New Project - Shift-i Integrated into Binnacle

[ACE51]

After thinking about it, you might have problems actually being able to see your lights, I had to jack mine up a little so I could see it. With my driving position I would not be able to see your lights because the steering wheel blocks the view.

[ACE51]

but damn, yours looks 10x better then my fuggly crooked thing

[shokwaves]

Would this work upside down? curve on curve, or are the wires coming out from below?

[jpryor27]

Heat gun: Check. (God, I've stolen so many of my father's tools over the years!)

Ace, I test fitted it again this morning. Its the perfect height. Although my hand on the wheel at 12 o'clock def blocks it. I'm 6'1", so maybe that's the difference?

I will probably resume work on this tomorrow night, hopefully put it to bed.

[drkshen]

how to do the wiring?

[Cegan09]

If you can work with fibreglass, just cut out part of the binnacle, then remake it with the correct shape to show all lights. or perhaps try this after the heat gun.

[jpryor27]

Got it all mounted up yesterday. Looks really good. The heat gun worked well. Thank you for the suggestion. All thats left is the wiring, but that wont be for a few days. Pics to follow.

JP

[PJK]

Could you mount the display on the upper trim piece on the steering column? I'm just wondering if it would be tall enough to be seen without blocking anything on the dash.

[LotusStig22]

It looks good!
I like the way it blends with the car sort of, and how in that picture with the steering wheel in front you can't see the little "pole" connecting it.
It blends nicely.

[jpryor27]

Originally Posted by PJK

Could you mount the display on the upper trim piece on the steering column? I'm just wondering if it would be tall enough to be seen without blocking anything on the dash.

It can be done. The display is visible (although a little below the viewing plane), but it will definitely block some of the indicators on the dash.

[Dragon]

Can the Tach wire be connected to the rpm signal on the OBD plug? or to the signal wire on the back of the gauge cluster? I just ordered one and would prefer to not have to run a wire all the way from the rear of the car....

Love the install btw... Please post pics of the finalized project...

[cobrabyte]

Originally Posted by Dragon

Can the Tach wire be connected to the rpm signal on the OBD plug? or to the signal wire on the back of the gauge cluster? I just ordered one and would prefer to not have to run a wire all the way from the rear of the car....

Love the install btw... Please post pics of the finalized project...

The tach signal is not sent to the cluster in the newer models (2005 on).

I can tell you from experience that running the cable from the rear, up through the shift cable hole in the firewall and through the shift tunnel is the easiest part of 'the project.'

I pulled the dash today to do it right. I initially tried running cables down the shift column hole in the dash and this proved to be a bad idea. The first time I rotated the steering wheel, the wires wrapped around the steering column and I ended up having to cut the wires and start over.

Today, I pulled the dash and went ahead and pulled the passenger airbag while I had it off so it was a double duty project.

In other news, I contacted Eliptech about providing us with a module that have wired LEDs instead of surface-mount LEDs. They got back to me and said they've been wanting to do this. They want ideas on how we'd use this in our cars and what they should do with the two buttons and the ambient light detector.

I am eventually going to mount the LEDs in the instrument cowling that sits right above the speedometer and tach. I want the LEDs on the bottom side of the cowling so they can be seen peripherally through the top 'hole' of the steering wheel. This will also allow the LEDs and buttons to be flush-mounted and will provide a very OEM look.

So, if you guys have any ideas for Eliptech on the making of this module just let me know and I'll pass them along.

[ACE51]

Originally Posted by jpryor27

Ace, I test fitted it again this morning. Its the perfect height. Although my hand on the wheel at 12 o'clock def blocks it. I'm 6'1", so maybe that's the difference?

I think that on the street I slouch a little and I have my seat one click further back and it is harder for me to see the light (lol) but on the track I move the seat pretty close and sit more upright and make the light easy to see. I want to try this though because it looks better and sturdier.

great idea!

[glb]

I was thinking of getting one or two of these.

Given that a flat model is avail, why not attach it to bottom of rear view mirror, for those of us who have them?

blocks nothing, ez to hide wires (on my Corolla), ez to see while looking up road in almost any direction.....

[cobrabyte]

Originally Posted by glb

I was thinking of getting one or two of these.

Given that a flat model is avail, why not attach it to bottom of rear view mirror, for those of us who have them?

blocks nothing, ez to hide wires (on my Corolla), ez to see while looking up road in almost any direction.....

I guess you could do this but you'd have to mount it upside down and the lights would build from right to left.

If they offered a way to switch the pattern around that'd be cool.

[glb]

Originally Posted by cobrabyte

I guess you could do this but you'd have to mount it upside down and the lights would build from right to left.

If they offered a way to switch the pattern around that'd be cool.

If it's flat, why would it mount upside down? If it's due to switches on top, I'd mount it above mirror, will l/u sizes later.

thx

[cobrabyte]

Originally Posted by glb

If it's flat, why would it mount upside down? If it's due to switches on top, I'd mount it above mirror, will l/u sizes later.

thx

Yeah, it's only flat on the bottom side. You could mount it above the mirror but it may be outside of your peripheral vision.

[jpryor27]

Wow. Long, although enjoyable, holiday weekend with the inlaws. I got to sneak in a few moments to install the display in the dash and steal ignition/ground from the stereo harness. I have to finish running the wiring back to the engine compartment today. Almost there! I'll take some pics today.

JP

[cobrabyte]

I sent an email to Ecliptech requesting the following:

- Processor Module Housing (contains the circuit board)
* 8-pin connector for LEDs (7 LEDs & a common ground)
* 2-pin connectors for the buttons
* 2 or 3-pin connector for the ambient light detector
- 8-conductor LED wire with 8-pin connector on one end and 'loose' LEDs on the other end to allow various mounting options
- 2 buttons
- 1 ambient light detector

I suggested they allow the customer to choose a wire length when ordering. Something like 2, 5 or 10 feet. For our cars, 2 feet would be fine if you're willing to pull the instrument cowling or the dash.

I also suggested they offer a couple different button styles but, if it's just a 2-pin connector, it'd be easy to replace their default button and go with one that you pick up online or at Radio Shack. The same goes for the LEDs. You could go with larger LEDs and/or different LED mounts if you like -- as long as you stay within the power specs.

Anyways, I thought I'd keep you updated on this.

On a side note… After having the shift lights installed for a couple days, I have to say that it may have been a mistake to put them on the car. I find myself wanting to 'feed' those lights with more RPMs.

[jpryor27]

Hey guys,

I am having tach signal wiring issues. The shift-i isnt picking my revs ups. The unit powers up fine. I need to to have you guys verify a few things for me:

1)I want to be sure that I should be tapping into the orange wire (like Waydui's install).
2)Also, can anyone tell me what the RPM calibration value should be?

I have double checked my wiring connections, but my multimeter needs a new battery so I cant rule out for sure that my wiring isnt the issue.

Frustrated at the moment.

Thanks,
Jonathan