Inigo Montoya

As my car did not come with a trip computer, there was a blank spot on the dash right between the tach and the speedometer that seemed like about the right size for the V1 remote display sans the mute button. So I set about doing this. Along the way I picked up an instrument cluster from a contemporary 200 and flirted with the idea of swapping the gauge faces and putting the V1 remote display into the spot in the tach where a digital clock would go. I abandoned this idea but it would be doable I think.

Once I got my instrument cluster out of the car and took it apart, it was apparent that some trimming with the Dremel would be necessary in order for the modified remote display and its wiring to actually fit.

<img src="http://pictureposter.audiworld.com/16356/dremel1.jpg">
Here are the plastic structural pieces of the tachs from my Ur S4 and the Audi 200. The blue arrow indicates the material that has been cut away.

<img src="http://pictureposter.audiworld.com/16356/dremeltachcloseup.jpg">
Here's a close-up of the UrS4 tach where the plastic was trimmed. As you can see, even though my car didn't come with a digital clock, there is a hole in the plastic where one could go.

<img src="http://pictureposter.audiworld.com/16356/dremel2.jpg">
The blue arrows indicate where the corresponding section on the front of the instrument cluster was trimmed.

<img src="http://pictureposter.audiworld.com/16356/glueandbluedots.jpg">
I had some help with the soldering, which was way too minute for me to accomplish on my own. I dropped some hot glue over the area to help stabilize it.

<img src="http://pictureposter.audiworld.com/16356/inthedash1.jpg">
The wire from the V1 remote display was threaded through a hole in the instrument cluster that was unused. I guess bulbs and other stuff for the digital clock would go here otherwise.

<img src="http://pictureposter.audiworld.com/16356/orientation1.jpg">
A mock up with the tach sans its gauge face. The stiffness of the telephone wire made it almost impossible to orient the V1 remote display how I wanted it. It would have put constant force on it, pulling the left end down, and making it much harder to get it to sit evenly in its little spot in the dash. I put the blue dots on the wire to make sure that when I attached a plug at the other end of the wire, I would get it right side up.

<img src="http://pictureposter.audiworld.com/16356/orientation2.jpg">
By threading the wire around the little columns that support the tachometer, the V1 remote display could sit in its spot without being torqued down by the wire.

I tried several techniques to get the V1 remote display to sit snugly against the instrument cluster face. These ranged from the ghetto but almost functional, to the embarassingly stupid dismal failures. Finally, I hit upon the idea of using foam and some spare parts that I cannibalized from the Audi 200 isntrument cluster.

The Audi 200 instrument cluster <i>did</i> have a trip computer, which sat on a little plastic platform, which in turn sat in a little well between the tach and speedo, right under the yellow LED screen. I played around cutting pieces of foam to fit so they would support the V1 remote display and sit in this little platform for stability.

<img src="http://pictureposter.audiworld.com/16356/parts2arrows.jpg">
The platform itself required trimming with the Dremel tool. The red arrow shows how the entire side has been cut away to allow room for the wire.

The blue arrow shows the final foam piece. What really made it easy was using one of the foam pieces that Valentine One uses in their packaging. (It's the piece that fills the gap in the main foam if you are not getting the plug for the cigarette lighter.) I only had to make a few cuts to get this piece to fit very nicely into the plastic platform. I spray painted it black in case any of the foam would be visible at the end.

<img src="http://pictureposter.audiworld.com/16356/parts3assembled.jpg">

<img src="http://pictureposter.audiworld.com/16356/parts4.jpg">

<img src="http://pictureposter.audiworld.com/16356/gettingthere.jpg">
The V1 remote display sticks up a bit but that's okay because the instrument cluster face will squish it back down, compressing the foam and keeping the V1 display snug.

<img src="http://pictureposter.audiworld.com/16356/tachinplace.jpg">
The tach is back in place now with the gauge face and needle replaced.

<img src="http://pictureposter.audiworld.com/16356/cordexitback.jpg">
Wire exiting the back of the instrument cluster. I may have to play around with this as I am not certain that the plug that goes in this green jack will be able to fit with the V1 cord in there.

<img src="http://pictureposter.audiworld.com/16356/final3arrows.jpg">
It took some trial and error to get the display to look somewhere between just right and "oh damnit that's good enough!" (I was working in the attic and it was getting hot.) I ended up taping a very small piece of flat black material (also a left over from the Audi 200 instrument cluster) so it would close off the rectangular area a little better, and hide the foam. This was fairly frustrating work because if the material was 1 mm higher on one side, it produced a noticeable slant when viewed from the front. I ended up holding it completely flush with the rectangular opening first, and tracing a pencil line above its top edge. Then I lowered it until the gap below the pencil line at the top was what I knew I wanted in terms of coverage on the other side. The pencil line also helped me keep it as straight as possible. (Sorry no pics.)

<img src="http://pictureposter.audiworld.com/16356/final1.jpg">
The final product. There is some compromise obviously, as the right hand edge of the directional arrows are slightly obscured. But I am pretty happy with the result, and I will be able to see all the information displayed including the numbers on the left. Why didn't I bother to do a wire for the mute button? Actually, I was planning to but the car itself, which has been getting some go-fast parts at the shop, is nearing the stage where it needs the IC so they can tune it. I may later go back and do a mute button, but then again I have a baby on the way in about 1 month, and I'll probably never get around to doing it. So I will probably buy a remote volume control from V1 and be done with it.

What have I learned from this project? Well, for starters, I'm no Kevin Day. It was a bit more of a pain in the **** than I expected. I think if you have the skills to pull it off, and you could completely reconfigure your V1 remote display so it was vertical rather than horizontal, then the spot on the dash where the automatic transmission indicator goes would be a good place to put the V1. This location would not require you to open the IC at all, as the black plastic filler piece screws in from the back. If you thought you could get used to reading the V1 sideways, it would be very simple to just stick it in there.

UrSoccer_mobile®

but seems to much work. I'll pass. Good job though.

Mr.FRU-T-Pants

Lot of work...good job.

kday

Check out this handy <a href="https://www.audiworld.com/tech/elec80.shtml">AudiWorld tech writeup</a>.

I've considered making a custom V1 remote. I was originally hoping to include it with the TDS-1 but that wasn't feasible due to the Audi IC.

Here's an old picture of one aborted attempt:

<img src="http://ultrameta.home.comcast.net/icdisp.jpg">

I have a whole tube of these displays, 50 or so.

Inigo Montoya

Thanks for the link to the how-to.

There are some interesting projects and products floating around the internet relating to the V1.

http://v1vd.blogspot.com/

The V1 Virtual Display (URL above) is an interface and related software that a guy sells that lets you display the V1 information on a computer screen via a USB connection. If you had a computer in the car, say one working through an Audi Nav plus screen, you could have V1 info come up there. It's not cost effective to install a computer just for that purpose, but they do have other uses (GPS, mp3 or iTunes, hard-wired VAG-COM, for example).

Also, Automotive Data Research...

http://audi.caughtbluehanded.com/index.html

...are working on an interface that allows the V1 to communicate with the in-dash trip computer screen, including both the older red LED style and the newer color screens. From the looks of their web page this is something still in the beta phase -- I think. They have all these things about their V1 display but when you go to the actual store link the only product they are selling for Audis appears to be just a Bluetooth module. (?)

<img src="http://audi.caughtbluehanded.com/V1_format_explanation.jpg">

<img src="http://audi.caughtbluehanded.com/V1display.jpg"><ul><li><a href="http://audi.caughtbluehanded.com/V1display.wmv">V1 display in trip computer screen (movie)</a></li></ul>