OK yay working progress...
3 days ago i finally got the carpc installed, wired and powered on. Since i have a deep cycle battery, i have yet to turn the thing off
and its still going... i did however, have to reboot as streets n trips locked up cause i was scrolling around the maps like a madman
for those who have wondered, this is what it looks like in an MTX 81000D 1500Watt RMS class D amplifier:
(its slightly burned up, the MOSFET's and power conditioners are burned, but MTX is awesome. theyre letting me send it in for a new one for 1/4'th the price (almost 1000$ down to 230$ with the trade in)
Theyre also taking this amp in for a trade in as well:
(it too is burned up and the amp that im trading it in for is a 4 channel 800Watt RMS amp.... ill never buy kenwood amps ever ever ever again!!!)
The screen mounted:
The carputer mounted:
The wires going to the auxilary battery:
What it looks like under that nice shinny engine cover:
Where the altenator/battery charge wire is on the Northstar engine:
(had to remove the left side fan and push the radiator hose out of the way to get to it, short 13MM ratcheting wrench did wonders to get the nut off, and to keep things simple for resale or tear down, i left the stock wire in place but pushed off to the side) NOTE TO ANYONE DOING THIS: wear some form of light leather gloves (like cheap $8 driving/mechanic ones at wally world) as aluminum radiator fins cut DEEP and make for a very less than pleasurable install.
The dash as it sits now:
Since the screen mount looks very OEM (cept for a few minor blemishes that are easily fixed) Im thinking about having the display mount spec'd out and professionally milled, punched etc. After working on this project for so long JUST FOR THE DASH, i overlooked the blemishes on the screen bezel for now just to get some up time out of it. the blemishes i speak of were only clearly evident after i got the screen mounted and installed into the dash.... there are some wavey lines around the border next to the screen which stand out quite a bit as you can see the touch screen contact edge... nothing a sanding block and a touch of some more bondo/sanding/repainting cant fix in teh course of a day or 2 of refab work
Once i get the rats nest of wires sorted out in the trunk and the basic design layed out for the audio, ill post up some pics, ill also show the easiest way to get the power from the front of the car into the trunk on the GM/Cadillac EK chassis design. I think overall this was the biggest DEAD time on the planning aspect of things, as a LOT of time went into trying to figure out how to run the wires over actually RUNNING the wires and getting them mounted up. Once i seen the path, it was the ole palm to forehead maneuver and a fat DUH shortly followed.
Had the battery been mounted under the back seat like in your deville, this whole thing would have taken a mere 45 minutes as opposed to 6 hours... talk about burning daylight ~_~. I do have a consern tho, cadillac only used 8 gauge wire from the battery to the primary fuse panel and also from the altenator to the battery. (FOR THOSE OF YOU CADILLAC OWNERS WHO HAVE NOTICED YOUR LIGHTS "PULSING", change the battery wire and sideposts--- a few starts and runs later your system will recoupe, if not, pull ALL the maxi fuses under the driver side engine compartment, clean the spade terminals and re-install)
OH off topic, since youve seen my engine naked, i would like to mention that this is BY FAR the easiest cadillac engine that ive ever changed the spark plugs on!!! that is except my 69 deville, but then again i could climb into the engine compartment and sit next to the engine *sigh* i miss that big ole 472 bigblock ~_~... i didnt have to dislocate my wrist, grow a second thumb, use 3 foot of ratchet extentions, 2 swivels and break my forearm in 3 places to get to the back row of plugs--- finally someone listened at GM about the crap it takes to change plugs.... now WHY they put the altenator on the bottom of the engine in teh front is beyond me... you would think that they would have wanted to keep electrical components away from SPLASH ZONES--- friggin hacks AN WHY IS THE STARTER "THERE" ???? n00bs *(shakes northstar RnD team till they vomit)*
COMPLETELY OFF TOPIC.... i snapped this pic while driving to do all the above in this post:
apparently some semi driver decided that having spiked lug nut covers was the best way to keep cars from swerving at him to cut him off.... those things are like 3" long and looked more like something you would see on a roman chariot for the stadium races than on a DOT registered vehicle.....
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