Carputer Project

[ben 380]

with the 10 inch setup you had going did you scrap the facia I saw you molded aswell ???

if you would like to recoop some cash I might be interested in buying an old setup ie screen and facia.. let me know ...

cheers m8..

[ben 380]

I also heard that asus have a new motherboard that can fast boot in 8 sec<Express Gate> .. have you herd of these... might be of use

[fordboy1981]

have you built a kit we can buy yet Beany?

[mattyb]

[MrBean]

Hello Everyone,

Ok, finally fitted the new Zotac-based setup to the UTE, and working very well - the new CF30 is definately my cup of tea, and I need now is the TPMS plugin - the guys are working on it, so it should be ready pretty soon.

Anyway, with that said, I'm still using the old little 7" Xenarc 700TSV - while it serves it's purpose, and only just so, due to glare/bad daylight readability, it is time to fit my much nicer 8.4" NEC transflective panel.

Please browse a few pages back to see how I constructed a fully functional TFT monitor from bits and pieces purchased off online stores. Even so, this screen still works out pretty much $550+ USD, but, well worth it - it's the right size for me, at 8.4" and standard ratio (4:3), and of very good industrial quality.

Well, herewith a few pics to show what I did during the last 2 days - progress is slow, but I'm expecting to have this done in the next few weeks, as I can hardly wait to get this in the UTE.

With the Zotac capable (and CF30 supporting multiple displays), I will retain the Xenarc to display my OBD-II data via embedded CF-application on it, while the NEC will be my main CF display, housed in the fascia.

So, here we go:

Showing the Ford ICC fascia, recently cut to proper size to make way for the 8.4" LCD:

Another angle:

And one showing the rear:

A few pics showing me making the framework from balsa wood - please note that the LCD will be well recessed, as I like it this way, and will further prevent direct sunlight from hitting it:

another one:

and another angle:

Pardon all the pics, but this will give my fellow Ford BA/BF/Territory mates an idea what to expect should they wish to do something similar.

A couple shots from the rear:

and

and herewith 2 pics showing the LCD fitted - please note these shots are in macro-mode, with the camera barely 30cm away, and flash on - it's a Fujifilm 5500, so pretty strong flash - and the screen handles it very well

I will be doing more work on this over the next few weeks - I got my hands on some Fleece, resin and hardener, and a few cans of undercoat to prep.

Before you guys ask about why fleece/balsa/et al, this fascia is made from PPO/PPE, which doesn't handle any other method than superglue and balsa wood - I've studied this case, and this is the best (and possibly only) solution.

I will possibly get Nexson's input too, as he's the resident Mp3Car Guru where it comes to this sort of fabrication, and might be very helpful with info/tips/tricks.

Will keep you guys posted.

edit: As an added bonus, I will use the orginal buttons that controlled the Ford Radio/CD-player to now do the LCD functions, like adjustments, power, etc....I needed 8, but these 6 will do the main functions, I can leave brightness control away, as I tend to set it once, and never touch it again.

There is a little PCB with buttons mounted proper, I will connect this to the OSD control board connected to the Digitalview ALR-1400 controller Nice......I like.

[MrBean]

Hello again,

For my Aussie mates, I have made a custom aluminium frame (see few posts back) for the NEC LCD panel, and mounted it on these 4 holes depicted below - I know a lot of guys take the easy way out when mounting LCDs, but I cannot stand a rattly, vibrating, and worse, something that dislodges itself after a few couple k's.

So, it has to be very reliable - and in my case, the mounting method actually enhances/strengthens the overall fascia bezel, while being very clean at the back.

If you want more detailed pics of the frame/mounting brackets of the LCD, I will post them.

[PSIFRK]

Congrats on a top job, can't wait to see it all finished.

any chance of getting a bracket made?? I would love to add an LCD screen and a bracket like what you have talked about would be a great help.

[MrBean]

I can take pictures, and post them here To much work to do again, soz mate.

Once you have the pics, it's pretty clear what to do.....

[XF Falcon]

Love your work man!

The more pictures the better I say, its a great way to pass on knowledge to anyone else wishing to one day undertake such an adventure

[MrBean]

Thanx Mate, will keep them coming

Hello Guys,

Even though this appears to be a small, insignificant update, a lot of work went into this. I started with prepping the bezel, laying a few layers of primer after sealing/sanding the balsawood with some fiberglass resin.

Well, all went well, and things progressed rapidly, until shot a few more layers of primer. At a point I was pretty ready to do a couple layers clear to see where we are at, as the primer looked pretty decent.

Well, decided to fill a few of the cavities at the back in with some resin, just to lend support and improve overall rigidity of the top part of the frame, and, damn, added to much hardener - it got so hot it caused the paint on the front to bubble.

Damn, had to strip it all down to the bare plastic, 2 days worth down the drain.

&$#@* - So, I had to start all over again, and fortunately, I took the "easy" way out and used acetone to strip it down to bare plastic, even removed the factory paint.

So, I approached things a little differently, and herewith the progress (again). I will chat to a bloke nextdoor from my Office on Monday, and ask him to put some decent primer on, something made for plastics.

I will go from there then.

and

and

and

So, hopefully next weekend I will be in a position to shoot some color

Let me know what you all think - this is very rough still, and need a few hours more before primer will go on.