IES84027Y1 - Methods and assemblies for modifying vehicles - Google Patents

Abstract

ABSTRACT An assembly is provided for modifying a vehicle by mounting an opaque body panel on a window opening so that the body panel is covered to the exterior by the vehicle window. This preserves the outward appearance of the vehicle while modifying the window so that it can conceal the goods in the rear compartment of the vehicle and may qualify a vehicle for commercial vehicle status for Customs and taxation purposes. The modification can also provide the optical illusion of the vehicle being unmodified due to tinted glass and reflections from the glass.

Description

Methods and assemblies for modifying vehicles Technical Field This invention relates to a method of modifying a vehicle and an assembly for use in same.

Background Art It is not uncommon to replace the windows of a vehicle with metal or other non—transparent panels. Most typically, this modification occurs in commercial vehicles such as car—derived vans which are based on regular saloon, estate cars, sport utility vehicles (SUVS) or minibuses. The reason for replacing the windows of a van with metal panels can be for added security, to conceal the interior of the van from view, or to comply with Customs, Revenue or vehicle licensing regulations.

In Ireland, for example, commercial vehicles qualify for reduced Customs duties and motor tax but in order to do so, they must fulfil certain physical requirements. One of these is that any side windows behind the driver and passenger seats must be replaced with metal panels or other opaque panels. In the case of vans which are simple conversions from regular saloon or estate cars, etc. this is not a difficult matter to achieve, but it negatively impacts the appearance of the vehicle.

Vehicles converted in this way (in which the rearward side windows are removed and replaced by a metal or other opaque panel) are less attractive in some senses than regular vehicles to business owners because there is a disincentive to use such a vehicle for leisure purposes.

Disclosure of the invention The invention provides a method of modifying a vehicle body comprising the steps of: a) providing a body panel shaped and dimensioned to fit a window opening of the vehicle body; b) mounting said body panel in said window opening to thereby cover said opening; whereby when a window is provided on said window opening to the exterior of said body panel, the window covers said body panel from the outside of the vehicle.

The invention further provides a vehicle having a window opening, a body panel mounted on said window opening to thereby cover the opening; and a window mounted on said opening to thereby cover the body panel.

The method of the invention provides a vehicle which, from the exterior, has the appearance of a regular unmodified vehicle.

Taking the example of a saloon, hatchback, estate car, SUV or minibus, the rear side windows can be modified according to the method of the invention such that from the exterior they will appear to be regular side windows. It has surprisingly been found that at a casual glance, it is not readily visible that the window openings have in fact been obscured by body panels. It is speculated that this may be due to the close proximity of the window to the body panel, to the prevalence of tinted glass, or to the accustomisation of the modern eye to vehicle windows.

When one looks at an unmodified vehicle it is not at all uncommon to be unable to see the interior due either to the difference in light levels between the interior and exterior of the vehicle and the reflectivity of the glass or due to tinted windows being used, but in any event, the human eye simply assumes that it is a regular vehicle with glass windows if the interior cannot be seen. The fact that a body panel is mounted on the window opening behind the glass does not register with the person viewing the vehicles, whose eye is tricked into assuming that the vehicle simply has normal glass windows.

Therefore, the invention enables a vehicle to be modified to meet the requirements of Customs, Revenue or to conceal the contents of the vehicle from view, without appearing at first glance to be any different from a regular saloon, hatchback or estate car. This significantly increases the perceived value of the vehicle to a business owner and provides a more aesthetically pleasing vehicle.

The invention further provides an assembly for a vehicle window opening, the assembly comprising an opaque body panel dimensioned to cover the window opening, a window panel mounted to said body panel and dimensioned to cover said body panel; and sealing means providing a seal around the periphery of the assembly to seal a window opening when the assembly is mounted thereon.

Brief Description of the Drawings The invention will now be further illustrated by the following description of an embodiment thereof, given by way of example only and with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Fig. 1 is a front perspective View of an assembly according to the present invention; Fig. 2 is a rear perspective View of the assembly of Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is a front elevation of the assembly of Fig.

Fig 4 is a rear elevation of the assembly of Fig. 1; Fig. 5 is an exploded View illustrating the mounting of the assembly of Fig. l in a vehicle window opening; Fig. 6 is an interior perspective view of a vehicle window opening with the assembly in place; Fig. 7 is a cross section of the assembly shown in Fig. 2, taken along the line VII — VII; Fig. 8 is a sectional View of the assembly of Fig. , taken along the line VIII — VIII; Fig. 9 is an enlarged view of the upper end of the assembly as shown in Fig. 8; Fig. 10 is an enlarged view of the lower end of the assembly shown in Fig. 8; Fig. 11 is a cut—away view of the corner of a second embodiment of an assembly according to the present invention; Fig. 12 is an elevation of the body panel partly shown in Fig. 11; Fig. 13 is an enlarged View of the upper end of the assembly as shown in Fig. 11; and Fig. 14 is an enlarged View of the lower end of the assembly shown in Fig. 11.

Detailed description of preferred embodiments Referring generally to Figs. 1 — 4, there is indicated, generally at 10, an assembly for use in modifying a vehicle according to the invention. The assembly 10 comprises a flat metallic body panel 12 which is shaped to fit a given window opening of a vehicle, a curved toughened glass window 14 which is shaped to match the original lines of the vehicle and to cover body panel 12, and a rubber seal provided around the periphery of the assembly 10.

Referring next to Fig. 5, the method of the invention will be described.

Having removed the window 14 and seal 16 from a regular vehicle window opening 18 in a vehicle body 20, the flat metallic body panel 12 is substituted into place in the opening 18 and affixed in place by any suitable means, including adhesives, spot welding, rivets or mounting brackets. This alone causes the vehicle to comply with Customs regulations requiring that windows be replaced and also serve the purposes of concealing the contents of the rear compartment of the Vehicle from passing view. As shown in Fig. 6, the window opening, as seen from the interior of the vehicle, is completely covered by the body panel 12 mounted on the exterior of the vehicle.

Following the mounting of the body panel 12 in the window opening 18, the window glass 14 and rubber seal 16 are mounted over the body panel 12.

The window panel 14 and seal 16 may be the original window and seal, or the original window may be used with a modified seal to accommodate and seal the body panel 12, or one may use a custom made window and seal. For post- factory modification of the vehicle it is clearly preferred to use the original window and, if possible the original seal, as this reduces the cost of modifying the vehicle.

Fig. 7 shows the assembly in cross section, taken along the line VII — VII (Fig. 2). As can be seen from Fig. 4, a gap 22 exists between the body panel 12 and the seal 16 at the point where the seal meets the vehicle body (not shown).

The panel nevertheless is flush with the opening of the window. This is an idiosyncrasy of the particular vehicle for which the illustrated assembly is designed (in this case a Volkswagen Golf (Registered Trade Mark) three door hatchback), and illustrates that the invention is adaptable to different vehicles by configuring the body panel to cover the window opening and the window to cover the body panel generally.

Referring to Fig. 8, it can be seen that at the top 24 and bottom 26 of the assembly 10 the seal 16 is flush with the body panel 12. The seal has been modified slightly in order to accommodate the body panel 12. While the window opening is firstly sealed by the body panel 12, waterproof sealing is accomplished by the seal 16.

Referring to Fig. 9, the top 24 of the assembly is shown in little more detail, showing the wall 28 in which the window opening 18 is provided. The body panel 12 is mounted on the wall 28 by adhesive 30, following which the window 14 and seal 16 are mounted to the wall and the body panel by conventional means. In the same way, as shown in Fig. 10, at the bottom 26 of the assembly, the panel 12 is adhered to the wall 28, and then the window 14 and seal 16 are mounted to the wall and panel. The means of mounting can be any suitable conventional mounting method including but not limited to welding, riveting and adhesive mountings.

Referring to Figs. 11-14, a second embodiment of the invention is shown. In this embodiment the body panel 112 is mounted to the interior of the window opening 118 in a wall 128 of the vehicle body.

Fig. 11 shows a detail of a corner of the assembly, cut away for illustrative purposes. A body panel 112 (shown in elevation in Fig. 12) is shaped and dimensioned to fit the window opening of the vehicle in question. Interior vehicle trim (not shown) is removed in the vicinity of the window opening to reveal the underlying metal bodywork 132.

The panel 112 is then manoeuvred into place to a position adjacent to, and covering, the window opening 118.

Referring additionally to Figs. 13 and 14, which show cross—sectional details of the top and bottom of the assembly of Figs. 11 and 12, taken along the line XIII—XIV (Fig. 12), it can be seen that the panel 112 is adhered into place by means of adhesive 130 on the interior side of the window opening 118 in vehicle body wall 128. The original vehicle window 114 and seal 116 can therefore be left in place throughout this process, or if desired the original window can be removed to allow better access to the opening or to replace the glass with a more tinted glass, for example.

In this embodiment, the assembly of the invention is in two distinct parts and is thus not assembled together but is mounted on either side of the vehicle body at the opening.

The invention is not limited to the embodiment described herein which may be modified without departing from the scope of the claimed invention.

Claims (5)

Claims
1. l. A method of modifying a vehicle body comprising the steps of: a) providing a body panel shaped and dimensioned to fit a window opening of the vehicle body; b) mounting said body panel in said window opening to thereby cover said opening; whereby when a window is provided on said window opening to the exterior of said body panel, the window covers said body panel from the outside of the vehicle.
2. 2. A method as claimed in claim l, further comprising the step of mounting a window in said window opening to the exterior of said body panel.
3. 3. A method as claimed in claim l, wherein said body panel is mounted on the interior side of said window opening to leave the original window in place during the vehicle modification.
4. 4. A vehicle having a window opening, a body panel mounted on said window opening to thereby cover the opening, and a window mounted on said opening to thereby cover the body panel.
5. 5. An assembly for a vehicle window opening, the assembly comprising a body panel dimensioned to cover the window opening, a window panel mounted to said body 10 panel and dimensioned to cover said body panel; and sealing means providing a seal around the periphery of the assembly to seal a window opening when the assembly is mounted thereon.