ok cleanup time
stuff it, removed whole back carpet section

befor

after

going to paint white rust over back. dont really need to, but peace of mind & protection. havent decided if i'll do another cleanup (get the last bits) or just paint it. too nackerd :)

going to take off the moulding again (for the painting) then decide. dut dut darrrr...

nar 1 coat will do, going to cover it anyway :)

decided to rivnut the wood supports

Had some center points from a dowel kit, but didnt stand or fit, so I made my own (the green stuff) out of a 3d printer I just got to experiment with (worked great)  :)

I should call this next section IN/OUT the number of times i take the boards out & back in :)

This stuff is making me feel my age :P

Hi MungoTheB, I have an iMax and I really like it except for the inability to put anything long into it (eg ladder or kayak or bike) as the seats aren't removable, nor do they fold flat--previous models allowed it but for some unknown reason, they restricted that.

Anyway, I'm thinking of at least removing the single, sliding seat in the middle row. I was delighted to find that you've done that (6 star-head bolts). I was wondering, whether you found any information on mounting points on the floor or where it's safe to bolt things down to? How did you figure out where to put the rivnuts for your wood supports?

Ideally, I'd love to have a 2, 2, 2 seat configuration with a central aisle:

|O  O|
|O  O|
|O  O|

But I'll probably have to settle for a side aisle:

|  OO|
|  OO|
|O  O|

Thanks for your reply Mungo! Once my kids leave home, I'll stop being a bus driver, rip out all my seats out, and do something similar to what you've done :D However, in the meantime, I've removed the single sliding seat so I can now fit 4 kayaks!

Unfortunately, it means I can only just fit 4 people, which is problematic as we're a family of 5.

I could fit 5 people if the rear seat had separate backs... Alternatively, perhaps I could put a 2 person seat in the 3rd row, although that would require me to get it certified (prohibitively expensive?). Do you still have any of the seats you removed?

sorry, no. got rid of the seats.
You havent looked into roof racks?
one of the advantages of an Imax/iload (and reason I got one) is low roof height.
unless you have a Lowwww garage, you should be able to roof rack and kayaks 2 high. (2x2 or even 3x1)
family of 5 but 4 kayaks? (3x2) :)

No probs about the seats. I think you're right about the roof racks, I should investigate them at least for the 2.7m adult kayak. We haven't got a 2nd adult kayak yet as we haven't figured out a way to transport it... :D

Thanks! Looking again at your very helpful photos, I'm reminded that I need to also consider the airconditioning pipes... Anyway, I'm now investigating "universal" seats designed to fit in any van. I found a site with every kind of seat imaginable--I even found one that is entirely removable, which is tempting  :

"The Combo Tourer folding seat provides an easy and flexible way to switch between cargo or carriage space and a bed. This seat brings you the capability of folding forward to reclaim that cargo space, or backwards to form a bed. Additionally, the Combo Tourer comes complete with quick-release pins for easy removal from your van. Most importantly, it comes complete with 3 point retractable seat belts." https://www.revampautofit.com.au/fitting-services/van-wagon-seats#combo-tourer

I've requested a quote but I suspect it will cost as much as my van! 

Hi mate,

just wondering if the 3rd row is easy to remove, I'm planning to have my Imax as temporary Camper with 3rd row removed. and after screw all bolts from 3rd row , is the floor complete flat to sleep on ? 

thanks

Michael

MichaelGJF wrote:

---

Hi mate,

just wondering if the 3rd row is easy to remove, I'm planning to have my Imax as temporary Camper with 3rd row removed. and after screw all bolts from 3rd row , is the floor complete flat to sleep on ? 

 

thanks

Michael

---

Took about 10 minutes. Used a small flat blade screwdriver to pop the 5 bolt covers off (eg photo here https://thegreynomads.activeboard.com/t66459481/newbie-with-hyundai-imax-iload-starex/?sort=oldestFirst&page=1#comment-66462415) and then removed the 6 bolts with a socket set. It's fairly heavy so I'd recommend 2 people to lift it out.

From memory, there are slight hollows but once you had a mattress in there, I don't think you'd notice.

Thanks a lot, mate! good luck and stay safe!

about time I added here (for my senility later :)
problem with grand ideas, but subjected to time, money, resources, lack of skills is you get to a point where you just want something in :)
I'm still mainly using it as a bike van, weekender, family mover vehicle :)
The console (base plate +2 levels) as I found the gap more useless than convenient

the rear, still not decided on the sides yet.

The Storage

The bike rack :)

Me (hate photos, but I have to prove it was me that done it (you can see the bike in the background :)

My first build

LOTS of mistakes

DONT use 12mm ply USE 18mm (better selection of bolts, screws & work area)

most was put together with odds & sods (LOTS of room for improvements)

Still need to rethink & improve (but aleast I have some basics in)

dont know why I cant paste 1 pic in here, but attached anyway and may as well add them all to one :)

water system in :) will work out howto pretty up later

Hi Mungo,

This is a very helpful thread for me. I'm in the market for a van and have found the same as you, the iMax always seem to be cheaper than the iLoad for equivalent kms. I'm a total novice with car related things so will be back here when the time comes, especially to review how to remove seats etc! Thanks for posting all the info.