rchrds
Well-known member
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- #1
Today's project: Goose Gear 60% Seat removal kit.
We don't have kids, or friends, so who needs back seats? Actually this was planned from the beginning, as a remedy for not getting the 6'bed, so that we would have space for putting equipment. The wait was not short- Ordered on September 30th (when they first announced they were available) and received it on the 15th of December. Shorter wait than the GFC topper for sure. Unfortunately, there were some problems, both with the hardware provided, and the kit in total. None were show stoppers, but I certainly expected better for the price.
View from the passenger side (40% seat remaining.)
View from the door side.
The instructions found on the website have some strange errors- wrong wrench sizes called out, a wrong drill size for the riv-nut (fortunately, the callout is smaller than the required drill, which is printed on the riv-nut instruction included with the tool itself.) Some wording that is confusing, and a couple of pictures which make sense for the non-hybrid, but not for the trailhunter models. In fact, there is one major problem with the kit, which was obviously designed without having a hybrid in hand. (More on this later.)
The 60% kit comes with three aluminum spacers- to raise the panel to the height above the center seatbelt brackets. One shorter one for the back, and two longer ones for the front. I don't know what happened to mine, but mine were exactly one inch too long. The bolt shown screws into the riv-nut when installed- obviously this spacer wasn't going to work. Once I got it all mocked up, I took the spacers to the chop saw and lopped an inch off them. Oddly, they seemed to be exactly one inch too long. In the same hardware vein, two oddly sized fender washers were supposed to be included, but instead I got 2 extra flat washers. The hardware is an odd combination of metric and non-metric. All of the hex pan head screws that hold the panels into the base channels are SAE, as well as the long bolts for the riv-nuts, but the large bolts that fit into the bracket in the back are metric. I have no idea why. None of their hardware attaches to Toyota threads, where you would expect metric, so you would expect either one or the other, not both.
These are the brackets in the back against the rear wall. Those are the Toyota factory seat bolts. No idea why they made the hole so large that the bolt and washers just fall right through it. Ultimately, you have to position the bracket so it is clamped on the top and one side of the bracket, since the hole is so large. I suspect, like the aluminum spacers, these are made for a different vehicle.
Another peculiarity- The front panel sits about 1/16th above the carpet on the center tunnel. The shape seems to be generally correct (once I cut the aluminum spacers to fit.) However this other side part (hidden by the 40% passenger seat) doesn't s eem to match. It sits about half an inch above the front lip created by the battery well. Not sure why it looks like this. Again, it seems like a design error- if you bother to notch the board, seems like it should probably fit a bit closer than that.
Another poor design aspect that was obviously built without a hybrid. These vents cool/vent the hybrid battery and associated electronics under the seat. The vent grill pops off and the filter is to be replaced periodically. Unfortunately, the access tab to remove the vent is hidden behind the panel now. To remove it, I will have to remove the entire seat replacement panel. Very irritating. I suspect if I had done both seats, it would be the same on the other side as well.
I don't have a picture to show it, but the seat replacement panel sits about 3 inches above the top of the battery well lip. This makes for an awkward sized space, with all of the electric components below it. I suspect I will find a sheet of plastic to place over the battery so I can use this space to store things without the risk of a fire. But I really would have preferred that the panel be notched for the seat belts (allowing use of the existing belt to retain cargo) and have it sit much lower onto the battery compartment.
Overall, 5/10 in my book. Between the instructions, wrong hardware and poorly thought out fitment, I wouldn't buy this product again, instead give a shot at building what I want for myself. I expect that I will do exactly that with this set eventually, and cut things down to where I want them.
We don't have kids, or friends, so who needs back seats? Actually this was planned from the beginning, as a remedy for not getting the 6'bed, so that we would have space for putting equipment. The wait was not short- Ordered on September 30th (when they first announced they were available) and received it on the 15th of December. Shorter wait than the GFC topper for sure. Unfortunately, there were some problems, both with the hardware provided, and the kit in total. None were show stoppers, but I certainly expected better for the price.
View from the passenger side (40% seat remaining.)
View from the door side.
The instructions found on the website have some strange errors- wrong wrench sizes called out, a wrong drill size for the riv-nut (fortunately, the callout is smaller than the required drill, which is printed on the riv-nut instruction included with the tool itself.) Some wording that is confusing, and a couple of pictures which make sense for the non-hybrid, but not for the trailhunter models. In fact, there is one major problem with the kit, which was obviously designed without having a hybrid in hand. (More on this later.)
The 60% kit comes with three aluminum spacers- to raise the panel to the height above the center seatbelt brackets. One shorter one for the back, and two longer ones for the front. I don't know what happened to mine, but mine were exactly one inch too long. The bolt shown screws into the riv-nut when installed- obviously this spacer wasn't going to work. Once I got it all mocked up, I took the spacers to the chop saw and lopped an inch off them. Oddly, they seemed to be exactly one inch too long. In the same hardware vein, two oddly sized fender washers were supposed to be included, but instead I got 2 extra flat washers. The hardware is an odd combination of metric and non-metric. All of the hex pan head screws that hold the panels into the base channels are SAE, as well as the long bolts for the riv-nuts, but the large bolts that fit into the bracket in the back are metric. I have no idea why. None of their hardware attaches to Toyota threads, where you would expect metric, so you would expect either one or the other, not both.
These are the brackets in the back against the rear wall. Those are the Toyota factory seat bolts. No idea why they made the hole so large that the bolt and washers just fall right through it. Ultimately, you have to position the bracket so it is clamped on the top and one side of the bracket, since the hole is so large. I suspect, like the aluminum spacers, these are made for a different vehicle.
Another peculiarity- The front panel sits about 1/16th above the carpet on the center tunnel. The shape seems to be generally correct (once I cut the aluminum spacers to fit.) However this other side part (hidden by the 40% passenger seat) doesn't s eem to match. It sits about half an inch above the front lip created by the battery well. Not sure why it looks like this. Again, it seems like a design error- if you bother to notch the board, seems like it should probably fit a bit closer than that.
Another poor design aspect that was obviously built without a hybrid. These vents cool/vent the hybrid battery and associated electronics under the seat. The vent grill pops off and the filter is to be replaced periodically. Unfortunately, the access tab to remove the vent is hidden behind the panel now. To remove it, I will have to remove the entire seat replacement panel. Very irritating. I suspect if I had done both seats, it would be the same on the other side as well.
I don't have a picture to show it, but the seat replacement panel sits about 3 inches above the top of the battery well lip. This makes for an awkward sized space, with all of the electric components below it. I suspect I will find a sheet of plastic to place over the battery so I can use this space to store things without the risk of a fire. But I really would have preferred that the panel be notched for the seat belts (allowing use of the existing belt to retain cargo) and have it sit much lower onto the battery compartment.
Overall, 5/10 in my book. Between the instructions, wrong hardware and poorly thought out fitment, I wouldn't buy this product again, instead give a shot at building what I want for myself. I expect that I will do exactly that with this set eventually, and cut things down to where I want them.
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