so ive embarked on the ever elusive iPad install.

The problem i have run into is that i need to relocate my hvac controls. I was planning on taking out the bottom two pockets and installing there. The only problem i see is that our stock hvac controls are very large. Has anyone else ever successfully relocated the hvac controls.

for those who are curious i will include my progress below.

i will being with saying i have no experience in custom dashes, fiberglass work, or any body work.

my idea was i wanted a an iPad mini mount that would allow me to remove the iPad. I have seen the iPad mini float mount but at 250$ it was $50 more expensive than the iPad mini itself. I continued searching and found fifield fabrications they have 9 different mounts or the mini. I Went with the the MINI-m kit and 58$ the price was right.



this is the only picture i have of the mount before tearing it to bits.

next thing i found was a used non navi information screen. went on ebay and found one with a busted screen for $30. Win. I then started cutting away. My first thought was to skip the mount and just cut a hole for the iPad. but it looked bad you could see how unsteady my hand was at cutting hole for the iPad. and two i could not be able to remove it.
so i began cutting the mount



i kept cutting until i made the frame as small as possible while still retaining its shape.



then i had to enlarge the whole in the center console to fit the mount. i chose to keep the extra hvac buttons in place as to provide rigidity to the frame. it felt flimsy without and i was about to have away all the supports. so far i think it was the right choice to make.



i then started melting the mount to the frame as i saw james fifield do in an install video of his. the only word of caution i will make is if you attempt this do not melt the top and bottom to the frame as it seems to warp the original frame. i only ended up doing the sides after catching my mistake. i also used the plastic leftovers which i had cut off to fill the edges the borders that did not touch the frame.


after that i sanded down the whole thing with 100 grit sandpaper which is the coarsest i had at the moment. but body shop buffs can step in say what would be more appropriate to use. after sanding i applied my first layer of body filler.




after drying and sanding i applied another coat of body filler


i let dry sanded and have applied primer .



i will continue with another layer of filler. i think what i have to do to make the install clean is fill the top border and then cut the channel in again. i just don't have a steady hand and am dreading it. if you guys have any suggestions on how to make this better please let me know.
thanks
Daniel

 

Wow - interesting process and thanks for taking the pictures. I'm not sure why you decided to fill in the existing HVAC controls - couldn't you have cut away enough of the front screen to fit the iPad and still be able to remove it?

Unfortunately I don't have anything helpful to contribute, even though I did the Nexus 7 install. It would be great if you would continue posting updates in this thread. Regardless, good luck - I hope all of your work comes together how you hoped!

 

well as you can see just to get the iPad in there without the mount i had to cut into the bottom two buttons. The iPad mini is just not very mini. To make matters worse my handy work with a dermal meant that the center console looked horrible like some home made garbage. So i decided to go with the mount for a much cleaner professional look. Now that I'm done I'm loving it. i just uploaded a video to your tube. I will update post in a bit.

 

day two.

so i wake up sand some more and primer it again and fill some more. as soon as the face looked clean i decided to paint it. now i didn't really think this through. i picked up some gunmetal paint at home depot a few weeks ago when i opened up my headlights so i decided i would reuse that but apply a matte clear coat to make it look like the dash. .. well it was pretty off. i was hoping it would loo closer to the original. but maybe the next time i have it off i will repaint with something that looks closer to the original dash color.



after that i proceeded to tare apart my car. I had to remove the navi brain and leave it in the car since it powers the climate control and it more importantly powers the voice commands. remember i don't have a solution for my climate controls yet. for now i will just use voice command to adjust temperature when needed. Luckily i levee in the desert my ac always has to be on full blast for now.

i ended up taking out my center speaker and sliding the brain into the cavity in the dash. such a tight fit i had to use the hole for the center speaker to attach the wire harness to the brain while in there.



that was the hard part.

after that just reassembled my car like nothing had happened.

i have uploaded to show the finished results.

 

so i still have one issue. i have yet to figure out what to do with the climate control buttons. right now i am looking at buying the climate control buttons out of an acura rl . still looks factory and comes in a size which resembles single din probably have not seen it in person. i can probably get it to fit down below. but does anyone know if that can even be done? i am assuming that they are just buttons. and nothing more. so in theory they can be remapped to other buttons with the proper wiring diagrams. if anyone can shed some light on the issue i would greatly appreciate it.

 

Great job! I really like how it looks. And genius work on where to put the navigation brain - mine is just shoved behind the Nexus 7, and barely fit. Actually, the only reason I'm afraid to open everything back up is because of how hard it was to fit the brain back there, but now you've provided a new place to store it.

As for the buttons, I imagine they can be remapped - as you said, they are just buttons and the service manual can give you wiring info. Several members have that - this thread may get you half-way there:

https://acurazine.com/forums/showthr...5#post14980875

Good luck OP! Will look forward to seeing next steps!

 

I see you went with the float mount. I went with that but I haven't started with everything just yet.


Good job OP

 

So you sync your tablet to your HFL?


Yes people have manage to place the hvac in the lower compartment. Since I am non navi, I plan to place the smaller hvac where the clock is and the larger hvac in the top compartment.

 

You lost me. Are you talking about the climate control buttons? or the Information screen that tells you what its set to. I've seen people relocate the non navi information screen to the bottom. But my issue is the actual buttons. Don't have a place to install them and keep them looking clean. Hence why I'm looking at buttons from another acura.

And then as far as the tablet i don't understand HFL?

My Tablet is currently connected to the head unit by way of bluetooth from my grom bt3. My head unit just has to be in cd changer mode. I chose that since i don't have a working cd player and have an active xm subscription.

which mount did you purchase. I had looked at soundmans float mount originally. But it was way to expensive for me. And two it does not keep the iPad charged.

 

Oh I misunderstood and thought you were referring to the havc.


Ok so you did what I did, but I got the GromUSPlus2. I notice your connects very easily and fast. Mine sometimes have connecting issues, but I have a SG Tab 2.


I also went with Jaime at Fabfield as soundman was too expensive. I order the universal mini U. I need to cut it down to fit with the display and the buttons. Tab 2 is slightly smaller but its not square like the ipad.

 

i don't seem to ever have any connection issues wight he grom however on long trips after 2 or more hours of being connected it will inexplicably shut off and then i can only connect to it via the hardwire. bluetooth will work again after i have shut off the car.

i saw that mini u kit. looks impressive, however the iPad kit had a large bucket and i had second thoughts on whether i could make that fit. post some pics so we can see what it looks like. I'm hoping that your kit has a smaller bucket. and by bucket i mean the main frame that gets molded into the car. you then put the tablet in a smaller frame and drop that in to the bucket.

 

Yeah I can take pictures, but yours has a bucket as for mine is a 2 piece frame (a housing and an insert).

 

Nice job!

 

Thank you sir. And for anyone who reads and wonders what ever happened with the button situation. We'll using the voice command system to control the climate control has become second nature to me so I may not ever replace them. Not sure I will ever need them.

 

Happy holidays. Any updates on this?

 

Hello Daneg6,

Great job!!!

How do you turned off the ipad with the car keys?

 

where did you put your controllers for heat and cooling ? how are you going to change that? haven you thought of moving them over, or relocating?

 

As far as the hvac controls go i just left them out. I don't have a need for them. I use voice commands to control everything from inside cabin temperature to rear defrost. It's second nature now. And it takes only a second to use. I thought about installing the buttons but they are too big to fit anywhere not awkwardly .. If anything I would have to try to adapt buttons from another car. Not worth the trouble when it works fine.

 

I'm not done with my car, I'm doing car pc, and I needed more room than mini ipad
This is what I have done with my controls



Everything is nicely flushed !