Car Computer
Thread Starter
On The Tree
Joined: Jul 2011
Posts: 168
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Car Computer I'm wanting to put a car computer in my '99 Trans Am. Rather than put it where the head unit is, I want to put the computer in the back, around where the CD changer normally is. So if I could wire it to where I could plug it in from the front, and have it automatically turn on when plugged in, that'd be cool. Any way to put a three prong electric socket somewhere up in the front? In the ash tray would be awesome.
Other than that, I want a large hard drive to store lots of music and videos in. Then I think I'll link it to my head unit and sun visors, which will have monitors in them. I'd like to have wi-fi, and also the ability to hook up to the OBD-II port for diagnostics and tuning. Any recommendations on what type of case and motherboard to use? Smaller/cheaper the better, but quality and reliability is very important.
How resistant would the computer be to shaking and vibration? Thanks for any help, I'll definitely post up pics and stuff whenever I do and finish it
Other than that, I want a large hard drive to store lots of music and videos in. Then I think I'll link it to my head unit and sun visors, which will have monitors in them. I'd like to have wi-fi, and also the ability to hook up to the OBD-II port for diagnostics and tuning. Any recommendations on what type of case and motherboard to use? Smaller/cheaper the better, but quality and reliability is very important.
How resistant would the computer be to shaking and vibration? Thanks for any help, I'll definitely post up pics and stuff whenever I do and finish it
Copy & Paste Moderator
Joined: Apr 2002
Posts: 9,764
Likes: 207
From: Eastern MA
There have been a few threads about this on here. Sometimes its referred to as a "carputer". Also checkout www.mp3car.com for plenty more info.
As far as resiliency, stick to a laptop hard drive since they are a bit more resilient than a desktop hard drive. The most resilient would be a solid-state hard drive since they don't have any moving parts. However, they are a bit expensive. If you are willing to spend it, get a sold-state hard drive. These cars ride rough.
As far as resiliency, stick to a laptop hard drive since they are a bit more resilient than a desktop hard drive. The most resilient would be a solid-state hard drive since they don't have any moving parts. However, they are a bit expensive. If you are willing to spend it, get a sold-state hard drive. These cars ride rough.
Thread Starter
On The Tree
Joined: Jul 2011
Posts: 168
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I've done some looking around, and I'll probably place the computer in the left rear corner of the trunk, next to the lights and right under the plastic so it can't be seen. It's a fairly good sized location so I have enough room to do an actual computer, but does anyone have ideas on how I could isolate it from shock and vibration while keeping it accessible?
