DIY: ipad mini magnetic install into cubby

Meulen

I wanted a way to mount my mini in the cubby. My main objective was to keep the integrity of my 40ths interior. I didn't want to do any cutting or customizing to the outside of the dash. So I found a way to magnetically attach my mini into the cubby space and be able to put it back to stock quickly and easily like nothing was ever there.

Here is the finished product


Here is what you will need
1. Phillips head screw driver
2. 8 neodymium magnets. I got mine from amazon.
10 Neodymium Magnets 1/2 x 1/8 inch Disc N48
http://amzn.com/B001KV38ES
3. Cheap ipad case. I also got this from amazon
Apple Ipad Mini Rubberized Hard Plastic Snap On Shell Case Cover - Black
http://amzn.com/B009WDNEOK
4. 5 minute epoxy and some mixing cups/sticks



The first thing you need to do is take the dash piece out containing the cubby. This is not hard. If you need help there is a good video from Bigaudiofanatic on YouTube.
https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=...r8QQiWuTbeq6kg

Next you need to flip over the dash piece to epoxy 4 of the magnets to the back with the 5 minute epoxy. A little warning here! Always keep your hands clean of the epoxy and don't get it on the dash. It will be very hard ad/or destructive to remove. Keep some rubbing alcohol near to get it off your hands.

Here is the placement of the magnets on the rear of the cubby


I let this not only dry for 5 minutes but cure overnight so I knew the magnets were on there solid and not coming off or damaging the dash in anyway.

Next I put 2 more magnets on the outside of the cubby to get ready to position them on the ipad with the cheap case installed


I then put the case on the mini and then put a glob of epoxy on the magnets, being very careful not to get them on the cubby felt. Then, carefully drop the mini in place positioning it well before sticking it to the epoxied magnets. Hold it in place for 5 minutes. I waited a little while longer before pulling off the ipad from the din while it cured. I propppe up the dash piece flat while the epoxy hardened. Yes I used a suntan spray can. Lol


Next I removed the mini to get ready for the bottom magnets. These don't line up perfect like the top so you have to do them separate because you can't get them to mate flush on the case while stuck on the dash like the top ones do. It's ok though. It actually makes the ipad easy to get on/off by grabbing the bottom of it and pulling up once installed. The top magnets are strong enough to hold the ipad in place and the bottom seems to be just enough to keep it from flopping around and breaking the hold of the top magnets under all driving conditions that I've tested.

I stuck the magnets to the dash and put a little grease on thetips that would contact the case. Then dropped the case on top of them to make a grease mark for positioning.


Next I took the magnets off and laid them on a table with the side up that needed to be glued face down onto the ipad case. You have to keep them the right way or they repel. I then cleaned the grease off the back of the case and marked the position of the magnet with a pencil while doing so.


Epoxy those bottom magnets in place and let cure. Do them one or two at a time but you have to hold them in place for the 5 minutes because they want to skate away being attracted to things in the ipad.

Let cure for at least an hour and then enjoy your new navigation/email/dash command or whatever other fun ideas you have to use your ipad in your Z!


I hope this works for some of you. I've taken a little flack for not being custom trimmed and the cubby door being open while driving. But this really worked for me as I didn't want to tear into anything and want the stock dash of my 40th to stay in tact.

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Riptide67

Very creative! Might do this in the future.

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Meulen

thx man! lmk if you have any questions when you do.

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DEpointfive0

Yep, exactly


Looks GREAT!!! And a really good idea, these installs get cooler and cooler, I ALMOST regret buying Nav now (Maybe if the iPad Mini was out when I was buying my car, I really wouldn't have bought Nav because I really like your install)

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Meulen

thx! appreciate that!

Somebody PM'd me and asked me what I would do differently if I had to do it again. I thought I'd share the answer here:

I think I would do a little more research for apps and connections available to the ECU. I still don't know enough about it or even if I could use a bluetooth dongle with my ipad mini. I think I was lucky this was for fun more than anything. Had I been running or thinking about running FI and needed some thing the OEM ECU doesn't read and need more accuracy I would have found the appropriate tablet and OS for the job. Luckily, it's fine for what I'm doing with it!

Now that I've had time to think about it I'll add another thing. My magnets on the back of the ipad case skated around a little while using the epoxy. I think I would have been a little more careful about the excess epoxy and the magnets skating off. Then find a little plastic cover for them. I think raising them up a little like that may bring it up just enough to fit the charging cable on it when need be, and would cover up the excess epoxy on the back of the ipad case.

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TopgunZ

Thanks again Meulen!! Ive decided to do this and it is going to save me hundreds of dollars.

The dashcommand displays everything I need for my TT setup except Oil pressure. I will add this guage as a standalone. However, depending how accurate the feedback is for boost I may add that standalone also. Possibly afr's also. Just need to see how accurate the dashcommand is reporting.

Not sure the laginess of boost display however I went Bluetooth so it should be much quicker than wifi and not be a problem.

I purchased the Visio VTAB1008 as my onboard tablet. Mainly because its super cheap and also has a 4:3 ratio screen (only one I found) so it fits in the cubby very well and takes up the space versus having a 16:10 screen. However it will hang over the bottom a tad bit but not enough to cover the disc select buttons.

I also purchased this. 90 Degree Right Angled Mini HDMI Male to HDMI Female Adapter Cable 10cm Black | eBay

I had read on other cubby forums they couldn't find anything like this. It will need only about half the space that the regular adapter uses.

Others may want to get this 90 degree adapter. They also make one that swivels so it can fit in any orientation.

Meulen

The install should work great for other tablets like that too! I'm sure a lot of the mini tablets are perfect to fit in the cubby. Mine hangs over the radio a little too, as you can see in the pic, but doesn't effect anything. Just make sure the case you buy is kind of soft so it doesn't scratch up the radio.

That's a good idea for the 90 degree wire! I wouldn't mind figuring out a clean way to run a power wire to the Ipad.

The other thing I may do is get an extension for the wi-fi/bluetooth Dongle. It hangs down off the diagnostic port. I haven't hit it with my leg yet, but would really like to relocate it and get it out of the way. Not to mention the inexpensive ones don't turn off with the car. So I may put it in a place more conveinient to take it on/off so I don't kill the battery.

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Meulen

Hey Jordo! thanks for the rep!

I gotta say I'm really lovin' this mod! I had one early hater! you know who you are! lol , but everyone that sees it really loves it. My neighbor, who has a G37, saw it going out of the driveway and ran me down to look at it. He actually said he was mad he had OEM navigation after seeing it! LOL

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ZeroZeta

Very nice Meulen. Thanks for sharing the install. I had thought of something like this but wasn't even sure it would work this way. ha ha.

Chii

I love that tablets took hold of the market, so much better than installing a 7" monitor like you would have had to do a few years back.

Stupid question, but does you guys have audio connectivity for the iPad? I just bought my 370 last night but it seems that the bluetooth is only for phone calls, right? I thought about an iPad mini install before I even saw this thread, but then the headphone port is on the top. I know some of the droid tablets (Asus?) had the charge port on the side, which would be the bottom of the cubby if you installed it sideways. Anybody have ideas of how to connect the audio cleanly?

Meulen

If your Z is later than 2010 you should have the ability to play music from iPad through Bluetooth. Before that you'll need some adapters. Check the DIYs here for how tos on those.

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exedy699

Unless you have the NISMO The US models don't have bluetooth streaming. Unless there is some voodoo magic you did? If so share the love man!
Love the DIY and will probably follow it pretty soon. Nice job

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frk0

Meulen

Nice!

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Vnismo370z

Looks good dude. I will be doing the same to mine with some mods! and the hyperlinks helped in buying the right stuff. I will also make a write up, since I will be adding my own twist.
REPPED!

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