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Fri Apr 03, 2015 12:24 pm

I finally got a little time today to finish a small project I've had on my idea list for a couple of years. I mounted a grab bar designed to mount above the glovebox in a Jeep CJ5 on the lower metal dash lip below the stereo in my Westy.

The bar is made by Rugged Ridge in black powdercoat purchased from Amazon for $23 and comes with black mounting hardware. http://www.amazon.com/Rugged-Ridge-11203-01-Black-...+Grab+bar.

Installation is fairly easy. I removed the heater cover so I could access the back of the dash lip. There's nothing behind the mounting points. I marked and drilled two 1/4" holes and mounted it with washers on both sides. Its solid. The lip itself will move a little if you put a lot of pressure on it ... its not anchored on the glovebox side. But, it's minor.

Why do this you ask? Because the bar is 1" in diameter, which is a standard motorcycle and bicycle handlebar size. This provides a little more than a foot of mounting space for handlebar-compatible accessories: cup holders, 12volt/USB ports, GPSs, light switches, winch switches, RAM and AMPS bar mounts, etc. without having to drill additional mounting holes in your dash, with easy access to power, and it just looks cool. I mounted 2 Kruzer Kaddy motorcycle cup holders in black powdercoat. The cup holders are awesome ... extremely well built and mount right at your fingertips. The bar clears the automatic shifter by more than an inch and the cupholders don't interfere with swiveling the seat or sliding through the aisle to get to the back of the van.

Took me half an hour all in all and its mostly reversible. I can plug the holes with black panel clips if I ever want to take it off and it would hardly be noticeable except to one of you guys.

Fri Apr 03, 2015 12:32 pm

Great idea - nicely done! 8)

Fri Apr 03, 2015 1:01 pm

Great idea! Would need the shifter extension for us manual shift guys.

Fri Apr 03, 2015 1:32 pm

Maybe the nicest cup holder mod I've seen. Nice job!

Fri Apr 03, 2015 1:40 pm

newfisher wrote: Great idea! Would need the shifter extension for us manual shift guys.

I wondered about that. Also the Syncros with the little control panel below the radio. I think it would work still. It also fits mounted at the top of the plastic heater cover about an inch lower than it is now, but rubs the shifter just slightly.

Fri Apr 03, 2015 2:17 pm

is it bolted to the heater cover? to anything else?

Fri Apr 03, 2015 2:21 pm

Merian wrote: is it bolted to the heater cover? to anything else?

It's bolted to the sheet metal on the lower part of the dash between the radio and the plastic heater cover.

Fri Apr 03, 2015 2:30 pm

This is a really nice dash cup holder solution!

As mentioned, one of the better ones. Doesn't look cobbled together or home made.

That plastic piece you bolted the grab bar to is only plastic. Did you do any reinforcement behind it?

The Kuzer Kaddy is also a nice touch.

They aren't cheap though.

To get the bar and two kaddies, you are well over a hundred dollars.

Then again, I bought an electric refrigerator for well over three that has cup holders in it!

Very very nice!

I am going to link this into the Cup Holder FAQ.

Dave

Fri Apr 03, 2015 2:41 pm

djkeev wrote: This is a really nice dash cup holder solution!

As mentioned, one of the better ones. Doesn't look cobbled together or home made.

That plastic piece you bolted the grab bar to is only plastic. Did you do any reinforcement behind it?

The Kuzer Kaddy is also a nice touch.

They aren't cheap though.

To get the bar and two kaddies, you are well over a hundred dollars.

Then again, I bought an electric refrigerator for well over three that has cup holders in it!

Very very nice!

I am going to link this into the Cup Holder FAQ.

Dave

Thanks, Dave!

My Westy has a strip of sheet metal that runs below the radio between the glovebox and the steering wheel. I assume other Vanagons are the same. Mine's a 91. The bar's bolted to that metal strip. It's not attached to the plastic at all. The heater cover comes off freely. In fact, I clipped the plastic cover back in place after I installed the cup holders. It's a very solid setup.

The Kruzer Kaddy is expensive, but will last forever. There are cheaper, but also cool bottle holders for enduro bikes that I thought about, but settled on the Kruzer's. All in it was about $110.

Fri Apr 03, 2015 3:31 pm

=D>

I think this will work just fine for a manual shift without any kind of extender. If anything, I think the auto appears closer to that mount point. I'll have to measure next time I'm in the van.

I'm a big fan of this solution! :D

Fri Apr 03, 2015 3:55 pm

I like it. \:D/

Fri Apr 03, 2015 4:15 pm

Pure genius. Thank you!

Fri Apr 03, 2015 4:28 pm

BlueGrasser wrote: =D>

I think this will work just fine for a manual shift without any kind of extender. If anything, I think the auto appears closer to that mount point. I'll have to measure next time I'm in the van.

I'm a big fan of this solution! :D

I should've thought to provide measurements before. The inside measurement is almost exactly 2" ... for those that have the Syncro controls or other switches mounted there. There's enough room to mount switches behind it and reach into the space. The outside of the bar extends 3" out from the dash. As mentioned previously, the bar is 1" in diameter and will take standard motorcycle or bicycle handlebar accessories like the Kruzer Kaddy or this handlebar-mounted power port: http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00RF3AW76/ref=mp_s_...ref=plSrch

Fri Apr 03, 2015 4:51 pm

BlueGrasser wrote: =D>

I think this will work just fine for a manual shift without any kind of extender. If anything, I think the auto appears closer to that mount point. I'll have to measure next time I'm in the van.

I'm a big fan of this solution! :D

I currently hit the stereo when I shift from reverse to 1st or when shifting into 3rd. Having the bar there, but lower, would most likely be a knuckle breaker. Its a killer set up and im definately copying it, just need to heat up the rose bud and manipulate the shifter.

Fri Apr 03, 2015 5:21 pm

newfisher wrote: BlueGrasser wrote: =D>

I think this will work just fine for a manual shift without any kind of extender. If anything, I think the auto appears closer to that mount point. I'll have to measure next time I'm in the van.

I'm a big fan of this solution! :D

I currently hit the stereo when I shift from reverse to 1st or when shifting into 3rd. Having the bar there, but lower, would most likely be a knuckle breaker. Its a killer set up and im definately copying it, just need to heat up the rose bud and manipulate the shifter.

Wow, our linkages must be different. Here's mine in first and reverse. I'm 5 or 6 inches out.

Fri Apr 03, 2015 6:01 pm

I am concerned about my hand hitting the drivers side cup holder in reverse though. Moving it any further left could be a knee banger and would be in the way of removing the seat. :-k

It does look like you can buy those cups with different mounting hardware though. Perhaps attaching straight into that metal strip below the stereo without the bar???

Fri Apr 03, 2015 6:14 pm

newfisher wrote: I currently hit the stereo when I shift from reverse to 1st or when shifting into 3rd. Having the bar there, but lower, would most likely be a knuckle breaker. Its a killer set up and im definately copying it, just need to heat up the rose bud and manipulate the shifter.

You need to rebuild and/or adjust your shift linkage, it shouldn't be anywhere near that close to the dash...

OP- this is definitely the cleanest solution I've seen yet, very good work! :D =D>

Fri Apr 03, 2015 6:42 pm

It could be my neanderthal like paws

Fri Apr 03, 2015 6:46 pm

BlueGrasser wrote: I am concerned about my hand hitting the drivers side cup holder in reverse though. Moving it any further left could be a knee banger and would be in the way of removing the seat. :-k

It does look like you can buy those cups with different mounting hardware though. Perhaps attaching straight into that metal strip below the stereo without the bar???

Left to right travel tolerance is a concern for manual transmissions, especially as our vans get older and looser. You'll notice in my installation, I mounted the cup holders just inside the curve of the bar to preserve space for a pair of future switches and a USB power port. They're about as far apart as you can get on that bar. The lower metal lip of the dash, which seems to have gone unused by VW extends all the way to the steering column on the left. Maybe someone can fabricate a 7/8" to 1.25" bar that utilizes that whole available space better with mounting points to the inside of the ends rather than the outside and gain several inches of mounting space.

Sat Apr 04, 2015 6:15 am

This morning I was surfing around looking for clamp on cup holders.

Turns Out there are quite a few styles from which to choose! Each with its own nuance to it.
The one the Op posted, a simple wire type, a simple ring that holds tapered cups, a soft vinyl bag like a pool table has at each pocket for balls, and a cup similar to the OP only it also has a slot for a mug handle.

In addition..... You can get a clamp on Cell phone mount, a clamp on Tablet mount, a clamp on GPS mount, a clamp on mount for anything with a belt clip and even just the clamp itself so you can make your own special mount for any object that you desire to mount! ...... I'm thinking Sunglass Holder........

I can see that bar now..... A crowded magic mounting bar looking for all the World like a police officers belt!

Dave