2005 Saturn Vue - 7 inch indash

I just purchased this Vue about 2 months ago and ever since, I have wanted to put in a carputer! This is going to be a long process, but lets get started!

Step 1. I measured my DIN size to see what I have to work with. I'm pretty new to this, but with 7X4 opening, I believe this is a 2 DIN setup (please correct me if I'm mistaken)

http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d1.../Carputer2.jpg

http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d1.../Carputer1.jpg


Also, if anyone has experience with installing a carputer in a Vue (I did a search and found very little info on this car), I'd greatly appreciate some direction!

*******TOTAL PRICE TO DATE********
1. Jetway Mboard - $169
2. Lilliput 7 inch touchscreen LCD - $175
2. Western Digital 60 Gb 2.5 Laptop Drive - $58
3. OPUS 120 watt DC - DC Power Supply - $93
4. XMD1000 satellite radio module - $34
5. XMD1000 Serial Data Cable - $19
6. Clarion 400W amplifier - $40 (great deal off Ebay)
7. StreetDeck Software - $200
8. 2005 Saturn Vue wiring harness - $15
8. 1/4 inch plexi - $19
9. slimline DVD - $15
10. Misc hardware - $70

Total: $917

That looks perfect for a 7" screen. I'd consider molding the screen in the bezel to make up for that recessed look

I was thinking that having the screen recessed a little into the dash would cut down on glare....What do you think?

I thought that too but it might actually hurt more than it helps. I have an 06 maxima and molding it into the bezel would do nothing for me because of the angle of the dash, the bezel has a small lip over the screen but it does nothing to reduce the glare. I think mounting it flush would make it look nicer

this needs to be moved to the worklogs
but i hope it turns out good id love to do my vue

I can read a nice 7" monitor in this dash's future - ;)

Well, I'm ordering the LCD this week while I'm on vaction. Hopefully I'll have new pictures when I get back late next week

(Mods, please move this to the worklog area!)

LCD is ordered :

http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d1...f/lilliput.jpg

I think I will have to remove the LCD from it's bezel and remove the buttons (use the remote only), but I will not know for sure until I get it and measure it.

BTW, here is a picture of my Vue when I bought it :)

http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d1...off/My_vue.jpg

I finally got my board, and I started to build my case last night. My goal was to build something small enough that it would fit inside of the dash behind my screen.

Step 1. Measure the dimensions of the board:

http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d1.../Carputer4.jpg

I bought the 1/4 inch plexiglass (not lexan) from the local Home Depot for about $12 for a 24 X 36 inch piece (plenty for what I need)

Step 2: Cut 2 8X8 inch pieces of plexi
Step 3: Tape them together, drill holes for support columns.
Step 4: Use a reamer so the bolts are recessed into the plexi.
Step 5: Clean up the edges of the plexi with sand paper.

http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d1.../Carputer5.jpg