Show me your GPS installs

[boxster03]

all great if you have 20x10 vision! damn those screens are small. no wonder after market stuff is so cheap. now this is a GPS

[Paul K]

Originally Posted by rusnak

Paul, I used the smooth disc that came with my Magellan stuck to the underside of the ashtray. This allowed me to use the suction cup to mount the GPS in a convenient location.

Thanks, I'll give that a try.

[Paul K]

Done! I mounted the plastic disc on the underside of the Cruise Control Module (Thanks Kurt for telling me what it was) and stuck the mount on that- the GPS unit itself clips into the cradle. When the unit is out of the car, the mount swivels up out of the way- perfect.



Cheers,

Paul.

[mthomas58]

Originally Posted by wilstan

Hi Mark.....love your install. Question I have is: I bought the same Alpine LCD touchscreen, but my mounting brackets are not what I see in your photo. Where can I get an identical swingable mount to mount my Alpine TME-M740BT like what you did? Also how did you connect your audio commands from the GPS Blackbird to your Alpine audio CD system?
Great system!

Thanks.......................................Wil-

Will, the mounting bracket I used was a universal mounting bracket from circuit city....can't find it on line but check here this is similar.....



More universal mounting brackets here.......you will need to do a little fabrication work on the brackets:

http://www.panaviseonline.com/search...ry=36&search=%

You will have to cut it down and bend it to achieve the angle you want for the screen. Mine is mounted to the sheet metal behind the ash tray. The screen is mounted to a Panavise PV-651-IDTS Adj Knuckle w/T-bolt and locking ring....check here:

http://www.panaviseonline.com/product.php?id=265

The bracket hangs down about 1" above the center console. I've got a small block of wood attached to the back of the bracket that rests on the console between the defroster/ hazard light controls then a small bungee cord hooked into the hole in the top of the console holds it down to minimize vibration of the screen.


In order to get into the setup screen and avoid the kludgey factory recommended wiring and parking brake sequence you need to pick up a PAC-TR-7 Alpine Video Bypass "trigger module". This unit replicates the brake sequence on start up so the nav system will think the vehicle is not in motion. Here's one on ebay. This unit is programable for multiple functions, BUT comes pre-programmed for the Alpine video bypass sequence so No Addl Programming is needed on installation....just hook up following the installation instructions and you should have no problems.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/PAC-T...QQcmdZViewItem

PAC website:

http://www.pac-audio.com/products/pr...gger%20Modules

In order to pass the nav voice commands to the head unit I ran an RCA audio cable from the audio out from the docking station to the AUX AiNet input on the DALP XM Radio module. Voice commands will still be passed to the LCD screen built in speaker but will also be passed to the head unit when switching the source to AUX.

[mthomas58]

Couple more pics showing the screen in a stowed position........back/top of screen is black and can hardly be seen through tinted windows.

[pope]

I got one of these. Not the easiest to use and it doesn't have a map - only arrows. But I got the hang of it pretty quickly and it got me around Munich (it was my first time there) and all the way back to Romania. If you want something compact, you are looking to change your stereo and you're willing to look at something that isn't cheap, it's the way to go.

Mexico 7948

[jcsjcs]

Anyone know of any GPS that can be used for guidance AND also tracks performance data, i.e. 0-60, Autocross performance, etc.?

[rusnak]

Here are some additional pics, posted at a request. I used the mounting arm from my Sirius radio. The good thing about this is that the GPS is mounted higher, and has a nice 360 degree ball and cup swivel. I can adjust the tilt angle in 2 planes, and it stays locked.

My ashtray was tight enough to hold itself up with no rattling, flopping, or bouncing. I think when the plastic cam that is screwed to the dashboard wears a little, you might get some loosening of the ashtray tension.

Does anyone have any ideas for tightening up the ashtray tension? I mean beyond bending the spring steel clip. Maybe some sort of rubber strap can be rigged as a helper?

[BruceC]

Here's mine (described in detail on rennlist: http://forums.rennlist.com/rennforums/showthread.php?t=398827, starting with post #15). I will be making a nice clean panel some time in the future, cuz it looks a little hacked right now, but it's functional.

[DRACO A5OG]

Awsome Rusnak!,

Thanks.

I am going to my local radio shack.

As fara as sloppiness of the ashtry when GPS is on it, I was think a bit of Velcro or bite the bullet and squeeze the metal pring a bit. I already pressed the rivets and that helped alot but the weight of the GPS is too much.

Jim

Originally Posted by rusnak

Here are some additional pics, posted at a request. I used the mounting arm from my Sirius radio. The good thing about this is that the GPS is mounted higher, and has a nice 360 degree ball and cup swivel. I can adjust the tilt angle in 2 planes, and it stays locked.

My ashtray was tight enough to hold itself up with no rattling, flopping, or bouncing. I think when the plastic cam that is screwed to the dashboard wears a little, you might get some loosening of the ashtray tension.

Does anyone have any ideas for tightening up the ashtray tension? I mean beyond bending the spring steel clip. Maybe some sort of rubber strap can be rigged as a helper?

[rusnak]

Hey Jim,

I forgot to mention that you can get all of the parts individually at Sirius's website, and at Magellan's website. I particularly like the plastic discs that Magellan sells.

I also installed a second cigarette lighter socket in the bottom of the center console well, at the very back. I had to center it exactly so that there is sufficient clearance to bolt the console in, and then the socket, and finally the plastic cover piece at the nose of the console. Now, any time that I run a GPS or want to charge my phone, I plug it into the console rather than the dash. Keeps everything clean. I used to have a socket strapped under the dash as an accessory socket, but I like the rigid mounting at the bottom of the console now. Feels very factory.

[DRACO A5OG]

Cool Thanks for the redirect.

My GPS had the disk in the box, lucky. I will go to the Sirius site for that arm.

I rarely use my cig for charging. I tend to charge the GPS at home over night.

[DRACO A5OG]

Well here is my setup, Thanks to Rusnak:



I used the Magellan support and decided to suction parallel to the dash then turn the pivot arm in towards the cab. This solved the sloppy issue of the ash tray becoming loose and jiggling around.

Driver Perspective:


MOST Importantly does not interfere with shifting, clearance is about 3 inches:


Under Dash Suction:



Without the GPS, I angled the pivot arm a bit higher to make certain it was snug to the Knee Guard of the passanger side dash:


The included plate was position further back to insure clearance and allow the GPS to fit snuggly up against the Knee Guard:

SIDE EFFECT: ASH TRAY WILL NOT OPEN. But OK because shifting was priority

In the locked position, the suction support fit perfectly in the glove box


Test Drove, no more hitting the GPS while shifting and no more shaking Ash Tray and Shaky GPS

Thanks again Rusnak!

[onboost]

Dude... it said left before the graveyard.

"Yeah, I saw the road but it did not come up on my nav/GPS"....

Ha, take the turn stop your sniveling as toss that toy in the back! The directions were perfect!

[equality72521]

Not an install but GPS related.
I've been trying to change the default blue arrow on my TomTom GPS and everyone said it was impossible. I beg to differ. I found a French program that lets me make the change assuming the image meets the criteria. So, I took my car:


and using MS Paint turned it into this:


making sure all conditions were met and the result is this:


I also made one for my wife's Z3:


And for giggles I changed the splash screen to this:

[DRACO A5OG]

Sweeet. It must look and fee Factory, Mark Factory

I love the Splash Screen

[jonbot]

Mark, OMG that is so sweet, that's the kind of stuff I love to see!

[crashmy911]

Now we will have people not even looking at the rodes. Bad enough with the cell phones. Now all I see are these things plastered up against there windows. Next time I get bumped into and the person is on the cell phone or looking at one of those things I will throw it as far as I can!!!!!!!

[equality72521]

Originally Posted by crashmy911

Now we will have people not even looking at the rodes. Bad enough with the cell phones. Now all I see are these things plastered up against there windows. Next time I get bumped into and the person is on the cell phone or looking at one of those things I will throw it as far as I can!!!!!!!

Chill, it's nothing more than a co-pilot. You still have to use your eyes and the thing between your ears.

[DRACO A5OG]

I concur, on fun runs it helps me prepare for unfamiliar turns and roads. On city streets and FWYs I just listen to the GPS keep my eyes on the road and other peops.

I got the Magellan because it called out the street/off ramp names so that I can keep eye on the road.

I agree on the Hell Phones, can not wait for Cali to enforce this summer.