1986 Sport Bucket Seat / Halo Headrest Question

[johnnyhorsepower]

I bought an 86 Vert that has the sport bucket seats with the articulating thigh bolsters in it and at some point somebody had them reupholstered but did not put any headrest in. The upholstery covers up the opening at the top where the headrest slides in. I purchased a pair of halo headrest from TMI and am wondering if I can just cut a slit in the fabric and insert these into the seats? I can feel the relief indentation in the seat foam but was wondering if the receiving bracket is in the seat frame already?

Any guidance would be greatly appreciated!

John

[Mustang Marty]

I can't imagine anyone removing the receiver for the head rest since it is welded to the frame. When I recovered my seats I had to cut a slit to reinstall my head rests. IIRC, the original upholstery is heat bonded around the opening for the headrest post. Since the upholstery kits don't do the same, make sure to make a clean cut to prevent tearing. Later seats had a plastic trim piece that covered the opening and slid down the receiver like a guide. Unfortunately, the halo posts are too wide to use this part.

When you install the headrest they may be some resistance during insertion. The is a spring clip that is used as a retainer to prevent the headrest from coming out. The notch at the bottom of the headrest post catches on this clip so a very slight amount force may need to be used move past the clip. This is also the clip that has to be pried up to allow the headrests to be removed. If the headrest is easily removed, it is possible that the spring clip is bent or removed.

[johnnyhorsepower]

Excellent Sir!! This is the response I was hoping for! Thank you so much Marty for the reply. I thought this was the case but I was not sure. I did not want to cut into the upholstery and find out the hard way that I ruined my upholstery because there was not a way to mount the headrest. My son and I will be mounting the halo’s before the local car show this weekend.

Thanks again!