Indash Ipad for Delorean

[QuadcityDMC]

I have been looking around online and have been thinking about building a indash mount for my Ipad. There would have to be some major moving around of parts, like air vents for sure. Have any of you guys though about putting a Ipad in or mini computer?

[protodelorean]

I've got a full car computer setup in 02650. Dell Laptop mounted in docking station in the rear deck. USB hub in the console, GPS receiver under the dash, slot-load optical drive and 7" touch screen in the dash. There's a forum over at mp3car.com that focuses on these installs. There's even a guy with a vw bug with ipad in the dash.

[Lenny]

I've got a full car computer setup in 02650. Dell Laptop mounted in docking station in the rear deck. USB hub in the console, GPS receiver under the dash, slot-load optical drive and 7" touch screen in the dash. There's a forum over at mp3car.com that focuses on these installs. There's even a guy with a vw bug with ipad in the dash.

Pictures!!!

[TTait]

Take a look at the Parrot Asteroid car stereo. Its not an ipad, but it may satisfy your itch... plus, its single din so its ready to go.

[jangell]

An in-car iPad is something I've been considering as well (along with a car computer and a lot of other modifications to the interior to add random electronics). I assume that I'll have to relocate the climate controls and radio, and possibly move the vents, meaning I'll have to fabricate a bunch of stuff. I'm still in the very preliminary ideas stage, and have some other projects to do first, so I won't be getting to this for a while.

-- Joe

[QuadcityDMC]

I think I know how I'm going to do it and keep the ac vents where they are. Two things I'm waiting for, one to get my car back after winter storage and two seeing what the two new iPads are going to look like.

My goal is to make a snap in snap out holder.

[jangell]

A snap-out holder is something I want to do, too (in that, I want to be able to easily remove the iPad from it, but have it securely attached when it's in the mount). I hope to design it such that I can easily replace the mount as necessary for new iPad models. My plan is to use the iPad for all the things I don't want to program from scratch (like GPS navigation), and probably as an internet connection for the eventual car computer.

One of the things I'm waiting for is the Printrbot+, which was a recent project on Kickstarter -- that'll let me print volumes 8" on a side in ABS plastic; anything bigger I can make in pieces. Seems easier than learning how to fiberglass right now, but then I'm a computer guy. :)

-- Joe

[DMCVegas]

A snap-out holder is something I want to do, too (in that, I want to be able to easily remove the iPad from it, but have it securely attached when it's in the mount). I hope to design it such that I can easily replace the mount as necessary for new iPad models.

Unless you're talking about a permanent mount that can interchange with different cases for various models of iPads that you modify to fit to it, that isn't going to work.

http://ipad2a1395.com/wp-content/plugins/rss-poster/cache/2a988_ipad2%2520on%2520left%25202-420-100.jpg

The form factors on the iPad vs. iPad2 are very different in both the thickness of the unit, as well as the edges.

If I were to install an iPad in my DeLorean, I wouldn't put it in the dash. Too much of a temptation for thieves, and too much risk for UV and heat damage to the unit. Instead I would mount it from the headliner.

Take a nice snap case for an iPad, and affix a set of clutch hinges from a Mac Book Pro or similar portable to it, and mount it to a plate that you can attach to the ceiling. From there you can run the 30-Pin USB cable down to your radio play your music from your iPad. True, it might block the rear view mirror. However there have been apps that allow you to tether an iPhone to an iPad in order to use it as an external camera. (http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/camera-for-ipad/id366129244?mt=8)

All you'd have to do is either flip the unit up to use your rear view mirror, or switch between your apps using fast switching or gestures on your iPad.

[qwerk]

Take a look at the Parrot Asteroid car stereo. Its not an ipad, but it may satisfy your itch... plus, its single din so its ready to go.

That actually looks pretty neat!

[Jimmyvonviggle]

I would settle for a good cup holder.

[protodelorean]

A few shots of my install:
7834
7" touch screen and slot-load optical drive

7836
USB Hub in Console

7839
Laptop in Docking Station in Rear deck

[Nicholas R]

Anyone know what ever happened to the development of the double DIN dash?

[jfirios]

I am planning on mounting my i pad in the new real wall that I am building. It will be able to slide the i pad in and out of its mount.

[protodelorean]

I am planning on mounting my i pad in the new real wall that I am building. It will be able to slide the i pad in and out of its mount.

Gonna put the flux capacitor app on it?

[StrongBoy]

A few shots of my install:
7834
7" touch screen and slot-load optical drive

7836
USB Hub in Console

7839
Laptop in Docking Station in Rear deck

I was about to post here and say that I'm an old-school guy who prefers no high-tech mods. But these pictures are making me change my mind.

[dvonk]

I was about to post here and say that I'm an old-school guy who prefers no high-tech mods. But these pictures are making me change my mind.

let it be said, i am usually more 'conservative' when it comes to mods... but damn, steve has really has made the ProtoDeLorean into a work of art. ive said it before, but i am always impressed by all the talent and hard work required to resurrect 2650:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GVBDgX0Oabk

he posted this video in a thread at some point, but i couldnt find it... maybe it was on the old .com site. at any rate, i wanted to see it again, so there it is. :biggrin:

[jfirios]

It is amazing what he did to his car. Stunning really. I am though stealing a few ideas from him but have to make them my own for the uses i want. The ipad is going to have a full spectrum analyser display going which will have its own power mount and microphone input so it can read the sound from the center of the car. I am doing a similar center console design as his. Where did you get the usb hub? The thing I don't see how to do is when you first made the railings how did you mount them to the body?

[Jimmycxc]

Wow...just saw this thread for the first time. What a great job on restoring your DeLorean. I gotta say that this has got to be the nicest modified DeLorean that I have seen (except for my BTTF Time Machine)...But wow. Would love to see this in person.

[protodelorean]

Thanks guys. I really appreciate it. When I built 02650, I changed so much, I never expected anyone to like EVERYTHING I did. But if someone likes one aspect and decides to "steal" it or tweak it and make it their own, I consider that a huge compliment. So "steal" away! There are plenty of progress photos on www.projectdelorean.com and you all know I'm happy answer questions at any time.

Also, remember, if you're looking for components for putting "computer stuff" in a car, www.mp3car.com is a great resource.

[protodelorean]

...Where did you get the usb hub? The thing I don't see how to do is when you first made the railings how did you mount them to the body?

Not sure on the USB hub. (I bought it back in 2006.) What I do remember is even though you only see 3 ports on the front, there is a 4th on side. (I have my monitor's touch screen plugged in behind the console.) The only place I could find one that looks the same was on this wholesaler's site: http://www.oneinhundred.com/Wholesale-China/usb-4-port-hub/Silver---USB-4-port-hub-with-USB-connector-cable-for-digital-cameras--hard-drives-and-more--333844.htm

But any small hub will work. One thing to keep in mind is how much power you expect the usb accessory to pull because the pc is limited to how much power it will deliver through the hub. If you need more power, try a 12V powered USB hub like this one: http://store.mp3car.com/DC_Powered_4_Port_USB_Hub_CNX_P5USB_12v_and_24v_p/adt-015.htm

Not cheap, but it's a nice unit. I've got one myself that I'll be installing this winter.

As for the console, the aluminum frame has transverse pieces of aluminum angle that actually mount over the original studs that come up out of the fiberglass tunnel.

7884

[jfirios]

I see how you made the cross bars. I am on your site a lot trying to analyze what you did. I am currently working on the back wall and shelf. You used strips to elevate the shelf right? On the center console how did you attatch it to the body? looks like you just have the L brackets for the cross braces. I am by no means a master fabricator, but i have ideas and am learning. :)

[protodelorean]

I see how you made the cross bars. I am on your site a lot trying to analyze what you did. I am currently working on the back wall and shelf. You used strips to elevate the shelf right? On the center console how did you attatch it to the body? looks like you just have the L brackets for the cross braces. I am by no means a master fabricator, but i have ideas and am learning. :)

Yep. I raised the rear deck so that the new top surface just sits on top of the original wood panels (about 3"). The strips that raise it, sit nicely into the notches on the left and right sides of the fiberglass transmission tunnel.

For the console, I didn't have any good pictures of the frame, but I just sketched up a detail. The cross pieces are aluminum angles that are riveted together to form a "Z". See sketch:7885

[jfirios]

That is awesome. So you made the rails and mounts then attatched the wood to the side of the rails. I am thinking of keeping the origional sides and top, though I am extending it a bit to fit the eq I am installing. I am adding a double din stereo where the old single din and vents were and extending the top for the half din eq. or keeping the eq below the HU. The vents I am relocating. Blocking off the front two and going from the sides to new round vents in the knee pads.
Though with the rail system like yours I can attatch the fiberglass center right to the rails. Is that correct.
For the back, you did the shelf first then shortened the back wall to fit the raised shelf. I am thinking of raising mine in order to recess the amp and light it up from the sides.
I am installing the ipad in a slide in type of holder in the middle of the back wall, but i want to be able to rotate it from portrait to landscape when i want. Do you know of anything that I can use as a hinge to be able to do that?

Yep. I raised the rear deck so that the new top surface just sits on top of the original wood panels (about 3"). The strips that raise it, sit nicely into the notches on the left and right sides of the fiberglass transmission tunnel.

For the console, I didn't have any good pictures of the frame, but I just sketched up a detail. The cross pieces are aluminum angles that are riveted together to form a "Z". See sketch:7885

[dmcpom]

well after seeing the vid for the first time thats great work and awsome job love the engine work and dash

[jfirios]

I am making the railing and am wondering how you handled the problem with the cable trunking on either side. Did you cut the cross beams so that they are shorter on the bottom and longer on the top to allow the cabling to go under? I am planning on using the exhisting center console as the sides and upper for the radio and all. I can just screw that right into the railing then re foam and cover it. Right?







Yep. I raised the rear deck so that the new top surface just sits on top of the original wood panels (about 3"). The strips that raise it, sit nicely into the notches on the left and right sides of the fiberglass transmission tunnel.

For the console, I didn't have any good pictures of the frame, but I just sketched up a detail. The cross pieces are aluminum angles that are riveted together to form a "Z". See sketch:7885

[protodelorean]

I am making the railing and am wondering how you handled the problem with the cable trunking on either side. Did you cut the cross beams so that they are shorter on the bottom and longer on the top to allow the cabling to go under? I am planning on using the exhisting center console as the sides and upper for the radio and all. I can just screw that right into the railing then re foam and cover it. Right?

Hmmm. I'd have to go and look, but that's most likely what I did. (I didn't do any major re-routing of factory harnesses so if it crossed over side-to-side, I'd have made a path for it.) As for attaching the sides of the console to the rails, I actually used wood for the top of the sides and pressed in "Tee nuts" http://www.mcfeelys.com/img/stainless-steel-tee-SSN-2520.jpg then I bolted thru the inside of the rail into the insert in the wood. i can sketch it up this evening it that'll help.

[jfirios]

Well, from the rough in i have, I think i can just use self tapping screws that will go though the cardboard sides and into the side railing. then when i build the center like you did I can just screw the new top onto the cross beams. did you do a new fiberglass front for the radio front?

I am trying to think of how you made the plug for the fiberglass mold for the center. I see that you used the same angle alumnium for the frame then wood for the negative of it. You waxed the whole thing before applying all the resin and cloth? I hope you don't mind me asking all these questions. :) Honestly I kind of idolize your car and the work you did on it. It is really extraordinary.

[protodelorean]

Well, from the rough in i have, I think i can just use self tapping screws that will go though the cardboard sides and into the side railing. then when i build the center like you did I can just screw the new top onto the cross beams. did you do a new fiberglass front for the radio front?

I am trying to think of how you made the plug for the fiberglass mold for the center. I see that you used the same angle alumnium for the frame then wood for the negative of it. You waxed the whole thing before applying all the resin and cloth? I hope you don't mind me asking all these questions. :) Honestly I kind of idolize your car and the work you did on it. It is really extraordinary.

I did fabricate a whole new face plate for the vertical part of the dash. Same way I did the console top. Since this was one-off stuff, there was no need to make real molds. For these parts, I try to do a single-use (sacrificial) mold out of whatever I can put together to form the right shape. I used a flat piece of MDF wood for the surface, then the aluminum angle for the sides and more MDF pucks or blocks for the other shapes. Here's the trick for keeping the fiberglass from sticking: Cellophane Box Tape! Fiberglass resin will not stick to it. So as I'm assembling the mold, everything is neatly wrapped in box tape. No need to wax. Now, the fiberglass resin will pickup the edges of the tape, leaving fine ridges in the final part, but those can be sanded out or a thin layer of filler over them. Just be aware that the tape pattern will show up so take your time and apply the tape neatly, minimizing seams as much as possible.

Good luck!

[Farrar]

Agreed 100% on the clear packing tape -- between that and structural foam you can make just about any shape you need out of fiberglass.

Farrar

[jfirios]

great trick. When you are building the plug, all the shapes you are doing are for what would be deep when you reverse the mold right. So if you say want the arm rest to be deeper or have a larger cavity, you would use a bigger block for the mold right. Then in reverse, if i want something to come up like a ridge or something, I can make it and then fiber glass it to the top of the mold. Let dry, sand, prime, paint. then it should sit right on the rails and screw right to it.
I am right now waiting to get the stereo components in first then going to do the center and verticle section. then the back shelf and wall.

[protodelorean]

great trick. When you are building the plug, all the shapes you are doing are for what would be deep when you reverse the mold right. So if you say want the arm rest to be deeper or have a larger cavity, you would use a bigger block for the mold right. Then in reverse, if i want something to come up like a ridge or something, I can make it and then fiber glass it to the top of the mold. Let dry, sand, prime, paint. then it should sit right on the rails and screw right to it.
I am right now waiting to get the stereo components in first then going to do the center and verticle section. then the back shelf and wall.

You got it. It definitely helps to have good 3D spatial visualization abilities. Designing a mold directly, you've got to think about everything in reverse AND think about things like draft angles so that the part will actually be able to be removed from the mold. When you're building a plug, then a mold, then parts off of the mold, it can be easier to visualize since the plug is the exact shape you're looking to reproduce in your final part.

[jfirios]

working in film as a camera operator, i have good 3d visualization. it is going to be a great challenge but I think with some help I can make it work.

[protodelorean]

working in film as a camera operator, i have good 3d visualization. it is going to be a great challenge but I think with some help I can make it work.

Alright! Don't forget to share progress photos!

[jfirios]

Here are some photos of the progress so far. Had to take some time away from the car for work, but have a week off coming up where I will be building the back shelf and wall. I need to take things one step at a time. Once those are done I can concentrate on the center and the stereo face. You can see all the dynamat is done and the rails are roughed in.

[DMC5180]

How many packages (kits) of dynamat have you used so far? How much is left to be done?

[protodelorean]

Here are some photos of the progress so far. Had to take some time away from the car for work, but have a week off coming up where I will be building the back shelf and wall. I need to take things one step at a time. Once those are done I can concentrate on the center and the stereo face. You can see all the dynamat is done and the rails are roughed in.

Lookin good! :thumbup:

[jfirios]

i used one box of dynamatt extreme and 3 sheets
Both the entire drives and passanger side are done, the whole center console and the back wood pannel including inside the cubby hole and battery hole.

i got rid of all the carpeting in the back and on that back wall. I am going to glue speaker carpet all over the back wall and new shelf. Though I am thinking that I wont make hinges for the side pannels that cover the fuse pannel and the lambada. I think i will let them just rest in like stock. Working on the center console and going to extend the verticle part up to be able to hold not only the double din but the eq and two more 2 in mid speakers. WOW 15 speakers are prepped to go in the car.

I am thinking in order to simplify things for the stereo mounting, I am going to recover the stock holder with some sheet metal and then cut out the new openings for both the eq and the HU. That way when i do the fiberglass front it will be nice and clean looking.

[jfirios]

i was thinking and am going to try this but instead of making the negative of the center console first, I will be using some 1/2 in poly styrene sheet to create a positive of the console and then fiberglass over that mold. What do you think? I understand that it might be a little bigger since i am going over the foam, but I should be able to sand it down to fit properly.

[Farrar]

I was thinking of doing the exact same thing -- make a positive, then trim about 1/8" so that the fiberglass will be roughly the right size (barring sanding and finishing of course). You will obviously get around to this before I do, so I look forward to hearing how it works for you. :)

[protodelorean]

i was thinking and am going to try this but instead of making the negative of the center console first, I will be using some 1/2 in poly styrene sheet to create a positive of the console and then fiberglass over that mold. What do you think? I understand that it might be a little bigger since i am going over the foam, but I should be able to sand it down to fit properly.

: )

If you do that, you'll find yourself sitting and crying as you watch the poly styrene console you just spent several days carving and sanding MELT into a blob of pink goo. :jawdrop:

Why? The polyester resin of the fiberglass will react, acting as a solvent disolving the foam. (If you want to see, take a scrap of styrofoam and dribble some gasoline or acetone on it.) Anyone wanna take a guess how I learned this?

There are some ways around this though. You can use urethane foam, but it's much more expensive than the styrene sheets from Home Depot. You can also use epoxy resin instead of polyester resin (doesn't dissolve styrofoam), but it's about 4 times the cost of polyester resin. You can also only use epoxy resin with cloths, not mats. The most cost effective way I've found to build foam molds for fiberglass and keep the polyester resin from destroying the foam is...wait for it...BOX TAPE! Yep.

Again, box tape to the rescue! Once you get the foam to the shape you want, carefully layer the entire surface with cellophane box tape. As you're doing it, keep in mind, you're building a barrier. As you lay-up your fiberglass, that resin is going to try to find it's way inside. If it makes it past the tape, it will immediately start dissolving your foam. And your new part immediately starts to sag and turn into crap. So pay extra attention around corners where it's easy to get gaps in the tape or not get full coverage.

Once the fiberglass cures, you can either try to break your foam out of the part or, just pour acetone on it, let the foam dissolve, then peel the remaining tape off of the inside of your fiberglass.

(legal disclaimer: follow all appropriate safety measures for handling and disposal of acetone properly.)

[protodelorean]

P.S. I think the mods should set me up with a Sub Forum then I'd have a central place to post fabrication tips and info.

:yoda:

[jfirios]

i agree

[jfirios]

I am going to cover the hell out of the mold with the tape to protect it from the resin. How is it if I wanted to add something to the finished fiberglass mold like a raised piece or something, How is the fiberglass when adhearing to itself?

[jfirios]

I was thinking visually I can see it better by creating a positive and test fitting to see if the picture in my head looks as good in reality. But good advice with the package tape. I am test fitting the original center on the new rail system. I think it will all work out nicely. I also removed the rear bumber and cut out the hole for the lettering and the back up camera, and started the install for the back lighting on the delorean letters. Keeping my fingers crossed it will all work out. :)

[Farrar]

A word to the wise: a LARGE metal container is necessary to capture the acetone/foam mixture when it falls out of the finished piece -- this process produces perhaps more refuse than one might expect.....

[jfirios]

here is what is going on now, started the shelf build and have the cut outs in the bumper for the back lighting of the letters and the rear camera placement. Bumper is out now getting sanded and re sprayed. 820382048205

[jfirios]

oh i also sanded and re sprayed the heat shield with black hi temp paint. Looks really good not that you would ever see it once the bumper is on . :)