Hardwire GPS

[mugennosora]

Hey guys, I did a little research but i didn't find what i need, anyone has some DIY information and best pictures of how to hardwire garmin GPS on the car? tired of connecting the v12 to charge it every time when i'm driving.

Thanks in advance.

[mugennosora]

come on anyone?

[xbook]

I haven't done this, but I have any idea for you. Look up the radar detector DIY articles here. Then modify it for your needs.

You can tap power with an add-a-circuit, then couple that to a female cigarette lighter adaptor. I have purchased these from auto parts stores before. Give me a bit and I can find a picture of the exact kind of part. After you get the add-a-circuit coupled to the cigarette lighter adaptor, get it all tucked up, out of the way, in the top area of the glove box. As far as how and where to run the power cable to the gps, that's up to you.

Hope that at least helps ya start out.

[bigmicj]

Answers can be found here: http://www.1addicts.com/forums/showthread.php?t=214185

There are also several threads on the e90 board with detailed DIYs on the subject.

[Carbonic]

See attached pics of my installation. Not a true hard-wire - power cable and aux audio (not shown) run through cluster pod, transmission tunnel to power socket & aux input under armrest. Very clean, but you don't save the power socket. Bracket is fabricated out of aluminium flat bar.

[JimD]

I like your installation, Carbonic, but I don't completely understand what I'm looking at. Is your car right hand drive? It appears the piece over the instrument cluster hides the screws securing your bracket, right? How does the Garmin connector attach to the aluminum bracket?

Jim

[Carbonic]

Hi, Jim.

Yep, cars are right-hand drive in South Africa.

The bracket is screwed down under the instrument binacle, which covers the 2 screws. the binacle must have a small slot trimmed from it to clear the bracket.

The standard nuvi bracket has the suction arm removed, and is simply stuck to the bracket with double-sided tape.

Hope this helps.

[ad78]

follow this thread. you might wanna copy what i did on my garmin 760

http://www.1addicts.com/forums/showt...ght=gps&page=2

[JimD]

Carbonic,

I like your idea. I am planning a Garmin 760 and may try the BMW mount first. If I do not like that install, then your idea, combined with the Garmin solid stick on mount seems like the next thing to try. I like the ability to rotate the screen which is why I would stick the Garmin mount to flat stock screwed in under the hood for the gauges. It seems like it could be easier to take things out and leave less evidence you modified things this way than the BMW mount - final decision probably has to wait on delivery of my 128i (July) and then a little time for me to mess with it and review the BMW mount. It seems to be a different part number for the wider Garmins than the narrower ones that is in the DIY.

I also want to include a feed for the aux input of the radio and probably a remote mic for the bluetooth of the 760. I use my 350 to feed mp3s to my truck but not a lot because the truck has a 6 CD changer. With the single CD capability of my 128, it seems like WAV files on the nuvi 760 may be a lot easier to manage than manipulating CDs. And bluetooth to a ear piece works for me but bluetooth to the vehicle has to be better. So I plan another wire to the mount (for the remote mic) and to the GPS (for the aux input). I might try the FM modulator first but it seems like it will hurt fidelity and I also read that it is not very powerful - easy to mess up if you drive to a new area.

I am shooting for an end result that can be removed if I ever need to leaving little if any obvious evidence of the changes, GPS right up where it is easy to use, MP3 and bluetooth. With 760s going for about $200, it seems I should be able to do all this for under $300.

Does the hood for the guages just pull off? Any tricks to removing it? Even if I use the BMW mount, this could be a path for the remote microphone wire to get up to the sun visor area.

Jim