The solar panel ended up being easy to mount to the factory roof rack. We were able to drill through the cross bars and mount the solar panel directly to them. Thankfully the solar panel doesn't interfere with the sun roof and won't hit the rear hatch when opened. We didn't have a lot of flexibility with where the roof rack was positioned. The solar panel came with four sets of pre-drilled holes. We could have drilled new ones in if we wanted to, but opted to use the exisiting ones. While examining the rest of the solar panel set up we noticed that we hadn't ordered several wires. We plan to drill a hole through the roof and run the wires from the solar panel into the car to the battery, which will be located behind the driver's seat. We will caulk the hole to seal it. Unfortunately the wires on the solar panel weren't long enough to reach and they had bulky special connectors attached to the end. It turns out these connectors are unique to solar panels, and while it makes it easier to connect multiple solar panels together in an array, it made our job difficult. Even if they were long enough to reach, cutting off the connectors would have voided the warranty for the solar panel. We were able to find some wires online that we can connect to the existing cords. These wires have bare ends that we can attach to the charge controller. We're still trying to decide how we want to complete the battery set-up, but we know it will reside behind the driver's seat.
Luckily things progressed a lot further with the bed platform. After removing the rear seats, the plan was to build a plywood sleeping platform supported by 2x4s, much like our friends at Home on the Highway. One of the benefits of having a creative octogenarian help you is that it's easy to think outside of the box. Leo, Bethany's grandpa, quickly realized that we could repurpose the open bolt holes from the rear seat and use them to help support our sleeping platform. He grabbed a piece of iron, threw it in a vice, turned on the torch, and started heating it up. He then pulled it down to a right angle and drilled some holes into the metal as well. He then bolted the piece of iron into the old seat bolt holes and fashioned a piece of plywood bolted to 2x4s and then bolted to the piece of iron, giving us a sturdy foundation for a sleeping platform. This initial plywood piece more or less exists where the back seats used to reside. We then used a piano hinge to attach a longer piece of plywood to the first piece. It extends to Sweetcakes' sweet booty and, when lifted up, gives us access to storage underneath. The sleeping platform rests on the rear wheel wells, giving about 10 inches of storage underneath. The hinge makes it easy to access the storage underneath.
Other random tidbits from work this weekend:
- The windshield wipers were way harder to install than they should have been for me, but only took my dad a couple of seconds to figure out. This doesn't bode well for the trip.
- The previous owners used screws for the front license plate, but bolts for the rear license plate. This turned the license plate change process into a half an hour ordeal. I had to manually rethread the rear license plate holes with screws so we could attach the new license plates with anti-theft screws.
- Working in a heated work shop is awesome!
- Most of the materials we used to make the bed platform were repurposed or scraps. The only exception was the piano hinge.
- Doing a project like this with other people makes it much more enjoyable. Having knowledgeable people was invaluable.
Getting Started - Vacuumed clean
Starting to remove the seats
Seats out. A real pain to get the last bolts tucked underneath. Batter set where we expect it to be moving forward.
Leo drilling a hole into the roof rack to mount the solar panel
solar panel mounted; profile view
Top view - slick! Leo and Dad in the background
Leo being a BAMF.
Adding oil to the iron as he drills a hole to keep it from overheating.
the carpet pulled back and the iron bars going in.
Side view of the iron bars
Platform getting bolted in.
Old License plate and new on. The bolts from the back and the old screws from the front I used to re-tread the rear.
Piano hinge going in.
Awesome pic :)
Some last steps of the sleeping platform setup.
It’s great to know that you had no major problems with installing the solar panel on the roof, and that you did not need to do a massive overhaul of the exterior to do it. Anyway, how is it holding up nowadays? Thanks for sharing this with us. All the best!
ReplyDeleteRachael Massey @ Auto Control Systems
Rachael - Just saw your post! The solar panel held up to the rigors of the trip without issue. The caulking for the wiring into the vehicle did fine as well and never leaked. Unfortunately, Sweetcakes flipped with her new owner and took a beating. But he sold her and she's now living another life down in Argentina!
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