Working on the interior.

[JohnAerostarXLT]

Today I made some progress on the interior of the van. I removed the middle seat by way of the rear hatch (the slider doesn't work), then I removed some trim and then the carpet.

The carpet was extremely nasty. I worked for hours cleaning it and it looks a lot better. It's still drying so no pics of it clean yet but here are a couple of the work-in-progress.

Before getting started:

Carpet out of the van:

Carpet removed:

I also relocated the driver's side rear-most seatbelt to the middle position as that one has been non-functional since I bought the van. Now, with the bench back in, I can at least carry 4 including myself, along with a ton of cargo since I don't have, nor intend on getting, a rear-most bench.

 

[BrooklynBay]

It might be better to get a commercial carpet remnant, and use the old carpet as a template. I think that there might be an aftermarket replacement which is an exact fit.

 

[JohnAerostarXLT]

Well, I got the carpet and seat back in the van. Here is a pic after I got the carpet in but before I installed the seat and trim. As you can see, a few minor stains remain and they'll be covered mostly by my tool box. My goal isn't to make the van showroom-new, just better than it was.

 

[BrooklynBay]

It looks a lot cleaner. You could use car mats to cover the stained areas.

 

[JohnAerostarXLT]

Thanks man, I worked hard on it. I honestly have $0 to fund this project so I had to use what was on hand: Some laundry soap, some SHOUT stain remover and my own elbow grease. It certainly smells a lot better, let me tell you. I don't think I'll allow people to smoke in the van anymore (I quit, save for a cigar once in a while).

 

[BrooklynBay]

Since it's being used as a work vehicle, maybe you could put plywood over the rear, and leave the seats out?

 

[JohnAerostarXLT]

I do occasionally carry passengers. That's why I took the time to replace the middle seatbelt so I could carry four instead of three people. I want to get buckets to replace the bench but, hey, I also want money and power, too, lol.