I have done a little more work on the seating and seatbelts. The second and third row belts are fitted, except for the buckle stalks. The third row’s stalks will be bolted to the brackets in the middle of the rear doorway. The second row has rigid bar stalks (hanging near the shoulder anchor in the photo) which will be secured to the frames that support the inboard rail of each seat.
In order to accurately site the seat belt mountings for the second row seats, I had to mock up the seating arrangement on one side. The rear row seat was fitted first, and then the second row seat (this specific one destined for the front, as witnessed by the wires for the seat heaters). The Defender front seat had to be balanced on a plastic box as the support frames have not yet been fabricated. The position of this seat was varied until optimised for outboard elbow room, lateral space between the two second row seats for entry/exit, and leg room in the second and third rows. I was amazed how much space, particularly leg room, there is in each row, and the only minor issue with the seat arrangement now is that my head just contacts the roof in the second row (not in the third, though). This should not be a problem, however, as I am six feet tall and have a long back – not many of my passengers are likely to have the same sitting height as me.
I have now properly fitted both third row Exmoor Trim “Trakker” forward facing seats. These fold away when not in use and can be removed from the vehicle in seconds if the space on top of the wheelarches is needed for something else. The hinge brackets that are bolted to the wheelarched were wire brushed and satin-black enamel sprayed. The seats had almost never been used, so only needed a hoover and clean with Autoglym “Vinyl and Rubber Care” to get them looking brand new.
Really impressive work, well done.