3rd Row Retrofit update (bit long)

[Giblet]

Esteemed Colleagues.

Well, this weekend the allroad met an A6 avant and a full-blown 3rd row hardware transplant broke out. Here's the review.

THE GOOD - Well, the flooring is compatible and actually quite easy (probably 1.5 hours to do the full transplant).

THE BAD - While attempting to remove the rear door trim on the donor car (for the rear latch swap) there were some rather odd/sickening "pops" which didn't seem healthy. We struggled to locate the clip locations (all 7 of them according to Bentley) so I decided to forgo that swap for now.

THE UGLY - Removing pillars is NOT for the faint of heart! We had more than a few "oh $#^@" moments that in 99% of the case turned out to be OK. In the allroad the side airbag curtains seem to have modified the C-pillar from being one large piece to a 2 piece. I will be retrofitting the seat belt pass-through for the rear bench by cutting the C-pillar myself and creating adequate clearance.

I know that this probably just raised more questions for the curious but like a doctor coming out of surgery; I felt compelled to update those in the waiting room on the condition of the patient.

In summary, I have purposely left the car in a bit of a disassembled state as I want to install the cupholders which require the side panels off which in turn require the rear bench seat retainer off...and so on... It is a good thing I had the car tinted the previous weekend because if someone were to look in it now; they would think it had been in the chop shop. :P

Oh; for those (who I am sure) are interested in doing this I have the following current cost breakdown:

$260 New third row seat (off of eBay)
$250 Very kind donor
$225 Spare wheel well cover (donor didn't have one)
$150 Two cargo cupholders and side seat belt clips
$15 Two C-pillar seat belt covers (donor's headliner color was slightly different).

So far my $1K budget seems attainable. Now, I am shooting for the $875 option charge when these were new.

P.S. Many thanks go out to "swank" on the A6 board for his generousity (he was the donor).

[Misplacedyankee]

"In the allroad the side airbag curtains seem to have modified the C-pillar from being one large piece to a 2 piece."

I was just wondering if this was specific to your allorad or all allroads given the option to have rear airbags.

Its in interesting project. I would love to have that third row. Doubt there are many donor cars out there though.

[Giblet]

So here's my take on that question. I don't know for sure what code Audi used that year to indicate if it had side curtain airbags but I do the see the "curtain" rolled up there and in the D-pillar area the compressor; so my guess is yes.

All '99 and '00 A6 Avants are potential donors as ALL of the Avants of that vintage had the hardware standard; so there may be more donors out there than you think.

[Misplacedyankee]

What year is your allroad. For the rear seats it was a specific option to have rear side airbags and it was not a popular option (to my knowledge). If you call a dealer with your VIN they should be able to tell you the option list of the vehicle. It would be strange to have the rear airbag all the way back by the d-pillar - what is that meant to protect? Your luggage?

Keep us posted. That is the one option I always wanted. Was hard to find when I had my 2001, and did not exist with my 2004.

[Giblet]

Mine is a 2001.

To clarify the pressure tubing was in the D-pillar not the airbag curtain.

Having seen how the C-pillar is attached that has to be some pressure to pop those off....

[girlroad]

with the STD options and it is listed as Inflatable "SIDEGUARD" curtain airbags (this is directly from the label)
When I look further I find that as an option mine has Rear Side Airbags Supplemental Restraint (this is the ones in the side of the seat that we all talk about being concerned about with child car seats), so the curtain was standard and the side of the seat was optional from what I can see. I wish I had the third row seat, it's the only major option I don't have Maybe this info is of interest to the FAQ?

[Petethepug]

Were you lucky enought to get a color matching seat?

Michael

[Giblet]

Yep, I actually found my black seat through eBay back in December - leap of faith purchase.

The other parts that I didn't get from the donor I ordered through magauto.com and West Broad Audi. Basically it looks like all said and done it will cost $1K.

BTW, big tip here. When you remove the seat belts from the donor car make sure you label which came from where. The docs are pretty sketchy and I got it messed up. Do to my curiosity I took one apart to release the belt but in the end I should have just put it on the other side. The seat belts are sensitive to angular tension and failed to work unless on the correct side - I broke one of them.

I have compiled a list of the part numbers I needed and would be willing to help others locate what they need if they try this too!