Another rear cargo cover shelf

[jamesmovespeople]

I saw the other types of shelf mounts on the Big Sticky Post, and I thought of another way of making a shelf that's quick, easy, and with a minimum of parts: namely, it involves dowel rods, J hooks, and thin plywood. This is on my 2008 vibe, not sure how much different the 09+ are. Plan A: 1-piece shelf: It's a PITA to remove as one big piece, though, so I decided to split it. First step is to gather the materials. I went with 2 dowel rods 48" long and 1" thick (36" is a hair too short), 4 j-hooks, some birch plywood, and some copper straps for pipes. Second step: trace out the shape using the cloth mat as a guide. Might make it a bit smaller next time. Third step: cut the one dowel rod to length, insert the J hooks: Cut the plywood so the middle section is less than the width of the rear window struts, add the straps (I used bolts. It's what I had. Glue should work, too.). Hook the front dowel rod up (loosen/tighten so it's snug on the D-rings) and slip the rear dowel rod through the straps and finagle that whole mess on to the rear D-rings. I only used one bolt per strap, so there's a bit of wiggle room to adjust. When removing/installing, slide the two side pieces under/over the center piece on the dowel rod to make it a smaller package to remove and store.The pics are out of order, but it sits at about the same height as the cloth and slants backward a bit. And it hides all the junk in your your messy 'trunk' and is sturdy enough to put 10-20 pounds on. Pop the hatch glass, toss something on the deck, it's all good. Pizza, snow brush, whatever. Need to get something inside? Something shifted after going grocery shopping and you think it's all going to spill out the back if you open the hatch? No prob, lift up the center portion.(Bungee cord is just for photo mockup, it's too unstable; Dowel rods front and back work better. I bought the rod in two sizes, thinking I could make it work by letting the J hooks out more to give it length...it didn't work.)The straps anchor it side-to-side and it uses the dowel rod as the hinge pivot.Also, you may want to make your cuts with a table saw or with a jigsaw and a guide. Just sayin'. Things To Do Differently:* Use a different materiel; the plywood is a bit flimsy and tends to warp, so the edges don't match up anymore. * Use those 'door edge guard' rubber pieces around the edges; it scuffs the plastic of the seat, hatch, and sides where it rubs. Not much, but it's annoying. * Paint everything, possibly use rubber or foam on the front dowel rod as it makes a clatter when you hit a bump. I've had this rigged up for the last year or so, and that's my biggest complaint.* Wrap it in carpet or fake leather to make it look more professional. Right now I just have the cloth cover resting on top. * Cut the center section into two pieces front-back and put hinges on it so the piece can flip up and stay flipped; because it's so long it hits the headliner and doesn't stay up.When you need the trunk, you can either remove it and put it on the bottom of the trunk or slide it between the folded seats and the front seats. It comes with you!

[waveresponder]

nice someday I'll make a custom cover for my vibe

[cptnsolo77]

Great idea! I have the cloth cover & all I can put is bread on top of it. anything more im afraid will be too heavy.