Check out this very cool side window hack that we found in the following video.

We’ve been carrying our EVDO data card with us so we can get online in the van, but that didn’t seem like a Vanagon Hack, so we decided to get a more permanent WiFi solution in the Vanagon.

As you can see in the video, we wired the outlet to the stereo for on/off capabilities.

More pictures after the jump…

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Talk about a vanagon hack. This guy has the ultimate Vanagon hack in a stretch Vanagon with 2 pop tops, and 2 bench seats inside. He calls his van “Vanalong” and it is quite long. Check out his MySpace page for more pictures.

A user at The Samba posted a series of pictures on how he mounted a HDTV in his Vanagon. You can head over to the forum topic here to see all the pictures. This is very cool!

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We added an additional fluorescent light to the passenger’s side of the Vanagon. We had to fish from the back light, but that wasn’t so bad. You can purchase these lights at GoWesty for about $55 and install it yourself. It adds a lot of light to the cab.

We decided to put a few cup holders around the front area of the Vanagon. We ordered them from GoWesty, and put some in beside the shifter, and on the side of the passenger’s seat. Now we can carry drinks for everyone in the van.

Have you wondered why there is no light over the passenger’s seat in your Vanagon? With a little work, you can have one. We purchased an extra light from GoWesty and then started the project.

See the project after the jump…

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We hate to say it but we finally gave up on the big brake kit from Van Cafe. It looks good, but it completely sucks! Messing with this kid has cost us 8 months and loads of money. The guys at Van Cafe were great to work with and they changed out parts for us (including shipping charges), but the bottom line is we still have lots of noise. We managed to get rid of the knocking sounds by changing rotors and hubs, but there is so much brake noise that it’s a deal breaker.

We do not recommend these brakes at all! 

We’ll be back to Van Cafe for other goodies, but not these brakes.  In our opinion, they suck!

Update: 2 days after installing the kit we had a noise problem and have not been able to solve it. We had to grind down the lower edge of the brake pads, but that didn’t do much. We’re stumped. At this point I can’t really recommend this kit. Once we get this noise issue worked out we’ll see how it goes.

Van-Cafe sent us new calipers and pads, but the problem still exists. We’re almost positive it’s in the rotor or hub. We seem to have received bad parts, but can’t be 100% positive which part it is. Still working on it…..

We bought a Big Brake kit from Van Cafe (those guys are great to work with). It came in 2 small, but heavy boxes. We had a few issues with the tight fit, and poor work previously done on the back brakes that caused a low pedal. Once those issues were worked out the Big Brake Kit functions nicely.

If you are considering the Big Brake Kit please realize that there is no noticeable difference under normal braking conditions. It feels the same while you drive. The real benefit happens under extreme conditions. I’ve noticed better braking on hills. Nothing to knock your socks off, but better braking.

The forums for VanagonHacks.com are now open. We’ll monitor the activity and open new forums as needed. For now, please post your hacks and/or questions in the general forum.

Talk back in the Forums

We’ve been looking for new wheels for the Vanagon for quite awhile now. Why do we want new wheels? It’s all about the ride. Some people want nice looks, but we want a nice ride. The stock wheels come with reinforced sidewalls which makes the ride quite rough. We think we can get a larger rim, with a shorter tire and it will actually feel better because the sidewalls won’t be quite as stiff. We’d also like slightly wider tires for better handling.

We have a set of Mercedes 16″ wheels with brand new tires that would be perfect for the vanagon but we cannot find lug nuts that fit. We have to drill the Mercedes wheels to make them fit but unless we find the lug nuts, we can’t do it.

You can see our comparison shot. The short one is the vanagon bolt and the longer one is the Mercedes bolt. We need a bolt that is as long as the Mercedes, but as thick as the Vanagon’s bolt. I’m not an expert so this is quite a hassle. Nobody seems to have what we need.

We’ll probably have to end up purchasing the Go Westy Wheels but they won’t ship the tires to Honolulu. They recommend 15″ wheels for our Carat but we’re seriously looking at going with the 16″ wheels. We’ll put a slightly lower profile Michelin tire on it and see how it goes.

UPDATE: We decided to skip the Mercedes wheels as finding the right lugnuts was a hassle.  We bought Go Westy 16″ Wheels and they work like a charm.

This hack was a lot of fun. I saw another vanagon that had one of these and I just HAD to have it. I ordered this bottle opener from a company called Homebrewers Outpost and we were in business. We painted it, and then installed it. I get so many comments about this little hack and it works great!

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