In-dash vs permanently mounted

**bernoulli** · 07-16-2005, 02:40 AM

Originally Posted by Kiriller

btw nice cluch :P

Sorry

... What's so nice about the clutch??

And Quattro:
Permanently mounted is more stock looking.... in a 1991 car?? I admire the technologies we had back then

.

**soundoff** · 07-17-2005, 08:26 AM

nice car

I am looking at my screen options aswell. I have the same dash setup as yours currently, pioneer CD head unit in the top slot however i have removed the ash tray at teh bottom and have a UHF CB mounted there.

I have sized up a liliput and they fit really nice in the 2 1/2 din space you have if you ditch your CD. Only thing is i want to keep mine for FM and audio cds, so im probably going to buy an in dash.

**soundoff** · 07-17-2005, 08:28 AM

by the way... anothe thing to consider with the in dash is that if you mount it where you CD player is now, it will flip up quite high and be much easier to see being at almost eye level. You wont have any trouble operating your air con buttons by feel unless you have only owned the car for a short time. I never look at mine anymore.

**bernoulli** · 07-24-2005, 02:51 AM

Originally Posted by soundoff

nice car

I am looking at my screen options aswell. I have the same dash setup as yours currently, pioneer CD head unit in the top slot however i have removed the ash tray at teh bottom and have a UHF CB mounted there.

I have sized up a liliput and they fit really nice in the 2 1/2 din space you have if you ditch your CD. Only thing is i want to keep mine for FM and audio cds, so im probably going to buy an in dash.

So you would have the CD head unit then under it the indash lcd, then a 1/2 DIN gap? (Assuming the 1.5 din storage compartment is replaced with the indash screen and 1/2 din gap...) Is this right? I don't want my head unit if I get a carputer.

Are the motorised indash units easy to pull down out of the way (temporarily) to access the heater controls, etc. behind it (then push it back up to normal viewing angle)?

**soundoff** · 07-24-2005, 05:30 AM

At the moment i am having alot of trouble making my mind up which way to go with screens. The 2 options I am looking at are:

1. ditch head unit. flush mount a 7" touchscreen taking up the entire 2 1/2 din space. I have test fitted an old style lilliput 7" (619 series) in my dash facia and with a bit of trimming of the stereo surround it would fit perfect without any modifications to the screen. The new 629 series should fit even easier because they are rectangular. Also those avatar / super LCD's look like they would fit aswell. I am trying to get dimensions off somebody (see the thread "New Ebay LCD")

2. Keep the head unit. Go the motorised in dash option. Iam currently leaning in this direction, you could either put the screen in the top slot so it covers the A/C controls, or you could put it at teh bottom and it would cover your head unit. Either way, your right about the 1/2 DIN gap to fill. I have the original 1DIN tray lid i could cut in half for that so its not a big deal.

If i didnt have my UHF radio mounted where the ash tray is i could mount my head unit down there, and then flush mount a 7" screen like i said. There really isnt anywhere else for my UHF to go though.

**Rafster** · 07-24-2005, 06:06 AM

I remember some guy on here a while back was worried that his screen would be stolen, he had a mounted screen. So what he did was get his old stock stereo, and he took the faceplate off and made a screen cover for it when he parked hi car.

Peace,

Rafster

**Power_nisse** · 07-24-2005, 08:36 AM

Originally Posted by anitanium

maybe you can have it permamently mounted, but have some sort of covering that goes over it?
sort of like a shade?

mine is going to be permamently mounted...
i'm lucky i don't drive around bumtown..

Thats my kind of plan, dont know how to do it but ill have to come up with something. Maybe A cover thats a printed picture on the panel without a screen. most of the time theives work in dark so it might work.

Building an extra alarm and sensors in the car now its gonna be a kickass alarm hopefully

**-zip-** · 07-24-2005, 09:41 AM

Custom indash LCD's look better but here are some things to consider

1.You need skills to do the fabrication
2.Future troubleshooting could be tricky if you need to have access to it. Touch screen fails, loose wire needs fixed etc.
3.There is also a chance when you take the screen apart it will stop working.
4. Lower resale value
5. Could be difficult to transfer to another car.
6. They take up twice as much space in your dash.

Motorized H/U - Some have additional features like FM, TV. Some screens can rotate away from the driver. Simple install.
1. New technology unproven reliability
2. Unattractive install, looks bulky and unfinished
3. Screen possibly will rattle when closed and car is moving
4. Back of screen can hit dash doing damage over time
5. Can block air ducts, controlls etc when opened.

Look into a rider, err ryder (sp) clause from your insurance company. It cost me 79 bucks a year and covers my complete audio, video and electronics in my vehicle. I have so much stuff now that it is worth more than the car now.

I have no worries about theft because of the extra insurance.

**HummDinger** · 07-24-2005, 10:04 AM

If you ever get pulled over you can pretty much expect at least a warning. If anything switch it to GPS when pulled over. Most states will alow GPS units in view of the driver. To be safe only have it on when necessary. I rarely drive with my screen on any more. It is a little of a distraction and a lot of risk (I am on my 3rd police warning now, 3 different cities).
JUST A LITTLE FYI

**kevin300z** · 07-25-2005, 10:50 AM

Biggest thing that is pulling me from in-dash vs permanent is brightness. Being that I can't see 2 units side by side, going to have to chose by opinions here in the forums.