My carputer install

the only place i could have cut corners was when i fitted the bezel to the radio cage. i used way too much filler to make it smooth, looking back i could have got away with using so much less. And wouldnt have had to remove the cup holders from the top. this would have made the smoothing and painting much easier as well
apart from that there was only buying the computer ready made, but at nearly £300 for something that has less than half of what ive got, and no screen, doesnt make much sense especially as i build my whole system for less than that screen included.

if i decide to keep this idea when i change cars im going to look into it a bit more and play around with the spares first rather than jump right in try and stick to the KISS attitude

a guide wouldnt be much good as alot of people arnt willing to play around and build a small computer system. but if anybody wants help im more than willing to give them a hand with it

 

also my GPS reciver arrived this morning which now means i dont have to switch on the old bluetooth one and wait for it to connect, seems to be working in well and catches a signal pretty quickly

 

still got little issues with it.
had to revert right back to the full SP3 install rather than the cut down version i had as couldnt get the text to speech component to work - meant i had no audio guidance when driving. not much difference with boot times after running bootvis on it.

also changing some of the coding for some of the screens on the road runner skin as they dont work with my version of map point ( europe version muct use different keys than the us version ). even looking at making my own screens to encompass vagcom. rather than it opening separately

still need to rewire the boot as not had time to get to it yet so its taking a bit longer to start up as didnt want to cut into the wiring harness for the headunit so currently using the remote line as the ignition line for the power supply so its a case of

key on , 2-3 seconds for the HU to waken up fully and apply power to the remote ( prevent amplifier pop )
5 seconds after the remote becomes live it powers up
about 10 seconds later i have a sound like alternator whine for a second. then music

 

It looks nice, but for storage sake would you have considered getting a laptop and taking the screen off and using the rgb out, to connect it to the new screen you got.

 

not really the case itself is only slightly thicker than a laptop. and for me to have bought a laptop with similar specs as this would have cost a nice bit compared to what i paid to build this. and wheres the fun in that
i did look at a laptop right at the beginning but nah it could also have been stolen easier and harder to power properly and hibernate

theres been a few changes since them. the new hard disc is in and new ram. since them its never crashed once under normal running - the only time it has crashed on me was something hitting into it when i was testing the new brakes

 

Seriously awesome work there.

 

cheers mate.

you seem to be cleaver with the computers you not fancy having a go at doing it ?

 

I'd love to some day, but I've just spent the last 45mins trying to get one of those clear protective screens on my droid let alone pulling something like this off!
A practical man I am not.

 

OK probably not then, hadnt really attempted anything like this before. built a few computers but hadnt really playd with fibreglass or stipping down the OS

 

It's really tempting considering how much stuff you could do with it, I was planning on just putting in a 20x4 lcd screen and having some stats on there. Think I'll have to re-think things.

 

check out http://www.mp3car.com/vbulletin/
theres some good stuff on there with guys using small displays to show details such as songs or engine readins

 

Fair enough, i always enjoy building my computers. i just reread it a mini itx case which are tiny. is the Hard Drive a 2.5inch.

 

no its a full size hd. couldnt justify spending nearly double the price for a 2.5 when i had several 3.5" lying around. only difference is now it is an IDE drive as was sick of the crashing due to the sata connecton becoming loose even when it was a "locking" one

case is actually a server case so slightly larger than an mini ITX one however alot slimmer. iirc its around 40mm tall

 

Fair enough, I have a variety of old ide hard drive over my room. Thats really bad and annoying that even the locking sata cable would come loose.

 

Hmm, this thread has actually got me thinking some doing something like this, I've made a shuttle PC before and the case is quite small but it would require a small portion of the boot as it is basically a square box rather than it being long a flat, problem is that the redundant system I have got has a 400w PSU in it and I reckon it would whore up the battery in the car if left on when the ignition is off,
Just a thought really, you may see me doing it in the future,

 

the PSU for car pc's arent as powerful for most units that are "plug and play" mine is a m2 atx which is the higher power one at 135w. you do get higher ones but they require a regulated 12v supply which your alternator cannot supply. so you need to buy the regulator unit then the power supply.
not really required unless your wanting a gaming PC in the car. remember that 400w PSU you have woud require a inverter to convert it to 240v to convert it back to 12v 5v 3.3v and -12v. i did try demo running this with an inverter and normal PSU in it but it wouldnt power up
mines does the music, movies - can copy and play at the same time - and GPS along with running diagnostics without a problem

 

Yeah I suppose I'd need more batteries and a bigger alternator for it, maybe some of those laptop batteries could it ?

 

do you know the stats of the motherboard ? if it isnt that big then look towards getting the power supply tere only around £60.

i cant see the point in these folk that run 3Ghz quad cores in a car. playing games on a 7" screen is pretty pointless. so you need to have a big screen, so thats more power.

reanult laguna diesel has a pretty good alternator on it iirc its a 150amp

so that gives 2100w at 14 volts

 

Why not just put a laptop in there =]

 

I did think about it as there is a nice space where the passenger airbag is, however I can't shell out the notes for another laptop at the moment, a netbook might be the best option if I can use an external screen on it as well

 

You can use an external screen.
Well I can on mine.

 

Thanks for the link to this page PG!

It has been a most enlightening read.

If I may ask most of the info I have read on the net say that the PC processor of a standard computer can not with stand the heat inside the dash board of the car and that a special processor is required with the assistance of a different type of heat sink. Have you taken this into consideration or have you tested this. The reason I ask because it is a lot cheaper to use standard computer components.

Also I have been talking to sound installation companies and they say that the source from which your amp receives, plays an important role in sound quality. What sound card have you installed into the PC? Are you building an ice system to match up with your in-Dash PC?

I apologies for asking so many question but I am an information junky. I need to know before I attempt or at least as much as I can find out.

I am wonder if a person used a laptop and rebuilt it into an alternative casing would this not sort out the power issue? By extending the power on/off button to a dashboard button and the screen output directly to your screen. The keyboard could also be relayed to a mini keyboard or if the a touchscreen keyboard software installed.

What are your feelings on this? I would really appreciate it.

Thanks again for the information!

 

You'll need a lower wattage CPU my friend. anything rated at 90w and under should do you fine. Most CPU's dont reach there factory heat output of the said 90w unless Overclocked, and since the carputer will not be underload, hyper threading will do fine. to run XP you'll be fine with a single core AMD sempron, I think most mobo companies make mini ITX boards for socket AM3 and AM2 if needs be. the heat sink would need to be a low profile sink and a pretty fast rpm fan with high CFM would help tons.

 

My lil brothers athlon 3800 X2 idles at 15 - 20 degress, due to lower wattage, where as mine idles at 30 - 45 degress, due to its output.