Well, I couldn't stand it anymore and finally broke down
and bought some stereo bits for the bus.

Installing the CD player was pretty easy. DIN mount
is cool...

Installing the rear speakers wasn't too bad. I removed the
upper rear cabinet (where the AC used to be) and opened
up the stock speaker holes to take 5-1/4" speakers and
also cut some particle board pieces and boxed up an
area on each side so the speakers have a fixed rear volume
to work into and also to keep junk that's stored up there out
of the back of the speakers.

The amp for the rear speakers was easy, it lives under the
back seat where my 2nd battery is. (Everything is wired up
to the house battery, not the main battery)

Now I'm ready to do the front speakers....
I picked up some Eclipse 5-1/4" speakers that have a relatively
thin grill cover and it looks like they'll clear the Ford window
cranks nicely, and probably even have enough room to clear the
corner of the dash when the door is closed. (it's very close)

I got the door panel off, and there's plenty of room for the
speakers without cutting any metal. Cool...

So, my question now is what to do about the plastic
moisture shield that's glued to the door. It has a small
"pocket" for the stock speaker to nestle into, and although
the new speaker will also fit into the pocket, I'm concerned
because it gives almost no working volume on the back side
of the speaker, and I'm also concerned that the plastic pouch
may buzz and rattle when the volume is cranked up...

A photo of the door innards and the plastic speaker pocket
are here:
<http://www.weirdstuffwemake.com/automotive/vanagon/pics/doorguts.jpg>

If I just cut the plastic out, am I inviting a lot of wind leakage
into the van and/or possibly inviting water damage to the
speakers and door panels?

Does anyone have any experience or suggestions they'd like
to share before I do something stupid?

Thanks,
Steve
EJ22 -> '86 Westy "Escape Pod"