Our first feature article is going to feature a recent build in a Ford Excursion. I have built this enclosure a few times, always with great results. The idea is to create something stealthy that will fill in the need for sub bass without attracting attention from thieves.
Whenever possible, we try to maintain original equipment, like the spare tire, but in this vehicle, the spare isn’t very practical. Weighing in over 100lbs, it is hard for one person to change alone, and even then the factory jack won’t get the thing up in the air safely. Our first step is to remove the spare and take measurements. We want our enclosure to be slightly smaller than the spare so that there won’t be any suprises when we fit it back in later.
After I have taken measurements for our subwoofer enclosure, I build three wooden discs. All of them have the same external diameter, two are solid and one is a ring 1.5″ wide. The first disc and the ring are attached with several sticks to create a shallow barrel.
The barrel is wrapped with 1/16″ wood called chip-board. The inside of the barrel is then reinforced with several layers of fiberglass mat and resin.
The baffle for this subwoofer enclosure is made from the third disc. The subwoofer holes are cut out and the port is attached. The baffle is bonded to the rest of the enclosure and the corners are rounded over with a router. Finally the enclosure can be carpeted and installed. We used the threaded bolt from the spare tire to mount the enclosure without having to make any modifications to the vehicle.
For the final touch, the original tire cover slips over the enclosure and conceals it from prying eyes.