Transform Your Wrangler into a Comfortable Rolling Bed
Your Jeep Wrangler can double as a sleeping quarters with the help of this DIY from the forum.
Whether you head into the woods with your Jeep Wrangler to go find the perfect fishing spot, hit the ideal hunting grounds or simply play around in your favorite mud hole, there have likely been times where you and your SUV have spent the night in the wilderness. Most people will pack a tent or sleep under the stars, but when the weather turns ugly, you may find yourself sleeping in your Jeep.
Now, if you have ever slept in your Wrangler, you probably know that reclining the front seats as far as they go – or laying the back seat down so that you can stretch out in the back – isn’t all that comfortable. The front seats don’t flatten out all of the way and when folded flat, the rear seats don’t make for a very comfortable bed.
Fortunately, forum member Rubicon Beast put together a fairly simple DIY on how to transform your Wrangler Unlimited into a comfortable little bed for the night.
Wrangler Unlimited Cargo Mattress Mod
Before getting into how he transformed his Jeep Wrangler Unlimited into the ideal sleeping quarters, Rubicon Beast explained the inspiration for this project.
I learned from a guy on a ski lift, a couple years ago, that he sleeps in his JKU at a state park a few miles away when he goes skiing. He told me that a twin mattress would fit in the back of a Wrangler if the front seats were move all the way forward. This is not a secret, but it was news to me.
I had a couple old 8″ mattresses in my attic, so I gave it a try on a quick trip with my two young kids (7 & 9 years-old).
Here’s what I learned:
It was very comfortable.
There’s plenty of room for 2 medium sized adults.
It’s tight for 3, even when two of them are half sized.
The mattress needed to be trimmed to fit around the center consul.
When sleeping to one side of the center console, it was easy to fall into the ~10″ space between the mattress and doors.
The mattress picked up every leaf, twig, and speck of dirt like a magnet.
The back seats could be used if the mattress was rolled tightly.
This blocked the rear window and left little space for gear.
The mattress was a bit unwieldy given its size.
So, the OP pointed out that simply wedging the mattress into the vehicle created a comfortable place to sleep, but there were some clear downsides. To correct these issues, he took a more elaborate approach, which he detailed step-by-step.
The More-Comfortable Bed Mod
I used two mattresses, cut into 3 sections –
One mattress was laid in sideways and cut to fit from door to door.
It was then trimmed to fit around the center consul just behind the front seats.
It was then cut into 2 pieces to roughly match the 60/40 split of the seats.
The left over foam was too small to fill the remaining cargo space in the back.
I had the luxury of a second mattress to use for this.
The foam was trimmed a bit here and there to fit the space better and to fit around a jump seat that I have in the back of my JKU.
Finally, my wife’s friend covered them with black canvas fabric.
I still use a full sized fitted sheet to cover them when I sleep.
Individually, the 3 pieces are very manageable.
They don’t attract leaves and dirt as readily.
They are modular, I can use just 2 of them when I’m alone which allows more space for gear and the driver seat can be left in its normal position.The 3 pieces stack neatly behind the second row without blocking the windows.
So, if you have a Jeep Wrangler Unlimited which occasionally doubles as your sleeping quarters for the night, all you need is a couple small mattresses, some free time and this handy DIY to create your own off-roading Jeep bed.
