968 cab package tray

speedy_cab · 10-18-2007, 08:07 AM

HI

I'm planning to add 3 point retractable seat belts to the rear of the car. PEP carries some made for 911 CAB's, but it's unclear if they will fit in a 968. I'm trying to remove the rear package tray, so far unsuccessfully.

I have pried up the front edge, and can see soem yellow barbed connectors. In fact, the tray has been removed before, because at least one of the barbs is not engaged, and is showing through the tray as a bump on the top. You can see how the edge is sticking up above the seat back more than it should in this area of the photo.

Can anyone explain how to remove this tray? And perhaps send a picture or two?

Thanks

flash968 · 10-18-2007, 09:14 AM

this is a pain in the butt job from beginning to end - it's all clips along the back like door panels, and i think a couple of screws on the front edges - plan on at least half of them breaking

by the way, the 3 pt belts won't work right, and they will be VERY dangerous - the attachment point is in the wrong place and no matter where you try to put it, it is either too high or too low - this results in misalignment of the belt, which leads to serious spinal injury in an accident - that is why the 968 never came with rear seats in the US - it could not pass the seatbelt standards, and was consequently deemed illegal to import that way - you are actually better off with just a lap belt

Wipeout · 10-18-2007, 09:20 AM

I'm curious for more photos of the package tray.

flash968 · 10-18-2007, 09:59 AM

i don't have any shots of it - when we took it out, it was only because the car was being shot, and i needed to lift the back edge of the top

off topic - not really sure why they call it a "package tray" - no way you could sit anything on there without it coming right forward and smacking somebody in the head, and when the top is down, it is totally covered and encapsulated by the boot cover

jsb944 · jsb944's Garage

why are you trying to do this?

speedy_cab · 10-20-2007, 08:01 AM

I'm still stuck. I'll try again today, but so far no luck finding any of the supposed screws that hold this thing in. I believe that the 944 had screws, but perhaps the 968 doesn't use screws.

Hasn't anyone out there removed a package tray from their 968 cab? Or have the service manual? If someone could send me a few pages from their service manual that would be great!

There is carpet on the steel tray under neath the package tray so I cannot see any fasteners. The carpet is glued to the tray so I don't want to pull it back.

flash968 · 10-20-2007, 08:11 AM

i have the top manual - send me an email (not a PM) and i'll send it to you

there are screws on the sides - can't remember if there are any others - you have to remove the side panels to get to them though

speedy_cab · 10-21-2007, 10:52 AM

update! Well I went back and tried again. I pulled the screws holding the top elastic in place way back in the corners. it requires the long handled phillips screwdriver.

The key was figuring out the side panels had to be removed, as there is a lap joint with the parcel tray. Taking out the side panels required removing three screws, two at the door and one behind the seat backs. Part of the problem in my case was that on both sides the screws holding the side panel in (behind the seat backs) had been overtorqued and the heads were inside the panel behind the vinyl covering. Because of this they it wasn't apparent there was a screw there at all, and it was difficult to engage the screw with the driver. Also, you'll need a thin flexible putty knife or something similar to remove the screw covers behind the door (the lower two on my car were already cracked, but they still stay on). I also had to remove the door seal U shaped part, it just pulls off.

There was a smelly surprize behind the passenger side panel, a very old mini cheese wheel. I'm glad I found that before the summertime! It was a unique smell cleaning that up.

The parcel tray is kind of U shaped, and on end end of the U, there is a small screw which holds the ends down. You have to pull forward the convertible top section that you unscrewed first to access these two screws. It takes the stubby philips screwdriver.

Next I pulled up on the tray to pop out the barbed connectors holding down the tray. They all just broke, the plastic was super brittle with age.

Now here I found that the tray slides forward, and there were barbed connectors that faced the rear of the car, which pop into black receptacles which hold the top in place. I could loosen the tray, but could not remove it.

I believe part of the convertible top must be removed to take out the parcel tray. Since I had plans to drive the car, I put it all back together. Most of the barbed connectors are broken now, so it's held in place by the two screws and the lap joint of the side panels. It's still very well positioned.

I don't think I can replace the barbed connectors without removing the tray, so it may stay that way for a while.

The reason to try to get it out was for three point belts which are required for many car seats as kids enter the booster seat size/age. There is a time when the 5 point harnesses for kids are too small for kids of a certain weight (usually 30-35 pounds, depends on the seat).

They then move to a seat belt booster with a back, but it REQUIRES a shoulder belt.

Then when they reach 40 pounds along with a certain height they can move to a booster seat without a back. Then these are safe with either a 3 point or a 2 point belt.

I have a small child that is in the middle range to be safe in the car.

For more details on some of my solution to the 40 pound and up car seats, check my other post from today.

flash968 · 10-21-2007, 10:57 AM

yup - it is a convoluted design, and a pain in the butt - those clips break easily - the only real solution to removing them is to use a door panel tool

rickh · 04-23-2008, 04:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by flash968

i have the top manual - send me an email (not a PM) and i'll send it to you

there are screws on the sides - can't remember if there are any others - you have to remove the side panels to get to them though

I tired to email you to see if you were willing to send the top manual to a fellow 968 cab owner (me)... Would you be so kind as to send me a copy as well? I need the owners manual too but anything is better than not.

Sincere thanks,
Rick
rhunnicutt@netzero.com