Back Seat Delete for Milwaukee Packouts

[FamousAmos]

I'm preparing to add Milwaukee Packout toolboxes into the back seat area of my truck. I thought others who might be considering a "back seat delete" (for any number of reasons) might like to see what's underneath all the pretty blue plastic.

As you can see, it's an Ecoboost model. The hybrid will be different on the passenger side.

Some of the trim plastic around the doors may be reinstalled for my project. But I wanted to show what I had to remove to get the seats and underseat storage bins out.

I was hoping the front curb of the back seat might be removable brackets. Unfortunately, it's an integral part of the unibody construction. I'm sure it provides a lot of crossbody rigidity and prevents a lot of side collision injuries.

"Back Seat Delete"! I love it when you talk dirty.

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[The Cyber Orange Guy.]

You'd destroy the truck. The Maverick has no tube steel rectangular frame underneath, like a traditional truck. This is unibody construction, which mean lightweight steel is bent into various shapes in such a way that the folds create a rigid structure.

Kinda like taking flat cardboard and folding it into a box.

Cut out an integral piece, and the whole thing is unpredictably weakened.

You can add, but you can't take away.

Thanks to you and Gpsman for the answers, not planning or needing to do any mod like that, but the curiosity is always on. Thanks both.

 

[Edge Haley]

May be too late if the "delete project" is already started...but I'd look seriously at some of the bed pull out shelving for the bed. I have shelving on wheels in my bed and the shelving is waterproof & where needed padding in pelican type cases available in all types of shapes and sizes that are easily attached to the pull out shelving...my tonneau cover has never leaked a drop... otherwise you might be better off with one of Ford little enclosed vans.

 

[AUTiger83]

I'm preparing to add Milwaukee Packout toolboxes into the back seat area of my truck. I thought others who might be considering a "back seat delete" (for any number of reasons) might like to see what's underneath all the pretty blue plastic.

As you can see, it's an Ecoboost model. The hybrid will be different on the passenger side.

Some of the trim plastic around the doors may be reinstalled for my project. But I wanted to show what I had to remove to get the seats and underseat storage bins out.

I was hoping the front curb of the back seat might be removable brackets. Unfortunately, it's an integral part of the unibody construction. I'm sure it provides a lot of crossbody rigidity and prevents a lot of side collision injuries.

Some updated pics and random thoughts.

I ended up with the 3/4"plywood base in the first photograph. I don't have a photo, but the top is covered with heavy vinyl upholstery and the bottom has 1" of foam and fabric for sound deadening.

I ended up with three stacks of Packouts, taking the entire width of the Maverick. I DON'T RECOMMEND this layout. Unfortunately, I could not pare my tools/parts down to a better layout of two stacks.

The three mounting bases of the Packouts are wider than the available 52"of width, so I sawed off parts of the mounting bases to fit the three stacks in. Accessing the middle stack is a pain. And worse is the drawer units have to be raised by Packouts underneath for the bottom drawer to clear the door jamb. A two-stack configuration would have eliminated these issues.

One bad side effect of eliminating the back seat is the big increase in cabin road noise. I'm planning on adding a fabric pouch organizer to the back wall, backed with a padded moving blanket to dampen some of the noise.

If you have any questions, feel free to ask.

 

[likeparty]

I still think this is a nice and highly useful build. You have waaaaay more toys and tools than I would ever carry. Your build would/will work great for our needs (triathlon bike OR tools/toys OR excess luggage. We are kayakers and tear drop trailer folk too. Though I am a Purdue engineer, I can still be in camaraderie with an Auburn guy.
I think the padding under the plywood and heavy vinyl under the tools was a piece of brilliant foresight.
It was pretty clear that I'd have to do something with the back, noise wise. I did not think of the bottom, which is probably even more important. Thanks for that.
I'm probably going to hijack your post here with pix and write up from my hybrid XLT when I get to my project later this month.
Dude, you've really saved me a lot of time and vastly improved my confidence that I'll have a good build.

 

[AUTiger83]

I still think this is a nice and highly useful build. You have waaaaay more toys and tools than I would ever carry. Your build would/will work great for our needs (triathlon bike OR tools/toys OR excess luggage. We are kayakers and tear drop trailer folk too. Though I am a Purdue engineer, I can still be in camaraderie with an Auburn guy.
I think the padding under the plywood and heavy vinyl under the tools was a piece of brilliant foresight.
It was pretty clear that I'd have to do something with the back, noise wise. I did not think of the bottom, which is probably even more important. Thanks for that.
I'm probably going to hijack your post here with pix and write up from my hybrid XLT when I get to my project later this month.
Dude, you've really saved me a lot of time and vastly improved my confidence that I'll have a good build.

If you're going to do your own variation, a couple of notes of what you might do differently:

1. Leave the blue plastic liners in the underseat storage. I removed mine because I knew they'd be scratched to hell from the small tools I'm able to shove in under the plywood shelf. But it would definitely look more finished with them remaining.

2. The plywood shelf is held down in five spots. The two threaded receivers for the seat belts on the back edge and three new bolts/washers/nylon lock nuts in three existing holes on the front edge (center, left, and right, conveniently located without any metal drilling). These were a pain, especially the middle one due to blindly reaching under the plywood 2 feet away to hold the nut to start it. My arm was bruised from the reach and my frustration was over the top. I think a better solution might be to install rivnuts in these three holes. But that may not work because I think the hole sizes are different and the holes may be too large. It's covered up now, so I can't check. And I'm not removing it until I sell it. LOL.

3. My plywood is 48"across, with the Packout bases overhanging it for a total of 52" (or close to that). I'd cut the plywood back to 40"or less to allow easier access to the underseat storage.

Good luck with your project! I recall a very early Ford marketing video showing a bike in the rear seat (back seat was folded up). It was extraordinarily tight. I'm fairly certain that a plywood shelf will preclude you from fitting your expensive tri bike back there. Please post photos of what you come up with!

 

[likeparty]

I replied on my post...can you check it? Thanks for the above...great info which I will certainly use.

 

[Swiney52]

This is awesome and super helpful as I am planning to do this for a work vehicle once I get the Maverick.
I have a couple of questions.
First off, how far back are the front seats in your photos? I and 6’3” so the front seats would be slide all the way back or very close to it and I was curious how much space there would be.
Second, my plan was to do two sets of packout having one in each side and a space in the middle. The middle space would be for setting my laptop bag, lunch box or other random things that I would like to grab while sitting in the truck. My plan was to have one of the drawer boxes at the bottom but I notice you have one set of storage bins below the first drawer box. I assume this is to give you the clearance for the drawer to open. If I mounted the boxes a little more towards the center do you think that would provide enough room for the bottom drawer to open or is the only to get the clearance is to raise them with the bins?

 

[AUTiger83]

This is awesome and super helpful as I am planning to do this for a work vehicle once I get the Maverick.
I have a couple of questions.
First off, how far back are the front seats in your photos? I and 6’3” so the front seats would be slide all the way back or very close to it and I was curious how much space there would be.
Second, my plan was to do two sets of packout having one in each side and a space in the middle. The middle space would be for setting my laptop bag, lunch box or other random things that I would like to grab while sitting in the truck. My plan was to have one of the drawer boxes at the bottom but I notice you have one set of storage bins below the first drawer box. I assume this is to give you the clearance for the drawer to open. If I mounted the boxes a little more towards the center do you think that would provide enough room for the bottom drawer to open or is the only to get the clearance is to raise them with the bins?

Attached is a photo with the driver's seat all the way back. You'll be ok.

Yes, the extra layer of Packouts on the bottom is so the lowest drawer will clear. It's an awful workaround. But it was my compromise to get three full stacks (by cutting off parts of the bases) in the backseat.

I recommend two full stacks in the middle with NO GAP between. Personal items will be easier to reach from the driver's seat, if they're in a bin in the passenger rear footwell. And that gives you space on the platform by the doors for temporary items like luggage, tool bags/cases, or a small dog.

 

[urwatuis]

I'm preparing to add Milwaukee Packout toolboxes into the back seat area of my truck. I thought others who might be considering a "back seat delete" (for any number of reasons) might like to see what's underneath all the pretty blue plastic.

As you can see, it's an Ecoboost model. The hybrid will be different on the passenger side.

Some of the trim plastic around the doors may be reinstalled for my project. But I wanted to show what I had to remove to get the seats and underseat storage bins out.

I was hoping the front curb of the back seat might be removable brackets. Unfortunately, it's an integral part of the unibody construction. I'm sure it provides a lot of crossbody rigidity and prevents a lot of side collision injuries.

what is the basic process for removing the seats? I did YouTube search to see if anyone had posted anything yet but there are none yet.

 

[AUTiger83]

what is the basic process for removing the seats? I did YouTube search to see if anyone had posted anything yet but there are none yet.

It's been a while, so I don't recall the details, but remove the seat backs, then unbolt the bench seat at the outside corners, and the middle seatbelt anchor. It wasn't too difficult.

 

[urwatuis]

It's been a while, so I don't recall the details, but remove the seat backs, then unbolt the bench seat at the outside corners, and the middle seatbelt anchor. It wasn't too difficult.

thanks

 

[Surly Old Bill]

It's been a while, so I don't recall the details, but remove the seat backs, then unbolt the bench seat at the outside corners, and the middle seatbelt anchor. It wasn't too difficult.

I'm starting to delete my rear seat; how do you remove the plastic cover over the bolts holding down the rear seat bracket? I don't want to just start prying randomly, sometimes it's a simple slide to one side and lift thing, but I can't see how it works.

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