F36 Rear seat removal and sound insulation replacement

gonis · 07-12-2023, 08:29 AM

Earlier this year I had a Caramel Frapucino with Cream related incident which involved lorge drink being spilled on the rear seat of my F36..... Of course I cleaned it up and for a while everything was ok. When the weather warmed up I started smelling a sweet "caramely" smell from the back. When I took out the rear seat I found that the majority of the drink went through the seat gaps beneath it and was absorbed by the lining under the seat (sound insulation according to real OEM). There was already mold growing and as you can imagine had some bad smells... I used loads of mold cleaning spray and that seemed to help. The only problem was that sound insulation not drying out. It was damp and sticky from the coffee and now mold spray. I tried heat gun and kitty litter to get the dampness out, but the stickiness never went away. I decided to put the seat back in and see what happens. And as you can imagine once summer came weather warmed up the smell reappeared. Not nearly as bad as it used to be, but every time I get in the car the first thing I notice is that damned disgustingly sweet smell.

I have come to conclusion that the only way to remove the smell is to get rid of the source of the smell and that is to replace the sound insulation (20):

https://www.realoem.com/bmw/enUS/sho...diagId=51_9766

Has anyone had any experience replacing the insulation? From my experience cleaning it it looks like I will need to remove rear seats - are there any good instructions where to start? I want to know what clips/rivets to order in case I break any.

charlie fairmont · 07-12-2023, 11:02 AM

I believe the bottom just yanks up and from there, you can see any nuts and bolts holding the seat back in place. There's probably a diy thread or YouTube somewhere but consider paying the $30 for a 24 hour access to the BMW TIS site where you can go on a mad download binge and get all the official repair manual steps.

Billfitz · 07-12-2023, 11:03 AM

Search youtube for seat removal videos.
As long as you're going to all that trouble put a layer of this directly on the floor underneath the insulation, it will reduce road noise considerably. I've lined my doors and any interior panels I had to remove for one reason or another.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07BLSP8JV...NsaWNrPXRydWU=

07-12-2023, 08:29 AM	#1
gonis New Member 15 Rep 8 Posts Drives: F36 435D Join Date: Jun 2019 Location: Scotland iTrader: (0)	F36 Rear seat removal and sound insulation replacement Earlier this year I had a Caramel Frapucino with Cream related incident which involved lorge drink being spilled on the rear seat of my F36..... Of course I cleaned it up and for a while everything was ok. When the weather warmed up I started smelling a sweet "caramely" smell from the back. When I took out the rear seat I found that the majority of the drink went through the seat gaps beneath it and was absorbed by the lining under the seat (sound insulation according to real OEM). There was already mold growing and as you can imagine had some bad smells... I used loads of mold cleaning spray and that seemed to help. The only problem was that sound insulation not drying out. It was damp and sticky from the coffee and now mold spray. I tried heat gun and kitty litter to get the dampness out, but the stickiness never went away. I decided to put the seat back in and see what happens. And as you can imagine once summer came weather warmed up the smell reappeared. Not nearly as bad as it used to be, but every time I get in the car the first thing I notice is that damned disgustingly sweet smell. I have come to conclusion that the only way to remove the smell is to get rid of the source of the smell and that is to replace the sound insulation (20): https://www.realoem.com/bmw/enUS/sho...diagId=51_9766 Has anyone had any experience replacing the insulation? From my experience cleaning it it looks like I will need to remove rear seats - are there any good instructions where to start? I want to know what clips/rivets to order in case I break any.
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07-12-2023, 11:02 AM	#2
charlie fairmont Lieutenant 477 Rep 594 Posts Drives: His & hers, GC & X5 Join Date: May 2015 Location: Jax, FL iTrader: (0)	I believe the bottom just yanks up and from there, you can see any nuts and bolts holding the seat back in place. There's probably a diy thread or YouTube somewhere but consider paying the $30 for a 24 hour access to the BMW TIS site where you can go on a mad download binge and get all the official repair manual steps.
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07-12-2023, 11:03 AM	#3
Billfitz Lieutenant General 8279 Rep 16,142 Posts Drives: '15 328iX GT Join Date: Jan 2015 Location: New Hampshire iTrader: (0)	Search youtube for seat removal videos. As long as you're going to all that trouble put a layer of this directly on the floor underneath the insulation, it will reduce road noise considerably. I've lined my doors and any interior panels I had to remove for one reason or another. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07BLSP8JV...NsaWNrPXRydWU=
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