Thanks for the detailed guide, Looking real good! Now your Mazda just got a whole lot smarter.:thumbup 1:

 

now I am thinking of changing my order and skip the whole MZD connect system and get the normal radio one, and then do this mod :tongue: looks pretty awesome

 

This is pretty cool!

 

Great job it looks really well done. But I have two suggestions for improvement

1) mount a wireless QI charger to the mounting so that you can easily remove and place the tablet incase you want to keep it out of sight or out of the sun. you can get basic the circuitry for QI wirless charges which are the size of a credit card and powered by USB for 15$ shipped from japan.

2) use a Bluetooth OBD2 reader and used the app Torque (5.99 I think?) So that you can setup the display with your RPM, Gas usage, Speed GPS and Car, Lateral G readings etc..

 

Great job it looks really well done. But I have two suggestions for improvement

1) mount a wireless QI charger to the mounting so that you can easily remove and place the tablet incase you want to keep it out of sight or out of the sun. you can get basic the circuitry for QI wireless charges which are the size of a credit card and powered by USB for 15$ shipped from japan.

2) use a Bluetooth OBD2 reader and used the app Torque (5.99 I think?) So that you can setup the display with your RPM, Gas usage, Speed GPS and Car, Lateral G readings etc..

Thanks for the suggestions. Torque is definitely in the cards for this setup. The tablet is already really easy to remove. All you have to do is unplug it and pull it our of the rubber case it is in. If the QI charger could be wired through the vents behind it, it would look really clean because there would be not wires showing, but I am already running a 3.5 jack since the Bluetooth audio likes to click and pop at odd intervals and the audio has about a second delay making all videos look like bad dub jobs, so I don't mind one extra wire.

 

Definitely a good idea to use the OBD2 reader and Torque app. Nice to have access to all the features of it.

 

Mine has a separate unit that I had to buy. It is more like an accessory for my head unit.

 

Do you have any delay in audio? For music it doesn't really matter, but it can make video unwatchable.

 

I like my Mazda Connect system... I seem to be one of the few where it works for me

But this is really intriguing.

The only thing I see can be improved is to look for right angle cables (usb and 3.5mm) so they don't stick out.

So, did you end up going bluetooth? or auxilliary?

 

I use AUX. Mainly because of the video audio sync issues and the fact that I would have to switch the audio over to bluetooth everytime on the mazda. The tablet does not have bluetooth up quick enough for the mazda to catch it since I am powering it on when I start the car. It always switches to FM.

 

Very cool. Except, as a not-yet-owner, I'm disheartened that the infotainment system is bad enough that you felt this to be necessary. Up until now I'd only heard good things -- with the understanding, or course, that that's compared to other car systems, which are notoriously crappy.

I wonder about the HVAC vents being blocked. I'd be concerned about losing some efficientcy there, and potentially overheating the tablet when the heat is blasting. I'm guessing you haven't had the car long enough to compare with/without in winter and summer conditions?

 

The vents being blocked hasn't been an issue so far. They are not really blocked either, since there is about 2 inches of space between the vents and the tablet. I just point them up and out so the air is shot over it. Still have the vents on the driver and passenger side open and running. No issues so far. It is 86 out today and I am not having any issues with cooling the car. Even when it was in the 90s yesterday it was fine. As for heat, I doubt the heat from the vents will be any hotter than the heat of the car in the sun.

Realistically, this mod is not necessary. The infotainment unit is fine on its own, but I am the kind of person who likes to improve the things I use everyday. I don't just buy a computer, I build one to my specifications. Same goes for the car. I didn't really need to change the wheels, add rallygaurds and install this tablet. I just wanted to. :smiley:

 

nice idea but why would you need two screens
More distraction to keep your eyes off the road?
LOL

 

nice idea why would you need two screen .. more distraction to keep you eyes off the road?
LOL

English. Do you speak it?

 

no................

 

Hi
I have a problem, my mexican mazda 3 doesn't have the black bolt.
Any other point to put the black cable?

Thanks

 

From that picture, I can't tell if the top bolt attaches a piece of plastic to the frame or if that's metal that it's connecting to. If it's metal, you're in business. Just put the ground wire up there. If it's plastic, look for any other screw or bolt down there that attaches to the frame of the car. I'm sure there's another ground wire down there somewhere already.

If need be, you could always grab a drill, screw and make your own screw hole and attach the ground wire to that.

 

Nice how to. I'll be using it for my project but I'm going with a 6" maybe 6.5" so I can put it lower in front of the shifter blocking the CD player(I don't use CD's

I love the infotainment system they've built into the car and the additional screen will be used for Torque (android) app with bluetooth adapter plus extra features for the passenger to appreciate.

 

Is there no way to take out the current infotainment system and replace it with the nexus? I have the regular radio mounted dash, but would do something like this if there was anyway to just take out the current radio display to replace with the nexus. Maybe even make a 3-d housing for it.

 

nice DIY !

 

Thread from the dead, but actually I'm using something similar right now since I haven't dropped money on an Android head unit replacement for the stock radio that comes in base model 2014 3s.

My setup is a lot simpler though. I have a Nexus 7 that I've attached to one of the air vents using a pair of magnetic phone mounts. It's running SlimKat with my main apps being google maps, Torque and music. I'm just using a 2.4A charger in the armrest storage and a right angle double-sided USB cable for power. The advantage of doing it this way is that you can just pop the tablet off and hide it. Even if it's a cheap device, the prospect of someone breaking my car window to take it is a bad thought.

The main reason I wanted to use this was for a digital speedo and a tach readout (along with ambient temp, coolant temp and average MPG), none of which the base model 3's instrument cluster shows. The Torque app with an ELM327 adapter does this.

The main problem with the Nexus 7 is that it's a clear POS compared to modern day tablets. It does not run multiple apps very well despite the slimmed-down ROM, and worst of all if you're running it at full brightness (since the screen sucks) it actually drains battery power faster than it recharges. But if you have an old/cheap tablet lying around, this is a pretty nice setup.

 

Really slick! I have a Nexus 7 sitting in a closet collecting dust, I think I just found a new project.

 

Thanks for this!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

Can we do the same thing with old mazda 3 (2010) thanks

 

I strongly suspect that you have plugged the fuse tap wrong side. On my Mazda3 2018 the right contact is the hot one, so plugging the tap the way you did forces current to flow through both fuses consecutively. This may blow the factory fuse which you may not want

 

I love the concept. I have the Nexus 7 too and I just dropped by because I was looking for a temporary solution. The hardwiring is certainly a lot of work especially for someone not savvy or with wiring.

The blocking of air vents and the glare from the Nexus screen is reason enough to dismiss this idea, unless I can somehow affix the N7 to the existing infotainment screen. Eight years later, Mazda still can't get their infotainment system up to par with the competition. It's no wonder Mazda sales are at an all-time low.