Rear Headrest Retro-fit DIY

I have been itching to do something new to my car, but maintain the clean look and German sophistication of my BMW. I wanted to start with something small. As I was surfing the web I came across a post about rear headrests that were standard on many of the later E36 models. This was not an option that was given on my year 325is. I found a smokin' deal on a set of headrests and decided to tackle this project.


1. Fold down (or remove) the folding seats. Remove the side bolster with a strong tug at the top. Carefully remove both C pillar trim covers; remember to disconnect the light wiring.

2. To remove the black trim that lines the top of the trunk opening you need to remove the four black plugs. This was the most time consuming part. i would suggest buying four new ones from BMW. Otherwise, I used a couple forks, quarters-as wedges- and a pair of pliers to remove them without sufficient damage.

3. I removed the two speaker grills, and third-brake light cover to give me more handles when I removed the rear parcel.

4. Carefully slide out the rear parcel, pulling straight out. This is what it looks like upside-down when it is out.















You will see these four of these imprints on the back of the rear parcel.















I used a utility knife to cut out the holes for the trim pieces.















When I got them in I realized how faded and nasty the real parcel was. (this has one side with the post trims and one side without)
















5. When you replace the rear parcel back into the car make sure that the four little edges on the rear of the rear parcel slip back into their place. Then, with the speaker grills out place the posts into the their slots and slip the spring washers into place by lifting up the parcel to gain acccess. This is where they go.










6. Slap on the headrests, and halfway there.

7. Return all the parts back in the reverse order.