[canubaru]

i'm 6'2'' tall and the back of the outback is not long enough for me with the seat down. and i doubt the extra few inches gained by removing the rear seat would improve it greatly.

but if the front seats were folded forward, and the rear seat ''back'' was taller, and therefore longer when folded down, then maybe it would be long enough then.

just a thought.

 

[mrmarcdee]

Yah, I'm just under 6', and those extra few inches are very helpful and necessary for me. I see what you mean about the seat back needing to be longer/taller. I took the seat back out as well, figuring if I was going to build a platform, might as well build it over that whole expanse. And without the seat there for the seat back to press up against (when folded down), it bounced up and down a bit when you put weight on it, which would probably have been annoying.

 

[1 Lucky Texan]

it does seem you could gain 3-4 or more inches;

 

[Schmuly]

I have taken the back seat out of our Prius v and out of our Sienna and built a platform to sleep on for us and for when we travel with our two goldens. I tried to do it to our outback but you don't gain much room over folding the seat down. So I left the rear seat the way it is. We did add 3 inches of foam rubber and then a double size comforter on top of the foam. It is nice in a pinch.

 

[mrmarcdee]

Schmuly, Can you tell me some details on the platforms you have built for your other cars? Are they just plywood on top of some 2x4s or other posts? Where/how do the posts rest, especially on uneven flooring of the car? Did you try to bolt it in anyway (perhaps by using the nuts that the seat was bolted into?) Is the platform easily removable? Is it in multiple pieces?

Also, do you sleep straight on the 3" foam rubber and comforter? Where do you get the foam rubber from?

Thanks,
Marc

 

[Schmuly]

Schmuly, Can you tell me some details on the platforms you have built for your other cars? Are they just plywood on top of some 2x4s or other posts? Where/how do the posts rest, especially on uneven flooring of the car? Did you try to bolt it in anyway (perhaps by using the nuts that the seat was bolted into?) Is the platform easily removable? Is it in multiple pieces?

Also, do you sleep straight on the 3" foam rubber and comforter? Where do you get the foam rubber from?

Thanks,
Marc

When we bought the Prius v it was mainly so we could take our two goldens on a long trip to our winter cabin. I removed the rear seat and bolted an angle iron (light gauge) as the support frame. Then bolted 3/4 birch plywood to the frame and 3" foam on top. This gives them/us a 6ft x4ft padded area back there. There is lots of storage under the plywood, and I do know about the cooling vent for the batteries.
We will put a comforter on top of the foam for easy cleaning. At the rear of the Prius there is room for a small bag of dog food, a container for water, 2 dog dishes, and on the other side a 2 gal gas can for emergencies, for us or to help other people.
Either of us could lay in the back if we get tired while the other drives, (not the dogs) Hehe.
The trip is about 1300 miles each way and the Prius was our 1st choice of many vehicals that we looked at.

We bought the foam at H Depot I think 14.95 per 3x5 piece nice and dense and the angle iron was from there for installing garage doors. I hope if you click on the link you should see pics in the forum.:29:


Read more: Dog taxi upgrade | PriusChat

 

[Zioncanyon]

it does seem you could gain 3-4 or more inches;

I would be interested in hearing how this works. I a 6'3 and I feel your pain.

Maybe you could have the base, or the main length of plywood stop about 10 inches short of the front seat backs. Then have a 10-12 inch wide piece of the same plywood, that would fold over attached by hinges. That way when you are setting up to sleep, you put the front seats forward, and lengthen the sleeping quarters to maybe 80 inches.

 

[brian -bwin-]

searched in google for "sleeping in subaru" and...

http://www.subaruoutback.org/forums/63-gallery/41781-sleeping-platform.html

looks like some good reading there

 

[mrmarcdee]

Thanks everbody for their responses so far.

@Zioncanyon (and other tall people): From looking at what people have done in their Honda Elements I have found that if you remove the outback's back seat, then the front seats can recline backwards almost completely flat. You could then create a platform (hinged or whatever) that extends over the front seats, as far forward as you need for your height.

I have yet to attempt to build anything for myself, because I haven't yet decided what, and I don't have time yet, but when I do I'll post it. The link brian -bwin- posted is very informative as well.

 

[mrmarcdee]

I went with as simple of a set-up as I could come up with. Just a 3/4" plywood panel on top of a simple PVC pipe "table". Pictures are attached. The plywood measures 32" (between the wheel wells) by 42" (butts up right to center console). I may have to sand away a few millimeters by the center console so that I can actually open its lid while the platform is there. The PVC pipe rectangle is 2' pipe lengths (plus the length of the elbow joints) by 1.5'. I would recommend making these lengths just a little longer than what I did. The short posts that rest on where the back seat was are ~7", and the long posts that rest on the floor are ~12". We bought a king size 72" x 76" memory foam mattress pad (on sale at walmart), cut it down the middle, and doubled it up. It worked out pretty well, our hips did not hurt after sleeping on it for 2 nights, but our shoulders did so it might need a little more padding. I haven't put carpet on the wood yet since I actually only cut the wood about 3 hours before we left on a weekend trip, I will do that soon.

 

[mrmarcdee]

Why don't the pictures show up? Here are the links without the [ IMG ] tags
https://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash3/p206x206/564735_10102333885945788_183906421_n.jpg

https://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash3/p206x206/149229_10102333885771138_2005090105_n.jpg

https://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-snc7/p206x206/480017_10102333885985708_864653914_n.jpg

 

[1 Lucky Texan]

I see the pics in post 11

very ingenious!