[andrew]

Does anyone know if the later under-seat cover (near where you pull to fold the bed out) can be retrofitted onto the earlier ('93) vans? The later ones look like they have drawers which would be very handy.

The early ones just clip to the rails under the seat, but I don't know how the later ones are attached.

[rcowan]

I don't know if they would fit or not, however I do know that those "drawers" aren't drawers. They are access panels that pop off and allow you to get to items directly below the seat. I don't use ours much and most I've seen are broken. Not sure how much of an "upgrade" it would actually be. Just my opinion though.

[andrew]

Good to know. I just thought it'd be a good place to store clothes and such that you could get to without getting out and tracking mud in, etc.

I'm kinda wishing for a closet of some kind.

[Cole]

It's a direct replacement panel. The bed frame is exactly the same.


I've put the late panel on several early vans and actually gone the other way too.

[Itsamoto]

Good to know. I just thought it'd be a good place to store clothes and such that you could get to without getting out and tracking mud in, etc.

I'm kinda wishing for a closet of some kind.

This is a great idea -- I totally wish there were drawers there that slid along with the bed when you pulled it out. Even if warranted building a new front fascia -- this would be a fantastic improvement to storage. 

[Itsamoto]

Interesting -- Reimo products for Multivan/Weekender?

Anybody familiar with this? - the description is lacking.



https://www.reimo.com/en/M10946-vw_t4_mult_frontverkl_sb_orig_fertigteil/

[boinzy]

Google Translate didn't help much:

"The flap creates the order. The storage space under the seat is comfortable for zugänlich By loading." 

Looks interesting though. It seems like it's just bolted on though, not hinged for access.

[Itsamoto]

Google Translate didn't help much:

"The flap creates the order. The storage space under the seat is comfortable for zugänlich By loading." 

Looks interesting though. It seems like it's just bolted on though, not hinged for access.

   - I thought that was pretty fun too.

Would make an awesome DIY.

[IdeaNerd]

Some great ideas here! The two broken panels on our recently-purchased Weekender has me currently working on some low-volume-production replacement ideas (I do product development work as part of my day job), but I've had thoughts of replacing the entire panel as well.

If you could wave a magic wand and have someone make something that you could buy off the shelf, which would you prefer, for that "replace the whole panel" route:

1) The entire face, solid, but hinged at the top to open up as big a door as possible?
2) The entire face, solid, but not hinged (i.e. like the Reimo one that Itsamoto found)
3) Drawers that slide along with the frame when it's converted to a bed? (Big-as-possible drawers?...or smaller like the access panels on the later EV's?)
4) Something else?

Related: anyone have one of those older no-access-openings OEM cover panels that they would be interested in selling me (or donating to the cause  )?

[wildenbeast]

I would be most interested in options 1 & 3. 

For #4, "Something else", it would be great to use other colors or materials ( like 3-form panel, http://www.3-form.com/reclaim ) to customize the interior, if desired. 

[andrew]

Approaching it from a problem-solving perspective leads me along this thought process:

• I (personally, others will be different) want to store clothes and maybe dry food.
• We'll probably access it most during pit-stops, after stopping for the night/in the morning, and maybe occasionally while going down the road
• If it's one big hinged flap, getting in there while stopped will require everyone else shuffling around. Making two or three sections hinge might mitigate this a bit
• If it's drawer(s), the same situation applies, but now we have added moving parts and vibration potential

I think I'd lean toward multiple hinged sections with the intention of adding cubbies behind (some of) them in the seat frame.

[my_vw_sucks]

I was literally just looking for replacement panels that have been missing from my bench facade for years.

If I had a choice I'd go with either of these:

3) Drawers that slide along with the frame when it's converted to a bed? (Big-as-possible drawers?...or smaller like the access panels on the later EV's?)
4) Something else?

My #4 would be the same as #1 but hinged at the bottom to make access easier.