Dvd Hack

[pygothian]

Well this is the weekend, I'm going to have a crack at the DVD/Satnav hack in the sticky posts on my is250 SL

Im hoping if it all goes pear shapped, if it just reconnect the wires and insulate with electrical tape it will be back to normal.

fingers crossed

[ilv1004s]

any luck?

[pygothian]

ran out of time...hopefully get a chance today to do it.

[Natroth]

I paid $300 for a Sydney based tech to do my hack. I got DVD playing, use of phone and GPS address logging on the go, plus warranty. I thought it was worth it to not short circuit the car myself. Everything works great. The phone is really handy as is putting in addresses for the GPS whilst rolling. Watching DVD's whilst rolling is fun but a bit illegal.......

[pygothian]

The name of the guy the lexus dealer gave me was extremely hesident when i called him to ask him. And went for the upsell of installing two lcds in the back of each front seats with individual dvd players so the back passengers could watch separate things.

Not exactly what I want as I have no kids...only my dog rides in the back.

Still never got a chance to do the mod on the weekend...got called in for an urgent c-section

[kinjiru]

The name of the guy the lexus dealer gave me was extremely hesident when i called him to ask him. And went for the upsell of installing two lcds in the back of each front seats with individual dvd players so the back passengers could watch separate things.

Not exactly what I want as I have no kids...only my dog rides in the back.

Still never got a chance to do the mod on the weekend...got called in for an urgent c-section

I was told by a fellow Lexus driver I met on a track day that Chatswood Lexus will actually perform this for you (for a fee). Apparently they replace a particular circuit board in the car. Sounds ideal in that you aren't exactly going to have warranty issues when it is done by the service centre.

[Wally]

Yes...I rang Lexus Chatswood yesterday & they quoted me $750 to do it. Apparently they get a third party to do it after you sign a waiver (in case u have an accident using the phone or something while driving). They need to keep yr car for a few days.

[kinjiru]

Yes...I rang Lexus Chatswood yesterday & they quoted me $750 to do it. Apparently they get a third party to do it after you sign a waiver (in case u have an accident using the phone or something while driving). They need to keep yr car for a few days.

Wow...$750. The guy I spoke to who had it done, said it was more like $300 (from his memory). I'd do it for $300, but not for $750

[pygothian]

As i mentioned previously...unfortunately in perth, noone I have found will do it. They don't want to break the law. So i will have to do it myself...ive set aside multiple weekends...but just always run outta time. Hope this week i get a chance

[Raoul]

I paid $300 for a Sydney based tech to do my hack. I got DVD playing, use of phone and GPS address logging on the go, plus warranty. I thought it was worth it to not short circuit the car myself. Everything works great. The phone is really handy as is putting in addresses for the GPS whilst rolling. Watching DVD's whilst rolling is fun but a bit illegal.......

Hi Natroth

So who is the guy that did it for $300, can you please give me the contact number and name. Is it NAM Electronics?

[Natroth]

I replied to your message, yes it was NAM Electronics in Sydney and they did a great job.

They installed a micro switch inside the ashtray to allow use of the GPS features when rolling but all the other functions (DVD playing & telephone features) work without using the switch. I do not fully understand the reason for the switch but the job was inexpensive and everything works when rolling. The workmanship was also excellent which was VERY IMPORTANT.

[OzBoy]

Now just need to find someone in Melbourne to do it, this is the one thing about my car that is driving me mad....ok madddddeeerrr!

[korvan]

I do not fully understand the reason for the switch

The switch is needed as the GPS takes input from both the speed sensor cable AND satellites. Feedback from the sensor cable is (obviously) continuous when connected but satellite co-ordinates are not a constant stream - only delta updates on your position every few seconds or so.

If you leave the speed sensor cable permanently disconnected, your GPS tracking becomes very jerky and sometimes even stops tracking you altogether for anywhere from 30-60 seconds. The idea with the switch is that it lets you temporarily disconnect the speed sensor cable long enough to use the full GPS features. Once you've finished, you hit the switch again and, within 15 seconds or so, the GPS starts tracking smoothly again.

It's worth noting that this method is only good for speeds up up to around 50-60kms. Anything above that and the GPS senses speed based on changes in your satellite co-ordinates, at which point the software does its usual trick and prevents you from using all functions. AFAIK, there's no way of permanently stopping this behaviour.

[Wally]

As i mentioned previously...unfortunately in perth, noone I have found will do it. They don't want to break the law. So i will have to do it myself...ive set aside multiple weekends...but just always run outta time. Hope this week i get a chance

I'm not sure what this concern about breaking the law is about (apart from playing DVDs whilst driving) - it seems a furphy to me. Before I bought my IS250 I had 3 x BMW 5 series' over an 11 yr period & all of those allowed me to make phone calls & changes to the satnav (enter new addresses etc.) whilst driving. The only things I couldn't do were watch DVDs or the TV (!!!) above about 4 km/h.

[Natroth]

Thanks for the GPS electronics lesson Korvan, now i also understand why flicking the switch doesn't work so well at freeway speeds :)