Yes, that's the Garmin GPS 18 receiver. I've already filed a hole into the speaker grille, so I think it's fine where it is, although I should have tried it under the panel first; oh well.

I have an AudioLink iPod adapter connected to the headunit that also has a 3.5mm minijack split off of it that I am going to route to the PC.

Thanks for the compliments! right now I'm trying to figure out the best way to get 4x 12 gauge wires through the firewall without having to punch a hole... I've read somewhere on the board that there is already a hole behind the washer fluid tank, but i'm not seeing it...

 

Thanks! My trial run with the GPS connected to my laptop was alright; I didn't take it too far. The laptop made it a bit tricky, though; the laptop has an active protection system that halts the harddrive when it detects a sudden shock, so everytime the car went over a bump, the application would stop momentarily and "catch up" once the HDD started up again. I lost satellite signal twice on my way home (about 4-5 mile drive), which I would like to blame on the cloudy and stormy weather. nRoute's interface will probably leave a little to be desired as far as the touchscreen goes; it wasn't made for that intent, but rather for use on a laptop. I've tried it on the touchscreen before, and I think I can manage with it. I bought a little keyboard for input that I routed to the center console compartment:

http://store.mp3car.com/Mini_Key_USB..._p/com-005.htm

This thing is very small and perfect for what I want; my only gripes are that it doesn't have the escape, F11, or F12 keys, which would be a bit useful for my applications.


Out of curiosity, where did you run your wires for a power source?

 

I saw that too in thread detailing best route for power the 25th post mentioned that about 6 inches from the from the water bottle there is a big grommet for the heater tubes. I couldn’t find it I just followed the DIY and drilled behind the water bottle took like 15 minutes to drill and fish cable through the firewall. Although I ran 4 awg to the trunk to a distro block (pc is in the trunk) as i plan on adding amps very soon.

I highly recommend using a staged bit if you drill as it won’t just pull through the firewall quickly.

Good luck keeps us posted

 

I went to the fuse block. I bought a couple of those "add a circuit" things from pep boys. They plug into an existing fuse and give you a little fused dongle to connect another wire to. It was easy to route from there under the dash to the computer. I already had a hole running behind the washer bottle (I had to drill it) that I was using for my amp wire but I decided not to go that route. I'm happy with that wiring part. The part I'm not so pleased with is the vga cable and usb from the screen. I tried routing them under the silver part down the center console but you can see them as they exit near the front seat and they interfere with the passenger seat moving back and forth. I think I'll reroute them under the carpet. BTW I saw that keyboard and supposedly you can program some hotkeys to simulate the F1 - F12 keys.

 

Power wires have been done! I decided to go through the point where the main wiring harness goes in on the drivers side:

https://www.rx8club.com/showpost.php...45&postcount=6
I can't stress this enough, but if you go this route you want to go from the inside when you make the hole, and poke the hole as level to the ground as possible from the MOST BOTTOM RIGHT of the grommet at the point where the rubber curves to the edge (I would say lower than what the pics show). I did it a little higher at first thinking I was doing just like the image, but found my screwdriver at the other end coming out flush with the bottom of the wire harness! I was afraid I might have scraped or severed something; it was a VERY close call. Going through, it felt like I was going through 2 inches of solid rubber. I made the hole again much lower, and the screwdriver went through much easier after making an initial poke with a knife.

I'll post pictures today or tomorrow of the wires.

 

you do realise by posting those pics of the GPS youve given away your address and where you live!!!!




Very nice setup though! im extremyl jealous! I ve wanted a CarPC in mine for a while now...Gotta save up!