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iPad Mini in Satnav Cubby?


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I would doubt it. Ive fitted a 7" android tablet into my 123d and the screen on that was like 5mm thick with litterally no surround. I expect an ipad mini will be bonded to the screen and no chance. Besides not much point as yourd be restricted to the apple approved apps rather than all the free android ones.

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  • 2 weeks later...

My TomTom Start 60 is 6" widescreen and only just fits - and to do that needed surgery to the base of the cubby and top inner edge of the cubby.

 

David

 

dscf4630.jpg

 

When you say you did some surgery what did you do? Im looking to buy a sat nag and want to do as little as possible. Would a 5 inch Tom Tom be better then?

Edited by Mooresy14
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My TomTom Start 60 is 6" widescreen and only just fits - and to do that needed surgery to the base of the cubby and top inner edge of the cubby.

 

David

 

dscf4630.jpg

 

When you say you did some surgery what did you do? Im looking to buy a sat nag and want to do as little as possible. Would a 5 inch Tom Tom be better then?

 

A slot had to be cut in the cubby floor which allows the unit to drop down slightly and a little bit shaved off the top inner sides of the "shoulders" of the cubby. Also a mounting bracket was fabricated - this is screwed into the top of the cubby and the SatNav attaches with strong velcro.

 

Power cord runs down inside of cubby to a power supply near the passenger side power socket - all hidden inside the dash. Uses the supplied mini USB cable plus an adaptor for the standard cigarette socket style plug.

 

A 5" would obviously need less room and might fit without any surgery!

 

David

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That's exactly what I did with my old one, I just used a dremel to trim a bit of the cubby out without removing the console. In retrospect it would've been a darn sight easier if I had removed it, I was just feeling lazy that day :surrender:

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Thanks for your response.

 

May I ask how did you cut and shave the cubby ie what tools did you use?

 

Also, how did you manage to feed the cord behind the dash? Sorry to ask the questions, I have no idea how to do it!

 

I used the best equipment possible - Abbey Motorsport!

 

Complete removal of the centre console was involved (which in itself I don't think is a large task) as Charlie (Abbey's tech) said he needed the cubby almost totally dismantled to get the measurements and cutting right.

 

It looks to me like the slot was cut "simply" with a very sharp blade possibly a very small saw (?) and the "shaving" of the top I suspect was likely to have been with a Dremel to grind away enough to allow the top corners of the unit to nestle nicely into the surround.

 

It did take them something like 4 or 5 hours to do - most of which was down to the precision they used to measure and cut so it wasn't a quick or cheap job! The rubber matt on the cubby "floor" was also trimmed to suit - to be honest the entire thing looks amazingly OEM.

 

I did have a problem with my original Start 60 when it stopped working completely and Charlie had to partially pull the centre console out to be able to disconnect it so I could "persuade" Halfrauds to replace it. When he refitted it he used velcro (first time around he used massively strong sticky pads) so in theory it should be possible now to pull the SatNav free from the front without having to dismantle the console/cubby box.

 

I have considered removing the cubby lid a) as it looks so good and B) it would look neater when in use without the lid open but what puts me off that is the SatNav is then on open display to any sticky fingered passerby and being able to simply shut it away is more secure.

 

One thing I have noticed is you need to pause for a few seconds between turning the ignition key from ACC to Start - I think this allows the power supply to energise the SatNav before the engine fires up, Going straight from key in to START sometimes means the SatNav doesn't energise and of course as the "ON" button for the TomTom is at the rear of the unit it cannot be reached. Luckily the TomTom has a software controlled setting that energizes on detecting power and similarily closes down when Power is shut off.

 

David

Edited by Tinyflier
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Hmmmm, I think I'm going to leave it to the pro's and pay someone to sort it all out ie buy a decent HU and then maybe a Sat Nav (would this be needed if im using an Iphone?) as I will **** this up royally.

 

Plus, there's so many threads on this forum its too complicated, the pro's know what they are doing!

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That's exactly what I did with my old one, I just used a dremel to trim a bit of the cubby out without removing the console. In retrospect it would've been a darn sight easier if I had removed it, I was just feeling lazy that day :surrender:

 

Just that day :stir:

You have no idea, you should've seen some of the bodges I did on my old MR2! :lol: I cringe at some of the things I used to do on that...

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Hmmmm, I think I'm going to leave it to the pro's and pay someone to sort it all out ie buy a decent HU and then maybe a Sat Nav (would this be needed if im using an Iphone?) as I will **** this up royally.

 

Plus, there's so many threads on this forum its too complicated, the pro's know what they are doing!

 

iPhone satnav is ok as long as you got a 3G signal which to be fair is most places really...

 

I know what you mean about leaving it to the experts, I would gladly remove every interior trim and wire in all sorts and I have, but I would pay someone to change my spark plugs :lol:

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Hmmmm, I think I'm going to leave it to the pro's and pay someone to sort it all out ie buy a decent HU and then maybe a Sat Nav (would this be needed if im using an Iphone?) as I will **** this up royally.

 

Plus, there's so many threads on this forum its too complicated, the pro's know what they are doing!

 

iPhone satnav is ok as long as you got a 3G signal which to be fair is most places really...

 

I know what you mean about leaving it to the experts, I would gladly remove every interior trim and wire in all sorts and I have, but I would pay someone to change my spark plugs :lol:

 

Dont you get offline maps on the iphone?

 

Removing the centre console on the zed is pretty easy, certainly with DIY realms!

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The cost was considerably more than £75 (on reflection it may well have been closer to 3 hrs than 5!) but I'd rather pay for something to be done 100% properly than bolox it up myself!

 

I learned over the years that while things seem straight forward in my head - the routing of those thoughts to my hands often ends up in an almighty mess... I did think about having a go but a) it would not have occurred to me to cut a slot in the bottom to lower the unit into, B) I have a strong aversion to doing anything with vehicle electrics and c) I'm a wuss!

 

Maybe with some more knowledge of these cars (I had only had mine for a month at the time) I might have had a go myself or found a helpful soul on here!

 

David

Edited by Tinyflier
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