Thread: Scion xB '06, in-dash Atom 330, Lilliput 889GL; details, pictures, links. Index: pg 1

DVD Mount

The basic DVD mount was easy: it's simply an arch over the head unit. The arch legs are slotted where they attach to the head unit so I can adjust the distance between them. I cut the sheet metal to size, made 1/8" bends on the front and back in the bender, bent the tabs down in the vise, drilled holes and made the slots, and cleaned it up with a file. The small bends on the front and rear add stability and add just enough strength for the light load on them. You can see it in the pictures below.

Making the bracket that holds the DVD unit was tough. I'd commented earlier that I thought good Velcro-type material would hold the DVD in place just fine. Using Velcro would certainly reduce the cost and reduce the time invested. As much as it flies in the face of "engineering" these parts, Velcro is really good stuff, and would definitely be a functional alternate approach.

Although Velcro would have been a lot easier, sheet metal appealed to me as a more OEM approach. I made a separate DVD bracket that attaches to the mount. The bracket is designed so I can adjust the depth of the DVD unit in the dash.

I originally planned to make it out of a single piece of sheet metal; my design called for two bends just a half-inch (13mm) apart, going in opposite directions. That's a bear on my equipment. It was one of those shade-tree-engineering surprises: it's such a bear that I just couldn't do it.

I had to resort to aluminum angle for the second bend. Luckily, I had some 1/2" x 1/2" angle on my shelves. I thought about galvanic corrosion that results from using dissimilar metals, in this case aluminum and galvanized steel. But I decided that, in a relatively controlled environment like the car, it shouldn't present much of a corrosion problem because there should be no significant flow of electrical current through them.

I used countersunk heads on the connecting fasteners, and bolted the DVD bracket to the DVD mount. It isn't exactly pretty -- if I had a more-capable bender, I'd have produced a simpler, cleaner-looking bracket that would have eliminated a lot of the work.

Although I used machine screws to fasten the DVD bracket down, I could also have used pop rivets. They'd be perfectly acceptable; I just think they're ugly.

I didn't have the right fasteners to attach the DVD bracket to the angles, so I finally made that field trip to Park Center Hardware. I got fasteners, Krylon Fusion Paint, emery cloth, some tiny Torx bits, some elevator bolts, "Shoe Goo" to repair my shop shoes, a fudge ice cream bar, and some pretty good coffee. Fun place.

Here are the resulting parts, seen from the left front:

Click images to enlarge.

And here it is from the left front and left rear with the DVD unit in place:



That tiny 1/2" x 1/2" angle tab attached to the back center of the DVD unit screws into a standard hole found in most of these players. I'll use a small machine screw and nut to fasten it permanently to the DVD mount deck when I get the final position determined. If this was a production version, there'd be a slot system for adjustment; I'm just going to leave it slip-fit until I get back into making the bezel and determine where it needs to go.

You may notice that it looks as if the parts don't sit squarely on the surface; actually, the part is square, but there's a little curvature in the corrugated plastic deck of my photo background.

Now I'll get these pieces mounted on the head unit.

Originally Posted by dasaint80

Here's the link of my finished product.

What material does Scion use for the bezel in the '08s (still polethylene, like in previous years)? Did you modify it or replace it? What material did you use to build or modify?

Originally Posted by dasaint80

I believe it's polethylene. modified it. Bondo and fiberglass. I got it wrapped with the same green suede I'll take pic later today

I've found the trouble with polyethylene is that almost nothing sticks to it, including bondo and fiberglass, so those add-ons tend to crack. Wrapping your bezel with suede seems like an excellent idea, because the cracking won't show under the suede.

I'll be doing mine with plastic welding and reinforcing it with stainless steel mesh to eliminate cracking. But mine's not a show car -- it's my daily driver.

Flexibility

Okay, it's all assembled, and I got what I wanted in this version: a lot of positioning flexibility. Here are some shots that show the potential range of travel in this mount system:

Head unit all the way up and all the way forward, DVD all the way up and all the way back

Head unit same as previous shot, but DVD all the way down and all the way forward

Head unit all the way down and tilted back, DVD all the way down and same depth as head unit

Head unit all the way down and tilted forward, DVD same as above
Click images to enlarge.

The range of motion of the head unit is about 3/8" up and down, and 3/8" forward and back. The DVD unit can move down flush with the head unit or as much as 3/8" away from it, and an inch or so forward and backward relative to the head unit. That range covers anything I can think of doing in the installation, and probably leaves me with options I haven't even thought of yet.

This works just fine for a prototype. Now it's time to figure out the things I want to change, do a test fit, and see if any changes call for re-prototyping. Then I can get the final unit built.

Scratch That DVD Bracket

The more I think about the DVD mounting system, the more I think the DVD bracket is a waste of time. The mount -- the part that arches over the head unit -- is the crucial part, and the extensive work to make the bracket is just extra and pretty much unnecessary effort. I'll use Velcro to hold the DVD unit down and provide depth positioning, because it's so easy that it just makes sense.

I'll still use the small angles on the sides that keep the DVD unit aligned. They're fast and easy to make and attach. But the bracket goes away. The angles could be the type of preformed aluminum angle that I used on the prototype, or they could be angles bent from scrap sheet metal; either material is simple, easy, and effective, and the sheet metal lowers the cost of materials. I'll use machine screws to hold the angles in, but a production version would probably use pop rivets.

For the least amount of effort, Velcro alone would certainly be acceptable; several versions of hook-and-loop material are available in hardware and home stores. A heavy-grade double-side tape -- like carpet tape or floormat "Grip Strips" -- might even be sufficient, although I'm not sure how it would hold up over time in the elevated temperatures inside the dash, so I think the wise path is to use Velcro.

. . . And Let's Revise the Rest of It, Too

In refining this, I decided to make the base a little narrower, reducing it from 7" width to 6-3/4", which means 1/8" less per side. That gives the fastener heads a little more breathing room.

I'll make the legs jog inward 1/8" at the bottom of the head unit. I'd like to do that with a simple jog made in the bender, but my equipment won't do that. I'll still attempt the bends on the vise, because that would be soooo much easier. But, if that doesn't work, I'll probably have to make the legs in two pieces and rivet them together.

One other change is purely cosmetic. I've modified the dimensions on the sides of the DVD mount and the sides of the head unit support brackets so they'll line up. I know that doesn't really matter because it will all be hidden, but I want the finished assembly to look as good as possible.

That means every part of this system gets minor changes from the prototype.

Meanwhile, this prototype works well enough, so I'll get it into the car for a test fit.

Test Installation

Here's the whole assembly, sitting in the dash, just about in the position where I think it will be best:

Click image to enlarge.

The left side of the bezel is installed, but not the right side.

The head unit can go up, down, in and out, and can be tilted pretty steeply. The DVD unit can go up and down, and in and out. It tilts with the head unit. For cramming a lot of stuff in a tight area, this is great flexibility.

This prototype sits in there so tightly that fastening it to the dash would almost be unnecessary. But the changes in the base will make it more of a slip fit, and that means I'll want to use the fasteners at the back.

Now it's time to make the final tweaks to the design, and get busy with the finished version.