Ampie Case Guide by LexF15 in 1990 Celica ST

LexF15 · 06-08-2006, 11:34 PM

Did a lot of reading on these forums before I started, and wanted a more detailed guide as a noob. So when I built my car PC I took 364 pictures and made this guide using about 150 of them. So here it is - I hope it helps some of you new guys, especially if you are committed to the Ampie case. Keep in mind that I started out wanting a factory look for the LCD but went with what I consider a better solution for cooling and security (removable).

Lilliput 7” VGA Touchscreen 629GL-70NP $ 251
BU-353 Waterproof GPS Receiver $ 75
Notebook HD to IDE Converter $ 10
VIA EPIA M10000 Mini ITX Mobo $ 150
Ampie Car Computer Case $ 75
M2-ATX 160W Intelligent DC-DC PSU $ 90
USB Extension Cables x 2 $ 4
Corsair Value Select 512MB DDR266 RAM $ 43
Samsung 120GB Notebook Hard Drive $ 140
Griffin Powermate (Black) $ 40
Wireless Optical Notebook Mouse $ 27
Shipping $ 34
Computer subtotal $ 939

18 sample pictures along with complete guide containing over 150 pictures in a single PDF file:
http://www.trsek.org/Rob/Computers.html

Or head to my FTP site. Directory contains two documents on the M2-ATX and one on the Ampie, as well as a version of Adobe Reader if you need it (nice slim early version 4.05).
ftp://68.184.65.176/
User name: MP3Car
Password: Celica
It is not case sensitive so just spell it correctly...

I should mention I have 3mb down/256k up which equates to about 25k download for you.
I have it set for 5 users maximum to avoid choking so please check back if it's full or too slow.

LexF15 · 06-29-2006, 09:08 PM

Self serving bump - check it out fellas, I took the time to take all these pictures and it will answer a lot of your questions if you aren't used to working on cars. This is my first project and contains a lot of lessons, especially on the Ampie Case and M2-ATX power supply.

Orphan · 06-30-2006, 01:24 AM

Hey man, thats a very good project write up. I must say setting out to do one of these in the next few months it was a pretty big help and your car pc does everything I want mine too

Definately worth the read, its actually quite interesting to see how he did things if your not overly confident.

Thanks.

BTW:Click Here for a direct link to the pdf of his project, just for you lazy people who couldn't be bothered to find it.

LexF15 · 07-01-2006, 12:01 AM

Thanks for the direct link. Now I need to watch my website usage bandwidth lol... The guide is becoming popular both on this forum and the "show off your project" forum. Tough to beat 150 pictures with descriptions. Thanks again.

BarinaHum · 12-04-2006, 07:27 PM

Hi LexF15,

Thank you for the write up. It is very useful for newbie like me.

I always wanted to see step by step (in detail) how other people install their car pc. One thing I should comment is the mismatch in size of power and ground wiring. Other than that, great write up.

LexF15 · 12-04-2006, 08:58 PM

Thanks Hum, I still haven't changed that configuration and haven't had any trouble (the car hasn't caught fire yet).

According to the table at the following site, carring 12V up to 7ft at 180W (or 30 amps) requires no more than 16 gauge. I'm going under 3ft, in which case even 18 gauge should be fine. I'm not sure what the hub-bub is about - the 4 gauge power could run a clothes dryer, but the ground is just fine for this PC.
http://www.rbeelectronics.com/wtable.htm

"M2-ATX provides up to 8A on the 12V rail, making it ideal for operating most P4, P4-M, Celeron, AMD systems."
http://www.mini-box.com/M2-ATX-160w-...C-Power-Supply