THE INTERNATIONAL JAGUAR 'S'-TYPE REGISTER FORUM

Another project I have been working on is a box for all my tools and cleaning kit in the boot/trunk.
When I turn up for shows or weddings my boot is always full of cleaning gear and tools. I carry a tool kit and some spares in the boot all the time and I have seen others do the same but at the show they hide them all under the car in a box. Mine are usually shoved to the front of the boot over the back axle but in full view.
So I thought I would make a box for the back of the car to store everything which still allows the spare wheel door to open but hides all the crap at the front of the boot.
This is what I came up with. It is made from 9mm ply board and faced with a leather look vinyl then secured in place with a leather belt/strap.
It took a lot of fettling to get the right shape which maximises the usable space, avoids contact with the hinges, can be removed easily and is secure in the back of the car when driving.
The leather strap which is basically a long leather belt cut in two and bolted at each side to the hinge struts, holds the box door closed and also holds the box in place when driving. There are also two magnetic catches so the boot box door stays shut when the strap is not done up.
If you did not know that the boot went so far back with the box door closed you would not know it was there.

Great job, very slick. You could cover the back face with black hardura mat and it would look like a factory accessory.

Cass

I like that..... !

I use a large plastic box to keep tools, spares and a small trolley jack, but it is no where as neat as your idea.

Norman

Great job Rob. Very neat. Like the concept.

Brilliant idea Rob something to look at for my S type as the boot is a mess with bits everywhere.
Dave J.

I love the concept. Such things are a long way off for my project, but i will keep it in mind. Would you be willing to share the dimensions?

Yes dimensions are freely available I will try and get some drawings on the post.
It was actually difficult to get it right and took a lot of fettling because the hinge on the right drops down lower than the hinge on the left to start with and there are a lot of hinge spring bars that hang down just under the lip. Then there are two raised plugs at the back of the boot for christmas tree carpet retainers so the height was affected by these then on top of that I had to make the decision to either cut the boot hardura carpet or leave it intact. I went for the latter so when I remove the box the carpet is still in situ intact but again this altered the height the box sat and I again had to alter the shape so the hinges did not hit the lid.
The shape of the box is dictated by the slope of the rear bulkhead and the angle of the raised floor section behind the hinge for the spare wheel cover and the lip of the boot at the top. You could make it more square at the front but the spare wheel cover might not open fully but the angles I have made it at are ample for all my tools and cleaning equipment and it mirrors the rear bulkhead angle so it looks like it should be there.

Nice job Rob, looks the part. I need something similar to hide the battery that's on the boot shelf and all the junk stacked round it.

This is something I was looking for. Thanks Rob.
(I'm always transporting half of my spare parts
when going on a trip)

It would be nice to get the measurements.

I was looking for something like this on the pictures below

I think the free place between the hinges is about 80 to 82 cm,
so you'll need two of these boxes. About 20 €/piece.

But I think compared to your box, I'd loose a lot of place.

I too looked at those boxes before I made my boot box. I too found that although they carried some of the spares they also created a lot of dead space between the boxes as they were not designed specifically to fit the space in the back of the S type boot.

I apologies for not getting any dimensions on a post but it means pulling the box out and although not difficult it is just something I have not done since I fitted it. One day I will pull it out for a clean and I will then get the dimensions for you.

My box was made using a fit and fettle method.

I had the general shape and put the box together than tried to fit it. I then fettled it bit by bit until it fitted as it does, avoiding the way the hinges come down. I had put magnetic clips to hold the door up but found these were not strong enough so added the leather belt strap. This was one extra long black leather belts, cut in half and attached each side with a nut and bolt to the support brackets. Holds the door closed and the box in place from sliding around.