Hey there,
Some very nice set ups in this thread, i thought id throw mine in seeing as i finished it today... not as nice as some of those and im sure people will bag the components but keep in mind they do provide a bit more thump and quality than the dodgy 4" 's i had in the stock rear spots...
head unit is a sony bluetooth equipped unit, does what i need it to, fronts are pioneer 4" in stock location and my new rears are sony 6x9's i got on special for $30au.. bag away fellas but remember this was done on a tight budget and was only after a bit more bass and a larger sound range
*flame suit on*
The set up:
Ok so i decided to replace the rears with some 6x9's, and i wanted to cover up the shabby looking rear carpet and ugly spare wheel hump in the hatch area... solution? parcel shelf.. i didnt have a 'boot blind' when i got the car so something to keep prying eyes from anything i may have in the hatch would be a bonus.. i also use the car to carry my bike/dog so what ever i came up with had to be somewhat removable...
this is the 'strut' that fits where the stock blind would mount and will provide the hinging point for the actual shelf
the parcel shelf its self, note i constructed it of 2 pieces so a small amount of flex would be available for where the hatch hits the very end of the shelf.
Got some medium grey carpet from bunnings to cover the shelf with, i decided grey would better suit the interior than black, make it look a bit more like it was meant to be there... glued the carpet on with the same adhesive they use to glue fake turf down.. so it should hold!
strut:
Shelf:
carpeted and trimmed strut and shelf.. automotive carpet can be trimmed and wont fray on the edges, i decided to cut it to shape as trying to fold it under would have been too bulky to work with, and when the hatch is closed you cant see the edges anyway
Strut installed:
As mentioned earlier it utilises the stock blind mounting point once the clips were removed and simply bolts to the vertical side of the stock rear speaker/strut cover (unscrewing the bolts allows easy removal)
shelf mounted up and attached:
the self simply sits on the flat area of the speaker/strut cover and i have some rubber mounts screwed into the rear plastic trim for the back edges to rest on.. the shelf butts up to the strut bar and the hinges screw down into the shelf, the shelf is then removable by undoing the hinge screws on the shelf side
There is 3 hinges along the join, stainless steel hinges cleaned and painted black to blend in a bit better, i also coated the mounting screws:
speakers in:
i extended the existing speaker wires and routed them through a hole under the speaker and into the hatch area, these can be threaded back up into the trim for when the shelf isnt in use.
view through the back window:
with the hatch closed you cant see the edges of the shelf and it gives it a nice OEM look, the mounting at the strut end, and the pressure of the hatch at the back keep it locked down and avoid any rattles or bouncing whilst in transit:
In order to gain access to the boot (trunk for you yankie doodles) when the hatch is up i need set up like standard hatch backs have... at the moment its a bit ghetto as im using left over speaker wire to form a loop that hooks onto the stock blind hooks, they run through the shelf and i have attached old sockets to the ends of the cable to add weight so that when closed the pull back down and stop the loops from being visible and tangling in the closing mechanism. in time i will get some stocky loops from a hatch back and a better weighting system.
The sound compared to what i did have is extremely good.. a bit too bassy as i havent played with my settings yet..
wow, im pooped after all that, sorry for the big post but i guess if anyone was looking to go down this path it gives a half decent run through
Cheers!
