New curtain system & cushions for the Travato

While I am waiting on my new batteries to arrive, I've been able to fool around with a few minor projects.  Tweaks is more what they are.   I've tried a few different setups for a cab curtain.   On the newer Travatos, the bulkhead has soft padding and there are 3 snap-screws holding this material in place.  On the old vans, there is only a screw on the outer edges of the hard plastic.  

I like the idea of a curtain at the back of the cab for quick privacy and not have to set up the fiddly window covers.   But what I also wanted was an install that didn't require drilling any new holes.   I like things to be reversible if I change my mind later.

I bought this curtain rod  a few months ago.  I wanted something that could be mounted, but also hold the curtain securely (that wind or the occasional quick pull wouldn't easily take down).  Also needed something that would extend the full width of the van, edge to edge, but wouldn't interfere with the screen side door.   I think this may be the one.

I just folded over my old curtain to hang it.  It will need to be hemmed too.   I also have a black curtain that may work better.  In my Travato G, that seemed too dark to use.  The K may be a different story as there is so much more light inside with all the windows.  Here it is hung in place.

What I did was remove the snap-screws that are mounted to this upper bulkhead at the back of the cab section.   They are used to hold this padding in place and are quite long - about 2".   Simply back them out, and then re-install with rod support brackets.   The can screw down quite tightly, so I have no doubts these three screws will hold the rod adequately.   The curtain is held with clips that came with the rod.

The silver of this rod is a pretty good match to the color of the vinyl padding.

What I like is that the curtain glides down the rod and is easy to bunch up on one side or the other.

You can just bungee it together as a tie-back.

Since this is an adjustable rod, you can bring it all the way out to the vans walls.   I didn't do that on the passenger side, as you need to have clearance for the screen door.  As you see here, plenty of room, yet the opening is still covered by the curtain.

Seen from the outside, there is still a little light shining thru at the top.  Not exactly stealth, but OK for privacy.   I think this can be solved with different hooks or clips to close that gap with the bottom of the rod.

Another thing I wanted to do was change out my "sofa" bolsters.   The brown color doesn't quite match the bottom cushion, so it looked odd to me.

So I went back to the company that I ordered the old ones from and got a different color.  Along with these different Sunbrella patio pillows, it's a lot brighter look.

They call this a twill fabric.  It's soft and appears a durable micro-fiber.   Believe this can be removed and thrown in the washer to clean it.