Console re-work for after-market head

The reason I wrote this up with instructions was not to garner compliments (although they are most appreciated) but to genuinely encourage more people to try this process to accommodate a different head unit - it's really an OK DIY and the benefit you will find from upgrading the OEM is substantive (even if you still use the BOSE speaker/amps).
The wonderful thing about Bondo is, you make a mistake, you just fill it in & start again!
Actually, on the Red one, I goofed up - my initial jig was not so solid & I cut the groove too deep when profiling the round-over edge after the slot cut. But I just re-filled with more Bondo, sanded back smooth & cut it again!
(Shh ... don't tell Shane
biggrinangel.gif
- nah, he knows - he watched me butcher it!)

Honestly though, I guess the tricky part really is cutting the slot & getting the profile on the edge - that's where a router comes in as the perfect tool. I suppose you could dremel it close and then finish by sanding - tedious but certainly do-able if you are careful and easy with the sandpaper!
But the perfection of a template is hard to beat.
 
This guide will be a lot of help to someone who will do this for the first time. But a good finished product might take someone two times to do it right. :) Failure is a good thing because you learn. If you get everything smooth and things look absolutely perfect after primer, then you'll have a good finished product.

There are several ways to tackle this job as well. I always have a hard time cutting material like this partly because of a lack of a cutting table. My garage has too many tools already and I can't keep high speed tools like my Dremel steady enough. So for something like this, I would make the backing plate out of an ABS panel with a precut DIN sized opening (I buy these from my audio supplier). Modify the DIN opening to the desired size if flush mounting, then put some walls in to keep the kitty hair from filling in the opening. Let the kitty hair dry, remove the walls and go crazy with my mouse sander. The cutting table makes this seem like a crude method but it's worked great for me. When you don't have the tools sometimes you have to improvise.

But it's a worthwhile project that many people can try and do a good job with. Following these instructions will get you there.
 
Another method that would avoid having to be super critical on making the cut-out with a cutting table would be to integrate the original head unit surround into the fascia - just cut a slot big enough to take the surround (you can even trim down the outside perimeter since its the inside edge you are interested in preserving) then "glue" it in place with some more bondo & blend in the surface profile by sanding.
You may actually get a slightly raised 3-D surface profile by this method. I personally prefer the flush flat surface with rounded profile as it looks more natural against the A/C profile.
(That's one reason surface mounted trim rings don't look good - just look like add-on)
See here for my first attempt - you can see some surface imperfection in the lower left and the surface mounted trim ring looks really an add-on.

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That set-up evolved to this by using an SOS console but cut-out on my router table using the template method. One issue I felt missing with this however was lack of "depth" to the edge of the slot & a matching profile to the A/C.

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Finally I evolved to method described above.

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As Malibu says, repeated exercise makes perfect - you learn from your mistakes! Patience is the biggest virtue you need here - dont try to fill it in one step or go with too heavy a grit paper when less is more critical for finer finish. You MUST use a sanding block!
 
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Nice work. You rock, Sean! :biggrin:
Any picture on a double DIN unit installed? Local guy Rey has one on his car and I think it will look better than a regular DIN which is somewhat too thin looking.
Steve
 
D'Ecosse said:
I'm sure Sean (whoever he is) will be really pleased with your compliment, Steve.
pain.gif

No coffee yet this morning?
Click to expand...

i'm sure that would be me, although it's Shane, but ppl get confuse about it all the time, especially doctors fr kaiser. :rolleyes:

Oh yeah, thanks doc for the compliment! :biggrin:

COPYRIGHT!! j/k, :biggrin: hehehe...actually i did this conversion on my console with the help of "Bruce Willis of NSX" i.e. D'Ecosse, who gave me detailed instruction and did the cutting (awesome job as always!! Thanks Ken!!)

It's not hard to do, uh, i wish i would know about which bondo to use, got me really confuse trying to pick out one @ the auto store. It does take a bit of time and patience though and trial & error. but! most of the trial part has been done, so i highly recomment people doing this! you be very happy that you did! I AM!
 
blah, :biggrin:

MP3 Changer with OEM head doc? thought about it in the beginning, but you can't really use all the features with the OEM head, so it's kinda like only a half way job. Also, I enjoy my Eclipse speakers ALOT! Sounds really clear and it's a great deal for the buck. Raammat is also another good deal for doing the upgrade job! hehehe....sorry if i said too much. blah...:biggrin:
 
92NSX said:
I plan on having a single DIN head unit there. It seems like everyone that I read about online, people complain about the displays not being bright enough. I can only imagine how difficult it would be to see on our cars. :rolleyes:
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When I ran my first 1DIN headunit I ran into the washed out display. I also ran into the problem Ken diagramed above when I tied to angle it down. What I had to do was lower the entire headunit so I could angle it down and have enough room at the back end to clear the AC unit. However, on my second headunit (Alpine 7996) it has a display contrast adjustment as do many of the higher ned Alpine units as well as I would think other manufacturers. This allows you to adjust the display contrast for better off axis viewing. When you adjust the display contrast, what you will see is that it will greatly improve the off axis viewing, but nothing is free. If you view it directly on axis the display is a little washed out. However, the only real way yo view a deck head on in the NSX is if you lean over the center with your head down. Anyway, that was just my experience.
 
92NSX said:
well if SOS doesn't offer them, not doubting your word, I wonder why they still have them on their web site?? :confused:
Guess that might force me to go with Dali then. Was leaning that way anyway, so I reckon the choice has been made for me. Then again, I could just leave the OEM head unit in there and be happy with that. It play CD's thru the changer and gets great reception anyway. Decisions, decisions. :redface:
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My personal advice is to mod your OEM dash trim UNLESS you plan on returning to stock one day. The second option would be to obtain a used OEM dash trim and mod that one. I always like to keep my OEM parts so I went with the SOS blank panel trim. Trust me, it does save some time, but the prep work is as much if not more than modding the OEM trim. What you will find is you will need to do tons of prep work on the back side of the FRP trim to take out a lot of waves in the fiberglass. You will also need to to a lot of fabrication work to mount the plastic mounting points so you can mount your ash tray and what not. The fit is okay, but not perfect either so your will need to do a lot of sanding and fitment work to get it to fit nicely in your car. I probably spend more time on my SOS trim than if I were to have modded the OEM trim like Ken did above. The beauty of the OEM trim is it will be a perfect fit when you put it back in. Also, you will get the OEM opening in front of the AC aspirator fan instead of just a hole. Over all since I did all the work already I'm happy with my SOS trim, but if I ever find a used OEM trim being sold I'll probably pick it up to mod and swap it in my car.
 
92NSX said:
well if SOS doesn't offer them, not doubting your word, I wonder why they still have them on their web site?? :confused:
Guess that might force me to go with Dali then. Was leaning that way anyway, so I reckon the choice has been made for me. Then again, I could just leave the OEM head unit in there and be happy with that. It play CD's thru the changer and gets great reception anyway. Decisions, decisions. :redface:
Click to expand...

I've been investigating the same thing! If you want an alternative to ordering the cover from Dali, Downforce.biz is offering these covers in both fiberglass ($100) and carbon fiber ($230). They will be available in a week or so.
 
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Thanks!! Doesn't look too complicated. I'm going to try it. Can you email me when you figure out how to do the speedo/tach? I'm also thinking of installing the Nav pod with the following:

-VPA-B222 (Vehicle Hub with remote)
-NVE N852A GPS Navigation
-TME 760 screen

It appears that I can plug everything into the Hub; that way, the only thing that will be processed by the crappy BOSE electronics is the tape deck as I can plug the CD player, DVD, NAV, and Tuner directly into the hub. Does this make sense to you? The advantage of this (to me at least) is that I don't have to change the stock look of the radio.

Thanks again!
 

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