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  1. #1

    Default V1 Concealed Display mounted in Cheetah mirror

    wasn't sure whether to post this in the Cheetah forum or V1 forum, but I thought it would be more appreciated here. just wanted to share some snapshots of my V1 install in my RX8, with concealed display embedded in my Cheetah mirror and remote mute button mounted in dash blank.


    Dash blank with mounting hole drilled in:




    mute button:




    phone cord + w/10k resistor soldered to the button:




    button mounted in, view of the back:




    front view, finished:




    all mounted up!:




    this is the V1 concealed display, out of the box:




    here's the display out of its case. i should have but didn't photo document all the changes i made, but in short, the phone jack was mounted onto the board, and as you can see, i pulled it off the board and used a bit of phone cord to extend it off.

    i also removed the photocell and jumpered it with a 10k resistor. the photocell adjusts the brightness of the display based on ambient light meaning it shows brighter in the daytime and dims at night. obviously being mounted inside the mirror means it would always be dim, which is bad.

    i could have mounted the photocell outside of the mirror like i did the phonejack, but i'd rather have it bright all the time, especially since my mirror has other displays on it that don't have this feature and it would look inconsistent. here's the result:




    daytime shot mounted in the mirror:




    couple shots in the dark garage (will take better night shots later):






    i know a lot of people don't like it in the mirror, saying it's too visible from outside, inviting cops and, to quote, 'other drivers crowding up behind you so they can live off your detector warnings ' but the latter especially is just plain idiotic IMO.

    at any rate, the 8's got pretty small rear windows and mine is tinted pretty dark. i like to have everything in my direct line of sight and of course it's tough to beat for clean looks and general aesthetics. i've actually never gotten tagged for a speeding ticket since investing, but i would just reach over and shut it off if i did. the RD itself is just clipped to the passenger side visor, hard wired in. the display is dark on the unit itself with the CD obviously, and with the tint strip on the windshield and tints on the front doors as well, i never take it down or worry about it when i park. no one ever looks up there anyway, regardless of tints. my other car actually got broken into and they didn't notice my Bel STI on the visor of that one either.

    well.. there it is! another project off the checklist. i may pull the display again and solder in different color LEDs for band identification and threat strength, mostly for the cool factor. if any one has extra LEDs please PM me

  2. #2
    Radar Fanatic
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    Default Re: V1 Concealed Display mounted in Cheetah mirror

    That look good.

  3. #3
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    Default Re: V1 Concealed Display mounted in Cheetah mirror

    Yeah it does!

    How much trouble was it to get the glass out of the mirror to mount that?

  4. #4
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    Default Re: V1 Concealed Display mounted in Cheetah mirror

    A great mod for sure and glad it works for you. Here's what you should do: 1) Sit in your car at a typical driving posture. 2) Look over the dash, windshield and front areas. 3) Where would be the best spot for the CD? (Likely you would say near the gauge cluster, as you look there all the time anyway, so put it in that general area).

    Personally I prefer dash-level or below for the CD, and I seldom use the R-V mirror, because ... "What's behind me does not matter" - Cannon Ball Run.

  5. #5
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    Default Re: V1 Concealed Display mounted in Cheetah mirror

    Quote Originally Posted by THRASHER View Post
    A great mod for sure and glad it works for you. Here's what you should do: 1) Sit in your car at a typical driving posture. 2) Look over the dash, windshield and front areas. 3) Where would be the best spot for the CD? (Likely you would say near the gauge cluster, as you look there all the time anyway, so put it in that general area).
    Personally, I look in my RVM more than I look at my gauges.....
    The GPS speedometer in the Mirror is more accurate than the speedo in the car. I have yet to see a speedo in a car or motorcycle the is 100% accurate.

    Quote Originally Posted by THRASHER View Post
    Personally I prefer dash-level or below for the CD, and I seldom use the R-V mirror, because ... "What's behind me does not matter" - Cannon Ball Run.
    Once you get paced and ticketed you'll realize that 'What's behind you' DOES matter...

  6. #6
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    Default Re: V1 Concealed Display mounted in Cheetah mirror

    Good points Yamaha1, but what's behind you USUALLY only matters after you fail to detect what is in front of you, and the RV won't help you there. And GPS vs. speedo? GPS is only accurate to the nearest 15 feet or so -unless you are sitting still (and if you were standing still you'd still need take 3 readings to confirm), and depending on satellite position that might translate to a 5-15 mph difference (so how accurate is that)? Speedos are computerized and linked to tire size, I've always been on the mark when passing a warning unit. Personally I have never seen or heard of anyone being paced and ticketed, but I suppose it could happen if you were relying on GPS for speed?

  7. #7
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    Default Re: V1 Concealed Display mounted in Cheetah mirror

    Maybe you would like to correct Wiki on this subject then?

    See specifically the GPS and Error sections....
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Speedometer
    Last edited by yamaha1; 08-21-2010 at 03:45 PM.

  8. #8

    Default Re: V1 Concealed Display mounted in Cheetah mirror

    thanks for the compliments guys. adding it into the mirror itself was the easiest part, since i just needed to open up the Cheetah mirror. also, it is made of one way glass, because it already has an LED display in there, as you can see from the pictures, so it was basically already built for incorporating the concealed display.

    because the cheetah mirror gives me info i need, i am already accustomed to looking there.

    regarding GPS vs. speedo, i think you both have good points. at slow speeds, obviously GPS based speeds are useless, but at greater speeds, GPS is certainly more accurate. one thing to bear in mind is federal regulations do not allow a speedometer to read slower than your actual speed, but the other way around is permissible (ie you can think you are going faster than you are). also, any aftermarket rims/tire size changes are going to throw it off. i've compared the GPS speed in my carputer and cheetah mirror and they were exactly matched, while my dash speedo was off by 3 MPH, going around 70MPH. that was a on cable driven speedo. my digital speedo is much more in line with the GPS, differing by 1 MPH at times, but this is also on stock wheels and tires

  9. #9
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    Default Re: V1 Concealed Display mounted in Cheetah mirror

    Looks awesome!

  10. #10
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    Default Re: V1 Concealed Display mounted in Cheetah mirror

    nic ejob

 

 

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