The platform and legs encased in carpeting.

My answer to "How to protect the fuel pump?" after exposing it. A spray-painted frying pan and some silicone make pretty great armor plating and will come off easily enough if the pump ever needs to be accessed.

The platform is cut to 4' 9" in order to allow for the front seats to be adjusted for other drivers. As I am 5' 9", a bit more space was going to be needed. The hinged extension adds another 18" for when I am parked and the front seats are at maximum forward/lean. Plenty of space now!

Definitely enough space now for me to stretch out.

With the extra 18" extension attached, an additional support leg was needed. Hinged as well, folds flat onto the extension.

The platform extension support is a 2"x6", fits neatly between the folding cup holders and the emergency brake. As the extension will only be supporting my feet or my head, this offers plenty enough support.

 

The full-sized sleeping platform. I have also started to fit the curtains, added a bit of privacy and maybe a bit of extra warmth in the cooler weather.

Very happy with how solid the platform has turned out. The rear posts sit in the sunken storage spots in the CR-V and prevent the platform from sliding around. This platform is technically free-floating in that it isn't mounted to the vehicle in any way. The 3/4" plywood is thick enough to prevent any flexing (I am about 165 lbs).

 

So as I continue to refine this idea and add extra storage/organizers to the platform, please share any advice or ideas. Just remember, I am doing this on the cheap - gas is going to be the single biggest expense by far!

 

Nice work..

Just finished reading all the replies on Hondasuv Forums, and love all the replies you've received.

Don't be too disappointed here as there seems to be less traffic on this site, but maybe just maybe something like this thread is what is needed.

Great work, keep it up!

 

Nice to see the positive responses you are getting on here Green Machine. And for whatever reason,this site is rocking now sooo much more than Hondasuv.com.

Keep the pics coming.

 

Thanks! The HondaSUV thread regarding a sleeping platform made the idea of building a platform seem plenty doable, and I like how mine has turned out. A different approach from the other guys platform but still very solid and easily able to accommodate my weight.

Next weekend will serve as a trial run as I will be camping in NH with buddies.

 

Wow what an interesting mod, nice write up

 

Very nice. If you could though please post pics of how you attached the curtain setup.

As for the other site being referred, this one is picking up nicely lately as the other referred to has fallen completely on its face as of the last few weeks. Hardly anyone posts compared to here now. As for the new site from that site, myself and like 2 others are all that posts. Why? Only 1 admin and from the looks if things all he's concerned with is the site revenue it makes every time someone clicks an ad on the site. All the spam posts on the new site are being made under exsisting members like myself, (I and others didn't actually post it and have complained), the site does it under our accounts automatically. Everyone of those posts on the new site he gets paid. I see both sites staying around with no changes being made because of that. I'd like to be proven wrong though.

That's why I've been WAY more active on this site.

 

Thanks for the interest! I hadn't ever considered how one site compared to the other until now, I have been lurking on both since I bought the CR-V last August but always found myself gravitating more towards this site for whatever reason.

I will post some pictures of the curtain setup soon. Need to put up the final curtain segment before next weekend's camping trip/test run, so seems like a good project for tomorrow.

My "auxiliary lighting system".
I really love these little lights. 3 AAA batteries apiece, able to provide enough light to see what I am doing without worrying about the car battery. The back light placement allows it to shine outwards when the rear hatch is lifted, nice bit of versatility if I am futzing around after dark.

http://www.amazon.com/Fulcrum-30010-301-Battery-Operated-Stick-On-Silver/dp/B000R7PM36/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1372044203&sr=8-1&keywords=touch+light

 

That back one is a great idea on the placement for the double use if the glass is open or closed.

Reading back through though, you may want to get a couple insultated sun shades. They will help keep the cold out and the warmth from your body heat in a bit better. Cut them to fit the windows and Velcro into place. Just an idea if your interested.

 

If ya make it to southern AZ your more than welcome to swing by, use a shower and use a spare room for a good nights sleep b I'm less than 15 miles from Mexico and 10 miles to Tombstone AZ if you need to get your cowboy gunslinger on. Lol

Please keep this updated with the conversion and trip. I'm gonna watch this thread. Subscribed.

 

Thanks very much for the offer!

I am definitely going to be heading through your general region, would welcome the opportunity to get a local's perspective and advice on where to explore. I would like to expand my Southwestern itinerary to more than "see Grand Canyon"!

 

Again, about the other sites, someone is a bit sore as I just got a 7 day ban with no reason. It says reason: 7day ban. I bet that certain someone read a previous post of mine in this thread. Lol. Oh well, truth hurts. Lol. What a joke personally. Care just a bit about the community and not just the bottom dollar.

Just got this email. I believe I hit the nail right on the head.

 

I like the sunshade idea, thanks! I hadn't thought too much about easy insulation tweaks. Probably should!

 

Curtain Attachments
Yeah, not very fancy! A pilot hole and super glue to hold a hook, that is about it. I won't be hanging anything else (clothes, etc) off of the lines, so strong enough to support the curtains. Using parachute cord for the lines.

Each rear corner has a hook for the curtains to be hung upon. I love the Gen 1 CR-V for its great visibility, wasn't looking to ruin that by dangling bits of cloth all over the place.

The front-most curtain. My feet are going to stick out a bit, but I can live with that.

 

The front most curtains are just tucked into the headrest. Maybe I will come up with something else, but this method allows me to still check my blind spot just fine.

Storage Tweaking
I basically wanted to keep the rear access storage area and the side door access areas crudely separated. But not knowing what I might want to store at any given time, I wanted the divider to be easy to remove. Cargo bungee! Love these things! Does a great job of keeping things from sliding around too much under the platform. I have hooked it onto the rear seat belt mounting bolts in the lower corners and onto the edge of the sleeping platform itself for the upper corners. I drilled in a small clamp to hold down the center of the bungee, stops anything from sliding underneath it.

 

One of the things I miss about my Gen.1 CRV is the picnic table.

I used to have a 8" Powered Bazooka Subwoofer under the table, and did I ever get awesome Bass from that size cavity. Best part was nobody new where the Bass was coming from.

Now with my Gen.3 CRV, the spare tire goes there, and I miss that nice Bass.

You know what GM, I'm gonna get off my a$$ and grab my old picnic table (I kept it) and see if it fits in my Gen.3 CRV right now!

Bye for now...

P.S. Keep up the great pics!

 

I love pulling the picnic table out at random gatherings, it's made itself handy a number of times now and people always wonder where the heck it came from. Always fun explaining it is part of the car's floor! Hope you find a way to work it into your Gen 3, wasn't a bad idea to hold on to it.

 

Kancamagus Highway

Camping in New Hampshire
A bachelor party/camp-out provided me with a deadline to try and get the basic setup in place. Overall very happy with the results, slept really well. Cool place to camp, just a dirt road in a state forest with clearings of varying size nearby, $20 for a vehicle for the weekend. No amenities beyond a fire pit and no neighboring campsites, perfect.

A rainy Friday night into Saturday made me pretty happy to not be crawling in and out of a tent and I was surprised that even with the windows up, the vehicle remained relatively un-clammy. Relatively. The next morning my friend commented that it smelled like I was "baking a casserole", so there are definite drawbacks to having the windows all the way up. But with 12 guys camping in the rain for a weekend, interesting smells were pretty much the norm.

I guess this leaves me considering getting a pair or two of window shield things (or making something with the same function) to let me crack the window a few inches while keeping the rain out. Additionally, I want to build some sort of organizer to attach to the sleeping platform (shelves?) in the rear corners to keep extra clothing and frequent usage items easily accessible (toothbrush, etc.).

 

Cargo nets and ventilation etc

Is there enough 'meat' in the headlining to accept small hooks I wonder. If so you could have some cargo nets on the ceiling for all your lighter bits and bobs, clothes etc. I saw something like this recently but I cant find it again!

Re the ventilation, I guess it depends on how much you're prepared to alter the metal! Lots of ventilation products available either new or out of old campers, from the little rotary thingies that pull the stale air out right upto pop up lids etc.

My gen 2 has a sunroof that would be great for it! Third party sunroof maybe?

I travelled/slept around a bit in work vans when I was young (and before I discovered the delights of a big mortgage lol) and used to find that condensation is a problem. Shouldn't be so bad in a car, but you might have a problem with exposed metal/carpet/etc if camping long term.

Have fun mate!

 

Thanks for the suggestions!

I like the idea of cargo bungees on the ceiling as a means of storage. The headliner itself probably wouldn't be enough to hold much, but I am willing drill through the roof in order to more durably mount some eye-bolts. I actually already have drilled through once as part of the curtain setup, dabbed a bit of silicone around the edge of the bolt to keep out the elements and so far so good. This vehicle is definitely mine for the long haul, resale not being a huge concern as the miles are over 200k now anyway.

Might as well take all the steps I can to make it work for the trip!

 

In that case, you could cut holes in the headlining and epoxy plastic hooks to the underside of the metal, or even those with the self adhesive stickers on the back. If the holes are the same size as the hooks it should look neat enough.

 

Under Platform Storage
Nothing fancy whatsoever, just two eye screws and a bungee. The tiered level where the backseats formerly sat proved to be just the right size for a milk crate. Will have to keep an eye out for a another similarly sized container to sit next to it, but a bit shorter to accommodate the fuel pump's "armored plating".

Ceiling Storage
As was suggested by handycrowd, the ceiling over the sleeping platform is too tempting to just ignore. I want a means of keeping things like clothing, toiletries, etc. easy to access. Digging through a tub/suitcase/bag just for a flashlight or a fresh t-shirt will get a bit old. I have drawstring bags of various sizes that will be perfect for storing random items in the cargo bungees. Mostly soft things will be kept up there as I am sure I will whack my head on it a fair amount at first.

 

Roof Brackets
As I had already drilled through the roof to mount the inner brackets for the ceiling cargo bungee, I figured I should put the remaining brackets to use as well. Never hurts to have more mounting points, and as I intend to store something underneath the roof racket (folding table?), these will prove useful. Silicone, a washer, the bracket, and a locking nut. Pretty confident this will keep the weather out. Not exactly factory quality in appearance but acceptable enough to look at for my tastes, at least. Just need to clean up some of the excess silicone, I was liberal with the caulking gun.

 

Good idea to go back to back with the pipe clamps! Definitely keep the water out and provides a talking point/ice breaker to casual observers too

 

Figured I might as well make the most of the holes I was drilling once the damage had been done.

And yeah, the orange clamps attached to my roof might grab some attention. Overall, my CR-V has been accumulating a good number of "talking points" in recent months!