Date: Fri, 24 Apr 2009 11:59:15 -0700
Reply-To: azsun99 <azsun99@EARTHLINK.NET>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: azsun99 <azsun99@EARTHLINK.NET>
Subject: Re: Sunroof for 'regular' van? Recommendations?
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
Don,
I recall someone on one of the lists a few years ago put two sunroofs (skylights) in
their van, one above the front seats and another in back.
Years ago, I had an '87 GL, with the A/C tunnel down the middle, and I installed a
sunroof in the back. I removed the tunnel, installed the sunroof and replaced the
tunnel. So, my recommendations based on that are, get a good one, get one with two
handles or make sure, if one handle, that it will lock in the up position. I had a
cheaper, one-handle one previously, and every time I went over a bump, it would jar
the sunroof and it would slam down shut.
The good one, besides being tinted, had some kind of perforated metallic matrix bonded
to the underside, which went a long way to reducing heat transfer.
I bought it from a shop that sold and installed sunroofs, and he opened the box and
started removing things, saying, "you won't need this". I said, "leave everything in
and I will decide". What he was going to remove, was a rigid foam spacer strip that
went between the headliner and the underside of the roof, and maintained a smooth
transition. The hardest part was cutting the opening in the roof. It's really thick
metal. Anyway when it was done, it looked professional and worked great.
Oh, one other thing, there are steel tension rods holding up the headliner, so if you
put the sunroof where one of those is, you can cut it and sandwich the free end
between the roof and the trim ring.
Jerry in AZ
P.S. A happy dog (or person) makes a better traveling companion.
----- Original Message -----
From: "Don Hanson" <dhanson928@GMAIL.COM>
To: <vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM>
Sent: Friday, April 24, 2009 6:51 AM
Subject: Sunroof for 'regular' van? Recommendations?
> Hi all,
>
> I have a non-pop, non-AC van and I'm interested in putting an after-market
> skylight in it. I am thinking one of those transparent tinted panels, right
> above the front seats, the kind that open up a few inches to a slant from
> one edge.
> I had one, installed by the previous owner, in a VW beetle I recently sold
> and I liked the extra venting and the veiw of the stars, but that one was
> kinda cheapo. It's hardware was crude and the rubber gasket was all cracked
> and dried up, the trim ring inside was kinda 'cheesey' too and it whistled
> and rattled driving down the road. Has anyone encountered a unit like that
> but with some better quality? Any 'favorite' places to look for that kinda
> thing?
> The type I have in mind installs almost flush with the outside of the roof
> so it doesn't interupt the air flow when closed and you don't really see it
> (again, when closed) when you look at the van in profile.
>
> By the way, My almost full time van co-pilot, Jake the Chesepeke dog,
> really loves the new 'hatch-latch-extender' I fabricated recently after
> seeing some posts on them here on the list. The inside of the van stays
> much cooler with the extra cross-ventilation that new opening provides, and
> I can be even more certain (Jake is pretty intimidating to anyone
> approaching the van anyhow) that the contents won't be disturbed while it's
> parked.
>
> Don Hanson
>
>
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