If you cannot recline your driver’s seat, opt to use only passenger side. Clear out everything on your back seats as well as the floor of your car. This will help maximize the amount of recline you get from your seat.
If you do not have anything to use as padding while you sleep, that is alright. You won’t do any excessive damage to your car by sleeping directly on the seat.
If you do not have a pillow ready, roll up a towel, jacket, shirt, or other piece of clothing and use it to support your neck and head while you sleep.
If you do not have a blanket available, try to use excess clothes such as a warm jacket as a cover. If you are facing cold temperatures, layer on clothes and cover yourself. Wear a jacket as necessary for warmth and keep on accessories such as gloves and hats.
If you can, prop or tape the items to your window. If they will not stay that way, roll the edge of the item up in the window. If you have a windshield cover, put it up for additional privacy while you sleep. Do remember to crack a window if there’s more than one person in the car, though. This ensures enough air for both of you.
Make sure to find one that fits your style of car. Most mattresses are sized to fit either subcompact and compact cars or SUVs and minivans. Find a mattress that best fits your personal set-up.
Move items to the trunk that will not properly fit elsewhere.
Find the air valve and either connect your pump or blow directly into the valve. Make sure all other air release valves are closed before you start inflating.
If possible, put a layer between you and the mattress. The tops of the mattresses tend to not be a soft fabric. Place a layer between you and the mattress for comfort. If you do not have a pillow and blanket available, use towels, jackets, extra clothes, and whatever else you have available to cover yourself and keep yourself warm. Roll a jacket or a shirt to act as a makeshift pillow if one is not readily available for you.
Store your mattress in your trunk, under your seats, or wherever else you have room. If you know that you will be using the mattress again within the next day or so, consider leaving it inflated so that it is ready to use again.
Remember that vertical height will be important, too. Generally speaking, you should plan on your platform being eight to ten inches above the base on which it sits.
Have the plywood sheet cut to fit the dimensions you measured. Cut the large sheet in half widthwise so that your platform can be stored in stackable sections. Have the two by fours cut up so that you end up with 12 pieces. Eight of them should be the height of your intended platform (8 to 10 inches or 20 to 26 cm), while four of them should be about four inches shorter than the width of your plywood sheet.
Opt to use at least two screws for each individual foot. Repeat this process until you have four sets of legs completed.
Consider the positioning of the legs before you install them. They may need to get around wheels, indents, or other features in your car’s interior. Screw the platform down with at least one screw over each foot, as well as one in the middle of each support.
Try to staple the cover to the outer edges of the platform for maximum comfort.
To help the platform hold together a bit, consider adding a velcro edge where the two pieces of platform attach.
The sleeping platform can be outfit however you want. Choose a setup that is comfortable for you when your sleeping, and easy to store when you have the platform packed away.
