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Head Up Display - Corolla Volunteers Wanted


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Hi folks,

I've started a company to sell SpeedView Head up Displays (HUDs). These little gadgets project your speed onto the windscreen so that you can see your speed and see where you’re going at the same time.

I'm looking for two volunteers for each model (gurus) to give it a whirl on each generation of Corolla, in exchange for getting it really, really, cheap - £40 for a Head up Display.

Dead handy if you’ve fitted a mario-kart sized steering wheel like I have on my MX5 (sorry), stopping 9 points turning into 12, or to get a speedo that reads spot on even after playing with gearboxes, diffs, or tyres. You know you want one: bling and something to fiddle with on Boxing Day... ;-)

Quick video:

img_8029-1.jpg

img_7314.jpg

Here's the deal:

I have the "normal" instructions here:

http://www.speedview.co/help/download

I would like a "how to" for each vehicle - something like this:

http://www.speedview.co/forum/showthread.php?tid=2

I'll sell you a unit for £60 including post (£10 off RRP), then refund you another £20 when you upload the "how to" to the forum.

You'll need to find three wires. Earth, ignition live, vehicle speed signal (VSS). Earth and ignition live are easy enough. Easiest place to get vehicle speed signal is usually behind the radio (if it adjusts its volume with the speedo) or instrument panel. I don't have the wiring diagram for any Corollas so you'll have to know how to find those - but otherwise installation is pretty straightforward and I'll be available to advise. Even if the speedo is mechanical there's a work-around for that too.

Anybody fancy being first? B)

Drop a reply in here, via PM, or info@speedview.co

I'm looking for volunteers for ALL makes and models. Thought I'd start with the Celica, MR2, Yaris, RAV4, and Corolla - but if you have something else and would like to give it a whirl that's great!

Last but by no means least - many thanks to admin Steve for supporting new businesses; a credit to toyotoaownersclub.com B)

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Looks very interesting, is there a way to adjust the speed alerts with aditional buttons, i.e. mounted on the steering wheel and not the unit itself ?

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Cheers anonyx :thumbsup:

Paul, not on this version. I've tried to keep the first product simple - do one thing, show speed, and do it well - with anything else that comes for free is a bonus.

The speed alert is handy, but not really built for switching whilst driving. I tend to use just the two (Motorway NSL, Motorway Roadworks) myself.

You'll find that in actual use, because its a change and its in the corner of your eye, your eyes are pretty good at noticing the big number change. 2something to 3something; or 6something to 7something is a visual change that you eye is really good at picking up, so even without the alert set your eyes pick up on it.

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If you send it for free I'll do you a guide.

£20 for skilled labour doing you a guide.

Are you having a wind up?

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Looks good, but £20 saving?

A couple of hours to fit it and 2 more hours to write a guide, that's £5 an hour.

I'm with nrgizer on this one!

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Looks good, but £20 saving?

A couple of hours to fit it and 2 more hours to write a guide, that's £5 an hour.

I'm with nrgizer on this one!

and I thought it was only me

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Hi folks,

nrgizerbunny - Your guides are seriously good. For my purposes, the wire colours and some photographs of the trim clips/where the screws are hidden is plenty. That extra bit in addition to the standard instructions that makes the job easy. :thumbsup:

But no, not a wind-up: I'm looking for enthusiasts who want these displays, not professional writers or installers. If you're a person who wants one, then you're going to have to fit it anyway so write that time off. If you were going to do a write-up for the forum anyway then that £29.99 is completely free money. If were just going to fit and enjoy it, and not write-up the instructions for the forum, then you're being paid the £29.99 for the write-up. :yes:

At £40 I'm already selling at a loss. If I were a big company I might have the money sitting around to give away the first unit, but then I'd have to charge more to make the money back on the subsequent ones; or perhaps I'd pay professionals ~£100 apiece upfront to fit them then again charge more to make the money back on the subsequent ones; or maybe I'd make no effort, sell units with generic instructions and no support, and leave the rest up to the customers.

I'm an enthusiast and a small startup though - so I'm trying to make these as inexpensive as possible for other enthusiasts. :thumbsup:

Here's the other product made in the same factory as mine. ;)

http://www.smileyouaredriving.com/uk_en-products-driving-assistance.innovative-solution-6.html

http://www.google.co.uk/search?q=valeo+speed+visio&hl=en&prmd=imvns&source=univ&tbm=shop&tbo=u&sa=X&ei=5iPpTsK0N8mW8QPA77GbCg&ved=0CEoQrQQ&biw=1920&bih=1099#q=valeo+speed+visio&hl=en&sa=X&tbs=p_ord:p&tbm=shop&prmd=imvns&ei=6SPpTumJEYeS8gOP4ZGiCg&ved=0CAsQuw0oAQ&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.,cf.osb&fp=bcc8e4854a7b93ea&biw=1920&bih=1099

I liked it, but I thought that we could do a much better job of getting it out there - everybody winning whilst also having better support by cutting out all the middlemen. :D

I do have the piles of money lying around by the way - my life savings and the barclaycard seem to have turned into a large pile of cardbox boxes. :eek::lol:

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I'm not going to tell you how to run your business but I will give you a few bits of advice.

The basic issue is you don't consider the "guide" as a service, you have already paid for cardboard boxes etc and have a commodity at the end of it. A guide that you get someone to do is no different but you are unwilling to pay market value for it? You are actually more concerned that you would sell one unit at a loss?

Rallyfan did the maths and it is less than minimum wage. Furthermore you are asking for someone who is skilled to do it! its not exactly the easiest thing in the world to take trim apart and then find the wire for the speed signal and tap it.

I wish you well in your business but coming along on here and asking people to do you a guide for £20 is (in my opinion) a pee take.

If I was in your position I would pay the market value for your guide and go from there, otherwise the negative publicity will do more harm than good.

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sorry i agree with nrgizer and the others. i thought this was a dodgy post lol untill members started to comment on it. these can be had off eBay for 50 to 100 quid and some at the higher end have some cool functions like shift lights, rev counter etc. normally when someone asks for a volunteer its for free????? :thumbsup:

hud

hud

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I think you may be targeting this to the wrong audience here, as many on this forum are skilled engineers, finding 3 wires and fitting this isnt an issue (look at the supercharger build thread for example!)

However the people on this forum (mainly) seem to be decent people, where £30 cash is neither here nor there. However if you offer the product for free, you are making a good gesture, and in return you will get someone very helpful writing you a good accurate guide

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Hi guys,

At the end of the day, the customer is always right - apologies for pee-taking because it really was not my intention. :)

I'd love to be able to give units away for free. I don't have the resources to do that though - I'm not a large corporation and when you do the (number of different makes and models x cost of these units) sum you very quickly cry. I'm giving away as much as I can afford as just that gesture you describe rallyfan. "Hey, thanks for taking the photos, have a round on me." Its ok not to be interested, but I really *did not* mean to take the mickey.

Just a few comments on the eBay units:

Check which units you're actually getting; some of those listings have more than one type of unit displayed.

Check the approvals; most of those are listed as show use/off-road use only. Use it in the EU and (legally) it needs to be e-Marked (Type-Approved). This isn't cheap - ask these guys:

http://www.conformance.co.uk/directives/ce_autoemc.php

Even if you're not too fussed on the legality, its a good check of product quality. The testers won't sign-off on a product unless you can demonstrate being able to make the same quality item again and again. I've also OKed these with VOSA's MOT and Individual Vehicle Approval people, so you'll not fall foul of any rules there. (Good for imports)

Check your p&p and taxes. The cheapest unit linked to above is £45.41 + £16.86 post + £12.54 VAT = £74.73, which really isn't that cheap. (I didn't vote for 20% VAT either, but there's not a lot we can do about that)

Ask for close-up photographs and ask for photographs is BRIGHT daylight - video shots at night always look impressive but its daytime performance that's hard to do well.

Check what support you'll get. Do you get instructions in English? (even just the generic ones) Is there somebody who will read your wiring diagram for you? A warranty that's worth the paper its written on? EU/UK buyer protection laws? No quibble returns?

Units with all of the above are available at £40 right now - with the catch that I ask you take some photographs and do a quick write-up for the forum. Other units are available. :thumbsup:

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Units with all of the above are available at £40 right now - with the catch that I ask you take some photographs and do a quick write-up for the forum. Other units are available. :thumbsup:

How can a unit be available with specific instructions when you have asked for the "volunteer" to make the instructions for you?

Additionally, if people install these things in their car, they will have to be installed by a competent person and furthermore you WILL need to notify the insurance company. I note you have failed to mention those things.

As they say on Dragons Den. I'm OUT... The door, down the road and out of the country.

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How can a unit be available with specific instructions when you have asked for the "volunteer" to make the instructions for you?

I've said that you'll receive the unit that you see in the photographs. I've said that it'll be e-Marked/Type-Approved. I've said that it costs substantially less than £74.73 unit shown on eBay. I've said that it'll work in daylight. I've said that you'll get (generic) written instructions in English, that there'll be an English-speaking technical support contact that's happy to help read your wiring diagrams, and that you'll get all the buyer protection associated with buying from a UK company, plus no-quibble returns. :thumbsup:

At absolutely no point did I promise vehicle-specific instructions. Was the following line at the bottom not clear? :(

Units with all of the above are available at £40 right now - with the catch that I ask you take some photographs and do a quick write-up for the forum. Other units are available.

As they say on Dragons Den. I'm OUT... The door, down the road and out of the country.

That's ok. Other products are available and I'm not trying to force this on you.

Try to avoid the "scorched earth" approach though, if you wouldn't mind? Picking claims I haven't made to pieces isn't the most helpful. :)

They will have to be installed by a competent person and furthermore you WILL need to notify the insurance company. I note you have failed to mention those things.

Of course. The competent person is on the very first page of the instructions. I'll add a line about notifying the insurance company - common sense, but doesn't hurt to add it. Thanks! :)

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A far cheaper and quicker option is to use your android or iPhone and use the app HU

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Just a few notes on smartphones:

-

Smartphones are awesome because the apps are free/almost free. You can't really criticise free/almost free. As a head-up display they are night-time visible only though, and can only be as good as the GPS inside them.

-

GPS is a great tool to calibrate speedos, so long as the road is long, flat, straight, and your speed is constant. The responsiveness is poor though (the units that keep refreshing your speed quickly are usually telling porkies), if there's a bend or a hill they under-estimate your real speed (they assume you got from A to B in a straight line, not 500 metres forwards and 100 metres upwards, or around a curve), and they're not instant-on or totally reliable with regards to signal.

-

Some driving instructors *do* use head-up displays driven by GPS. They put them on the examiner's side, so that when the examiner looks over at the speedo, they don't read "30" as "35" because of the angle they're sitting at and fail the pupil. The laggy GPS works in the pupil's favour there, hiding any oopsies!

But yes, a smartphone at night is a great way to see what a head-up display might look like! :)

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