I posted this over at MP3Car, but thought that some people might not see it there. This forum has been a big help to me, and so I wanted to return the favor....

I've just about wrapped up the install for my RX8, and thought others might be interested in another way to mount the screen.

I didn't want to spend the $$$ to get a factory nav enclosure and modify it, and didn't like the "shelf mount" alternative in that location. I ended up building a mount that extends through a plug to the right of the head unit.

The computer is a laptop machine mounted under the passenger seat. A USB connection goes to a USB hub in the dash, which connects the touchscreen, USB audio, and GPS receiver (centrally mounted under the plastic where the factory nav would have gone. I built a custom power controller that gives me a delayed shutdown so that the machine can sync when I pull into the garage but won't take a chance that the machine stays on and kills the battery. The audio is feeds the factory BOSE system using the AUXMOD.

 

Grats mate, that's very clean. That's really my first solution until i relized that i won't cover part of the passenger space, there's already few there. I didn't found a NAV dash like you, and i didn't liked the standing monitor on the top, then i found another solution: 1-din dashboard and in-dash monitor (not motorized to save some money), it costs something more (+$200 the console / +$50-70 more the monitor) but i saved some space.
I didn't installed anything yet really.
Cheers.

 

Awesome install, but why so few pictures?

 

Nice! I have seen another member that used a similar mount & screen. Never would have thought I would like it till I seen it in person. I have been wondering if a laptop could be used as a carputer. Anything special to know if I was going to attempt this?

 

I would add: never forget there's an airbag there, be aware to put anything on that side while a passenger is on the seat. Any device placed on the airbag area, in the case of airbag explosion (crash), may be projected hardly causing serious injuries.

 

wow hes right, and i was thinking of doing the same install.. but then again. am i ever gonna hit head on?

 

More pictures!

 

Actually, I think the passenger would be safe. It's placed slightly to the left of the airbag. That position, combined w/ the swivel arm, would decapitate the driver, but the passenger would be fine.

I would like some more info on your setup.


Thanks

- Cesar -

 

I thought a lot about the airbag and whether this could cause a problem for the passenger in a collision - my family rides with me! After looking at some diagrams, I'm pretty confident that it will deploy just fine and not be a hazard. It sits to the left of the passenger and where the airbag is located, and the hard/fixed mount is very close to the dash.

I would be glad to give out more detail - here's some more:

The laptop sits under the passenger seat. I attached a couple of l-brackets to the rear floor mat to keep it from sliding back, and no-one can see that it is there. There are five cables that run to the laptop:

1) Power
2) Mouse cable (with the mouse cut off) that switches a relay to supply power to the accessories
3) Remote power switch, hard wired in parallel to the laptop power button
4) USB cable
5) VGA cable for the display

The USB cable runs to a powered hub mounted behind the glove box. It connects to:

1) USB audio adapter, which goes into the stereo using a ground loop isolator and an AUXMOD
2) USB Touch screen interface
3) USB GPS antenna, mounted under the dash where the factory nav display would go


I'm glad to answer any specific questions - I'm happy with the setup and would do it the same way again.

 

Thanks for the info. Always great to see new ideas!