'98 Dodge Roadtrek 190P Interior Flooring

JRBnGA

New Member
Joined
Jul 14, 2021
Posts
7
Location
Georgia
The floor between the twin beds in my unit has developed an irritating squeak on the driver side next to the storage drawer under that bed. Does any owner of a Dodge RT know what's under the carpet? Is it metal? Or did RT overlay plywood and glue the carpet to that? I don't want to drive a screw into the area until I know what's underneath.
From underneath the unit looking up at the floor from the bottom side, the area in question is just behind the fiberglass "pan" the manuf put in to accommodate the shower (which we never use). It is obvious where the original metal floor of the original van was cut to insert the fiberglass area. Inside the unit this creates a step up to the bedding area. I will attach a couple of photos to clarify these two paragraphs (I hope). Again, what I need to know (hopefully without tearing up the floor) is what will I be driving a screw into if I try to tighten down that squeaking floor? Any knowledgeable help is appreciated. In the old days, a call to RT Service Dept would have the answer. But, alas, those days are gone.
Both photos should be rotated 90 deg to the right. I'm pointing to the step up area in the one, and the squeak is where you step. The other photo is underneath the unit where metal floor was cut and the fiberglass "pan" installed.
 

Attachments

  • step up to bed area..jpg
    step up to bed area..jpg
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  • fiberglass pan at top, metal floor below..jpg
    fiberglass pan at top, metal floor below..jpg
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I tore up my carpet in the back of my '98 190P. It was fuh-gly.
I can confirm it's 1/2" plywood under the carpet. Glued to the steel floor of the van. If you try to screw down the board to stop the squeak, you would have to go through the sheet metal. And that might bring on rust and water ingress.

I pulled all the tacks and scraped the carpet glue off the top surface and put down black foam tiles that you get for exercise equipment. It's much softer than the carpet and warmer in the winter, and the drawers still clear it. I put even thicker and warmer foam tiles in the tub itself.

We can walk barefoot in -8 C and not be cold.
19067-albums320-picture1929.jpeg


That's NOT stain on the plywood. Soy sauce had soaked through the carpet :sick:. But you can see the steel floor just below.
19067-albums320-picture1930.jpeg
 
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Here is a small detail I love about old Roadtreks (don't know about newer ones). Notice in the last picture above that the plywood cutout showing the steel beneath is radiused! Most manufacturers would have just cut both directions square, leaving rough plywood cut.

These older RTs were, in my opinion, really well made and the number on the road today shows that they last. It was a family owned business back then with no corporate masters to appease.

We had a 96 Dodge 190P and I suspect we will keep our 2007 210P for as many years as we have left to RV. Of course, I am getting older than dirt.
 

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