why can't just sleep in car?

waterkat · Post by **waterkat** » Thu Jan 20, 2005 1:19 pm

any one just sleep in car/ SUV?? if usually people camp next to the car..

can we?? :shock:

Rian Jackson · Post by **Rian Jackson** » Thu Jan 20, 2005 1:38 pm

You can if you want to.

Ranger Genius · Post by **Ranger Genius** » Thu Jan 20, 2005 1:53 pm

Some people do this, but if you don't have a shade structure over it, it turns into an oven thirty minutes after sunrise. Also, it's hard to entertain neighbors in the trunk of your impala.

stuart · Post by **stuart** » Thu Jan 20, 2005 1:54 pm

if you don't shade your car it will kill you to sleep in it, literally. Also, unless you want your car to get irrevocably filthy, it's best to drive in, get what you need out of it, lock it up, and don't get back in until you leave.

Rian Jackson · Post by **Rian Jackson** » Thu Jan 20, 2005 2:01 pm

Ranger Genius wrote:entertain neighbors in the trunk of your impala.

and therein lies the challenge.

Isotopia · Post by **Isotopia** » Thu Jan 20, 2005 2:02 pm

if you don't shade your car it will kill you to sleep in it, literally.

I've slept in my station wagon in mid-day sun with the windows cracked maybe 1/2"

stuart · Post by **stuart** » Thu Jan 20, 2005 2:10 pm

oh yeah! Well I've slept in my microwave with the power level at 6.

Badger · Post by **Badger** » Thu Jan 20, 2005 2:34 pm

I've slept in my station wagon in mid-day sun with the windows cracked maybe 1/2"

I'm serious. I was actually quite comfortable. I know it probably had everything in the world to do with the car being white. Slept for a full 6 hours.

Ranger Genius · Post by **Ranger Genius** » Thu Jan 20, 2005 2:46 pm

Someone needs to stick one of those soccer-ball shaped stickers on the back of the badger's yuppiemobile. And maybe one of those "proud parent of an honor student" stickers.

The ability to sleep in your car is subject to temperature, relative position of the sun, and amount of shade over or near it. Obviously, it can be and has been done.

Rian Jackson · Post by **Rian Jackson** » Thu Jan 20, 2005 2:49 pm

i saw him alseep in a vehicle once.
granted, it was an air conditioned RV.

i slept many a night in a vehicle, but it was pretty spacious and was covered by the edge of a shade structure. it was more temperate than my tent, despite the latter's high ceilings.

Dork · Post by **Dork** » Thu Jan 20, 2005 3:03 pm

Using masking tape (the 30-day removal type, not the cheap stuff) to tape mylar emergency blankets to windows helps keep the temperature down quite a bit, as well as adding privacy. Dust is still a big issue - the more you get in and out of your car, the more dust gets in. You will not ever get all of the dust out.

I slept in the back of my truck two years and it was great. I hacked together a shade over the top and used several emergency blankets.

theCryptofishist · Post by **theCryptofishist** » Thu Jan 20, 2005 3:19 pm

Isotopia wrote:
if you don't shade your car it will kill you to sleep in it, literally.
I've slept in my station wagon in mid-day sun with the windows cracked maybe 1/2"

I'm sorry, Iso, but this almost sounds like a varient on the caption contest threads. Everyone chimes in with their punchline.

(Which isn't to doubt your veracity, mind.)

swampdog · Post by **swampdog** » Thu Jan 20, 2005 3:43 pm

on when you plan to sleep.

In the worst heat of the day you could be pretty darned uncomfortable. There are all sorts of horror stories about babies and puppies dying in cars, but even in the mid-day sun an adult would probably wake up and be able to get out.

In case of extreme cold or rain? You'd be stylin. (except for the dust/mud).

dragonfly Jafe · Post by **dragonfly Jafe** » Thu Jan 20, 2005 3:45 pm

stuart wrote:oh yeah! Well I've slept in my microwave with the power level at 6.

Did your earings spark?

Badger · Post by **Badger** » Thu Jan 20, 2005 4:17 pm

Someone needs to stick one of those soccer-ball shaped stickers on the back of the badger's yuppiemobile.

My soccer mom car is a stealth, terrorist vehicle that outs fear into the hearts of, well, soccer moms and my insurance company.

regynalonglank · Post by **regynalonglank** » Thu Jan 20, 2005 4:58 pm

i slept in me van quite a bit...also white. also still dusty...but who cares! slept like a baby...much quieter too mind you. ah, sleep....

robotland · Post by **robotland** » Fri Jan 21, 2005 5:33 am

Coupla car tips:
If you drive something with a "front area" and a "cargo area", like a minivan, station wagon, SUV or, in my case, an Element, you can hang a blanket behind the front seats (slam the ends in the doors, or roll them up in the windows if necessary) to create a "bulkhead" that'll keep dust out of the front where all the REALLY hard-to-clean stuff is....Check to make sure that there's an inside release on the tailgate or hatchback, though. They skipped that detail on my Honda, even though they advertise it as a hipster campmobile.
Furnace filters (those fiberglassy rectangular ones with cardboard frames- also available in roll-stock) can be fitted to sun/moon roofs and windows to provide a little privacy with ventilation and dust control.
If you've got a roof rack, use pvc or wood lath-strips tied to the rack to make a lightweight frame for a tarp....(silver- don't use blue!) Creating a shade layer a foot or so away from the vehicle will make it much more comfortable. If you orchestrate it properly, you can anchor the tarp on at least one side by laying it out on the ground and then driving over the edge. Then up-and-over, and bungees or dirt anchors.
I slept in my ride almost every night last year- It got COLD!

unjonharley · Post by **unjonharley** » Fri Jan 21, 2005 6:29 am

slep in the van 3 years w\carport. This year i plan a ground tarp(as before)then wrap the van. also will be adding some (mylar tarps)

unjonharley · Post by **unjonharley** » Fri Jan 21, 2005 6:34 am

oh! Thanks robotland, for the car top carrier\ air space idea.

Gizmo · Post by **Gizmo** » Mon Jan 24, 2005 8:14 pm

If you sleep in your car at night, no problem, it's cold at night.
Just a wild guess here, waterkat, but I imagine you to be the kind of guy who likes to parteeeeee all night and sleep in the daytime. The previous posters here have given some good advice on shade for your car.
My advice would to be to get your shade system together early this summer. As soon as the temperature starts getting into the 90's, park your car in the sun and put on your shade stuff and see how comfey it is inside after a few hours. Oh, and yank like hell on the stuff to try and simulate hurricane force winds. Better to get the "oh shit!" factor worked out before you get to the Playa.

Mister Jellyfish Mister · Post by **Mister Jellyfish Mister** » Mon Jan 24, 2005 8:22 pm

Badger wrote:
Someone needs to stick one of those soccer-ball shaped stickers on the back of the badger's yuppiemobile.
My soccer mom car is a stealth, terrorist vehicle that outs fear into the hearts of, well, soccer moms and my insurance company.

Sounds like Badger and Kernul Killbuck were cut from the same camo-net:

HEADBANDMAN · Post by **HEADBANDMAN** » Tue Jan 25, 2005 2:37 pm

Hell yea you can. The last two years we have slept in our 1986 chevey corsica van. They are the uglyest van you have ever seen. You can buy one for about $600 bucks. Kate cut out white sheet templates of each window and then little velcrowed thingys and put those babies up. The van was trashed already so it's no big deal to clean it up. We did put a big tarp shade strucure/porch for shade. works great.

HughMungus · Post by **HughMungus** » Tue Jan 25, 2005 6:07 pm

You can. One year a girl in our group slept in the car. If she wanted to sleep during the day when it was hot, she would turn on the engine/AC (funny).

One year I brought a tent and all that stuff and parked near some friends and while trying to figure out if I wanted to set-up my tent in the dark, decided to just sleep in the back of the truck. Did that the rest of the time there (and hung out in friends' public space).

The only downside is that you'd have no shaded "hanging out" space.

waterkat wrote:any one just sleep in car/ SUV?? if usually people camp next to the car..

can we?? :shock:

occupant · Post by **occupant** » Sun Feb 06, 2005 10:13 pm

I sleep in my van as it is many nights here in Dallas. I can probably handle that if it's going to be 40s-50s at night, and the morning heat will wake me up. The dust issue won't bother me, I'll detail the thing when I get home, it's all plastic inside, easy cleaning, and the carpet is thin.

Is it permissible to run the engine to use AC in the evening hours? I imagine I'll need to put a mat underneath to catch the evaporative water runoff from the A/C, and also the various fluids my "Van of Questionable Mechanical Integrity" likes to spit out at idle. Might not be as much water runoff in the desert as here in Dallas, but better safe than moop.

geekster · Post by **geekster** » Sun Feb 06, 2005 10:20 pm

Considering that nighttime temperatures dropped into the 30's and 40's at BM04, you probably won't be needing that AC at night. It is pretty doggone cold at night. The chill starts as soon as the sun drops behind the mountain.

sputnik · Post by **sputnik** » Mon Feb 07, 2005 3:24 am

You really should put a drip mat down for any vehicle.

Isotopia · Post by **Isotopia** » Mon Feb 07, 2005 12:11 pm

You really should put a drip mat down for any vehicle.

Why?

Bob · Post by **Bob** » Mon Feb 07, 2005 12:20 pm

Because (ahem) any vehicle may drip with ennui?

theCryptofishist · Post by **theCryptofishist** » Mon Feb 07, 2005 12:42 pm

Isotopia wrote:
You really should put a drip mat down for any vehicle.
Why?

Visits from Aunt Flo.

sputnik · Post by **sputnik** » Mon Feb 07, 2005 12:44 pm

OK, I suppose not just any vehicle, but certainly any that have oil or gas leak issues.

why can't just sleep in car?

why can't just sleep in car?

so it kinda depends...

Our Van

Re: why can't just sleep in car?