My new to me 2020 iPace HSE has very light linen/cream colored interior seats. Since I got this car for the long run, I wanted to install car seat covers. It already has 18,000 miles of butt polishing and I wanted to reduce additional wear.

This means removing the head rests. There is an entry in the owner manual for this, and Google helped a bit too. But these instructions failed me and two additional able bodied head rest wrestlers. So I actually opened a service ticket at Jaguar Orlando (Florida, USA) for this. Based on the questions I fielded to get scheduled for service, I am pretty sure the service people were snickering about another dumb user who can't do the simplest things.

However, after I brought the car in today, I was informed that my car's head rest is NOT removable except by disassembling and "skinning" the seat, a 3-hour job. The service folks could not explain why the manual says one thing and their experience says another.

Does anyone have any insight on this?

(Previous cars: 1985 Peugeot 505, 1994 Acura Legend (driven with pleasure for 22 years))

 

Welcome to the forums Zophie,

I see the seat options are Manual, Electric or Performance. The first two look as if the head restraint can be separated but the third appears to be integral.

I expect you have looked at this same section in the online Owner's Handbook ......





Not detailed enough to show much useful about the stem collars (item 1) but, as Jaguar often re-use designs, these could be like the ones on my XK. See if the collars have a release something like this (item 2):




If so, it could be flush with the collar.

Graham

 

The back seat headrests come off like that. My car has the performance seats with integral headrests so my car is no help. There is a thread in the UK forum on this but removing the headrests looks like a total PITA. There is a hidden clip that needs to be released and it is not at all easy to get to. Even knowing this folks were having trouble getting them out: https://www.ipaceforums.co.uk/thread...headrests.510/

 

Thank you all for your helpful comments. Regrettably there is no release button on the headrest "doughnuts," which would have been great. I did find a specific method in the UK I-Pace forum which agreed with my dealer's PITA removal diagnosis, and I copied the member's entry below:

"The one problem I did have with the F-Pace and it might be the same with your I-Pace is that although the handbook and instructional videos say you can remove the head restraint I could not get mine out, even with help from a friend! The problem was eventually solved my dealer who's trim specialist had been on a course to learn about the then-new F-Pace: The head restraint was fixed in place with a clip at the bottom of the upright rods inside the seat back and that has to be removed by putting your hand up inside the seat from the bottom. It was a 5-minute job for him because he knew where to put his hand. Now that the clip has been removed the head restraint comes out easily when I need it to."

So, I am installing then hand-sewing my seat covers in place after making a big ol' hole for the headrests, rather than spend the time and money on a surgical intervention.

 

HOW TO REMOVE THE JAGUAR XE HEADREST TUTORIAL.
Video link
Maybe this can help you