Where to, where to, where to?

Where to put the spare wheel? - Where to put the bikes? - Where to put the SUP, the neoprene?

Rear carrier system

Already with Hector, BUTCH's predecessor, the Logo rear carrier from VW on the one hand. - On the other hand, we have also become aware of its weaknesses. The advantage of this design is that this carrier is not mounted on the trailer coupling and does not get in the way off-road or when opening the tailgate. This is because this model is mounted directly on the tailgate. The disadvantage is that the Logo rear carrier is just a bike carrier and not a sophisticated rear carrier system.

Modular rear carrier system:

The whole thing not only seemed a bit adventurous, it was. Not something you can recommend with a clear conscience. So we had a little look around. We quickly found the website of Terranger. Under the description "Rear carrier system, modular, flexible, retrofittable!" we quickly found what we were looking for. Actually exactly what we were looking for. In our blog - "Who invented it" - I had already reported a little on this. - But what kind of prices? - First of all, I found the whole thing far too expensive. - There must be a cheaper way. - So I kept looking. - At Gmb-Mount  we discovered a cheaper solution, but not one that convinced us personally. - But this was above all our first, personal and purely subjective impression. This variant is also based on the rear carrier logo. The basic price seems attractive. We were reluctant to spread our load over just two aluminum cross profiles. Just form your own opinion.

Gas struts:

But we found something else on their site. More load means, above all, more weight on the tailgate. That's why it was clear from the start that we also wanted to reinforce the gas struts. Here we found an offer that sounded great at first glance. They offer a set of "gas springs for tailgate incl. reinforcements - 2x 2000 N - adjustable". - 2000 N is 500 Newtons more than Terranger offers, for example* - The price also seemed quite attractive. - So we went for it. Whether this was the right decision remains to be seen. The coachbuilder at our trusted garage has already warned us very emphatically. The above-mentioned reinforcements would not be sufficient in the long term to absorb the forces acting on the tailgate.

Perhaps this is the reason for the higher price on the Terranger side. In any case, their mounting kit for reinforced gas springs looks much more massive. *Quote from Terranger: "1500 Newtons is the maximum we and the tailgate are currently capable of" - but by then our damper had already been purchased and fitted. - The term adjustable is also clearly ambiguous. I would have liked to have a gas spring where the pressure can be flexibly adjusted using an air pump, just like on a bicycle. This would make you variable and independent. Especially if no carrier is fitted. With the variant you have purchased, you can only release the pressure once. So Terranger, GMB-Mount & Co. need to catch up here.

Do it yourself or original?

So a DIY - i.e. a "do it yourself" - rear carrier after all? Thanks to @nurmalkurzraus, I found a few useful tips on his Instagram account. Now I'm not exactly the classic metalworker. But what's a big brother for? And one with expertise in steel, thanks to DHMhis own metal construction. A plan quickly emerged: take suggestions from @nurmalkurzraus, Terranger & Co, modify them and make them as inexpensive as possible. - So much for the plan.

Work steps:

What has become of it? - First, the rear carrier with the name Logo was ordered directly from VW. - Where there's a logo on it, there's a logo in it, right? - There was a logo inside, but the wrong logo. So watch out, there is a second, newer version. It costs the same as the old one. But new does not necessarily mean better. This form was unsuitable for our purposes. So we returned the whole thing. A few days later, we finally got the right one. About the company relleum design  we ordered airline rails. The owner, Mr. Dirk Müller-Paul, not only provided competent advice, but above all delivered quickly. Already powder-coated on request. - The next step was to dismantle everything. Drilling holes in the rails and fixing them with Stainless steel U-bolt with M 4 thread.

To make dismantling and thus possible theft more difficult, anti-theft nuts from the company Toolcraft for use. The plastic brackets were replaced with stainless steel ones. To create more stability between the aluminum frame and the lashing rails, an additional transverse stiffener was fitted. Finally, a spare wheel support module was added.

Now it was time to dismantle the whole thing again and take it to the powder coating department. This was done at Pajak powder coating in Würselen. We found the service to be fast, good, competent and, above all, reasonably priced. Finally, they put everything together again and installed it. I am delighted with the result. Thanks to the support of my brother, everything turned out just as we had hoped.

Conclusion:

My brother and I came to a clear conclusion: There is a reason why a rear carrier system like the one from the company Terranger may seem expensive at first glance, but at second glance they may be much cheaper than first thought. There is much more expertise and development work involved here than first thought. What's more, a conversion like this involves a lot more work than initially thought. I am thoroughly convinced by our rear carrier, but I have to admit that the details of the Terranger rear carrier system are better solved. So if you have a lot of manual skills or, like me, have a brother with a metal construction background, you can definitely try a DIY - the "do it yourself" - rear carrier. - For everyone else, I recommend spending a little more money and opting for the original.

Addendum:

Even though we installed shock absorbers reinforced to 2000 Nm, the weight of the tailgate, including the folding bikes, was simply too high to keep it up. That's why we came up with a new interior concept in which the folding bikes are at the back of the interior. We have Ben, one of the managing directors of SpaceCamper, to thank for this. The logical consequence: a new conversion of the rear rack. The folding bike frame is no longer required. Instead, a retaining plate was developed for our SUP bag.

We deliberately decided not to powder-coat the aluminum plate, as this is not visible when the bag is fitted. This not only makes our rear end look more harmonious, it also makes the vehicle approx. 25 cm shorter. This has two advantages. It is easier to find a parking space and the potential danger for cyclists is reduced. If in doubt, you can now ride against a padded bag instead of a black aluminum frame. Once again, we would like to thank the professionals at DHM - Competence in steel.

PS: Here you can find our SpaceCampers Equipment details, our SpaceCamper Expansion, the SpaceCamper Detail equipment "Last Call, as well as SpaceCamper Insider tips.

Here our TERRANGER Offroad modifications, info about the topics Terranger off-road driving training, Energy management, DIY Water tanks, Vehicle Security & Anti-Theft, pit stop at delta4x4, Sand sheets, Vehicle foiling and Ceramic sealing.

To round off the topic Product piracy with offroad tuners.

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