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4xe Rear Seat Removal

bodhi

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After @jetfixer posted his trim removal post, they got me motivated to start building my sleeping platform, similar to the famous canadian bird companies platform for the JK and JL.

Refer to jetfixer post for removing the trim around the battery.

You will need
18mm Socket
16mm Socket
T40 Torx
Phillips Screwdriver.

I am sorry I didn't take more photos, but this might help guide you some.

Once the trim is removed, flip up the cushions and remove the 6 - T40 Torx bolts, 2 each on the outer cushion arms, and 1 each cushion on the inner side. (The angles are pretty tight because of the plastic parts that hold the front battery cover trim, while it is removable, the holder brackets are screwed into the battery protective cover, and I didn't want to take a chance)

1. Passenger Side
Jeep Wrangler JL 4xe Rear Seat Removal Step 2@0.5x-80


2. Drivers Side
Jeep Wrangler JL 4xe Rear Seat Removal Step3



3. Inboard Bolts
I don't have a better photo of the two bolts that hold each cushion support to the seat bracket on the inside, but they are much longer and you need to twist the seat cushion a little to get the bolts out after loosening. You can see there location here (photo taken after I removed the cusions)

Jeep Wrangler JL 4xe Rear Seat Removal Step4



4. Back Seat Forward Bracket Bolts

I found that in order to remove the back seat cushions, first you need to remove the rest of the brackets

There are 3 - 18mm bolts along the floor at the front of each of the black brackets. You can't see them in this photo, but you will find them. I recommend an impact wrench for the rest of these bolts. I took 1 1/2 out with a hand ratchet, and I am still feeling it days later.

Jeep Wrangler JL 4xe Rear Seat Removal step5



5. Back Seat Rearward Bracket Bolts
There are 6 - 18mm Bolts here

Jeep Wrangler JL 4xe Rear Seat Removal Step6


At this point I had to get help from my wife to manipulate the seat and things got a little foggy as I was concentrating on the removal and didn't take more photos.

Now you can either remove the whole seat with the three cross brackets attached, or remove them from underneath, there are two more 18mm bolts ont he outboard side that hold the seat backs to the black brackets.

The middle seatbelt, that has two female receivers, is bolted from up top, (the nut it bolts into is welded to the black bracket.). T get access to the bolt, use a phillips head screwdriver to remove the plastic trim piece just behind the seatbelts, and you can get a 16mm socket in there.

Once I removed the cushions, I put the black brackets back in place, I think I will use those somehow to mount my platform to keep it away from the battery.

About level across the back, you can see the middle bracket is higher than the outboard two, and there is a little bulge up for the battery.
Jeep Wrangler JL 4xe Rear Seat Removal Tailgate


Jeep Wrangler JL 4xe Rear Seat Removal Tailgate High


Jeep Wrangler JL 4xe Rear Seat Removal Driver
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digimark

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Sure is a lot more room back there when you pull the seats. Save some weight too.
 
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Thanks for a great step by step with very helpful photos. Curious about your platform ideas. I plan to remove the three garnish brackets with a spot weld drill bit. Debating whether to go with aluminum sheeting or hardwood plywood for platform base. Let us know how your build progresses. Thanks again fo sharing your effort.
 

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bodhi

bodhi

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Thanks for a great step by step with very helpful photos. Curious about your platform ideas. I plan to remove the three garnish brackets with a spot weld drill bit. Debating whether to go with aluminum sheeting or hardwood plywood for platform base. Let us know how your build progresses. Thanks again fo sharing your effort.
I posted my build so far in a new thread, I did end up drilling out the spot welds on those brackets. I am very happy with the result

https://www.jlwranglerforums.com/forum/threads/4xe-rear-platform-build.73600/
 

cheifkaiser

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Hey @bodhi, thank you so much for posting your experience. It's helping me make some decisions, this insight is truly helpful!

I am considering leasing a 4xe Rubicon but not being able to lay down flat in the back is nearly a deal killer. I see what you've done removing the seats and it's giving me hope. I obviously couldn't go so far as removing the center bracket, but removing the seats seems doable w/ space for an elevated platform.

But I get concerned about how well I can get the seats back in their original position for the return at the end of the lease. Did you get the sense that trim and hardware pieces could easily be damaged in this process? Do you think it may be difficult to get the hardware back in the original position to function as expected? Does this just seem like a terrible idea for a lease, per your experience?

Going a whole 'nother route, did you consider building an elevated platform over the seats in their down position? I looked at a 4xe in person today and it seems like you have almost enough headroom to have a tight sleeping platform built above the seats. I like the option of keeping the seats back there. Did you consider that or does that seem like a viable concept?
 
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bodhi

bodhi

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But I get concerned about how well I can get the seats back in their original position for the return at the end of the lease. Did you get the sense that trim and hardware pieces could easily be damaged in this process? Do you think it may be difficult to get the hardware back in the original position to function as expected? Does this just seem like a terrible idea for a lease, per your experience?

Going a whole 'nother route, did you consider building an elevated platform over the seats in their down position? I looked at a 4xe in person today and it seems like you have almost enough headroom to have a tight sleeping platform built above the seats. I like the option of keeping the seats back there. Did you consider that or does that seem like a viable concept?
Hey @cheifkaiser -

I hope this helps you out a bit

As far as the trim parts, I am pretty confident popping those off wouldn't cause any damage. It was surprisingly easy to pull up that back trim piece. And those are pretty easy to put right back in place.

Concerning the seats, I wish I had documented every step better, even for myself, because in the back of my mind I am thinking it will probably take me a bit to figure out putting it all back together. So I totally understand where you are coming from on a lease. I would also want another pair of hands to help both the removal and the reinstall as the seats can be a bit heavy. If there were published factory schematics somewhere by the time I need to put the seats back in, it should be a lot easier.

@Echo4papa put the link to the platform I did end up building. Before delivery, I originally planned to just build a drawer platform in the trunk that would be level with the seats when folded down, and I think that would still be a decent idea if you want to keep the seats in place.

You could just remove the seat bottoms, (as the flip forward, and are actually a little taller than the seat backs when folded down) and then a platform over the trunk and seat backs, and have the length you would want from tailgate to the back of the front seats for sleeping.

It would make the sleeping area head height smaller of course as you said, and in my case, would have made it a bit more difficult to get my dog in and out.

I finished the platform as much as I could the day before we got our puppy, and since then, I just haven't been able to find the time to add the drawers and tie downs. Puppies sure take up all your attention :)

Feel free to ask me any other questions and I will try my best to help.
 

cheifkaiser

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Fantastic, thanks for the reply @bodhi and @Echo4papa! It's looking like this is a doable project on a lease, a ton of thanks for sharing you experience. I think I would have ruled the 4xe out otherwise.

If I go through with this effort, I'm going to attempt to document it too and add it here for some supplemental experience for others. It does look fairly straightforward per your descriptions though.

In regards to the seat bottoms that flip up, I agree that it does look like they would need to be removed for a sleeping platform even if I left the seat backs in. In your op, it looks like those seat bottoms can be removed by removing the side trim and then you can get to the bolts. There does appear to be some level of trickiness in getting the seat bottoms out, where you mention having to twist them a bit. That said, do you recall how difficult this portion of the removal was?

My dream concept, as of now, is to create some sort of platform that could be removed with a little effort. That way, the back seats would stay in and functional most of the time, then when going out on an overnight weekend trip, I take the seat bottoms out, and put the platform in. A big issue with that is the viability of removing the seat bottoms. Does that seem like a viable setup per what you recall in removing the seat bottoms?

I get the feeling that the final concept will have to be some sort of semi-perm platform that I dont really take out until it's time to return. But, if there's a way to keep the back seat usable, that would be the best of both worlds!
 

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bodhi

bodhi

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Getting the seat bottoms out is pretty reasonable it is just a tight fit getting the torx bit in there. I used a socket torx set to get the angle right
 

cheifkaiser

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Nice, thanks for that additional detail.

I believe I'm about to pull the trigger on a 4xe tonight thanks to your insight! Appreciate it!
 

cheifkaiser

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For future folks, there's a good shot of a 4xe w/ the seats out, including passenger front, at 2:20 and 10:45 of this video -
 

IdahoJOAT

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Do you have a picture of the seat backs and how they mount to the seat base?

I'm trying to figure out how to recline the seat backs. Not a ton, but the $30 JLU seat recline kit has some longer bolts and polyurthane block that adjust THE WHOLE rear seat to cant about couple degrees rearward, adjusting the angle and making it more liveable.

I'm trying to figure out how to do that on the 4xe and pictures of the mounting points would help.
 

Blizzard

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After @jetfixer posted his trim removal post, they got me motivated to start building my sleeping platform, similar to the famous canadian bird companies platform for the JK and JL.

Refer to jetfixer post for removing the trim around the battery.

You will need
18mm Socket
16mm Socket
T40 Torx
Phillips Screwdriver.

I am sorry I didn't take more photos, but this might help guide you some.

Once the trim is removed, flip up the cushions and remove the 6 - T40 Torx bolts, 2 each on the outer cushion arms, and 1 each cushion on the inner side. (The angles are pretty tight because of the plastic parts that hold the front battery cover trim, while it is removable, the holder brackets are screwed into the battery protective cover, and I didn't want to take a chance)

1. Passenger Side
Jeep Wrangler JL 4xe Rear Seat Removal FEBB5D8C-2E0F-4A13-B1BE-9DE6980D6799


2. Drivers Side
Jeep Wrangler JL 4xe Rear Seat Removal FEBB5D8C-2E0F-4A13-B1BE-9DE6980D6799



3. Inboard Bolts
I don't have a better photo of the two bolts that hold each cushion support to the seat bracket on the inside, but they are much longer and you need to twist the seat cushion a little to get the bolts out after loosening. You can see there location here (photo taken after I removed the cusions)

Jeep Wrangler JL 4xe Rear Seat Removal FEBB5D8C-2E0F-4A13-B1BE-9DE6980D6799



4. Back Seat Forward Bracket Bolts

I found that in order to remove the back seat cushions, first you need to remove the rest of the brackets

There are 3 - 18mm bolts along the floor at the front of each of the black brackets. You can't see them in this photo, but you will find them. I recommend an impact wrench for the rest of these bolts. I took 1 1/2 out with a hand ratchet, and I am still feeling it days later.

Jeep Wrangler JL 4xe Rear Seat Removal FEBB5D8C-2E0F-4A13-B1BE-9DE6980D6799



5. Back Seat Rearward Bracket Bolts
There are 6 - 18mm Bolts here

Jeep Wrangler JL 4xe Rear Seat Removal FEBB5D8C-2E0F-4A13-B1BE-9DE6980D6799


At this point I had to get help from my wife to manipulate the seat and things got a little foggy as I was concentrating on the removal and didn't take more photos.

Now you can either remove the whole seat with the three cross brackets attached, or remove them from underneath, there are two more 18mm bolts ont he outboard side that hold the seat backs to the black brackets.

The middle seatbelt, that has two female receivers, is bolted from up top, (the nut it bolts into is welded to the black bracket.). T get access to the bolt, use a phillips head screwdriver to remove the plastic trim piece just behind the seatbelts, and you can get a 16mm socket in there.

Once I removed the cushions, I put the black brackets back in place, I think I will use those somehow to mount my platform to keep it away from the battery.

About level across the back, you can see the middle bracket is higher than the outboard two, and there is a little bulge up for the battery.
Jeep Wrangler JL 4xe Rear Seat Removal FEBB5D8C-2E0F-4A13-B1BE-9DE6980D6799


Jeep Wrangler JL 4xe Rear Seat Removal FEBB5D8C-2E0F-4A13-B1BE-9DE6980D6799


Jeep Wrangler JL 4xe Rear Seat Removal FEBB5D8C-2E0F-4A13-B1BE-9DE6980D6799
Hi, when I removed the side and front cover I noticed two electric cables going into the seats. Does any know what these are ( heating)? How does this connector works?Thanks
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