Hello, this is my first post after registering, so I thought I would start by saying hello and sharing of what I did on my 2018
mk3 Leon ST FR by yesterday. I finally finished some of my projects .... but honestly: all with somewhat mixed feelings in the end.
Second light in the boot
I´ve used this
kit from AliExpress (everything fits, only had to extend harness length). When I started work I wasn´t expecting that I will later disassemble whole boot trim and lining because of the floor hook project, so I played a bit and was able to force the cables behind the trunk trim without need to disassemble anything. But it took time. Ok, second trunk light is finally in place so now there´s twice as much light in the boot as before ..... but still I can't really say there is enough light.
Before: not sufficient light in the trunk,
Now: still not sufficient light in the trunk
Its better, but still I´m really not sure if this mod was worth the effort, time and money spent in my opinion. I will have to look for some LED stripes or whatever other lighting to get enough light in the trunk. Shame Seat didn't put sufficient trunk lighting in standard...
Brighter footwell lights
This was just a 30sec exchange of standard LED lights for brighter ones (also purchased on AliExpress). So now there's plenty of light in the footwells ..... but only to find that the footwell lights are all the time on, not possible to switch them off when driving, which is pretty annoying, have to say ....
Boot floor holder
I installed
Mercedes Kleiderhaken A2128100340 to hold the trunk floor in the up position intead of holding it with my head. But oh dear, that was challenge involving fabricating a stainless steel bracket from scratch, hook modifications, painfully estimating final hook position on completely removed trim to cut opening for the hook, estimating how far the hook should jut out so that the cover plate sits flush with the trunk trim AFTER the trim will snap to place - all it was just a pure guesswork. Wouldn´t do it again. But ok, at least the hook, cover plate and bracket are finally ready for installation, all should fit, but now the real
problem started:
How to reliably fix the hook and bracket if I NEVER want to dissemble trunk trim again?
Should the bracket be secured to the steel car mount with the bolt and nylon locknut? Or better with automotive push pin / push clip? Will the nylon locknut fastening be permanent enough if I really don't want to discover any rattle noises in the rear after several years?
How to find the right push pin for the given thickness of joined parts?
And
how to fasten the hook (which is made of ABS) and some additional (plastic) spacers to the (steel) bracket? Plastics including ABS tend to creep under the load, plus there´s a heat, plus vibrations when driving etc...
Or is it better to fix the hook with automotive push clips instead of bolt with nylon nutlock? Again,
how to find the right push pin for the given thickness of joined parts? And should I use plastic spacers (they don´t rattle loudly if loosened, but plastic tends to creep with time under the load, and hook may become loose)? Or should I rather use steel washers which do not creep, but once they get loose (the hook itself is made of ABS), they will rattle? Questions, questions...
Could someone give me some hint about the best way
how to fix the hook and bracket to everything hold nice and tight for years? Screws and nylon locknuts, or push pins / push clips?
I would really welcome some opinions.
Thanks.