So this weekend I started the project of redesigning the mount for my SUV’s car computer (which is a touch screen tablet PC with GPS via USB). I originally rigged up a mount to make sure the tablet PC was actually usable under driving conditions. It worked well and was securely mounted, but all of the wiring was exposed which looked sloppy and the mount made it difficult to reach the cup holders. I had a little free time this weekend and since I’ll be driving to Florida in a few days, I figured this would be a good time to redesign the mount and clean up the wiring…
It would be easy to just drill holes all over the place and mount the computer, but I wanted to make this reversible and not too destructive to the vehicle. I decided to use the “huge ass drink holder” as the mounting surface. I have 2 other decently large cup holders available and I figure if I ever want to use it as a cup holder again, I can easily patch it or epoxy down a new cup holder bottom and no one would notice.
While I had the dash apart to steal 12V from the cigarette lighter, I pulled out my radio and ran RCA cables to its Aux Input. I’ll use a headphone-to-RCA adapter on the carputer which will allow me to watch movies or listen to GPS voice guidance using the stereo speakers. I also took the opportunity to hard wire my radar detector while I was in there – eliminating the coiled cord which was always draped down the dash.
You may have noticed that the above picture looks a little empty in the middle…That’s because I pulled out the center console so I could work on it in my house. I reinforced the mounting surface & ran the appropriate wires with quick disconnects where appropriate so the console can be removed later if necessary.
I’m using part of the arm-rest storage compartment to store the bulkier “adapter” electronics. I fabricated a shelf-like cover which will hide everything and allow me to still use the remaining space in the compartment. The red thing on the right of the right-hand picture is the fuse holder, it is exposed so it’s easy to change if need be.
The mount itself is made from steel pipe pieces (a la Home Depot), painted black. It has long strips of strong 3M velcro on the side that attaches to the computer. That way I can easily remove the tablet PC and hide it if I’m in a “bad part of town.”
At this point everything is ready for “final assembly.” I just ran out of daylight (stupid Winter!), plus the paint could use a little more curing time. I need to update the software on the tablet PC a little, so maybe I’ll work on that in the mean time. Check back later for some pictures of the finished project.
Now playing: Nine Inch Nails - Sin
