Bill said, "While I've got the interior of my vanagon taken apart, I thought I
would run some wires .  .  .  .  .  ."

By all means, don't stop with the instrumentation wiring.   How many of us have
wrestled with installing audio systems?  And wouldn't it be nicer to have a
couple more rear lighting circuits?  Color coded wiring installed and left in
place for any time you want to use it would be easy and inexpensive when the
wall coverings are open, and a blessing when you want them.  If you also think
the space under the rear seat is a good place for your CD changer, get that
cable installed now, not later when you'd have to pull panels again.

Then, before buttoning it all together, insulate it well.  Again the cost is
trivial, but the sound deadening effect alone makes it worth the effort.  Much
that differentiates luxury cars from lower priced lesser model corporate
sisters is their QUIET.  Installing plastic bags of fiberglass insulation could
be done without much risk of breating air-borne glass shards nor leaving you
scratchin' like a hound.

If it's quiet, you may play your sound system at lower levels yet hear music
and conversation better.  On long trips, you'll arrive less weary from the
experience.  It's nicer to pick sounds you hear rather than be subjected to
higher levels of random road noise.  While I've never seen accident report
information broken out to test this theory, I'd bet drivers of quite vehicles
are involved in fewer accidents.
John