Fusion in Iowa

RESET · 06-11-2007, 07:39 PM

Just bought my first carputer. I researched it as much as I could but would like any input that you guys might have. Here is a link to the closed auction.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...6722&rd=1&rd=1

Check it out and please let me know what you think. If I got ripped, I should be able to at least make use of the components.

I plan on having the stereo out of the sound card go thru the aux input of the Fusion's factory stereo. There is a storage compartment on top of the dash above the head unit. Not sure how but it will be mounted on a bracket and arm so that it can be pulled out of the compartment and sit over the factory HU. Any tips or guidance is welcome.

FusionFanatic · 06-12-2007, 10:09 PM

hi RESET,

I also have a 2007 Ford Fusion. I originally was going to mount the screen in the center dash compartment. it fits fine in there, and it is just short enough to fit upright with the lid open. there are a few problems with mounting it in there: 1. it gets very hot inside that compartment when the car is in the sun, 2. unless you want to plug and unplug the monitor evry time you use it, you'll have to drill holes through the compartment to run the wires (I need to be able to return the car to stock when I decide to sell it or trade it in, so i can't drill holes through a visible part of the dash). also, it's simply not convenient in there.

your head unit sits a good 4"-5" below that compartment, which means that your arm/bracket assembly (depending on design) would have to be able to slide out 5"-7" and then flip/fold/slide down another 4"-5" further. it won't be easy to make, and it would be ever harder to make it strong enough to keep the screen from bouncing around when you drive.

After trying to come up with numerous ways to mount the screen in that compartment, the best, most practical solution I could come up with was to simply have the screen hinge (from the top or bottom) so that when not in use it would simply fold down flat, and when used it would simply stand upright. here is a pic of the bracket/hinge I made for it, it was desgined to hang down from the lid:

in the end I didn't like the idea of having to go through all those steps each time I wanted to use it. so I decided to mount it flush in the dashboard (I'm in the process of fabricating my own dash/radio bezel that will fit the monitor and a single-DIN head unit, there is enough space for both in the Fusion

). this way I'll never have to go through any steps to use the carpuer (after all, what fun is a carputer if it's such a pain in the a$$ just to get it out?)

EDIT: you can check out my worklog to get some ideas for your project

hope this helps... good luck man! (btw, are you the same 'RESET' from the fordfusion.net forums?)

Dennis5587 · 06-13-2007, 08:24 AM

odd... the auction say's that it has a lilliput 619 monitor.... but it dosn't look like one to me, wonder if anything else was "mis labled"

FusionFanatic · 06-13-2007, 08:32 PM

Quote: Originally Posted by Dennis5587

odd... the auction say's that it has a lilliput 619 monitor.... but it dosn't look like one to me, wonder if anything else was "mis labled"

lol, I didn't even notice that until you mentioned it. It looks to me like an EBY-701

FusionFanatic · 06-13-2007, 09:13 PM

from your post on my worklog...

Quote: Originally Posted by RESET

I plan to keep the factory HU so that I can keep the use of the steering wheel controls

you can keep the steering wheen controls without the factory head unit. if you want the steering wheel buttons to control the carpuer, then there are multiple threads in the mp3car forums on that subject. if you want to use your steering wheen controls with an aftermarket stereo you can just buy a universal steering wheel control interface module. it will allow you to use your steering wheen buttons with any device that uses a remote control. the cool thing about this is that you get to program each button. for example, you could program the media button to turn your monitor on and off.

Quote: Originally Posted by RESET

I am now toying with the idea of moving the HU into the lower compartment of the armrest. It gets warm in there too but I think the HU will handle it.

I can tell you right now, the armrest console is way too small for the HU to fit into. even if it did [hypothetically] fit, you would have to extend the factory wire harnesses an additional ~4 feet. that would be an extremely time consuming task considering all the wires involved. also, the heatsink on the left side of the factory HU gets very hot, it woule possible melt the plastic in the console

RESET · 06-23-2007, 08:59 PM

Alright, I have the system in hand and have confirmed that everything advertised is what I got... sort of. The monitor is an EBY-701 as suspected. I also can not confirm that I have the operating system and map software that he said he installed. I can not get the thing to boot. It will go thru POST, I think, and then it just sits there. In addition to this, I can not get into setup in CMOS. I know the keyboard is working because the board speaker beeps when I hold the delete button down while it is trying to POST. It has been a while since I have worked with a new computer and am probably forgetting something since I thought this thing would just boot. I have reset the BIOS and have gotten it to see the HD once. It is almost like it is not finishing POST.

What do you guys think? I don't want to take it somewhere and have them tell me that it was something simple while I am handing them $70.

FusionFanatic · 06-24-2007, 12:11 PM

have you removed, cleaned, and re-seated everything? it's possible that cards and connectors could have come loose in shipping. it's also possible that the inside is caked with dust, I know the seller claimed that he never used it, but he can't prove that; and he already lied (or simply didn't know) about the monitor.

can you boot from CD/DVD/FDD?

also, the "DEL" key is the most common key used for entering BIOS setup, but it's not the only key used. try other keys like F1, F2, etc... did the seller send a manual with that system?

RESET · 06-24-2007, 08:41 PM

I did not get any manuals except for the monitor. I downloaded the manual for the MoBo. I unplugged everything and started from scratch using the manual. This is also when I reset the bios. The boot screen says to hit delete to enter bios. As for booting from something else, I don't have a boot disk of any kind so I don't know. I don't know if I can make a boot disk on my home PC and try it on the car PC. the seller said that it has XP on it but I don't know. Might be worth a try.

RESET · 07-04-2007, 01:30 PM

Well, I have come to the conclusion that the MoBo is junk. I took the computer to a local shop and they have no way of testing a SATA hard drive so they think the same thing. So, I have everything I need for a CARPC but the MoBo. Any recommendations for a board that will support the SATA hard drive that I have? I checked out the online store but didn't fine anything that said it had a SATA connection.

FusionFanatic · 07-05-2007, 01:11 PM

I wouldn't assume your mobo is dead just yet (it's not likely to be a bad mobo, and it would be a shame to buy another one only to have the same problem). as of now, it sounds like your mobo is fine; you can boot into the POST screen and it recognizes keyboard input (the beep sound comes from a speaker on the mobo) I would look at some other possible issues first...

1. operating system - the seller says he installed Windows XP already, but it's clear from his auction listing that he doesn't know what he's talking about, or is just plain lying; so you can't go by what he said. for example, he may have skipped installing SATA drivers during the XP installation.

all your hardware probably works fine, you probably just need to format and install your operating system. he didn't give you a copy of XP, but you don't have a license for the copy of XP that's supposed to be on it anyways. if you were to swap out the mobo, unless you got the same exact one you would have to re-install the operating system anyways or it would either fail to boot, or remain unstable. either way, to stay legal and get updates/hotfixes you will need to buy an operating system for your carputer. this should be your first step. (you will need to connect a CD/DVD drive directly to the mobo to install an operating system, see #5 below for more info)

2. power supply - if it is a hardware issue, the first component I would look at is the power supply. the seller listed the power supply as "Smart power supply w/ smart controller". that says nothing about it. do you have any specs on this unit? are you sure it's enough to power your system?

I would recommend disconnecting that "smart power supply" and hook up a standard ATX home PC power supply to test it out. if it works then you've found your problem.

4. keyboard - are you using a PS2 keyboard or a USB keyboard? you may need to use a PS2 keyboard to enter your BIOS setup. many mobo's (including mine) will not recognize a USB keyboard or mouse until the windows drivers have loaded, which means that it doesn't know you are pressing "DEL" during bootup. this would not prevent the computer from booting up, it would simply prevent you from entering the BIOS setup menu.

5. bootable disk - if you have the restore disks from your home PC then you already have a bootable CD to try. if you don't, then you can make a bootable CD with nero or other CD-writing programs. but since the CD drive with your carputer is USB, you probably can't boot from it. you will need to directly hook a CD/DVD drive up to the mobo using a standard ATA cable.

alternatively you could hook a floppy drive up to the mobo and boot from that as well. you can make a startup disk from your home PC by right-mouse-clicking on the "A" drive icon in "my computer" and select format, then check off the box marked "create MS-DOS startup disk" and click start. (obviously you need a floppy in the drive to do this

)

good luck

RESET · 07-05-2007, 06:32 PM

I have tested the system with a 200 watt power supply from an old case I have laying around. I have been using a PS/2 keyboard. I also hooked up an old hard drive that has a functioning operating system on it, Windows 98. I still don't want to buy a new MoBo but it doesn't look good. Half the time it won't even scan for IDE devices so I am not sure if I could get it to boot from a CD. I don't have an extra cdrom so I haven't tried that one yet.

RESET · 11-27-2007, 07:35 PM

OK, I have been away for a while and the carputer has been in the closet waiting. I am getting tired of my girlfriend pointing at it every time I mention that I want PS3.

So, I am back here trying to get this figured out. So, please read the past replies and see if there is anything else I can try to get this thing running.

Thanks
Sean