S13 hatch custom rear cargo cover

[Chaluska]

Ill make this a short and sweet post.

what you will need.
-2x4 MDF 1/2" particle board (lowes for about 10$)
-1x2 yards of fleece/carpet (jo-ann fabrics for 5$)
-3m spray adhesive (90 grade) (lowes for 9$)
-a couple brand new razors (lowes/Home depot for a few bucks)
-a Jig-saw (i got the black and decker from lowes for 29.99, and it worked perfectly)
-a Drill (already had one laying around)
-a few screws (99c from lowes)

I wanted to get some 6x9 for the rear of the car, but the car only accepts 4x6. my cargo cover had warped over the years, and was not stable, or nice looking.. the carpet was ripped, and destroyed.

I went to lowes, and bought a 2'x4' MDF board, (i measured across the 2 rails as appx 40", so this was more than wide enough) got the carpet/fleece, i already had the spray adhesive and razor blades.

took a rough measurement, cut out the outline, trimmed the bottom shelf to fit nice and snug, then measured and cut the angled rear piece, cut the bottom flat end at a 45 degree angle, and screwed it to the back. once the shape of the panel was done, cut out the holes for the 6x9s, and start stretching carpet.

if you like a nice sounding system, this was a pretty easy thing to do. and the options are infinate.. i could easily mount an 8 or 10" sub back there. and even build a small box hanging off the rack.

http://img109.imageshack.us/img109/4346/imag0078n.jpg
http://img691.imageshack.us/img691/6522/imag0080w.jpg

[cjmirabal1]

sick!!! i must to also!!! i got 6x9 waiting lol

[Chaluska]

after driving with this for a few days, holy crap, i realize how much 4x6's SUCK.

[Bushido]

nice work dude.

i hope to do something similar with 2 6x9's and maybe a small sub.

[Prime]

I did the same years ago, save that I used ABS with the stock steel stiffeners fastened to the bottom, and enclosures w/ plates for audio hookups. It's a wonderful thing to see the rear glass rise when the bass hits.

[ixfxi]

thats nice


suggest that people mount a fucking MDF projectile in your hatch area. i mean, its not like its going to fly in the unfortunate event of an accident, right?

i'de be real careful about that

[UNKNOWNvSOLDIER]

thats nice


suggest that people mount a fucking MDF projectile in your hatch area. i mean, its not like its going to fly in the unfortunate event of an accident, right?

i'de be real careful about that

but ixfxi, that will never happen. these are pro drivers. lol

[Prime]

thats nice


suggest that people mount a fucking MDF projectile in your hatch area. i mean, its not like its going to fly in the unfortunate event of an accident, right?

i'de be real careful about that

Well, I don't know about OP, but my answer to that was simple. Hinges.

[rat240]

It looks sort of rice to me

[ixfxi]

Well, I don't know about OP, but my answer to that was simple. Hinges.

this is the problem, the lack of thought that many people on zilvia show


hinges.... bolted to what?

i mean, do you have any experience in removing the interior from an s13? working on the metal, perhaps? because i do, i can tell you that there is little structural metal back there that is strong and secure enough to bolt hinges to.

the factory cargo panel is made of fiber board or something like that, its light and has plastic hinges which bolt onto the speaker plates which bolt onto the side of the interior panel... all of that shit is flimsy and light weight, so no big deal.

i am very familiar with MDF and its weight, there is a reason why Ikea furniture is typically made of shitty particle wood as opposed to MDF which is much more condensed. MDF is stronger and heavier, much more compacted... i imagine that the MDF rear panel could weight anywhere from 25-50lbs depending on thickness, supporting that with mere brackets is no simple task because the question still lies, where do you bolt it to?

i dunno about you guys, but ive seen my fair share of damaged 240s... my friends was sitting pretty in front of his house when some drunk driver smashed into it and 3 other cars. the back of my friend's s13 looked like something outta terminator 2.. the entire rear end was fuxored

think, thats all i am trying to suggest

[Prime]

hinges.... bolted to what?

i mean, do you have any experience in removing the interior from an s13? working on the metal, perhaps? because i do, i can tell you that there is little structural metal back there that is strong and secure enough to bolt hinges to.

the factory cargo panel is made of fiber board or something like that, its light and has plastic hinges which bolt onto the speaker plates which bolt onto the side of the interior panel... all of that shit is flimsy and light weight, so no big deal.

i am very familiar with MDF and its weight, there is a reason why Ikea furniture is typically made of shitty particle wood as opposed to MDF which is much more condensed. MDF is stronger and heavier, much more compacted... i imagine that the MDF rear panel could weight anywhere from 25-50lbs depending on thickness, supporting that with mere brackets is no simple task because the question still lies, where do you bolt it to?

i dunno about you guys, but ive seen my fair share of damaged 240s... my friends was sitting pretty in front of his house when some drunk driver smashed into it and 3 other cars. the back of my friend's s13 looked like something outta terminator 2.. the entire rear end was fuxored

think, thats all i am trying to suggest

Well, again, can't speak for OP, but I didn't use MDF. I used ABS. The hinges are attached just above the U-shaped latch points for the rear seat, forward of all the plastic bits that covered the factory speakers. I considered latches on the rear-most portion, but that's when I ran into the problem you're describing. Simply no place to put them. Instead, I ensured that the protruding lip from the rear of the new decklid was well underneath the hatch itself, so that it cannot move while the hatch is closed due to the slight leverage from it being cantilevered a fair 3 inches out and being bolted firm on the opposite side, in addition to having very little play from side-to-side.

So, yeah. I thought it out. I'll admit this was after my first experience braking too hard and discovering the whole assembly shifted freely. But again, this was about 8 years ago. One time imagining a rare-earth magnet hitting the back of your skull at speed tends to fix that.

[shinobis13hb]

i made a similar contraption. i took out my back seat(who ever goes back ther enormally lays in the bck)... use 1/2 thick wood and made a back seat delete(wanted to use something think not flimsy.also good sound) measured... cut... measured... cut. there are 2 kicker speakers in the bck seat delete lso will be putting in 2 8" subs or a powerful 10' near the bottom of the seat delete. i plan on making couple of them and just trying different ideas the next one i was thinking of have 2 subs in the middle (or speakers) kind of like the GTR. i mean at only 4-10$ why not mess round and have little fun ?