NiN^_^NiN

Rebs just got me thinking, maybe adding an extension ribbon from the HU to the original facia screen ( just the lcd) and adding that to the front? might help fill in some of that blank space. It's kinda what I was talking about with a squeezebox. Would look uber cool! Then you can still see the functions from the orig HU. Cheers for the link to mp3car.com looks like a cool site. I see where a lot of the awesome installs on YT ive watched over the yrs come from :) I'm a huge fan of big custom installs, more so the big fabrication jobs where a lot of custom mould work is done. Applied a lot of it over the years to auto and Defyant style custom modded pc's. What's the tablet worth? Will they do nav?

I was thinking about that but then I won't be able to put it back to stock if needed but it would be simple from when I looked at it I may do it later if I find a spare head unit for cheap but currently I don't need the LCD as when I switch from tablet it goes through fm1 fm2 am then aux and if you press and hold the seek up or down buttons on that steering wheel you can set the radio station as a preset station so function wise I don't need the LCD but I agree it would look very cool added to the console and may be a mod in the future.

Yeah mp3car is great and a lot of quality hardware has been made there I remember they were adding FM to the PC with its own interface and they wanted quality components so it was home quality way past a real head units quality as TV cards that do FM were the standard way back mid 2000 but there are a lot of audiophiles on there and its worth a look just at the installs :)

I do like to see a screen moulded into the dash and made to look factory its always nice to see quality work

Yeah I've done a lot of auto and PC mods throughout the years I mostly just mod arcade machines now though

The tablet is $249 For a 16gb its a Google tablet the nexus 7 not a cheaper Chinese one so it does everything you want it does nav using Google maps and has live traffic as well

Funny enough the tablet when I jumped in the car dinged at me and said I would be 12mins late to work but had an alternative rote that was currently quicker ready for me to say yes or no too.

There is a fantastic feature from Google called Google now that does quite a lot of functions and gives you voice control for everything including music like play artist or album etc but the cool feature is that it always knows when your going to work or coming home and tells you how late you will be based on current traffic and offers quicker routes for navigation if you want too use them :)

Its a great tablet and high specs too currently Google has the best tablets and has them way cheaper than Samsungs and other line ups as well.

Holy crap.. That's amazing. Looks like Defyant just got himself a rival in the DIY department.

Nonetheless, top notch.

But the idea of it being a tablet, is it a good idea to mount it to your car as a head unit?

LOL @ vic.

I'm not sure you'd see me using cable ties and small sticky pads mate :P Something more pro and perm would be what I would be looking at.

How'd you go with the vinyl? im not convinced looks like it hasn't sat to well on the edges and around corners and over the contours and can see a lot of lifting. I tried the Vinyl way a while back and was never 100% happy with the results on internal parts.

We run the ipads in both cars as secondary devices to aftermarket units . Having a second GPS with a 10" screen is bonus for work in the iload.

Sound quality from tablets just isn't as good as mid-high range car units, No Steering wheel control support is also a massive downer.

No instant access to a volume controls or track selection. No radio and cd supports are also massive setbacks.

I'm a massive Audiophile and prolly spent over 30k on home gear, Tablets just can't produce the quality of sound without the use of decent quality DAC as the MP3 format is just too compressed.

Tablets for now are great imo as secondary devices to Quality audio units but for now fall short of being a complete replacement.

I haven't done any real research into DAC's for car use. Maybe the inclusion of a Logitech Squeeze box or similar Could prove revolutionary to car installs.

Not to mention looking uber cool. I know some DIY DAC's actually run on 12v as this is a cleaner supply of power which may prove helpful.

Cred to you mate on the install you've done a good job

keep us updated on how you go adding an FM Module and possibly finding a controller unit to add steering wheel button functionality.

I didn't have the time or tools currently to create a mount for a more professional system for the tablet i could of waited to 3D print something but after doing test fits I found it way easier to go the parts on hand route that would still give me what I wanted in the end so I went with the sticky pads and re-enforced them just in case.

The vinyl worked quite well on the centre console besides a crinkle which is easily fixed but the double din fascia just didn't have enough heat applied for the vinyl to stick so I should be able to fix the corners without having to redo it but there's always a chance I may redo it if i don't like how the vinyl looks once fixed.

I think the difference between you and me is i'm not an audiophile so the sound the tablet is throwing out in the car sounds pretty good to me and I still have FM and AM using the original head unit (Not that I use it a lot) and steering wheel controls still give me volume and mute access for the tablet and i'm happy to pause the music on the tablet instead of the steering wheel it's not an issue for me and would be the same most other aftermarket headunits.

I do know that people have been using USB audio for a pure digital signal and DAC's are available for the cars if your interested mp3car.com has lots of links for people who do audiophile quality in their car with tablets and pc's

Thanks I could of done a more professional install but this install was more about a cheap price for a decent experience as this car is my daily driver and I don't need anything fancy but I wanted to at least have it up to scratch for my daily use.

Hopefully this will be helpful for other users who might want to do the mod it's pretty good at $70 all up minus the tablet (could be done cheaper) and it still leaves the original headunits FM and steering wheel controls intact :)

Looks really good man. But I recon you should add something or maybe carbon fibre wrap the frame cause it just looks too naked without the buttons

Thanks :)

I don't understand what you mean by the frame? are you saying the frame around the tablet looks too naked?

Holy crap.. That's amazing. Looks like Defyant just got himself a rival in the DIY department.

Nonetheless, top notch.

But the idea of it being a tablet, is it a good idea to mount it to your car as a head unit?

Thanks :) I've always been a DIY-er so there is bound to be a few more mods I do on the car ;) this is nothing compared to my last car.

Well the tablet is no different than a touch screen head unit and it's just as reliable as any other heaunit.

There are multiple uses for the tablet compared to a aftermarket headunit:

• You can skin the screen to your own style and make it suit the interior more
• You can use any audio program and have more fluid ways to navigate music
• You can use an equalizer
• You have up to date maps and you have live traffic info too plus you can easily find places or POI around you
• You have access to all your accounts so you can check email or browse the net if needed and any lists or apps
• You can have video play while waiting
• You can have weather and news directly on screen either by text or audio (Podcasts)
• You can have info on your car like speed, RPM etc when using a OBD-II adapter
• You can sync the phone up so you can take and answer calls on the tablet
• You can play games can even hook up two ps3 controllers wireless and play games and emulators for snes, ps1 etc
• People in car can add music to the head unit with their phones wirelessly for a more social music on trips
• You can plug in usb drives and copy movies, pics etc from people and use keyboards or anything else
• The tablet can sync with home to download latest music, pics and videos
• See calendar alerts if you need to be somewhere and forgotten (Happens a lot)
• View pictures and upload pics from phones to tablet easily
• Make audio notes to remind yourself
• Use as a remote for home automatic (Open garage door, turn lights on etc I use Home Automation and android around the house so this is handy)
• Read books and magazines when waiting or listen to audio books

There is bound to be more but that's off the top of my head atm :)

It gives you more freedom than a normal head unit and allows you to use any app you want.

You did a top job there! Love the look of the vinyl wrap, this gives me options as opposed to trying to buy a central dash from a Presara for the woodgrain look. How did you do the corners and under-sides of the lids that open?

Now get yourself an ELM 327 bluetooth dongle, the app Torque, and you can get some really handy real-time info on that tablet :)

Thanks I think it's pretty good for my first go :)

You could easily get the woodgrain vinyl if that's what your going for it would work well.

As for corners the vinyl is stretchy for corners you use a hair dryer to heat it up and pull it around the corners and stick it on the underside then just do what I did and cut it along the plastic seem that is between the front and back plate of the lids.

Perfect example

I will be getting a obdII reader and have it on the tablet soon I need to setup the tablet to make driving and using it more comfortable as well so that will take a while to set it up

I finally got to finish the audio install :)

I got my cables from ebay that I needed

I mounted the tablet and installed the cables (Still need to trim the vinyl)

And tablet mounted and the double din fascia has had it's vinyl applied.

Mounted back together

And it's all hooked up and put back together

You can see the difference in the colour as the plate for the gear shifter is still the original silver

I need to clean up and I will be replacing the white plate with a black one that will fit the hole very soon

I have a tiny usb cable that goes from the power adapter to the usb plug. I did this cause this still allows me to plugin keyboards or thumb drives to the tablet and the tablet will run off the internal battery :)

There are one or two parts of the vinyl I need to smooth out but I'm done now audio wise and using the tablet for music and anything else is fantastic and the GPS works a treat too

This would be a much simplier install without the vinyl but i'm happy with the outcome and now I only have the steering wheel and door handles to put vinyl on left

Looks like a tough job for mod.

It's been an ok job not that tough and it be easy to be done in a day if I didn't do all the vinyl

So I didn't have much time today and couldn't find what I needed at Jaycar either so looks like I will need to wait for some ebay stuff to come mostly just a USB socket and a right angle headphone jack cable.

So I purchased a AUX cable on ebay and tried it and of course the thing didn't work even though it was said to work.

This Aux cable is nice as it's more an extension cable for the original and makes it easy to unplug and plug back in.

So all I did was cut the ground cable and added a resistor to it and attached the resistor to a screw on the headunit and it works :)

I also mounted the unit back in and bolted it to make sure it would still work and it works nice so i've fixed that up with proper wire etc.

The head unit works nicely with no fascia and using only the wheel controls so that works nicely and I can always attach the headunit fascia later on without any issues.

So with the tablet and the double din fascia attached it's a pretty tight fit so I've only added some rubber stoppers on the underside of the fascia to hold the tablet in the correct position.

The white squares have small hoops on them and I've just got a plastic strip hooked to it so it holds the tablet against the fascia.

Now all I need to do is:

Apply Vinyl on Double Din fascia

Get and install a Right angle audio jack

Get and install a Right angle micro usb cable

Install a USB Socket into the centre console

Install a Cig USB power supply

Apply Vinyl on door handles

I also need to work out a way to turn on the tablet as well the tablet will turn on when power is applied when you turn on the car but if the car isn't used for a week or more the battery in the tablet will be drained and you won't be able to power the unit back on just charge it up.

Otherwise everything is almost done and hopefully once I have the parts I can post more updates.

Sorry for the bad quality pics I don't have the best light atm and I haven't been able to do much today.

Headunit Fascia has been removed

Tablet to be mounted to the front of the head unit (Tested with the double din fascia and it fits perfect)

I hope to have some time tomorrow but I will probably be busy.

Mate that looks awesome wish I had the patience to do that :)

Thanks it's my first time doing it and I spent most of the time doing over a few movies which helped make it go faster (Although I seriously got suckered in to "Shaolin Wooden Men" last night which slowed progress)

But it's pretty easy and I think it was $30 for a 1m by 1.5m sheet off ebay too :)

The smaller android tab looks like a great idea.

Can you add FM module to it? and perhaps a EXT cable for a USB stick and you will have plug in tunes?

I tried the same thing a long time ago with an ipad lol after seeing it custom done on youtube a few times but because of the sheer size I kinda just gave up and moved the idea over to my iload.

Now with the smaller gen tabs this is something a i'm really keen to see work

Good job :D

Depending on the tablet some have a FM Module built in so you could use the actual tablet and there are bluetooth controllable FM modules specifically for carpc's using tablets now.

I am going to run the USB into the centre console and then have a usb cig lighter adapter and use a small cable there so i can unplug the power and plug in a USB drive to transfer music or watch stuff off the USB drive etc. The tablet will last quite a while on battery power so I want to be able to use the USB function as well.

If I had a car that could support a 10" tablet I would use a nexus 10 tablet it can have power and usb at the same time but the screen is higher than 1080p and is a dream to use I love mine and using that in the car would be fantastic with the better screen real estate.

Hopefully I can get some more work done today :)

Well I have had some time today to take out the centre console.

Before I do my audio install I wasn't happy with the condition of the silver plastic on the door handles and the centre consoles so I decided to go get some vinyl wrap.

Now cause the knobs of the HVAC are silver i needed to keep the colour in line with that I couldn't just slap carbon fiber on then the knobs would look weird.

I had a look and found some brushed metal vinyl (Has texture to the vinyl not just a print) which would cover the grey plastic and personally make the interior look more classy I think.

Centre Console

Centre console 2

Door Handle

Door Handle 2

First piece done

Another piece done

Finished for the night

I still have a few other things to do including the aux mod but there is still a bit of work left to do but just wanted to post and update :)

I will throw in my 2 cents as Couzellion asked if there was another option.

You can either

A ) Remove the foam and if the metal under is smooth or looks nice you can Vinyl wrap it possible use CF wrap if you like the look

B ) Use a thin MDF board and paint or wrap that and have that replace the shelf it will be a lot better than plastic

C ) You can use material (cotton or pleather) and wrap that around the foam that is already there and that won't rattle

All these options will be under $30 and I have done the pleather wrap for a few auto projects and it works well Just get some marine grade vinyl material from bunnings and the spray on glue and you are good to go :)

Lol i have to say I was wondering why everyone was so against the idea but having provided more detail it seems like the idea isn't as bad as I originally thought when I posted.

I am surprised people would want to put a lexus badge on a toyota but I guess some people like the status of a lexus I guess so that kinda makes sense.

Eyeballing the pieces it does look like they should fit as it's pretty much the same engine bay the only mod that would have to be done would be the front piece that goes over the radiator that might be an issue but I'm gonna keep an eye out for these and if I can grab the full set for a nice price i'll see if I can fit them easily.

I do think these done in a gloss black or even colour coded as the car would really make it stand out but I know it's a useless mod so to speak but still i'll keep and eye out for the full set.

Also found a video of someone pulling the pieces off the lexus

I'm surprised at the replies this thread has got

I think I haven't been clear to some I was talking about the covers for the engine bay not the engine cover with the Lexus logo I thought the covers on the sides with the stock engine cover painted black would be a nice mod to help with the clean look of my prodigy i just threw it up as I couldn't find it mentioned anywhere here and thought it would of been a good conversation

As for the pieces I was just curious as I found the front over the radiator and left side for about 200 shipped (couldn't find the right side) and was curious what people thought.

Why not?

I think it cleans the engine bay up a bit and I think it looks nice I thought it might be a nice mod if the pieces could be found

Looking at the Lexus es350 it looks like the engine covers would fit with little modification.

What do you think?

I've got a 7 inch touch screen Head unit and i was thinking of just selling it.

But before i do is it worth my time installing into the car?

I was also thinking about getting one of the 2013 toyota corolla head units that is touch screen but didnt want to buy another head unit.

If i install my own one will it affect the current speakers etc?

Well i'm assuming the 7" is double din slot so you can install that if your get a double din fascia but it depends if the head unit does what you need?

Is there a reason why you want to go touch screen? or you don't want to stick to standard head units?

I checked out your car and can see you have the stock head unit. You can do what i'm doing and using a Android Tablet and still keep the stock head unit you just won't be able to use the 6 stacker cd (Although the whole fascia could be made to flip up to access the 6 stacker) That is another option but your reverse camera wouldn't be used but you can use an IP cam with android for reverse but you would need to think of some way to launch the camera app when you go into reverse (Should be simple I have a few ideas)

But you really need to workout what it is you need or want in a head unit and which one is right for you but all of them besides your own 7" touch screen will cost a few hundred unless you have a spare tablet too.

Thanks guys

From doing a quick search last night I will be tapping into the underside of the cig lighter for power and aux in for the head unit and looking at the video's on youtube with people removing the head units I believe there is enough space to have the tablet and fascia in front of the head unit if I just remove the front plate from it so there are no controls.

With that thickness removed I won't have to make a new bracket either or worry about pushing the unit back further.

I will start work on mounting the tablet securely to the frame and then once I have AUX in up and running i'll do the swap and see how I like it.

I am curious if it would look weird if the screen is pushed to the right more and there is more of a black bar on the left? I ask cause I think the front facing camera in the car could be very useful.

I will post a pic tonight to see if it looks to weird or not.

Hi Guys

I have just purchased a 2007 Black Aurion Prodigy and just wanted to introduce myself and show the start of my audio install.

I sadly had to purchase a new car as the engine on my old one kicked it. Hopefully I can find an engine and bring it back to it's former glory.

But for now I looked at the cars available and was really impressed with the Aurion it's a car I can't say I payed much notice too before but after looking at it more closely and driving it I was sold on it.

So I wanted to do a few mods to make the Aurion more to my liking which is mostly just some interior mods.

The first one will be a different kinda audio update so to speak.

I plan on moving the stock head unit further inside the dash (Need to check if there is space if someone can advise me that be great) and using a double din fascia and a Nexus 7 tablet as my main audio unit.

I am going to do the aux into the head unit and have that hooked up to the tablet and have that for my sound.

The main reason I am going to stick to the stock head unit is I don't want to mod too much with this car (Did enough of that on the previous car) and the steering wheel controls work perfectly with this setup.

You can still use FM and can also change the station and set new stations up all with the controls on the wheel and the option for volume and mute on the steering wheel it's a perfect and cheap match.

So I've currently gotten the fascia and the nexus tablet and will be taking the dash apart soon to see if i can fit the stock head unit back further and mount the fascia.

I'm a big fan of android and use it in a lot of my projects so I thought the nexus 7 is perfect fit for the car :)

I hope to update soon and become a active member on this forum