LCD above head unit?
 

looking for someone to possibly do a custom install on my z. i have the touring edition non-navi and would like to keep my stock radio and have an LCD or navi/dvd screen in the top area above the radio...any ideas or suggestions? thanks again

CarPC's are always a good install because they give you a lot of freedom for features. They're a bit involved, and knowing computer hardware is needed. Have a look at the 350Z installs over at mp3car.com to get an idea of what you could do.

i'm looking for the same exact thing as well. i got touring with no navi. i really don't like all the ALL IN ONE units.

Interesting idea, however, isn't this going to cost considerable amount more monie than installing the LCD/NAVI into the same stock radio area?

well the thing is i dont want to get rid of the stock radio and the upper "cargo" area is pointless to me its too small to really store anything and it doesnt even open up all the way...i shall have something figured out soon...its already botherin me lol im just lookin for others help and ideas...

^+1

The really annoying thing is that the door on the binnacle doesn't slide into the console like the 350Z did, meaning you'll probably had to remove the door if you put anything there. 350Z computer installers loved that because it was essentially a free hide-away for the expensive looking computer.

^ again, agreed!

maybe we can install a sliding cover for the 370z? i think that would be a cool idea. and i think a LOT of people would like it if they had an lcd in the chubby.

Going from memory, pics of the behind the cubby taken appart, I don't think there is enough depth behind there to make it a sliding cover.

The leather of the cover is kind of growing on me. I am entertaining the idea of just getting a portable 4.3" gps unit and putting it in the cubby and keeping it open when using the gps.

theres like pics in japan of people putting LCDS where the cubby is! ill try n find them..but I think its a good investment to put an LCD/navi in the cubby..because soo many people want aftermarket then the blah navi from nissan. Plus with the whole aftermarket in the stock radio..u have to configure the controls on the steerwheel..and i dont want to mess with that. I just want navi where the cubby is..nothing like all in one crap..

I agree. I basically just use the HU with AUX plugged into my iphone. I just need to change the volume on the steering wheel and dont want to mess with the hookup of that stuff for the aftermarket. On the other hand, if there's some HU that would read my iPhone 3G music library, which I'm not sure there is, that would be cool (but the problem is, I'll be on iPhone 6.0 while still driving the Z, and i'm sure they wont work together at that point).

I'd love to just put a Navi into the cubhole and call it a day.

Find those pics if you can.

okay, i get you but the only problem with that is the chubby doesn't open all the way up. i don't know if you can see the whole screen let alone have enough opening for hand commands.

Tried putting a Nuvi 650 w/ a 4.3" screen in there last night. It fit with room to spare on all sides, probably about a 1/4 to 1/2 inch on the side, about as much on top, and enough depth to fit two or three more units behind it.
(in fact, I have pics, see bellow)

No matter how I placed it, I could clearly see the full screen from my regular sitting position, and could easily operate the unit. If anything, i'd look for something a bit bigger to fit in there. It should be no problem rigging something that would fix the unit in place.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v7...der/photo3.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v7...der/photo4.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v7...der/photo5.jpg

yeah i have the same Garmin nuvi....and i too placed mine in there however i still think a flat LCD would look amazing...even if i have to get ride of the door its not a big deal...most cars have the navi right there anyway with no cover...keep us updated with those pics from japan

That Nuvi isnt mine, (gf's). Just stuck it in there to get an idea of how something like this will fit. Does anyone have any recommendations on a portable unit that would be a little bigger than the Nuvi (or standard 4.3" gps)?

What someone in the aftermarket needs to do is come up with an exchange program for the factory padded door where they integrate what unit you choose into the door itself rolling the edges of the padding around the unit to look factory. This way you will still have the cubbyhole, and you will not become tired of driving around with the cubby door open.

I use it to hold my cardkey for gate access, and my sunglasses. It's handy. I'd really like to get GPS and/or OBD-II data into that slot on an LCD though, and kill the front cover (unfortunately).

In theory with the door removed, you could permanently flush-mount a GPS screen and something like this: Informeter.

Or if you want to get all Fast & Furious Magden M.1b :icon17:

actually i want that magden. i like the look of it. probably somewhere down the road though. right now, i'm focused on performance parts.

Yeah the laugh was more at Fast&Furious than the actual Magden unit, which is pretty sweet. What would be really ideal, would be to find a way to hook up the Magden and a remote GPS unit to the same generic touch-screen LCD in the center console and switch between the two. Video switching is easy, but I'm not sure how well the GPS and/or Magden would deal with switching the USB touch-screen inputs.

So basically, something like: Magden M.1b + Lilliput 7" touch-screen LCD + Garmin GVN-53. The Garmin unit doesn't take touch-screen input though, only remote-control input. Who makes a GPS module like that GVN-53 that does touch-screen on a remote LCD?

actually if you go to madgen's official website, they have video on how to hook up the computer to a factory navi in dash. not sure if you can do the same with a portable gps since i never owned one.

sometime down the road, i'm going to get at 7" at least lcd navi screen and put magden with it. thank god amplified carries madgen i'm going to see what they come up with.

Yeah the issue is I don't see any GPS nav units out there that offer touch-screen outputs to whatever you've got hooked up for external video (like the magden). I need to do more digging on GPS mfgs.

are you not going to do in dash navi?

What we're discussing is in-dash navi + magden.

oh okay, i'm confusing my self.

Wstar, what is the current parts list you are looking at merging into one? This is something I thought about, but was really unsure where to start.

Btw, I am watching your discussion with interest guys, as I decide what I want to install; however, I think what you plan to do is considerably more than what I'm thinking of, at least, at this moment.

yeah im looking for an LCD install in the cubby...and maybe put a dvd player elsewhere

CarPC, problem solved :tup:

I remember some software, maybe not as simple as magden, that does the OBDII stuff with a somewhat pretty interface. And then you get your choice of available software for GPS.

LCD installs are easy enough, just depends how you want to do it and how much time you want to spend.

Well, I haven't found a set of parts yet that does exactly what I want, the stuff referenced above all comes close though. I'd like to get OBD-II sensor data (ala Magden or similar) as well as a good-quality GPS nav system, both using the same single touch-screen interface, mounted where the factory nav goes (or in my case, where the factory cubby is).

A quick trawl through mp3car shows that DashCommand seems to be the favorite app for magden like gauges in a pc, though there certainly are other options. I used centrafuse which had OBDII but it was more for diagnostic purposes, number and not virtual gauges.