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Removing a Fiamma recessed table base - help!
Hello, I would like to replace the very manky floor carpet in the back of my Vauxhall Midi camper with some vinyl, but the recessed fiamma table base is well and truly stuck down in the middle of the floor.
Does anyone have any experience of removing these things? I'd like to put it back when the new flooring is down. Is it a job for a mechanic with proper tools?
Any advice would be very much appreciated.
Thank you!
Hiya, thanks for your advice. I've unscrewed all the screws without too much trouble but it's still stuck fast. I'm worried it's attached in some other way from underneath. Maybe it just needs some WD40 down the sides and some persistance. I'm not sure I'd fit underneath to have a look without jacking it up.
Yes, this Midi is still alive...just. Judging by how hard parts are to come by it may be the only one left :)
Hello again
I might suggest that you find a high kerb in a quiet cul-de-sac and bounce the front wheels up onto it for a few extra inches of ground clearance when you crawl under. Put a brick or something behind a back wheel, handbrake on and leave it in gear - that would be a lot safer than a jack anyway. You should be able to locate the stub of the table fitting with reference to the inside and the light of a good torch. It's probably just held by age and possibly a bit of sealant, so a blunt screwdriver carefully tapped underneath the lip and pried around would do the trick - but it's wise to check first.
Yes, I was having real trouble getting parts for the Midi's almost 10 years ago - Vauxhall were useless and even scrapyards used to say they hadn't seen one in ages...
Good luck
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Hello there
These floor bases are usually just held down with a ring of screws (visible around the top?) although they might have rusted to the floor over time. The base itself is made of aluminium, so it won't have rusted in itself - although road salts might have attacked it and caused it to corrode and the dissimilar metals to react and sieze the screws over the years too.
Most manufacturers just cut a rough hole through the floor when they fit these and the base is clearly visible below. If you locate it, you should be able to verify that it is just screwed down. WD40 both sides and patience to unscrew; then a big hammer and brute force to knock the screws through if that doesn't work should do the trick. You shouldn't need any special tools and you should be able to reuse it without any problem. If not, they are readily available in camping stores and cheap on ebog.
Good luck, I had a couple of Midi vans a few years ago and found them very enjoyable and practical vans to run - nice to know at least one has survived.