Interstate Mods - I'll go First

[orlik]

Originally Posted by GETRIDAONE

I got tired of fighting with the velcro straps that hold up the rear bed wings. A strip of plastic with small bolts, nuts, and washers took care of it. It is a one hand operation now, just lift and twist.

GETRIDAONE - Did you you fabricate the plastic pieces out of something or did you buy them? That is a good idea that I would like to duplicate. Thanks

[GETRIDAONE]

They were just random plastic pieces ? You could use aluminum or hard wood about 1/4" or 5/16" thick and an inch wide or so. I had some plastic spray paint close to the color and matched pretty well. I used a snap button cap and 1/4" phillips head bolt with a nylon insert locking nut to adjust the tension. The front washer is to keep the latch from digging into the mouse fur. I was scared of the mouse fur twisting up on a drill bit so I used an awl and made the hole for the bolt to go through. You can see my mounting method from the impromptu mock up attached.

[orlik]

[QUOTE=GETRIDAONE;2192148]They were just random plastic pieces ? You could use aluminum or hard wood about 1/4" or 5/16" thick and an inch wide or so. I had some plastic spray paint close to the color and matched pretty well. I used a snap button cap and 1/4" phillips head bolt with a nylon insert locking nut to adjust the tension. The front washer is to keep the latch from digging into the mouse fur. I was scared of the mouse fur twisting up on a drill bit so I used an awl and made the hole for the bolt to go through. You can see my mounting method from the impromptu mock up attached.[/QUOTE

Thanks for the pic. Very helpful.

[Mcrid]

GETRIDAONE, great idea that I had to copy. I've not installed them yet. Waiting for the poly to cure a bit more to polish them further. I added a backing plate for a bit more structural support.

[Mcrid]

Installed an easier accessible USB plug for the head set. So now have one in the dash compartment and the other easily accessible outside.

[Rig Rat]

I used some galvanized sheet metal to cover the area in front of the shower for a magnetic storage space.

With the addition of a umbra coat rack and magnetic hooks we now hang our coats, dog leashes, fly swatter , emergency puck light and other items in a previously under utilized space !

[InterBlog]

Great minds think alike. My version from 2015 (I've got a lot more stuff on it now):

[TN Princess]

I did this mod today. Before the mod, while standing at the back door, I needed to aim the fob thru the back window. No more... Also I can lock or unlock from at least 30 feet away. Time was less than 30 minutes. The most difficult part is removing the "cloth" tape holding the antenna in OE position.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yJdk...ature=youtu.be

[Boxster1971]

Originally Posted by TN Princess

I did this mod today. Before the mod, while standing at the back door, I needed to aim the fob thru the back window. No more... Also I can lock or unlock from at least 30 feet away. Time was less than 30 minutes. The most difficult part is removing the "cloth" tape holding the antenna in OE position.

TN Princess - thanks for posting this. Reminded me that this is still on my todo list.

Here is the original source of this fix from Sprinter-Source forum....

https://sprinter-source.com/forum/sh...ad.php?t=62316

It has some other approaches and a lot of comments from folks who made the fix and found it also worked better. It was one of the commenters who made the video above. Apparently it came from a Mercedes Technical Bulletin.

[Alex AVI]

Originally Posted by TN Princess

I did this mod today. Before the mod, while standing at the back door, I needed to aim the fob thru the back window. No more... Also I can lock or unlock from at least 30 feet away. Time was less than 30 minutes. The most difficult part is removing the "cloth" tape holding the antenna in OE position.

TNPRINCESS - Very good video. I had to FFW past lot of the footage but that's because I've taken my dash apart many times over. But for someone who may be a little tentative about how to, this is an excellent step-by-step to follow start-finish. Is the problem only on certain Sprinter MYs? Mine is a 2017 and I have none of the issues. That shot of him past his driveway (30-40ft. from right door) is exactly my distance from where I usually hit my fob when AI is on my driveway facing street and I am inside my other garage door. Haven't had issues, yet! Or is this also associated with degradation on the RF receiver? Or MB changed routing on later models?

[scott.semone]

I recently installed a side ladder and roof-rack on our 2017 Interstate Grand Tour Tommy Bahama; I designed the roof rack to serve as a platform for additional viewing and star gazing, as well as transporting our kayak and fly rods.

[TN Princess]

Alex AVI "Mine is a 2017 and I have none of the issues."

From reading the post referenced by: Boxster 1971, This may not be an issue with newer Sprinters (MB might have relocated the antenna). My Sprinter chassis is 2016.

[CharlieOscar]

Originally Posted by scott.semone

I recently installed a side ladder and roof-rack on our 2017 Interstate Grand Tour Tommy Bahama; I designed the roof rack to serve as a platform for additional viewing and star gazing, as well as transporting our kayak and fly rods.

Got any pics? I've been interested in doing this but want to see how it looks.

[Alex AVI]

Originally Posted by TN Princess

I did this mod today. Before the mod, while standing at the back door, I needed to aim the fob thru the back window. No more... Also I can lock or unlock from at least 30 feet away. Time was less than 30 minutes. The most difficult part is removing the "cloth" tape holding the antenna in OE position.

Originally Posted by TN Princess

Alex AVI "Mine is a 2017 and I have none of the issues."

From reading the post referenced by: Boxster 1971, This may not be an issue with newer Sprinters (MB might have relocated the antenna). My Sprinter chassis is 2016.

UPDATE - After TNPRINCESS posted this mod, I was curious how my keyfob range really was. I knew I did not have to be up-close to activate my locks. But I had no idea what my range is. I started to remove the glove box and find my antenna cable. Wait! Wrong move. Why go through all that trouble without testing it first.

I tested my keyfob from every blocked area behind the rear door, with all day/night shades down, even under the bumper, inside the hitch, under the dually, and it worked all the time. I did the distance test mostly from behind the van (45 degrees to it's driver & passenger doors, then lined up on driver & passenger mirrors, and dead center on hitch) - I got as far back as 1,010 inches (> 84 ft.) without problems. Beyond that to 90 ft., it could still work but it became intermittent, depending on how high I held fob above my head & how long I kept my finger on button.

So looks like MB relocated the antenna on MY 2017 & later or they increased the gain on the RF receiver. Still don't know where my antenna is though

[rowiebowie]

Originally Posted by Alex AVI

So looks like MB relocated the antenna on MY 2017 & later or they increased the gain on the RF receiver. Still don't know where my antenna is though

I sense a slight bit of disappointment, not finding yet another excuse to tear into your Sprinter's dash.
.

[Alex AVI]

Originally Posted by rowiebowie

I sense a slight bit of disappointment, not finding yet another excuse to tear into your Sprinter's dash.
.

ROWIEBOWIE - yeah, a bit, but did not want to miss SuperBowl party at daughter's place. Just another excuse to pigout and eat unhealthy My dashboard deserves a break from me though.

[rmkrum]

How about those Rams? I’m super glad I watched the puppy bowl. It was a higher scoring game, and the players are much cuter...

And yeah, the local LA crowd is real quiet now...and I’m glad I don’t follow pro sports.

[Tincampers]

I moved the spare from behind the inside right rear door to the outside of the left door. Used a Surco spare tire rack. Pretty easy to install but does require drilling a hole into the door skin for the third bolt.

[Pahaska]

When I converted to twin beds, I rotated the bed extensions and mounted them as headboards on the beds. I covered the plywood they are mounted on with black marine bunker padding.

I will mount a large net pouch on the RS headboard. On the CS headboard, I have a paper towel hanger loaded with shop towels I use to wipe off my power cable and water hose when they are wet. In addition, I have Command broom holders for my windshield squeegee and my hitch pin. I have the Command items screw mounted.

As I find additional convenient items, I'll mount them as well. Since all are screw mounted through the bunker padding, I can rearrange items without leaving "scars." I'll add a magnet to hold the spare key for my hitch pin lock.

Since the upper areas where the bed extensions retracted are empty, I store my satchel with all of the AI paperwork in one side with a little bungee cord to keep it in place.

[Titus]

We were on the road (actually on the ocean and river) when the remote entry string was posted, so missed it until now. Wondering if it is possible - or advisable - to install a longer antenna when doing the relocating. Would it help to have a longer antenna stretching further across the upper portion of the dashboard.