My Celica's Interior : 6/11/11(update) Pics are all up!, I know what you are thinking, and yes im crazy Options

[njccmd2002]

and for some teaser pics..



what is that!
why so many green lights??

thats its why its called a teaser.. so many green, but one is blue. Bottom left corner

This post has been edited by njccmd2002: Jun 11, 2011 - 1:53 AM

[Jeunesse]

nice job on turning the stock radio color to blue. It takes skills soldering SMT parts... I know coz I work in an electronics manufacturing plant. I don't do soldering but I'm well knowledgeable on how it works. How'd you find out the part number for the LEDS?

[njccmd2002]

ok, i will give a free preview, i am not done yet. I have worked over 4 hours, but halfway done.... , i miscalculated the supplies so i will have to order more...

but here it is...



I am trasnforming my OEM 6 disc changer to blue... I still have to work on the display...
I will post instructions when i get a chance....

This post has been edited by njccmd2002: Jun 11, 2011 - 1:54 AM

[celicaGT96]

^^ wow that is very nice

what material was used under the carpet. im planning on doing something like this but dynamat is too heavy and i dont think it makes much of a difference..

would you recommend it to others for a quite cabin?

This post has been edited by celicaGT96: Mar 7, 2008 - 12:45 PM

[njccmd2002]

^^ wow that is very nice

what material was used under the carpet. im planning on doing something like this but dynamat is too heavy and i dont think it makes much of a difference..

would you recommend it to others for a quite cabin?

I have a vert, so its noisy in nature. What i used is (have you ever moved with U-hAUL) the movin blankets. I had misplaced two of these, and ended up paying for them . But if you look at the original OEM padding, they are same material, except OEM are thicker. I left the oem in place and added extra padding.

Some people have used cork, sprayed rubber, dynamat. This was at no cost to me, since i had it. Ever since i lowered my car, it was very road noisy, but now i think it has very much improved the noise in my cabin. I believe toyota used that stuff for a reason, i just made it thicker , plus is comfy.

If you have no plans to spend to much, i would tell you go ahead.. I think there are some versions of the fabric at walmart...

Hollow cans transmit noise very good, dissipating the sound waves, what im doing, helps reduce the noise.

GL

[94TRDcelica]

ok, i will give a free preview, i am not done yet. I have worked over 4 hours, but halfway done.... , i miscalculated the supplies so i will have to order more...

but here it is...



I am trasnforming my OEM 6 disc changer to blue... I still have to work on the display...
I will post instructions when i get a chance....

Sick NJ, real sick! Totally love it dude! Keep up the good work!

[njccmd2002]

Hey, not to make anyone feel bad, but my job has made a 360 turn lately , and im spending a lot of time not at home. I have gotten requests to help some folks out here to do the job, but i cannot at this moment . Im putting about 60 - 80 hours a week in my job, and berely have time to work on my car...

It makes me happy to have people asking me to help, but dont take it the wrong way, i cannot take the responsibilty of potentially messing up your a/c. Soldering can be a non reversible mod, and the heat can fry circuits, so id be lying to anyone that there is no risk involved. I do this as my hobby, and if i mess something up in my car, i can pick up the tab . I wish i could help you more.

There is actually a guy doing a very good job here, but i cant remember his name. he charges about 40 bucks...

sorry if i could not be of much help. thanks for asking ...

Its really not that bad, i will post a video of soldering as soon as time permits.. And you wont be spending more than a couple of bucks in a soldering iron and stuff..

the type you can twist on can also be used, however the led does not spread light in all directions, so i had to hack 2 leds to angle them.... look at the pics



you can on the first one you can see 3 holes that look kind of burned, well those are the holes were the original bulbs were, i had to add some soldering material there, on the left there is a 74 led bulb hacked, I bent the legs,
look at this one


you can clearly see 5 leds, 3 on the left and two on the right... the ones on the right one is angled horizontally...

The LED are protected, meaning if you soldered the wrong polarity, it wont light, but it wont mess up. Just reverse.

cheers...

This post has been edited by njccmd2002: Jun 11, 2011 - 1:55 AM

[njccmd2002]

time to share. couple of hours before i go back to work. These pics were taken last week...

This one uses advance soldering techniques, what i used was no necessarily the best equipment, there are numerous tools to work with smt, but costly..

how to do work with SMT (surface mounted diodes) I decided i wanted a blue radio, which im still waiting on supplies, but whereis what i have so far....

this is what the radio looks like, this was not my idea, actually the whole explanation can be found in

http://www.spydermods.com/legacy/radiocolor.htm (giving this guy the credit ) found it a couple months ago, never had the bal** to do it.

after all the instructions are followed to take apart the radio, I desoldered the LCD screen, in the pic its in the button. This takes nearly 2 hours as you dont want to break it.. I used desoldering braid from radio shack



this is a look closer of the desoldered terminals...careful, careful, patience, it will come out, dont break it



this is my working bench.. Secure enough so that is stable and you dont burn....



so what does an SMT look like, well is about a couple of mm, my radio had 27 of them... But wait, it also had some SMT called PLCC (side mounted). I tought my radio was like the guys explanation above, so this is whats holding me... Here is a pic. The big one is a PLCC and on the side you can see a smt.

I am using 1206 smt, blue, 3.4 volts, 500 mcd 20mAmps. Bought them from ebay... I am waiting on the PLCC 600mcd blue side mounted ones. I am not finished just yet...



here is the board a couple of hours into the work. You can see all the SMT's laying around there....



So, everybody is asking how did i do this. I have 2 videos for your viewing pleasure..

Basic steps,
1. with a hobby knife and a solder iron, carefully lift the old smt. Patience, as you dont want to damage the circuit board, go side from side until you release, it does not matter if you burn it, as is trash.

2. With desoldering braid, lift the remains of the solder component from the board, to prepare for a clean smooth surface. This will make placing the new smt easier..

3. Place smt on correct polarity. Usually they have a mark on the side, and or the bottom, telling you the direction fo current. The first two are trial and error, after that you usually know how to.

4. Carefully solder the smt in place, they can take up to 200 degrees up to 5 seconds so be quick. What i did was to cover the tip of the solder iron with the soldering wire/component, and then lightly touch each surface, youll see the smt not moving anymore..

5. Place 5 or 6 at a time, then recheck. you can place the board without the display in your radio. You will melt a few, and some might not even work, so buy plenty

6. Variations of the number of leds depending on your radio. Do you have a orange piooner radio, well you can do this.. This will void any existing warranty.

7. As always careful, you mess the board, get yourself a new radio...

and for videos ..



and different view..




cheers... BTW the whole process can take you up to 8 hours, so grab snickers, chips and soda. Oh have the dog next to you for all the necessary cuzzing (i love my dog)

This post has been edited by njccmd2002: Jun 11, 2011 - 1:58 AM

[njccmd2002]

so, now that i have shown how to solder and desolder, here is how to hack a 74 LED.

Used a dremel tool. Carefully cut the center of led around in circular. Do not cut right trough, or the resistor will be cut. Just like opening a can of sardines, just around the border.



sorry bout the out of focus, kind of difficult, seeing the lcd of camera and hacking..

With the open led, you can solder the diode and resitor in different angles, or mount the led in the lighter and put the resistor in the wire as a harness, just as how i explained earlier in my post..

This post has been edited by njccmd2002: Jun 11, 2011 - 2:13 AM

[GriffGirl]

I love this thread, it should get a sticky or something. This is by far the best most detailed thread about soldering I've seen on here.

[joehernandez]

you added a video!!!!!!
now this should be a sticky!!!

[njccmd2002]

http://www.superbrightleds.com/mini-wedge.html

just keepin it easy, they just screw on, no soldering required apparently

This post has been edited by njccmd2002: Jun 11, 2011 - 2:15 AM

[njccmd2002]

Well, today i got off work, after a crude week.

Decided to install these little babies, as i had been procrastinating for so long..



Well the first thing is to get the bezel around the key ring off, there are no screws here. You have to unplug the lights dimmer. Be careful, as when prying it out if you do it to hard you break it.

On my way there, let me show you one thing.



Its held by a single screw, easy to remove and then you look like this



And this is where you plug the 74 LED



Well the next is the bezel around the gauges, its held by 3 screws on the top.



Four screws need to be removed, to remove it I did with the face towards the upside. I found it easier..



I am not going to open my gauges again, they are already installed. But I did it by loosing a couple of screws. The EL gauges just slide in. There is no need to remove the needles, if you do this, you’ll have later figuring it out. The gauges did not have a sticky contact, so it was difficult to align them with the OEM, so that all the warning lights lined up (gas, check engine) I used some contact cement in a couple of spots. Then it wont move. You can avoid this if you like

The set I had is hooked up with wires so I had to make a couple of grooves in the white housing. So that they won’t be pressed. Look at the video , showing the grooves and the installation of the bulb.



Don’t assemble the Cluster, why?

First I tested the bulbs, as they have polarity, if they don’t light up at first, turn 180 degrees and they will. Test with the lights dimmer plugged

And voila!!!



A lot of people ask where to draw power for the gauges. You can use the cigarette lighter, but it’s a lot of wiring and you’ll need a second switch. Well this is how I did it. I wanted my gauges to turn on when the lights are on and vice versa. With a millimeter I checked the harness 1 of the cluster. By tracing the back where the bulbs attach I noticed the positive and negative terminals that feed the lights. The first two wires. I found the white o be negative and green positive. Always Check the polarities, dont quote me, and here:



I used shrink wrap tube since I had to cut and solder. I originally had not cut and simply tapped, but the gauges flickered on occasions, and bugged the hell out of me. So Soldered, they are not loose. Always protect your car and wiring by insulating.



I hid the rest of cable and transformer behind the drivers vent, that’s where I put the EL dimmer.

Then you put everything back together. And Enjoy. The Number one mistake people make is to leave the lights dimmer unplugged. The gauges wont light if this happen.



Cheers! BTW I still not received my radio parts..

This post has been edited by njccmd2002: Jun 11, 2011 - 2:19 AM

[njccmd2002]

Ha ha ha, 3 hours today, a total of 45 dollars. plus 7 hours 2 weeks ago, delays in material shipment from Hong Kong. = Headache!!!

No, No, No, No I am Happy. This is the way toyota should have made radios. Custom!!!!

I have a Custom Blue, OEM 6 disc changer.... Pics dont do justice, but are proof. I am not done putting it together, cause i have one more thingy to do. but here it is, al ready.

Start desiring or criticizing, who cares I am HAPPY!!!!




and video..



This post has been edited by njccmd2002: Jun 11, 2011 - 2:23 AM

[njccmd2002]

had more free time today. still working though.

oops!!!



as originally made by DEATH.

This post has been edited by njccmd2002: Jun 11, 2011 - 2:24 AM

[njccmd2002]

well im done, bareley, i have finished 25% of things to do.

wont go into many details. Please check out this post for instructions... Props to Death.

http://www.6gc.net/forums/index.php?showtopic=57246

old.



new...



time for the rears.

This post has been edited by njccmd2002: Jun 11, 2011 - 2:25 AM

[njccmd2002]

When you have to decide for eggs over 100$ speakers...

Scion speakers are Dime a dozen on ebay. I got a hold of some. It was four, 2 for my corolla (which is an OEM Upgrade) and had 2 laying around not being used. They are made by piooner. Decided to use them and fab a mount for my car... as my oem were crappy and 10 years old.

the first one shows one already mounted and the one next to it. I had to shave all the borders until i got a bazooky style. Then created a mount with plexiglass.



mounted in the car..



final look .



Got to say, only spent time. speakers were free.. The sound is better.

This post has been edited by njccmd2002: Jun 11, 2011 - 2:26 AM

[njccmd2002]

ha, my best find ever. I always wanted the look of the 8 speaker door panel. However those are difficult to come by.

But not the part numbers and the actual parts.

Part number : 67651 - 20080



a side by side comparison



so what is the process. takes 1 hour ! TAKE out the door panel. There are instructions here on how to do it.

Go get a DREMEL tool. They always come in handy.

Cut around carefuly. You want to leave the groove, otherwise it wont stay in place...



carefully pry out the old grill..



Make sure you shave the edges well!!!



The grill has little tabs to keep it in place, these match the holes on the panel. I used contact cement to stick it in place to avoid vibrations. Also bent the tabs carefully, dont breake them...



this is the final fit....



and a close up !!



OEM final look, Upgraded speaker grill

This post has been edited by njccmd2002: Jun 11, 2011 - 2:28 AM

[njccmd2002]

my new simple mod today.

94 paseo shift knob. It looks larger yes, but the thread is actually deeper. Which makes the overall height not change but by 5 mm.

I really like it, as it feels more sporty. I had the 7 gen short shifter and had a little bit of play in the boot, as the stopper was a little lower. So if you have the original shifter, you might need to modify the boot stopper. anyways here are some pics....







This post has been edited by njccmd2002: Jun 11, 2011 - 2:32 AM

[njccmd2002]

oops!





This post has been edited by njccmd2002: Jun 11, 2011 - 2:37 AM