees from the horizontal. There is a chance it will shoot to the front. Easy to try. Now if you find a 20 degree hill and really slam on the brakes going downhill sure you get the equivalent of a 60 degree tilt from the horizontal!
Made a suggestion to the last fellow who lost his girlfriends ring under the seat but he went to the Chevy dealer instead. The Vette brakes are so good you can easily hit over one "g" on a quick stop. That's like tilting the car 45 degrees from the horizontal. There is a chance it will shoot to the front. Easy to try. Now if you find a 20 degree hill and really slam on the brakes going downhill sure you get the equivalent of a 60 degree tilt from the horizontal!
E-Ray, 3LZ, ZER, LIFT
Joined: Sep 2007
Posts: 34,864
Likes: 12,295
From: NE South Carolina
I'm laughing as I read you post. I put the car through the g force maneuvers to no avail. May have made matters worse. The clip was wedged behind the front inboard hold down bolt assembly and the cut out of the carpet. It was there for good...even a vacuum would not have helped. Tight space for most vacuum hoses.
Just traded my wife's Cayenne because to replace the battery it looks like a 3 hour job (according to a YouTube video) and they have a special wrench to remove the front driver's seat. Lots of wires! Bought the special socket needed but was going on a 1000 mile trip, the battery was only reading 11.9 volts and the car was 5 years old and due to be replaced! Was going to buy an emergency starter battery and said to the wife, since we we're in town, lets get the car washed and see what the new Mercedes/BMW SUV looks like and what we can get for our car. When we went to the car wash the fellow who takes the money said "Nice car but it will cost $700 to change the battery!" I said how do you know and he replied someone was just in complaining! The closest Porsche dealer is 75 minutes away! His comment was a "sign!" Walked out of the dealer with a BMW SUV the same day, great car. They are in town and I don't have to pay $250 for an oil change since no one but Porsche can reset the oil change indicator!!
Last edited by JerryU; Jun 1, 2015 at 01:05 AM.
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Safety Car
Joined: Jan 2015
Posts: 3,941
Likes: 499
From: Northern Virginia
Electric motors are heavy, and our seats have quite a few, especially if you have the ventilated versions with multiple fans.
Last edited by meyerweb; May 31, 2015 at 05:29 PM.
Thread Starter
Intermediate
Joined: Oct 2013
Posts: 29
Likes: 2
From: Union County NJ
Surely let the quarters stay there. But know that it's easy to retrieve that wedding ring should the need arise. If fact, it is much easier than I expected and better than the vacuum or g options which may not even work.
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Glad you retrieved the money clip. 
Burning Brakes
Joined: Jun 2014
Posts: 981
Likes: 157
I've been stuffing towels between the seats and the console of my cars for several years. I haven't lost anything since I started doing that.
Having a black interior helps with color selection, but chances are you can find a towel in a color that's not too objectionable.
Having a black interior helps with color selection, but chances are you can find a towel in a color that's not too objectionable.
E-Ray, 3LZ, ZER, LIFT
Joined: Sep 2007
Posts: 34,864
Likes: 12,295
From: NE South Carolina
It is! I use a stylus with my cell phone and it's clipped to my case. I've had it come unclipped several times and fall into the track area. Had a hard time retrieving. Not worrying about it as much as being sure it does not get wedged in the seat track when it goes in the exit position. Now I don't turn on my phone when driving (for a couple of reasons) and I never take it out! Nothing is that important!
Thread Starter
Intermediate
Joined: Oct 2013
Posts: 29
Likes: 2
From: Union County NJ
I hate to put it this way, but you must think I'm stupid. Of course that was my first attempt....and to no avail. It has worked on all other cars that I have owned but not this one. This is a very tight space....at least for my hands which are not small.
Melting Slicks
Joined: Nov 2005
Posts: 2,074
Likes: 309
What I am seeing on this forum is evidence that we have reached the point of diminishing returns where the push to make the car more luxurious is actually making the car less useable because its spending more and more time at a service center and Heaven help the people who try to keep it going past the warranty period. Not to mention that all these motors and relays, etc take up space and add weight which uses more fuel and slows the car down.
This is being directed to any GM types who might be reading and I hope are starting to wonder about this direction of design evolution where complexity for the sake of complexity seems to be the norm.