Canadiangeek.net How do you know you can't do something if you haven't tried

Parts, Parts, Parts

So been a few days without a real status update.

• Put another coat of red/black paint on the brake parts (this stuff takes forever to dry and goes on really thick)
• Last of the ball joints came in the mail, they will be in the A arms and knuckles tomorrow
• finally had a chance to pick up the pieces to reassemble the parking brake.
• Decided i that i may as well replace a few more parts that are not broken... bought new flexible brake lines for all 4 corners, bought new guide pins and guide pin boots. (easy to replace while its all apart harder to replace later so why not)

I will have time to get the parts all assembled this weekend.

GTM Status Update

If you reading this message and you are planning on a GTM build using donor parts you might want to reconsider. I have been looking at the prices on rock auto and cost all in after buying new ball joints, brake pads, rotors, brake rebuild kits, new brake lines, cleaning chemicals, and paint is really close to buying new. (off rock auto website)

I would still clear coat all the parts even if i bought them new.

Here are the items i am waiting on still
1) brake rebuild kits
2) 6 of the ball joints
3) brake line bending tool
4) new flexible brake lines
5) Paperwork from Transport Canada to import the kit with.
6) Canadian GTM Kit
7) FF GTM kit

Items left to work on while waiting
1) Make the engine sparkle (cleaner/ paint)
2) Mount the new clutch i bought
3) Finish painting brakes (this high temp brake paint takes FOREVER to dry)
4) Clean the garage!

Items i still need to order
1) Lug nuts (man these are expensive.... $75 was the cheapest i found so far)
2) Transaxel (mendeola)
3) Toyota short throw shifter http://www.twmperformance.com/shorts...rtshifters.htm
4) Body mods from Vspeed...
5) Exhaust from Vspeed...
6) Move Rivets (I hear the kit doesn't come with enough)
7) Air powered rivet guns (totally worth it)

The only other news is that i found a home for the body while i work on the go-Kart. Its all the way across town but it can sit in someone elses garage so it doesn't get in the way.

More Possibilities

So last night i did a little more research on the car PC idea, I can write the whole thing in the unity 3D gaming engine. (Software is free for 30 days, then i could just install it on another PC :-))

Pros

• Gaming engine is easy to use (and can be scripted in 3 programing languages that i know)
• It supports sound (play stop ff rew) so adding MP3 player functionality would be easy
• Supports Video textures, so i could have a DVD player/ movie player app. Can also work with 3D so you could do cool animations like flying into the car and zooming into the 3D representation of the touch screen while loading the movie.
• has an easy API
• Has EQ functionality built right in, so i could have a multiband EQ
• Supports Webcams
• Someone wrote a NAV system already and offers the code for $65. its capable of using maps downloaded from Bing/Google/Garmin etc and support downloading of traffic data from the internet https://www.assetstore.unity3d.com/en/#!/content/13261
• Could easily connect to the internet via a tethered cell phone or cellular USB stick.

Using the Unity API I could

• Integrate to my ODB2 adapter
• Integrate to my TPMS sensors
• Start the car (using microprocessor)
• Lock or unlock the doors (using microprocessor
• See the status of door locks, doors opening, hood opening, etc
• Using a microprocessor there is nothing that i couldn't monitor (gforce, hood open, door open, battery draw, suspension compression, etc)

Unity is also multi platform which means this code would work on a PC, IOS, Blackberry or and Android tablet/phone (although ODB2/TPMs/remote start/Door Unlock would have to be done via HTTP or TCP if i don't use a PC). So if i want a low voltage, instant on for say the gauge cluster in the dash i could use a hacked up android tablet or IPad.

If I do integrate the ODB2 adapter (i have a few Bluetooth ones lying around) I could have MPG, Average speed, RPM, Engine Temp, etc all available. If I use a PC instead of an IPAD i could run two displays, one touch screen in the center console and the other as the main gauge cluster. Using a 3D engine would allow me to have the gauges fly in when starting the car or drip in like a thick fluid from the top, etc. It would be easy to add virtual tire temp lights that could indicate when the tires were warm enough to take a quick corner, or add a G sensor that could indicate on a dial how close you are to spinning out.

The PC could also easily do data logging taking the information from the ABS sensors, ODB2, and TPMS and streaming them to a database on a USB key for later playback.

I could create a virtual drag racing tree that could measure reaction time (using ODB2 of the brake/gas pedals) and 0-60 as well as quarter mile times based of the odometer or ABS sensor data.

Hell you could even cheat a drag racing by using the webcam on the front of the car. Write some code to have it recognize the tree at the drag strip, when the light yellow it starts to increase the RPM past what the brakes can hold, when the light goes green it could use a solenoid to release the brake for you. Coupled with launch control you could dial in its ability to cross the start line at the precise ms that the light goes green. (I'm sure there are rules against this)

I will think about it some more but I'm sure I will be putting in all these systems while i build the car. I may leave the programing portions until after the car is finished. It will give me a fun project moving forward with the car. Something i can continue to improve upon and add features to.

3D GTM

So, no progress on the real car today but I did manage to almost complete a fairly close digital render of the GTM. Truth be told i stole these files out of a popular video game, used a 3rd party game developer tool to convert to a 3ds file. I then separated it into parts and converted it to Sketchup format (free 3D tool)

Hood, body, hatch, wheels, windows, and 30 other parts for the Gen 1 and Gen 2 were all converted. I will combine those Gen 2 files into one sketchup file and then use that to test out different paint combinations.

Rims and Tires

Mounted and balanced.

Another $117 I didn't account for 🙂