TheSamba.com :: View topic - Riviera Owners...Please help...Rear Seat Question

Mon Apr 03, 2006 12:53 am

Hi Folks,

I'm in the processo f upgrading my 73 rivvy interior to a 78. I like cabinets! Anyway, I'm trying to install the rear z bed and it's giving me fits! I can't get the bed to align properly. Is there some kind of trick? The rear seat is far too vertical, and has a bunch of play back and forth. The interior is from a wreck, and I'm wondering if the seat got tweaked.

Any tips or advice sure would be apreciated!

Thanks,
Jason

Mon Apr 03, 2006 6:45 am

you may have your Z frame too far rearward.

Mine is a vanagon Riviera deck height is differant but may mount similiar..

on mine theres a 2x wood strip right at the peak of the firewall/rear deck, my guess is this gives it something non-metal to slide/lean against.

notice I said lean. the seat back leans back slightly (non-verticle) against that board. (see board desc below). move your seat base ahead alightly to create a rearward lean. probably just an inch or 2.. if you already have the seat holes drilled move it forward to the next set..

the back board is like a 2x3 cut in half diagonally. and screwed tot he firewall more so then the deck.

if your Z frame looks straight, it is.. unliekly it was tweaked in an accident.

Dan.

Thu Aug 21, 2008 12:18 pm

I have a 72 riviera and I'm having this same problem. My seat is definitely mounted the stock distance forward of the rear deck. When I got it there was a board with an angle cut across that the seat would bump into, and when it was folded into a bed, the seat back would rest on that.

Since it was severely thrashed I had to replace it with just a straight board a few years ago. I can't remember now if the angled-cut board made the seat back more stable? Right now it's like a recliner, almost; you can lean back, and the leverage above the bump-board pushes the whole seat forward, halfway to making it a bed.

I've visualized all kinds of configurations of wood that might make it more stable, but as far as I can tell the whole design seems flawed.

Anyone got a riviera bed/ seat that doesn't have a wobbly back?

Thu Aug 21, 2008 12:21 pm

oh yeah, rereading the original post, I realize that his problem was with a westfalia bed, not the original riviera.

Well, my problem is with the riviera bed, and the post name suits me, so... :-)

Thu Aug 21, 2008 12:42 pm

I posted some pics in this thread if it helps:

http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?p=3177693&highlight=#3177693