MacGyver

Well kids, the thesis will be finished (HOPEFULLY!) in the next month or two, so I'm slowly moving my way back into custom mods for Michelle. What's on the plate, you ask? Just like the subject line says...

This mod is a bit more drastic than Pinky's, so it may not be for everyone (don't worry, Pinky...this won't be done for quite some time, so your sales shouldn't drop off anytime soon . Whereas Pinky's mod keeps the stock look of the dash (something I've always been a proponent of), mine will replace all of the controls (including the Start button) on that side of the dash. The metal plate will still be there, but it will be mostly LCD with this mod...a backlit, touchscreen, color LCD. Here are some B/W views of what I envision some of the screen looking like:

http://users.rcn.com/dhintz/Dash_controls.jpg

Why am I posting this? Well, if the projects works out the way I intend, I would like to sell this to fellow S2k owners...therefore, I need to guage interest. The magnificent Rick "Leatherman" Hesel has agreed to sell this product on his website, should it come to fruition. As such, I need all of the comments you all can muster about the product...mode of operation, look, feel, etc.

Here's my current vision of how the display will look (refer to pics on link above):

When the engine is off, there will be a large, red "Engine Start" button. You crank the car over just as usual by "holding in" the start button (i.e., hold your finger on the display until the engine catches). Safeties will be installed so should the program go bonkers (heaven forbid), your car won't continue to crank for 5 minutes after you release.

The other two screens (and individual graphics at the bottom of the page which replace the CD or antenna pic) show the basic operation screens when running the CD and tuner. Operation is as follows...

Touch lower left to lower volume, touch lower right to raise volume, touch both lower left and right at the same time to mute.

When playing the tuner, touch upper left to go back a station, upper right to go forward a station, touch both at once to switch between AM and FM.

When playing CD, touch upper left to go back a track, upper right to go forward a track, touch both at once to pause.

Touch middle of the screen to change modes (CD, tuner, MP3, auxiliary, etc.)

I've separated the controls in this manner so that you can still operate the controls without looking at them. I think the screen is large enough to do so without hitting the wrong control.

The controls are dependent upon the particular brand/model of stereo, but I would hope most controls would be generic enough to satisfy most, if not all, units. As an example problem, if a stereo does not allow selection of tuner or CD with separate buttons on the remote, but instead offers only one button that swaps between modes. This could cause problems with keeping the LCD pic synched up with the actual stereo mode...but I get ahead of myself.

Anyway, the project is out there for you guys to enhance or tear apart as you see fit, hopefully before I start building. This way, I can satisfy as many people as possible and play Microsoft (let the USERS debug your product

I keep forgetting price...since I haven't priced all components yet, the ROUGH price range will be somewhere between $100-$200 for a full kit...probably closer to $150. I will not be installing this one for you as Pinky does, but I will provide detailed instructions so that you, or an installer could do it.

Enjoy...


[Edited by MacGyver on 03-08-2001 at 03:46 PM]

Rick Hesel

I think this is an intriguing idea and I hope there's enough interest to see it through development. Very innovative and unique! Let's here what all of you think.

yu888

While I personally will not be using such a mod, I am fascinated by the technology you are using and believe that there is a viable market, if not for us crazy S2k ownersm then at least in the other typically modded cars such as integra's preludes, celicas and civics. I hope it comes out the way you plan!

pellisS2k

Hmm.. if you could tie that MFD into the ecu so we could show all kinds of other things.. what about leaving the start button and fitting the display around it?!

deadpedal

I agree - Leave the start button - build around it.

skitz

I don't see a thing wrong with the existing controls, except maybe the volume which isn't sensitive enough. The look of my S2K is great the way it is, how geeky and unroadster-like it would be with a touchscreen on it. I don't even like the digital stuff that's on there, but that's just me.

MacGyver

pellis & DP: That can certainly be done, but the price would be prohibitively expensive...I would have to custom-order an LCD that isn't rectangular. If you look at how much room that start button takes up, a rectangular LCD would be about 2" diagonal...not much use. Believe me, guys, I kind of cringed myself about getting rid of the starter, but the panel doesn't leave me with much real estate...and I would like to avoid cutting into the dash itself for this project. I want something that can be a plug-in replacement for that metal panel, if at all possible.

pellis: You're as bad as Rick (he did this to me once or twice with some of his ideas), throwing my ideas out to the public before I can If there seemed to be enough interest in having digital displays, I was intending to create a panel for the right side controls that would double as an engine data display (engine/exhaust temp, oil pressure, psi for turbo/superchargers, NOS controller, the whole shebang). However, if there isn't much interest in going digital, I'll probably just build a one-off for myself and make Michelle unique again. With only a few messages so far, the general attitude is difficult to judge...but it looks like people might be taking the "cool, but it's not me" or "I could take it or leave it" attitude. I will only build this stuff beyond the one-off/prototype stage if there is some real enthusiasm from, say, around 5-10 people, or more. But I like the way you think

Chiman

Being a tech-head, I really like the idea of Digital Display (Ideas like a colored Palm Pilot display in that area comes to mine). But as we all know, Honda spent a lot of time and marketing money in building the brand identity with that start button. To me, it symbolise the Honda heritage with F1 racing in our stook. So my vote is, if the start button must go, I am a no go.

Sorry, but I hope we'll have a better solution.

John

lvs2k

I'm curious, what is the subject of your thesis and what will your degree be? Your plans for your car sound interesting and very ambitious; however, the current controls work by touch only whereas your approach requires taking your eyes off the road to operate. Your solution almost seems like the answer to a question that nobody asked.

AusS2000

I love the fact that the controls on either side of the dash are tactile and don't require visibility. I'd hate to lose this for a graphic of a start button. They are also quite low and as such don't lend themselves to a display to be used whilst driving.

So here's my input. Replace the Mode button with a simple joystick, or at least give it 2 extra axis (up/down, left/right).

Offer it as a basic stereo control module.

Then, go further by offering a mid dash LCD touch screen, which can also be controlled by the joystick.

Your interface should be fairly generic and allow you to control various input sources such as TV tuners, PlayStations, Nav Systems etc. Nxt, make an ODBII interface to read engine diags and display them onscreen.

Another option of course is a head up display.

Of course if you require a RHD beta tester I'd be happy to for a small fee and lots of money