Date: Tue, 11 Jan 2000 03:40:14 EST
Reply-To: Ssittservl@AOL.COM
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: S Sittservl <Ssittservl@AOL.COM>
Subject: Re: 5th seat
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> Date: 01/10/2000 12:29:46 PM CDT
> From: gmbulley@BULLEY-HEWLETT.COM (Bulley)
>
> There are five different "seats" that can be placed between the front row,
> and the back row.
>
> The first is only figuratively a seat...the Westfalia Porta-Potty box ...
This is the extra "seat" we've been using for a while. A similar (and, I
think,
better) option that we've used occasionally: a bean bag chair from the 70's.
I think being down low on the floor, braced and cushioned in all those beans,
facing forward, is safer than being perched on the porta potty. (Obviously
not as safe as a "real" seat, of course.)
> Next, the VW Jump Seat. It is a James-Bond style, fold-down, easily
> removable, rear-facing jump seat ....
This is the option I'd pick if I didn't hate riding backwards. Looks very
convenient, and reasonably straightforward to add to a van that doesn't have
one already.
> Third, the forward-facing 2-person bench. Mounts to tracks on the
> floor...head restraints & seat belts are integral. If you have a Westy, you
> cut through the plywood flooring to reveal the mounting tracks....
I think only some years of full-camper Westies have the tracks - possibly
just '85 (for Vanagons, at least). My '88 doesn't. Perhaps the half
campers are more likely to have them? Also, as far as I've ever
heard, if there are tracks, they are readily visible - cutting through
the plywood is only necessary for adding new tracks, not for revealing
existing ones. Are you sure about the "hidden under the plywood" case?
Also, I think even full-camper Westies with tracks only have "short" tracks -
long enough for the "pedestal seat" (described below), but not for the
2-person seat.
> Fourth, the (somewhat rare) three-person middle bench. Same as above, but
> obviously won't fit in a Westy....
> Fifth, the pedestal seat. I've not seen one in person (seen pics), but here
> is what I know (and don't know). It is a forward facing seat, that sits
> like a dunce-chair in the middle of the van. How it sticks to the floor, I
> don't know. Seat belts/head restraints are integral. The base is a large
> box, with a padded top. The box is large enough to accommodate pelts, dried
> rations, beads, or other items for trading on the open frontier. Or you can
> do a little fancy painting with bright colors, and attach a large crank to
> the side of the box, and make the solitary individual seated on this box
> look just like a Jack-in-the-Box. Your kids will love it. The last person
> picked up in your carpool will not.
I have one of these, although I haven't installed it yet. It's meant to
slide into tracks in the floor, just like the 2-person bench. I don't have
tracks, so I'll probably just attach it to the floor with (removable)
bolts rather than bothering to put tracks in; I'll have an RV place help me,
to make sure it's attached safely. Besides, the Westy manual says that, if
I DID have tracks, I'd have to remove the metal sliding door threshold
(6 or 8 screws, I think) whenever I wanted to slide the seat in or out -
way too much work, in my opinion. (I am spoiled by my Honda Civic station
wagon, which has seats that can be folded and/or removed in a gazillion
useful combinations with hardly any effort at all.)
The seat is simply a standard Vanagon "front seat", mounted on a standard
Westfalia swivel base, on top of a low metal-framed plastic box about the
same height as the "boxes" the front seats sit on. The seat swivels 360
degrees and has a belt attached; the belt can only be used with the seat
facing forward. There's no head restraint. Otherwise, the seat is as
comfortable as a front seat. Mine has the older "short" arm rests (whereas
my van has the "long" armrests).
The box has a door in its front so you can store stuff under the seat;
I think the interior height is about 8 or 10 inches (I don't have it in
front of me to measure).
The "normal" place to put the seat is right by the sliding door; that way
it doesn't block access to the fridge and cabinets. The bed can be opened
with the seat in place, so you can leave it in all the time if you don't
mind the loss of floor space.
I think these are only available in beige, on a brown base. I seem to
remember hearing that they were only actually produced for the Vanagon
in 1985 (although they were incorrectly listed in VW literature as an
available option in other years), and that there were no gray-interior
vanagons produced that year. In any case, they're rare.
My van is has a gray interior, but since I'll only use the seat on those
relatively rare occasions when we need a 5th person in the van, I'll
probably just live with the color difference. If I get really ambitious
some day, maybe I'll replace the seat with a gray one and paint the base
gray.
-Steven Sittser
