funny thing...I've been lurking this site for years, even started a Volvo 240 sedan thread...but never started one for my Cavalier.....
Here's what I started out with. minus the side moldings. Pretty plain Jane. I hated everything about this car when my wife decided she had to have it. Hated it even more when I could no longer drive my old 240 wagon. Bought an '00 4Runnner as a "dog" vehicle. Which translated to my wife getting to drive the truck everywhere and me in the cav. Needless to say, against my better judgment I started working on it, making it my own.
as the exterior stands. I'm working on a '99 rear z24 bumper to complete the Z kit. It's done, I just need to get it into the paint booth. An old friend of mine and I did this back in '05 (the picture is from '09). He's a painter....one day he calls me up and asks me: "hey....wanna paint your car today?"
why not.
At first I was thinking electric blue...then I just started mixing @!#$ together and came up with this color. At the time, It was closest to a Nissan color...now, I think I've seen a color closer on a VW? No idea.....the stripes are Ford Dessert Sand (don't remember the code off the top of my head). It just happened to be sitting in a container my buddy had been using earlier. I thought it complimented the other color nicely and....it was already paid for. I've got the same darker color in a few places on the interior.
lowered on Tein S-Techs and AGX's. At the time, there was a big to do about whether the AGXs could be dropped that low. I took the initiative to call up KYB and ask whether or not their disclaimer was a matter of economics or mechanics? The gal I talked to was adamant that the struts could take the drop....they just weren't going to warranty them that low. She mentioned I would probably want to avoid auto crossing them that low. Good enough for me. They've been riding nicely for 60k miles. I've also got the cadillac strut bar in my trunk aloong with both front and rear sway bars. I'm looking for a welder....i'd like to start making the rest of the bracing.
Wheels are heavy ass TIG Z-10 18". not color matched...they came that way. I think they were bought out by American Racing? Tires are Kumho Ecstas.
busted dash....pretty common. Decided to make my own. Made the mold out of the 4x6'ers that were in the doors....put my 6x9s in there instead. Then I got wise and replaced teh 4x6 with some 4" infinity coaxials.....the 6x9s are still in the doors. Laugh all you want, but the still sound great.
I've had a few different systems in this car. These are the two most notable former systems. The HU was a Pioneer P880PRS. After a while, I connected it to a Fujitsu Stylistic Tablet PC via the IP-BUS connection on the back...worked pretty well as novice CarPC builds go. With the Grom Audio Pioneer/PC interface you could control WMP like you would a CD changer.
Eventually, the sun beating down on the dash took out the battery and I was forced to go back to just straight HU.
this is what I'm running now:
* Mobile Computing Solutions CarPC w/ RCA preamp outs (for the price...it didn't make sense to build my own PC)
* Windows 7
* Lilliput 7" touchscreen monitor
* Sound Blaster xFi 5.1 external sound card with relocated volume knob in my former 12 volt outlet
* Kicker KQ9 signal processor
* JL Audio e6450 6 channel amp
* Orion 10" SVC 4 ohm subs
* Pioneer 2-way 6x9
* Infinity Kappa 42.9i 4" coax
* Monster 300 Powerflex power and ground
* Monster 200 series speaker
* Monster shielded RCA
* the "Big Three"
Love everything about this system. I've got an 11 second boot time thanks to Black Viper and soon, I'll be running HPTuner on a second monitor in my steering wheel.
I made custom bezels out of 3M Automix and MDF and made new mounting hardware out of aluminum flat bar.
did some fancy dancy RADAR detector relocation work. Fun stuff! Works like a gem there despite it's lower mounting height!
Engine mods are limited. I spent so much time learning about audio crap that I never looked into engine mods for this car until recently. What little motor research I have been doing is for the LS1 (wishfullthinking...probably LT1 or straight up 350) swap I'm going to do on my Volvo. I've got a WAI (it was cheap and had a growl), I did do the 2.3L HO throttle body swap recently. Currently I'm working on my parts list for an N/A build. I know I know...boo hoo LN2....I don't care. even at 140 HP it'll be a fun car to drive around the cities. I'm really hoping that TTR Feeler for the that intake Manifold pulls through!
That's about it I guess....currently working to finish up this steering wheel touchscreen and engine mods list.....
oh yeah...clearly, I had to do an HVAC relocation to get that multipanel in there. I threw the HVAC controls into my armrest. Haven't made a surround bezel for it yet.
very nice man, love the progress.
2010 Lonestar Bash 2nd place J-Body Street Class
It's come a long nicely Chris
You also did a great job modding the Z bumper.
dude thats sweet nice wheels
steering wheel touchscreen update:
got the hard part done.
I had to make my own clock spring. I was hoping to use the internal structure from an Aurora for all the USB/power connection but the IDC ribbon inside isn't shielded. I pined over some pretty complicated designs...even asked Ranger for a pointer or two....which of coarse was only helpful in making feel like an idiot for asking, lol. By the time I had figured out a way to shield it, I had pretty well wiped out any hope of getting it to fit back into the clock. Next time I'll know what to do.
But this works pretty good for significantly less hassle. It actually came to me in a dream....so simple...
I get 4 1/4 revolutions out of this thing. I only need 2 1/2. basically....there's enough wire in there to wrap around the center dowel twice (plus some change).
It finally dawned on me that I don't need this thing to completely wrap the whole circumference from full right to full left. I only need it to wrap from center to full right and visa versa for left. So long as I have the room inside the clock....nothing binds. it just goes back on itself and wraps the other direction.
basically...it's just two plexiglass circles with the centers drilled out. The key is the outer wall though. The whole wrapping back on itself theory only works if you can guaranty it won't get caught on anything. I wasn't sure at first what to use....but then I looked in my garbage and saw the plastic case from some vac line I bought...perfect. A little modeling glue and strategery....BOOM, clock spring
I didn't want to glue it together completely though. in the event it fails, i don't want to start from scratch. It's held together by a couple tiny pins I made out of bailing wire.
works like a charm! That was by far the hard part. Now the fun part. getting the touchscreen into the steering wheel!
I SATCHMOE YOU!!!! wrote:Very interesting
interesting good I hope?!? LOL
evil lives wrote:dude thats sweet nice wheels
'preciate man.
Got the screen mounted.
Snug as a bug. I retro fitted the old air bag mounting bracket so the whole thing comes out just like the air bag did. The monitor has a Hi Speed USB port on the side of it that I'm going to plug the dongle for my pointer mouse into (nice to have a mouse around sometimes)...need to cut out a hole for it. Aside from that...its just a matter of mounting the VGA card (done...just need to secure it) and then it fiberglass time! ******BARF!!!******
god I hate fiber glass.
I don't expect to get a lot of unwanted attention with this deal because i don't plan on driving it this way very much at all. I wanted the screen for HPTuner and for shows...but in the event I do get pulled over I made the cover "quick release."
Steering wheel is pretty cool.
I <3 JGM
I think bigfoot is blurry,
that's the problem. It's not the photographer's fault. Bigfoot is blurry. And that's extra
scary to me. There's a large, out-of-focus monster, roaming the countryside.
"Run! He's fuzzy!" "Get outta here!"
In Loving Memory of Phil Martin December 14 2005
I should point out....I still have the air bag. I pulled the brackets from one in the yard. What I meant by "I don't plan on driving it this way very much at all" was that when I DO drive...I'll put the air bag back in
Ahh well crap it would be cool if you made the airbag face a cover for the screen.
I <3 JGM
I think bigfoot is blurry,
that's the problem. It's not the photographer's fault. Bigfoot is blurry. And that's extra
scary to me. There's a large, out-of-focus monster, roaming the countryside.
"Run! He's fuzzy!" "Get outta here!"
In Loving Memory of Phil Martin December 14 2005
I SATCHMOE YOU!!!! wrote:Steering wheel is pretty cool.
Thanks man. It fits really well! It was convenient that it came with a mounting well to install into a head rest....made mounting it to the air bag bracket really easy.
I SATCHMOE YOU!!!! wrote:Ahh well crap it would be cool if you made the airbag face a cover for the screen.
it is! lol. that picture above is the cover over the screen. I had two airbag modules for this car...I only made the one into the touch screen.
You know how it is at car shows...you never know when you're going to need a big ass 64 oz. mountain dew or a pack of smokes.....I'm not putting the air bag in for a quick trip to the gas station...lol.
HAHA ok I misunderstood you then.
Works for me
I <3 JGM
I think bigfoot is blurry,
that's the problem. It's not the photographer's fault. Bigfoot is blurry. And that's extra
scary to me. There's a large, out-of-focus monster, roaming the countryside.
"Run! He's fuzzy!" "Get outta here!"
In Loving Memory of Phil Martin December 14 2005
The steering wheel is great! Great theft deterrent being able to cover it up & not flaunt it's existance.
Very very nice. I made a fake cup holder that goes right over my AvicF9000 I love it. I love your wheel cover smooth.
Ineverfollow wrote:Very very nice. I made a fake cup holder that goes right over my AvicF9000 I love it. I love your wheel cover smooth.
This I would like to see.
I <3 JGM
I think bigfoot is blurry,
that's the problem. It's not the photographer's fault. Bigfoot is blurry. And that's extra
scary to me. There's a large, out-of-focus monster, roaming the countryside.
"Run! He's fuzzy!" "Get outta here!"
In Loving Memory of Phil Martin December 14 2005
Very nice I may be stealing this idea from you when I get my new HU
I <3 JGM
I think bigfoot is blurry,
that's the problem. It's not the photographer's fault. Bigfoot is blurry. And that's extra
scary to me. There's a large, out-of-focus monster, roaming the countryside.
"Run! He's fuzzy!" "Get outta here!"
In Loving Memory of Phil Martin December 14 2005
Miss Jazer wrote:The steering wheel is great! Great theft deterrent being able to cover it up & not flaunt it's existance.
Ha! Hopefully I don't 'forget' it's there and slam the thing thinking I still have a horn!
Ineverfollow wrote:Very very nice. I made a fake cup holder that goes right over my AvicF9000 I love it. I love your wheel cover smooth.
That's clever...I like it!
Chris Bevis wrote:Miss Jazer wrote:The steering wheel is great! Great theft deterrent being able to cover it up & not flaunt it's existance.
Ha! Hopefully I don't 'forget' it's there and slam the thing thinking I still have a horn!
ehhh yea that would suck. I didn't even think of that, lol.
Doin' work. Great job Bev.
Paying someone to install parts and bragging about it being fast, is like watching someone bang your wife and being proud to raise their kids.
Miss Jazer wrote:ehhh yea that would suck. I didn't even think of that, lol.
lol...if I were that retarded, I'd deserve the broken screen....
Transporter7220 wrote:Doin' work. Great job Bev.
KACOW! ZGIMME MA K-BAR GOD DAMNIT!!!
lol....thanks Tranny.
