WOoHoo Page Ownage. That hasn't happend for me in Years. (unless it was my own thread)
I'll raise my hand for the Beta Tester Position. Heck I'll take the position for free you don't even have to pay me
LOL, on a more serious note, how are these going to be programed, will there be a port for updating / changing the configuration, or will all that be done through the user interface.
I was just thinking about it, if I decided to change Fiero's I would want to keep this and move it to another Fiero, and chances are, (na not chances are, I would definatly have a bigger motor) I would have a bigger motor, and a different trans, with bigger Tires/wheels. I don't figure you will be making them tunable via the buttons, but if you are that would be amazing.
Currently my 4.9 has 18.5lb injectors and I may be changing them to 24# injectors. My current tires are 25" and I may be changing to a 26" tire / wheel combo. It would really suck for both of us if it had to be shipped back to you for changes. Hell even initial sales would suck if you had to program each one before its shipped vs just having a single program copied onto dozens of chips and shipping.
------------------ 857GT Part 85GT Part 87GT Part Caddy, 93 Eldorado 4.9, 5spd Dual O2 Custom Chip, Custom Exhaust. MSD Everything Now with Nitrous. Capt Fiero --- My Over View Cadero Pics Yellow 88GT 5spd Full Poly Suspension, Lowered 1/2" in front, Corner Carver.
[This message has been edited by Capt Fiero (edited 10-28-2012).]
Dont rush.. get it exactly how you want it and get a few out there to beta test. Awesome project!
That is the plan. I am still debugging some memory save issues, but I think I have it narrowed down.
Considering that I am doing this in my spare time and having a full time job that is weather dependent (plow truck driver), Christmas may be out of the picture. Please bear with me, I will have something to show sometime soon.
Originally posted by Capt Fiero: I'll raise my hand for the Beta Tester Position. Heck I'll take the position for free you don't even have to pay me
LOL, on a more serious note, how are these going to be programed, will there be a port for updating / changing the configuration, or will all that be done through the user interface.
I was just thinking about it, if I decided to change Fiero's I would want to keep this and move it to another Fiero, and chances are, (na not chances are, I would definatly have a bigger motor) I would have a bigger motor, and a different trans, with bigger Tires/wheels. I don't figure you will be making them tunable via the buttons, but if you are that would be amazing.
Currently my 4.9 has 18.5lb injectors and I may be changing them to 24# injectors. My current tires are 25" and I may be changing to a 26" tire / wheel combo. It would really suck for both of us if it had to be shipped back to you for changes. Hell even initial sales would suck if you had to program each one before its shipped vs just having a single program copied onto dozens of chips and shipping.
Firmware updating should hopefully not be needed, knock on wood. About the only setting that I am not allowing the end user to change is the odometer. Because this is the main controller for the instrument cluster I am working on, allowing the user to change the odometer could be considered mileage tampering. But we will see though if this is going to be a problem.
I have allowed for changing settings for everything from the injector size and lag at idle to cylinder count and fuel tank size. The choices are endless, maybe even to the point of being overkill. So if you are to change from a duke to a BMW V12, you are covered. And yes, this is capable of working with a 12 cyl engine. Or you want to put those big monster tires on to make a statement, you're covered. Maybe you want to go turbo and need bigger injectors, no problem. I think you get the picture.
Anyway, it sounds like I have someone that is wanting to help in beta. Give me a call Captain, we should talk about this and you getting page own-age.
Keep the questions coming and I will try to answer.
That is the plan. I am still debugging some memory save issues, but I think I have it narrowed down.
Considering that I am doing this in my spare time and having a full time job that is weather dependent (plow truck driver), Christmas may be out of the picture. Please bear with me, I will have something to show sometime soon.
Keep tuning my friends.
Carry on man! We NEED good vendors. You know; dedicated, down to earth, realistic & honest. I like how you aren't promising what you cant deliver. No pie-in-the-sky time frames and you seem to have the mindset that its going to be done right, first time 'round. I like how you are evolving the project and open to potential customer input. I think the new display is 10BAZILLION times nicer than the old one. Plus, it really fits the era of our car (80's). It really looks like it could have been a genuine GM option.
Good on you!
Make sure you get a firm set of points you want the BETA testers to verify/monitor. I'm sure you know all this, I am just spit-balling.
edit for spelling...
[This message has been edited by BV MotorSports (edited 10-28-2012).]
I for one would like to change the mileage. Where I live, Texas, my Fiero is exempt. Besides I changed speedometers years ago. I wanted a 120 speedometer, so took whole dash. I have a 4.9l / 4T60-E conversion and would like to start my mileage based on the miles on that engine at conversion. Again, my Fiero is exempt and the laws may vary from state to state. And what about if we sell the Fiero it is in and want to take this with us to the new Fiero.
We could always send you the VIN & Mileage we wanted. Thats how the dealerships do it. It puts the tampering, if any, back on the buyer. I will be glad to keep a data base / spreadsheet of purchasers, VINs * mileage.
That is the plan. I am still debugging some memory save issues, but I think I have it narrowed down.
Considering that I am doing this in my spare time and having a full time job that is weather dependent (plow truck driver), Christmas may be out of the picture. Please bear with me, I will have something to show sometime soon.
Got the memory problem figured out.
So now anytime the ignition is turned off, all the data and current mode will be right where you left it.
Now I just need to get the circuit design finished. Anyone an electronics engineering willing to help out?
In the next couple of weeks I should be getting everything needed to get a working test unit together and in a car. This will not be by any means anything like what the finished unit will be like. This is just a proof of concept unit. I am also gathering together enough supplies and parts that I may start making my own PCB's by next month. To keep the size down, I am going with surface mount instead of through hole parts. Luckily I do have a soldering station with a hot air gun for such fine work. With the solder past in place and the parts located correctly, I could even use a toaster oven to heat the boards for soldering that's how easy SMT is. Even sourcing all the parts and making my own boards is cheaper than having them professionally made, especially at the low numbers that are expected. Ebay is a wonderful thing.
Hopefully by the end of next month I may have some working units available for testing. PM me if you may be interested in beta testing. I will select a few lucky people to test these and possibly write up a "User Manual" if they are so inclined. I already have two who offered that will get first shot. Anyway, just letting everyone know where things are with this project.
P.S. I may remove the average speed from the trip displays. If I do get the software glitch figured out, they may stay in.
In the next couple of weeks I should be getting everything needed to get a working test unit together and in a car. This will not be by any means anything like what the finished unit will be like. This is just a proof of concept unit. I am also gathering together enough supplies and parts that I may start making my own PCB's by next month. To keep the size down, I am going with surface mount instead of through hole parts. Luckily I do have a soldering station with a hot air gun for such fine work. With the solder past in place and the parts located correctly, I could even use a toaster oven to heat the boards for soldering that's how easy SMT is. Even sourcing all the parts and making my own boards is cheaper than having them professionally made, especially at the low numbers that are expected. Ebay is a wonderful thing.
Hopefully by the end of next month I may have some working units available for testing. PM me if you may be interested in beta testing. I will select a few lucky people to test these and possibly write up a "User Manual" if they are so inclined. I already have two who offered that will get first shot. Anyway, just letting everyone know where things are with this project.
P.S. I may remove the average speed from the trip displays. If I do get the software glitch figured out, they may stay in.
So you are looking at a Christmas time frame? I don't know if you saw in my other thread, but I have been in the Hospital for the last 7 days just got out today. Without going into major details, I had an issue with my lungs they decided to stop working for a while. LOL.
I would as stated be more than willing to type out an idiots guide to using or wiring up the gauge set. It looks like I am going to have a lot of time on my hands spending in bed for the next few weeks. FOY Racing has completed my car and is ready for pickup, so this will be a great addition to it. If you have the ability to shoot a video of the interface and operations, I could at least get a start on something. If at all possible a recommendation the wiring going from the Trip computer to the Fiero, if we could match colours so when the user goes to wire it in, all they have to do is match up the wiring colour for colour. Even if installing in Fiero that did not normally have an aux cluster GM did an amazing job at keeping the wiring at the speedo cluster the same colour as the wires at the Aux cluster. (I know this from installing aux clusters in many 85 V6 Fiero's)
------------------ 857GT Part 85GT Part 87GT Part Caddy, 93 Eldorado 4.9, 5spd Dual O2 Custom Chip, Custom Exhaust. MSD Everything Now with Nitrous. Capt Fiero --- My Over View Cadero Pics Yellow 88GT 5spd Full Poly Suspension, Lowered 1/2" in front, Corner Carver.
------------------ 857GT Part 85GT Part 87GT Part Caddy, 93 Eldorado 4.9, 5spd Dual O2 Custom Chip, Custom Exhaust. MSD Everything Now with Nitrous. Capt Fiero --- My Over View Cadero Pics Yellow 88GT 5spd Full Poly Suspension, Lowered 1/2" in front, Corner Carver.
I normally keep up on all the techie type stuff on the forum, but somehow, I have missed this thread completely! I would be VERY interested in having a trip computer on my Fiero. Price would have a bit to do with it of course. I am not looking for it to cost $10 or anything, nor would I be willing to shell out $300.00 for one If it could be kept under $100, I think that would be more than fair.
Please put me on your list as ready to get one, as soon as you have one ready. My dash is apart right now, and I am in the process of designing a custom dash and layout.
My solution was to put it into the main cluster using LEDs due to their temperature range:
but those displays aren't cheap, meanwhile $60 for measly 8 characters, so the VFDs are an excellent alternative providing more space for information, but requiring more space for installation as well.
Staying tuned!
[This message has been edited by fieroluke (edited 11-29-2012).]
Just to let everyone know, things are progressing slowly. Start looking for something sometime towards the end of Jan, first part of Feb. With the holliday season in full swing, my time has been diverted for now.
Slowly is better than stopping. I hope you don't get discouraged. I've been waiting 25 years for this, whats another 2 months? Keep up the great work. If only I knew how to do what you were doing I'd be happy to help. Unfortunately, I could only screw things up.
Just to let everyone know, things are progressing slowly. Start looking for something sometime towards the end of Jan, first part of Feb. With the holliday season in full swing, my time has been diverted for now.
Ditto on the above comment... Keep up the good work. This is something that I want and I am not smart enough to build myself. Enjoy the holidays, all of you and your families. I for one appreciate all your time and effort to bring this about.
Merry Christmas & a prosperious New Year. DARKWING Mike Parker
Slowly is better than stopping. I hope you don't get discouraged. I've been waiting 25 years for this, whats another 2 months? Keep up the great work. If only I knew how to do what you were doing I'd be happy to help. Unfortunately, I could only screw things up.
Just to let everyone know, things are progressing slowly. Start looking for something sometime towards the end of Jan, first part of Feb. With the holliday season in full swing, my time has been diverted for now.
I think a lot of people are saying the same thing about their cash flow during the holiday season. LOL. Don't worry I still had some earmarked for you in case you popped it out at the end of December. However it will be much easier to purchase in the late January/February time frame.
Any luck on getting me a demo model so I can start working on an install wiring instructions and user manual for it. I'll' make it in paper format as well as a downloadable PDF.
------------------ 857GT Part 85GT Part 87GT Part Caddy, 93 Eldorado 4.9, 5spd Dual O2 Custom Chip, Custom Exhaust. MSD Everything Now with Nitrous. Capt Fiero --- My Over View Cadero Pics Yellow 88GT 5spd Full Poly Suspension, Lowered 1/2" in front, Corner Carver.
I am close to being done with the proof of concept model. Keep in mind that it is not going to be pretty or anything like the finished version. A little bit of the handyman's secret weapon (duct tape) will keep it in place.
You watch the Red Green Show don't you Capt?
[This message has been edited by chetw77cruiser (edited 12-06-2012).]
Yep if it can't be fixed with duct tape and a hammer, you just need a garden hose. If that don't fix it, darn it, it must not have been broke in the first place.
Nothing to declare at the moment. Between the hours I spend driving a plow truck this time of year and other unforseen things that have come up, I have little time to devote to this project. I have been working on finalizing the power supply side of the device and clearing up some un-necessary code though. I now have an 86 SE V6 that will become the test bed for this, so hopefully I will be more inclined to get this done in a timely fashion.
Update? I do have something of an update. I have A board completed and am finishing the mods to fit it into the AUX gauge pod. I may change the format a bit since the display takes up a bit less than the full width of the pod. I am up in the air on that at the moment.
With the winter in full tilt and most of my time devoted to road maintenance, progress will be slow. I will update as things change. I do not have any definitive dates at this time. Will have to wait and see.
I respected your being busy, that you posted about a few posts ago. BUT you have replied since with more info, so I am posting now
I am REALLY anxious to see this up and working!
quote
Originally posted by chetw77cruiser: I may change the format a bit since the display takes up a bit less than the full width of the pod.
Seriously? I would love to see a photo of it! I had this tiny little 12 character display pictured in mind, and it sounds like this will be bigger, meaning more information on a line of text ect.
All I can do now is just wait for the snow to all melt
Oh, the suspense. Sorry, no teaser photos for you.
I did post on the digital instrument cluster thread asking for help designing the main instrument cluster that the trip computer is going to control. Swing on over and check it out.
Please bear with me, I will have something to show sometime soon. 
But we will see though if this is going to be a problem.
