captain_sugar wrote:

nwoods wrote:

I've done this before also. I have a large inflatable matress, and even I at 6'-7" was able to fit, though I did have to move the seats forward and sleep at a slight diagonal.

Mr. Woods,

could you tell me the widt of the matress you use. I would say 125cm is the max but can only find 137cm matresses.

ronp wrote:

Don't suppose you can supply dimensions for templates?
Also, what material did you use and was it suckers you used to secure to the windows?

There I knew I should not have posted that

What;
1) Materials were two ""rollmats" from any camping outdoor shop that you sleep on. Luckily I found some aluminiumised (or aluminized for the non English) on one side, although I never intended that when I thought up the design. I wanted something easy to cut, flexible yet with enough rigidity to hold their own shape. Non-aluminiumised will work just as well.

2) Two rubber suckers per side window to hold each cover in place. These are the suckers you can get in DIY places with a metal wire hook attached. Normally sold for kitchen / bathroom use for hanging teatowels etc on. Remove the metal hooks.

3) Windscreen, they have recently started selling aluminiumised winscreen covers that wrap over the outside and tuck into the doors to stay in place. That is what I used. The LR screen is very big so you may have to shop around a bit to find one the right size.

How;
1) The rough dimensions are given below but to do mine I started by holding the uncut roll mat along the inside base of each window (start with the front windows). This is the easiest and longest straight edge to start from. Also the gutter caused by the rubber seal along the base of the window holds it nicely in place.

2) As the rollmats are so flexible I was able to push them into the edge of the window and mark with dots (marker pen) the line that I needed to cut. Tip: use a ruler to join the dots you marked in a straight line. Mark and CUT one edge at a time (cut it using sharp scissors). This minimises the risk of getting the marks on the next edge wrong because the mat should now fit snugly along the base of the window and up one side as well, allowing you to hold it firmly in place while you mark the next edge. Do the longest edges first.


3) Repeat process for other edges one at a time, mark then cut. Repeat for the rear side window. Note that I have tinted glass at the back so do not need the covers for the third row side windows or rear window.

4) Trim the now completed covers if necessary so they fit snugly into the window without any gaps.

5) The easy bit, you can now use these two complete covers as templates for the other side of the car. Tip: if you have aluminiumised rollmats make sure when using the template that the shiny sides are both facing the outside, otherwise you will silver covers on one side and blue on the other

6) Finally, hold the cover in place and mark where you feel the best place is to position the rubber suckers to hold them in the windows.

7) Make the smallest hole you can get away with to stretch the rollmat over the nodule or nob of the sucker. Take a lot of care not to rip the rollmat and it will probably hurt your fingertips too with all the needing (or get the wifey to do this bit).

Precautions in use;
1) I found with my aluminiumised versions the sun can get so hot they delaminate a bit in places but this has not affected their effectiveness only the appearance.

2) When removing them DONT just pull the suckers off, you will rip the mat or make the holes bigger. Put your hand behind the cover and peel the edge of the sucker off the glass.

3) If you use clear suckers ensure you black out the nodule or nob with marker pen, paint or something. There is a thread on this site where someone discovered they can act like a magnifying glass in the sun and actually burn holes in the seats, any longer and they could have torched his car.

Caveate: follow these instructions at your own risk, I am not responsible for any damage or injury caused by the making and use of these window covers.

Result: look good, perform well and keep the car remarkably cool on a hot sunny day in direct sunlight...and mine is a very dark car!!!

Rough Dimensions (mm):
You also see from the following dimensions it is not a simple case of mark and cut out as the glass edges are at funny angles to the top/base. That is why I used the "mark-and-cut-one-edge-at-a-time" method described above.

Front Base Edge 740
Front Top Edge 410
Front Upright Edge 540
Front Sloping Edge 490

Back Base Edge 730
Back Top Edge 670
Back Back Upright Edge 510
Back Front Upright Edge 520


Phew, my fingers ache now, hope this helps someone (or many).