My MPGuino Case - Fuel Economy, Hypermiling, EcoModding News and Forum

Coyote X · 12-30-2008, 08:43 PM

I figured putting the second mpguino on my dash like before was just asking for trouble till I get my door locks oiled and working so I made a pretty nice enclosure. It is using an old VHS tape box. I just cut one end off, cut a display opening and stuck it in there.

The only problem I had was I didn't know what to do with the buttons. I thought about cutting them off the board but they weren't tall enough to stick through the plastic much. I dug around my junk pile to find some old plastic button caps but ended up using some screws from an old computer case. I just drilled holes over the buttons in the plastic and put the screws in from the back side. They are right up against the buttons and the back of the case keeps the MPGuino from moving. I will probably use something else once I come across something but for now the screws work good and if they didn't have threads they would look fine. The last pic is blurry but you can see how I used the screws.

Now I just need to cover the whole thing with the same fabric the van has and it will look factory. I will probably use the other half the VHS case to make one for my Metro once I get around to ordering another kit.

mango · 01-30-2009, 01:50 AM

That's awesome! thanks for the idea!

rmccomiskie · 01-30-2009, 02:59 PM

For the buttons, I cut up a plastic ball point pen refill. I cleaned out the ink, cut 3 pieces to length and used a drill bit to ream each piece so it barely fit over the button. In the end, to get a secure fit, I used an Xacto knife to make 2 small cuts in the button end of each extension. Now the extensions pop onto the buttons and fit snugly through the holes in the case. Works perfectly.

Added advantage: The refill was white plastic. The glow from the backlight illuminates the refill pieces so I have illuminated buttons. Kewl!