I was also about to begin work on this modification as
I now have a screen on the rear hatch of my Carat.

Please send me any suggestions or post them to the list. Thanks.

On a side note I had what amounts to nothing short of a miracle occur last
night.
I managed to fix my cruise control without spending a cent.
The story goes like this:
On Tuesday night after I got home from work I checked all the fuses.
No problem, all were good.
I then tore out the instrument cluster and made sure the wires were
connected to the speedometer.
They were, so I put it all back together. Instruments all worked so I quit
because it was dark.
On Wednesday I thought I would take a look at the brake switch.
I pulled the steering cowling and removed the brake switch.
I took it into the house and tested it.
The electrical part worked: on when depressed, off when not depressed.
The vacuum part also worked: sealed when depressed, open when not
depressed.
Oh well, I thought it must be some of those expensive parts like the
computer or the vacuum pump.
So, I went out and put the switch back in.
I thought maybe I should test it in place so I hooked up the multimeter and
found that
it was difficult to get the switch to stay closed (on) if at all.
SO I attached an approx. 3mm thick piece of rubber to the clip on the brake
pedal.
I didn't for a minute think this would solve the problem.
I just thought I had eliminated some obvious causes before going after the
big fish.
Well, I couldn't believe it. IT NOW Works.

I was preparing myself to shell out some big bucks to get this fixed.
I was amazed that the vacuum pump and computer etc. were all still working
fine after all this time.

I really needed this as I'm going on a 4000 mile trip in 2 months.
I have previous knee and back injuries and having cruise control is an
absolute necessity for me to enjoy this trip.
It's not a luxury when your right hip hurts so much after a day of driving
that you can't even sleep
or enjoy the spacious comfort of the extra wide super plush velour
weekender bed.

Thanks for listening patiently as I think I'm still high off the endorphins
released when I realized it was working.

Steve Johnson
' 91 Carat

-----Original Message-----
From:   Josh Saylor [SMTP:wolfburger@ATTBI.COM]
Sent:   Thursday, April 11, 2002 11:41 AM
To:     vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
Subject:        opening rear hatch from inside van

Hey all!

I'm looking to hook up a strap that opens up the rear hatch from the
inside. I think that someone posted a photo and description a few weeks
ago. Any suggestions?

Josh
'89 Wolfsburg