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Dave's right. An in car installation of a PC is different than a general purpose desktop situation. Since the PC is purpose built for the car environment, a clean install of Windows and only the bits and pieces you need to get a top notch program like Road Runner going will yield a stable operating system and better functionality than the Mac.
Think for just a minute about what you are proposing:
1) You are not computer savvy
2) You know less about OSX than Windows
3) You know little about car audio
Number 1 and 3 are going to be big enough hurdles to get over. Don't introduce another variable into the equation.
Again, not trying to scare you off OSX at all. Just that there are far more very successful installs of Windows, a much larger user base, and much more support for issues with Windows than OSX. The front ends are much better developed and much more flexible.
Having said that, the challenges for installing the systems are identical, so there's no difference between trying to install a Mini vs. a PC system. The list of components you give is the right one, and although that is the right set of stuff, the actual difficulty is in wiring up the power supply. You can watch my carPC 101 video (link in my signature) to see what is involved starting at the battery and running up to the power supply. That's the hardest part. Everything else is plug and play.
I think the deciding factor is the desire for GPS. While I use GPS on my Mac, it is the open source RoadNav program which is not as sophisticated as professional products. I also use Google Earth, but that works best with a mobile internet connection. If your Garmin has a video output, you could simply run that to your VGA screen's composite video input and have Garmin functionality onscreen.
However, if you want integrated GPS from the PC touchscreen, again, the best programs run in Windows. You can run Windows on the Mac, but it requires a bit of futzing around and some knowledge to do so. It's not hard, but once you do it, you now have TWO operating systems that you are supporting. If you aren't computer savvy, that's just more work for you.
Sorry for the length of this post, but here's my suggestion:
1. Buy one of the Newbie PC systems from the mp3car store. It will come with everything you need.
2. Have the hardware installed by someone who knows what they are doing and AFTER you have done enough research to figure out if you can integrate the sound output of the system into the existing radio. It can usually be done through a device that plugs into the CD changer. I did it by purchasing a head unit that had aux inputs and was compatible with my car amp. You can probably do the same to keep costs down. Understand that this increases the complexity of the installation. Not only are you installing a computer, you are also replacing a head unit.
This will increase the cost of your project but the alternative, if you are not knowledgeable is to have a pile of components that don't work, or worse, work intermittently.
3. By all means, ask your computer savvy buddy for help but only after the system is installed. Worst that can happen is you'll have to reinstall Windows. Make him your 'software guy' and keep the hardware install for the professionals.
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