Driver seat mounting bolt removal

�03 C2 Cab, picked up in September�21�found out I have a clogged drain or leak�or both. Anyway, stripping down the interior to get the carpet out to properly dry and I can�t seem to get the driver seat mounting bolts loose. Passenger side came out easy enough, so frustrated with driver side, that side is/was dry, so I�m going to go with the leak has been there a while and bolts are rusted in. Penetrating oil applied over multiple days, used a cordless impact driver(probably not enough torque though). 10mm 12-point has �slipped� once, switched to 10mm spline socket which was much tighter and that has now �slipped� once too. Really don�t want to round these bolt heads anymore. Next up a good wack with a punch and hammer straight down to see if that shocks some rust loose. Really don�t want to try heat with carpets and seat so close. Anyone had to deal with this before? Partially stripped �03 C2 Cab interior Seat mounting bolt. Partially stripped �03 C2 Cab interior

Try using a small breaker bar and gently putting pressure, both loosen AND tighten. Be patience, and keep the penetrating oil to it. The rocking will often break loose the rusty interface. A hand impact (the kind you hit with a hammer) is an invaluable tool for stubborn fasteners as well. If that doesn’t work, then you might just have to cut/grind the head off. Many here are MUCH more knowledgeable than me and might have other suggestions.

I haven’t removed but that looks like a e-Torx bolt, there are specific sockets made to fit those. That might let you put enough torque on it without slipping.

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I just had my seats out too. Hmm, that may explain why my sockets didn't seem to fit very well. In the "last resort" realm, I've used vice grips clamped to the head of a bolt when all else failed. Then a piece of pipe, or a long screwdriver, to add leverage. This requires good vice grips, cheap ones will just pop open. Pipe wrenches can sometimes also be used but I don't think there's room in this case.

dude, no. buy some e-torx sockets unless you want make your life much more difficult.

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Picked up a rail of e-torx sockets this morning�the passenger side bolts all came out so easy. If it�s not rust, then this seat has been out before and someone used an air ratchet or impact driver to put them back in.

Conference call for work so I put in my earbuds, made sure phone was on mute, and seated the e-12 torx with a few whacks from my shiny new 16oz ball pein hammer. Inside front loosened, same with outer front. Inside back took some extra whacks and some back and forth with impact driver and then ratchet w/ box wrench on the end for more leverage (didn�t pickup a breaker bar as all they had were too big for the space; 24� was there but 18� sold out.) inside back broke loose, glad I was on mute. 😂 Outside still holding tight, still on mute thankfully. Added some more penetrating oil, a few fwd/rev with the impact driver, a good whack with hammer and will let it sit until lunch or after work. 🤬 3/4s of the way there. 🙌🏻

Fcpeuro or your dealer can get the bolts. I recommend replacing all 8 mostly because people dont use an e12 and the heads get f'ed.

Do yourself a favor , on reassembly add some anti-seize compound to each bolt .

Buy a good Torx socket set. Buy a good Torx socket set. Did I say buy a good Torx socket set yet? On porsche of this era, also buy a set of Torx wrenches. Don't use 12 points or even 6 point socket and wrenches.

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I priced some already�and at less than $3ea it�s a no brainer to put new ones in�with a little anti-seize on them.

Haven�t tried it but �they� say that 50:50 acetone:transmission fluid is supposed to be best at freeing rusted bolts. id pass on the breaker bar unless you already have the bits and a good tap and die set. You�ll snap it long before it comes loose. On that note, I bought the Husky kit from HD for ~100 bucks knowing my MG disassembly will require it. Guaranteed for life and gives you an extra bit confidence to risk breaking bolts if the repair tools are already in place.

+1 on the Torx socket, also love this guy's videos: You Tube

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Have not heard the acetone+trany fluid one before, thanks. Really don�t want to snap the head off for sure, there wouldn�t be enough left to grab once the seat was out, and the tap & die would probably be the only way forward. With the head off and the seat rails out of the way the oil would make it onto the threads and an easy-out may preclude the tap & die�prefer not to think about it, much less have to go that route. 😕

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Hm. I put blue thread locker on mine. I could see they had something on them when I took them out, and seat bolts are not something I want coming loose.

Since the other 3 bolts r out see if u can rotate the seat a little even a couple of degrees. It may help if there is any corosion between the head and the seat rail

You will sacrifice the bolt but locking some vise grips on it and then working back and forth, you might loosen it.

FWIW� Part Number : 9A700748300 Supersession(s) : 99914103907 ; WHT007691; 9A7-007-483-00; 99914104701 Part number information for 2003 Porsche 911 seat mounting bolt (e-12 m10x28)

PB, hope you've had some luck with that last bolt. I'm not really familiar with Cab drainage but I want to point out that there are four drains under the cowl on all 996's. Two on each side of the battery tray. Hard rain can put a lot of water into that space. Those drains can get stopped up by just a small amount of debris and the overflow can get into the cockpit. Just something to check out once you get everything dried out. Good luck. GA p.s. In a video I saw the other day, the guy was dealing with rust issues in the pan under the passengers seat. I think you are absolutely doing the right thing getting that carpet out of there and getting things dried out.

Quick update, last one finally out! Breaker bar wouldn�t budge the thing�investment that I�m sure I will get good future use from, did the trick. Spent the $$ on an Impact Wrench, cordless 1/2�. I barely pulled the trigger with it on that bolt and it spun right out. I muttered to myself that the breaker bar and penetrating oil must have loosened it. Driver seat finally removed! 🥳 Damp rear floor. 😭 Rear carpet sound and insulation material was soaked! 😳 Someone else was definitely here before�not sure for what however. They did muck about with the wire loom for the driver seat. Broke the cover off of the front of the seat, they had it attached with 2 screws and it actually looked factory at a glance. 🧐 Will get that loom taped back up with some friction tape while things are wide open.

Well done, good investment. That impact will make removing wheels and larger suspension bolts etc. much less challenging. You can solidify the investment by getting other battery powered tools from the same maker. Work lights, leaf blowers, saws, all kinds of stuff are out there, all using the same battery system. Have you determined where the leak is yet?

Thanks @wdb I did select a model from the same maker as most of my other cordless tools, it was a bare tool (no batt) so there was some cost savings in using existing batts....they are $$$ I'm running a backup camera wire, and adding a short shift kit while things are opened up for access. Hope to have things re-assembled for a drive this weekend and to get it out of the garage and check for leaks before re-installing the rear cover panels and speakers. SSK(Short Shift Kit) install, factory shifter SSK(Short Shift Kit) install, SSK closeup SSK(Short Shift Kit) install, SSK installed

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You mean people drive their cars in the rain? Tsk. Tsk.