Thanks for the comprehensive video. The California headrests are very inconvenient so your video about removing them was very helpful. Took me a few weeks to sum up the courage to take a hacksaw to a new vehicle but your instructions worked a treat! 🙂

@darren3974

2 жыл бұрын

Thanks For the feedback - much appreciated!

Finally got around to removing the headrests on my 2010 Cali. Great instructions and done in less than an hour. Makes it so much easier if you've removed the front bench stop in the passenger side floor rail so you can pull the bench seat further forward.

@darren3974

Жыл бұрын

Thanks for the feedback Kevin - pleased it has helped 👍

Thank you so much for you instructive video solving my problem... Thank You!🙏

Hi Darren. Thanks for you video. Thought you might be interested in this. Just followed your procedure and removed the rear headrests on our 2021 vw 6.1. The 'passenger' side one went as per your procedure. But not the 'driver' side near the window. The C pin was very tight and would not go in the full depth - went about 22 mm in ! So then I tried to drill it out - it took a carbide drill to do that, but it was really difficult because the adjacent area restricted the drill etc. That caused a drill angle, and I think left a C pin slug behind, such a tight spot to see, and get at. The seat on the 6.1 does not come forward enough to reach the doorway. I am a toolmaker/machinist by trade and this sort of work is normally easy for me. But not this time! Anyway I finally managed to drill it out with a 6.4 mm carbide drill and a plastic protector strip taped on to the adjacent area to save drill rubbing damage. Thought I would post this also in case anyone else has this problem. Cheers, Cliff

@darren3974

Жыл бұрын

Thanks for sharing Cliff, I’m sure this will help someone. Sounds like one of the pins was machined out of tolerance causing it to stick. I would have suggested spaying WD40 (as per the previous comments) and leaving for 15min but I’m sure you already tried that. Another tip in case anyone has problems with the bench seat not moving far enough forward is to move the retaining bolt in the floor runner. This retaining bolt is normally the the runner nearest to the cupboards and can be located by running a screwdriver in between the rubber joints until you hit the bolt. You then need to mark the position of the bolt on the floor rail (if you want to return back to this position). The retaining bolt is moved by using a T20 head to unscrew and move the bolt towards the front. I fixed mine just before the plastic end caps but don’t go right to the end of the rail as this is where the seat is removed / installed. This will then allow the bench to move forward right up to the back of the rear seats (if you want to go that far) and hence allows better access in case you experienced the same issues as Cliff.

@Threadexpress

Жыл бұрын

@@darren3974 Good tip moving the seat Darren. Yes I tried penetrating oil. I think if a difficult to access C pin is tight or bottomed in its hole, and you keep belting it, it probably swells on the end and things go downhill fast ! Cheers Cliff

@irvingardner4979

Жыл бұрын

Same Problem. Had to drill it out. Took forever!

Thank you so much!!!!!!!

thank you very much, excellent video, one of the best "how to" that I ever have seen, very useful for me Greetings from Bavaria

@darren3974

Жыл бұрын

Thanks - much appreciated!

Great Job! Thanks!

Super video. Just what my wife and Iwanr to do.

@darren3974

3 жыл бұрын

Hi Tom - many thanks for your comment, much appreciated. Hope this helps.

Atention! Not all cotter pins go in the whole way. Mine bottomed out. I had to drill them out! Move the bench seat forwards completely or take it out completely! Took much longer than I wanted.

Many thanks for your video, you did a great job. One more question: what is the brand of your seatcovers? They look nice!

@darren3974

3 ай бұрын

Thanks for your comments. The seat covers came from CamerVanBits, link as follows: vwcaliforniaclub.com/shop/product/premium-gti-fabric-seat-covers-vw-california. Hope that helps

Hi thank you for the video. I try to do it in my California T6 but doesn't work. The 5mm is to big and doesn't go in, and the 3mm is to small and doesn't punch the lock. Do you know why? Thank you:)

@darren3974

3 жыл бұрын

Hi A.M, thanks for your comment. The T6 will be the same headrests as the T6.1 so the 5mm punch pin should work. If the shaft of the punch is tapered i.e. wider as you go down the shaft then it will get stuck and will only knock the pin a little inwards. You do need a 5mm punch with at least 25mm of shaft. I have included a link on Amazon below to the set I used. Hope this helps. Pin punch set: www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B001IL8FZM/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o08_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 Rubber grommet set: www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B07BKPT5RV/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o07_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 Wooden dowel 12mm: Wicks or any hardware / timer merchant.

Thanks a lot Darren, going to give this a go! Just one question before I take a hacksaw to my van...! When you put the headrests back in, do they stay in or when folded down and putting the bad down, for instance, does gravity make them fall out? Or does the clip keep them in place? We've got young kids just now, but as they grow taller we'll need to put the headrests back in. Thanks!

@darren3974

Жыл бұрын

Hi Jon, thanks for your comments. The headrests will fall out if you fold them down after removing the pins, however it would be easy to just remove them before folding the bed and then slid back into position when required. Hope this helps! Darren.

@jonny58393

Жыл бұрын

@Darren Thanks a lot! Yeah, thinking about it as well if I ever wanted them to stay in or sell the van, could always get some 4mm dowel or something to slide in where the pins were, and cut to length. That should stop them from dropping out I imagine. Thanks again!

Hi, great video; I was wondering if you'd investigated removal the other 'pins' that hold the whole rectangular 'box' which holds the headrests.

@darren3974

Жыл бұрын

Hi Ian - many thanks for your comments. Never looked at removing the whole headrest box, I’m not sure if the work involved would be beneficial. Appreciated regardless.

Easyer on the vid than for real, it took me 4hour to do it! With as result some damage on the aluminium

@darren3974

Жыл бұрын

Sorry to hear you had some problems but hope it worked out for you in the end it makes using the bench much more enjoyable - thanks for sharing your experience.

@Gymmot87

Жыл бұрын

@@darren3974 no probl thanks, it is not visible, is on the sides ;-), the pins where harder to hammer than i tought

Darren thanks so much for this video. It’s given me the confidence to give it a go when the Amazon order arrives. Just one question - will the van still pass a uk mot with the headrests either removed or put back in but slide in/out like at the end of your video? That’s the only thing that concerns me after seeing comments about the mot on a forum. Thanks in advance 🙏🏻

@darren3974

Жыл бұрын

Hi, thanks for your comments - much appreciated. When I looked into the MOT issue (UK requirements) I could not find anything which stated these were part of the MOT inspection and hence are not checked. Having said this they are of course a safety device and hence they should be in place if travelling with passengers in the rear. You need to make your own checks and satisfy yourself before undertaking any such changes to your own van. Hope this helps.

@Shacks

Жыл бұрын

@@darren3974 thanks for the quick reply mate. We never have passengers in the rear - I just didn’t want to do the alteration and then fail an mot. Cheers 👍🏻

@Shacks

Жыл бұрын

Darren I just wanted to say thanks again for this video. We achieved removing the headrests today. One of the pins was a complete nightmare to the extent we nearly gave in, but using the stuff I bought from Amazon from your links we have done it! To anyone else thinking of doing this, it took us a couple of hours because of the one pin that just didn’t want to go the last 5mm, and we did have to hit that pin bloody hard, but the others were much easier. After the first awkward pin, my wife sprayed the others with some wd40 which she says was definitely the reason they were easier!

All went well until I came to pin on right hand side nearest window. My rear seat doesn't seem to go as far forward as on your video. Therefore there is less space for hammer. I have managed to get the 5mm pin punch in about 2cm but the pin wont seem to budge beyond this.

@darren3974

Жыл бұрын

Hi Richard, sorry to hear you are having some issues. I would suggest spaying the pin in question with some WD40 to help loosen. I would also suggest that you remove the restraining floor bolt in the sliding rail to allow the seat to move farther forward (see previous comments for more detail on this) - hope this helps. Darren

Excellent, the head rests when not needed just constitute a terrible waste of space in a VW Campervan by whatever name it be known (California, Trakkadu etc).

Hi Darren, or anyone who has done this already. I'm planning to get the punches set today and implement this within the next few days. I have one question. What happens with the pins that you remove with the punches? Are they left moving around inside the box? Or can they be retrieved? Thanks in advance

@darren3974

Жыл бұрын

Hi, thanks for your comments. The pins fall into the headrest box but do not rattle or cause any issues. Hope this helps and let us know how you get on. Darren.

@fili8848

Жыл бұрын

Ok, thanks Darren. I'm going to try to do it anyway, but was wondering, and I didn´t see anybody commenting on this detail.

@fili8848

Жыл бұрын

I managed to do it yesterday. 😥 Took me about four hours because a couple of the pins just did not want to move. Every single second of those four hours I was feeling that I should not be doing that, in particular when I was going with the hammer on the van. Amazed at how VW makes totally stupid decisions about some things, that in the past worked perfectly well. The headrests in my lovely T4 Cali I recently sold, just went out in 2 seconds. And I could turn around the front seats without having to open the door! This is called devolution, isn't it?😀 Anyway, big thanks, Darren, for having put together this comprehensive video.

@darren3974

Жыл бұрын

@@fili8848 pleased it worked out in the end. Thanks for your comments - much appreciated!

Hi would this work for Cali T5 ?

@darren3974

2 жыл бұрын

As far as I’m aware the headrest mechanism is the same so this should work.

I removed top and bottom lugs. Is this a problem ? Thanks

@darren3974

Жыл бұрын

Hi. If you mean the plastic covers either side then that’s not a problem but if you are referring to the pins then removing the bottom one will probably make the locking mechanism inactive. This can be overcome by inserting a replacement pin if needed. Hope this helps.

@imadeke

Жыл бұрын

@@darren3974 Thank you for the answer.

Ciao, complimenti per il bel lavoro. ho notato che hai dei rivestimenti dei sedili veramente originali che in Italia non si trovano, ha un link dove trovarle? Grazie!

@darren3974

2 жыл бұрын

Hi, thanks for your comment - much appreciated. I purchased the seat covers in the video from CamperVanBits.com link directly to the covers: vwcaliforniaclub.com/shop/product/premium-gti-fabric-seat-covers-vw-california Hope this helps

How to advance the back seats that much ? Thanks

@darren3974

Жыл бұрын

Hi, you can move the seat bench further forward by locating the stop in the track nearest to the kitchen - run a pen or small screwdriver along the track until you hit the lug. You can then unscrew (from memory it’s a T20 or similar screw head) and move the stop further down towards the front seats to allow the bench to move further. It’s a bit fiddly but easy enough with some patience. Hope this helps.

@imadeke

Жыл бұрын

@@darren3974 thanks !! Managed to do everything. Those C pins where hard lol. Why does VW make this soooo difficult ..

Hello, thanks for the video! But at 5:03 minutes you speak about the black clip and say you need to do something in the hole but accoustically I can't understand what you put in. Please could you write it down for me. It is the only thing I can't understand and it is so important. Thanks for answering me and have a lovely day!

@darren3974

3 жыл бұрын

Hi. Thanks for your comment. I have outlined the steps below including the section about the black clip which hopefully will explain, alone with some links to items I used which may be useful. Hope this helps. Removing head rests Step 1 Using a small flat head screwdriver, prise open side covers to revel lugs Step 2 Cut off lugs from bottom of side covers using a hacksaw or craft knife and then spin up to revel the “C” pins Step 3 Knock out “C” pins form each side using a 5mm pin punch with a long shaft. Mark the shaft with tape 25mm from end and knock pins in to this depth. Remove headrest. Step 4 Using a length of 12mm diameter wooden dowel, cut two lengths 75mm and then insert one in each headrest to hold retaining clip in place. The retaining clip can be seen in 5:14 minutes. The clip is only on one side of the headrest bracket and you need to insert the wooden dowel into this from the top hole (where the headrest has been removed). This dowel allows the button on the headrest bracket to work. Step 5 Finish by installing 12mm rubber grommets into head rest holes. Pin punch set: www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B001IL8FZM/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o08_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 Rubber grommet set: www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B07BKPT5RV/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o07_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 Wooden dowel 12mm: Wicks or any hardware / timer merchant.

@arielcharbonneau-gehrke2651

3 жыл бұрын

Very nice of you to respond...now I 've got it! Thanks a lot!