Digital Dash update for my MX5 Miata

After a painful 18 month break in the project after a discovering a communication issue on the i2C causing both Arduinos to crash, and spending over 50 hours trying to troubleshoot software. I came back to revisit the project this week (May 2021) and found out the cause of the issues were from an 'over promised, under delivered' weak powersupply. After beefing it up, the project is again, ALIVE! It was incredibly difficult to walk away from it back in November 2019, over 500 hours put into the cluster project between then and July 2019 and it was coming along really well. (3000hrs in the touchscreen from 2016-2019.) Unfortunately in the software troubleshooting, a lot of code was reversed and then removed, so my goal for the coming weeks is to reunderstand what i've got done and build it back up.
The touch screen has well over 10,000 lines of code, in a 300kb sketch. The cluster sketch is also nearly 300kb in size due to the bitmapped graphics saved internally (needed for fast load time of images).
I have now put together this 5 min clip showing SOME of the features that were done on this project. I didnt realise that filming it alone was 5 minutes, and coming to realise that doing a voice over dialog for this would have expanded this out to well over 15 min. So, you'll need to pause and re-watch bits. I know the text is on there very briefly. But the pause button is your friend. :-)
The sound track is:
Djuma SoundSystem - Les Djinns

[@greyman2711]

Honestly just give me a parts list you used and let me buy the software when it's done, this is cool as hell

[@pxel8198]

Following

[@bragefjrvik4103]

The world demands that you start selling kits for the awesome stuff you're teasing us with! 💸💸💸

[@Skrrr_kls]

well until 2027 I well still be here : "shut up and take my money"

[@HAMMER_2.2]

Same

[@arf346]

Brilliant work, please put together a kit ❤❤

[@ErokCherokee]

When I shut off the AC... 'Transfer all power from life support to the engine!'

[@mickthemechanic5718]

Been involved in GUIs using the Arduino platform for a little while. Major respect for your project, I know just how tedious it would have been! Keep up the good work 💪

[@A.Miata.Enthusiast]

Nice... Love the Star Trek sound effects.

[@INFIDELicious45]

this is amazing, I think everyone can relate to the reluctance to walk away from a project that is taking too much time, I'm glad you were able to revisit it and figure out the issue.

[@brianfaherty31]

Stumbled across this project after thinking about doing something similar. Sensei, you have only inspired me and frustrated me all at the same time as I couldn't envision half of what you thought of. Absolutely amazing work.

[@ChargedTTq]

I want to comment that, while I have seen other similar projects like this, this one has just the PERFECT vibe, style, and feel to it. That modernized 80s style with things dynamically changing and adjustable. Along with Different modes that change things around. I just love it. It's so awesome.

[@johngonzalez851]

You added LCARS and sound effects to a Miata... Brilliant

[@ChrisDRimmer]

This project was and continues to be an absolute inspiration. I won’t ask you to carry on with it against your judgement, but I will hope your judgement encourages you to continue working on it!

[@adkeco]

This is so awesome and I've been eagerly waiting for an update on this. I understand it take a tremendous amount of time and commend you on the efforts so far. You inspired me late last year to do something similar (but nowhere near as cool as yours) for my e36 compact. I'm using two Arduinos and 3 OLED screens to basically replace my fuel gauge, temp gauge and RPM gauge and to enhance them to give fuel range and actual temp. Thank you for inspiring me! Cheers, Adam.

[@pilkjaer]

Do you have any good pointers where to start? I have never did done anything with bus can but always wanted to try. That retractable hard top controls are begging to be reprogrammed.

[@adkeco]

@@pilkjaer Not sure if you are asking me or the OP, my project is a bit different as its directly interfacing signals, not going through CAN. So i'm analog reading voltages and changing the screen to show the changes. I also wouldnt have thought that opening and closing a hard top in a vehicle would be a CAN message either but I could be wrong :)

[@pilkjaer]

@@adkeco I was wondering what you were using. What kind of screens as well as if there is any good guide to get started? I have a wiring diagram for my dash but much more.

[@RGHTBrainDesignDrive]

You are a legend. Start manufacturing these for various cars! Brilliant work!

[@amirmahran5349]

Gald to see ur still working on this project, keep up the good work!

[@thecatofnineswords]

This is magical. I am another who will throw money your way for a licence to use the code. Wow. There is so much good work in this. Excellent UI behaviours. Looking forward to more updates as they come.

[@NoAnimePD]

This is so cool! I hope one day you decide to share how to make these or figure out a way to sell them!

[@Fpvpilot928]

Absolutely epic! Love the Star Trek inspiration!

[@tehbrookzorz]

Glad to see this pop up. I was inspired when I saw this previously and purchased some of the components hoping to learn and have a go, but you're light years ahead of me. Amazing to see what you've done with it.

[@Calicarver]

This is mindblowing stuff. The functions, the customizations, the styling/design is very slick. I rarely see a complete package like that in cars. That said, it is critical to think of the whole. Take a step back and focus on the overall intent of the car, which is simplicity and unity between car and driver. One of the most attractive aspects of an older MX5 Miata is that fact that there are very few distractions and every feature even the radio can be controlled without looking at them, giving you the feeling of being one with the car. Would I put something like this into a NA MX5? Yes, but I would have made very careful limitations based on overall and original design intent.

[@Jroobi]

And I appreciate this isn't for everyone's tastes, it's for mine and for how I work/think. Aside from windows controls and touch screen start (both covered in other videos) the rest of this is set and forget. It doesn't *need* any interaction with while driving. This was a massive design consideration. This demo I'm clearly going over customisation settings but once done, it's left alone.

[@Calicarver]

@@Jroobi Agreed. I think this is awesome work you have created. I am in awe. Im glad what you say about set and forget, I hope you manage to do whatever you want with it, be it monetizing or personal goals.

[@AK-ez4pc]

Finally, an update...awesome stuff

[@mortiarty7842]

one of the best dashes I've seen for the mx5

[@marco12535]

This is so cool, they should hire you at mazda. Big up man

[@reidprichard]

Absolutely one of the coolest DIY projects I've seen. Great work!

[@jacktherebel8698]

This is epic. You've done well, despite all setbacks. I hope to see more. Sub is secured.

[@SUBZER0GREEN]

You have a gold mine sitting in your hands. I would love to buy a finished product in the near future. Name your price!!

[@ΑναστάσηςΓεωργίου-ζ7τ]

really impressed by your work, amazing stuff

[@DobieTanpaw]

I would pay multiple months worth of paychecks for this. Please, if you make a kit, make it NB compatible!

[@slyonme]

NB are shithouse

[@tzirvee3782]

Go get a NA

[@BooXdk]

Amazing job that goes thousand of steps further than many of the high profiled Arduino showcased projects 👍 I guess there could be a marked for a finished "plug and play" kit even with it costing "some" $$$. Ever considered doing a Kickstarter ?, and what would people here in the comments pay for such a kit ?

[@jordang3015]

Literally the best thing I've ever seen. Amazing job man!

[@Nbomber]

This really is beautiful. Its quite a step up from an elm327 and a 7 inch android tablet duck taped to the dash

[@majedrayan]

where are you man?? please continue your great work

[@MrClassicT]

Awesome work! Glad you share your progress with us, this is truly worth watching for anyone!

[@leon.690sm9]

Here before it blows up and everyone has one of those dashes

[@AaronFlaming]

This is beautiful, I need this in my life. That would work really well in my E36 cluster.

[@zackspeed100]

This is really cool and mad respect for the time spent figuring this all out. I dream of building me a rotary na one day and would love to have something like what you are doing here.

[@SnoopyCoupe]

This is incredible! Lots of clever features I absolutely love. I'd love to implement something like this in my 1970 Cutlass - I keep running into most systems for digital dashes just hooking into OBD II, which of course my car doesn't have, even after I install EFI. Does yours use OBD, or discrete sensors for everything?

[@lilbitgreer9939]

This is something many people will buy keep up the good work

[@matthewgrotefend9805]

Amazing work! I would definitely buy a kit!

[@jamescartier8728]

Incredible project, this is my dream for my 05 Mini.

[@dnaxdevil7391]

I'd buy this in a heartbeat! This is totally what I need on my MX-5!

[@cyberyoyo7674]

Saw this on Hackaday and had to do some digging elsewhere on your channel to figure out you were putting this on an NA. What a fantastic way to solve pretty much the only flaw it has, its dated interior tech. Seriously, this makes the tech in the ND I just traded look dated. And that was running with a ton more CPU horsepower than this thing. Great work.

[@jedi22300]

This is insanely cool

[@rafaelmarques3347]

Really would like to buy these. Hope they will come out someday

[@dastatiks6182]

Came from Hackaday, really impressive work !! What kind of screens are you using ? Nextion ? Keep up the good work, as a Star Trek fan, I really love it ! :-)

[@tristanparkk]

This is incredible.. You ever do a build blog or anything?

[@CrashBandit514]

This is the kind of thing I'm looking for my Datsun 240z.

[@ScottLe]

This is a work of art.

[@MM-lq4xf]

Incredible, you are very talented 👏

[@PhobosTV1]

What are your plans? And how is this connected to the ECU? Can it be modified for obd cars?

[@Tarex_]

Great work! the fact you picked it up again and continued is awesome. is it a large rectangle display or round displays with the graphics layed out like that? (i know round displays are still not a thing since i can't really find any, just hoping)

[@adkeco]

The only round displays ive found are small OLED ones like the size of a watch. Like you say, it would be nice to see even a 5 inch round display. That might open doord in the restomod world.

[@Tarex_]

@@adkeco indeed, all current round ones are 0,96"-1,3" or absolutely unaffordable, anything in cars is faked, i have. Display from the triumph bike here, square display with a rounded blackout plate, the round sides on the Mini cooper display aren't even displays, even though they look like lcd

[@mariocampos6311]

Unbelievable, you lad are a man of sheer fucking will

[@ananalyst7041]

You need to sell the kit, lol. HUGE after market potential.

[@SashaNaronin]

Pair that with tombstone extension for ultimate 80s cyberpunk look

[@Jroobi]

Yes, have been working on that too!

[@SashaNaronin]

Nice! Makes me want to get an NA instead of my NB2 Also, do you interface with stock Tein system or do you just drive the motors directly?

[@DanielSilva-yo4rq]

This looks incredible! Is there any chance you'll sell the software and add a parts list?

[@sarammika]

Great work! is something like that able to communicate over CAN-bus with standalone ECU? will you ever bee selling something like that to the public, or do we need to figure it out ourselves? I would really like a digital dash in my Mazda Roadster, but I don't want to loose the look of my gauge cluster. It's not a racecar.

[@MapexMiata]

This is awesome!! Great job! I would love to have this in mine

[@justinwiden]

This is amazing, love the theme! However I must ask, why did you create this on such an underpowered platform like Arduino? You'd have much faster draw times, more storage, ram, etc on something like an ESP32, STM, etc and a lot of them have Arduino IDE compatibility. Nonetheless an amazing project!

[@PolyRidge]

this is the coolest thing i have ever seen.... like holy crap... O_O

[@nosmile6091]

I would definitely buy this

[@PlastiBots]

This is next level stuff! What font are you using for the larger items? E.g the 3 and 54?

[@pilkjaer]

Great work! Do you plan to make it open source so people can help out to develop/test this? I think project looks super cool and i would love to have it in my NC as well as know more technical details about the project.

[@The8BitHero]

How are you doing the odometer? That's the thing holding me back from attempting my own custom cluster. Seems post people put custom clusters in race/show cars where they don't care.

[@aprilmills5925]

Have you finished this???? Would LOVE one!

[@MrMen98989]

boy oh boy, let me know when you can make something like this for my Protege5 (almost the same cluster) i'm down to pay a lot. this is astonishing.

[@dreammakergarage1133]

Wow... Nice work brother. ♥️🙌♥️

[@86surge90]

You should contact Keith Tanner from Flyin’ Miata. He’s working on bringing to market a digital gauge cluster for na/nb miatas. He might be interested in working with you if he’s sees this and what you’re capable of. Although it’s up to you. Good stuff👍

[@TargaMiata]

I'm quite aware of this :) It's interesting to see the different approaches to display and desired function. My setup isn't digital, it's an analog dash that's being kept quite simple on purpose. I'm really impressed with the interface design programming here.

[@ayyahuasca9722]

beautiful project !

[@darkybaba]

Wow very nice work

[@nate_d376]

Stop teasing me, take my money! Lol. Seriously though.... you should do a write up with more details, I'm about to put in a speedyEfi speeduino, and a custom Rpi audio setup for a stereo. Thos would be an awsome addition.....do you have a git hub for this?

[@cawvhmoob]

It's beautiful!

[@Strike666]

Brilliant, this is exatly what i imagine for mine... Does it require a megasquirt ecu or stock works? Would love for you to sell a "plug and play" kit

[@ItsKevisaur]

Are you still working on this? Would love to buy this if you ever release this.

[@blackerhawk1508]

Wooow those animations and UI design, hope one day I will be able to make such a great project

[@tzirvee3782]

I'd love to see it detect gears from the transmission so it counts perfect and a 6th gear option

[@villaproductionz1573]

Looks bad ass, ill pay to get one of these for my miata build

[@KhayyamAbdullah]

Brilliant work. Can you tell me how you coded the lcd?

[@alexb4409]

Fucking good work and perfect choice of song. I wish I knew a single particle of what it takes to do this haha. Want

[@vlchk]

This is absolutely amazing. Did you get the data like speed, RPM, temperatures and pressures from the ECU via OBD, or directly from the sensors via arduino?

[@RetributionLSR]

Parts break-down? Github for source? What's up? This needs to go into a racecar...... I have one lurking, calling, but I'd like to build it myself. Can you link the meat?

[@AutoJourney]

This would look great in my drift car...

[@David-tv3mg]

Great work! Are you selling any of this?

[@FrippFrepp]

ye i am without a doubt willing to spend some serious money to get whatever you have, remind me when its finished :)

[@Domse65]

Heyo, I'm looking to start a similar project to yours, but I'm still pretty new to electronics and wanted to ask you how do you get your data like rpm, speed? Are you using the can bus on the OBD2 connector or some other way?

[@newblackgta]

all I can say is wow....

[@BigDaddyGdog]

Love you to make a setup for my hako to work off the canbus

[@liamamyot5608]

If you make this a general use conversion... I will buy it. On my r56 mini s, this would kick ass.

[@terrancelepoilu4599]

My mx5 sport nc 2.0 is waiting for your kit

[@walterthomas3200]

Any plans on releasing this to the public?

[@GrayGoose571]

This is fucking crazy and beautiful 😍

[@Dagothdaleet]

This is great!

[@HAR1Ux]

What lcd screens are used for this project?

[@tftg100]

Did you get all the information and control features from the OBD2 port with a CAN bus controller/transceiver or did you tap into individual wires going to your ECM/BCM and get the raw data there? You have no idea how long I've been watching your videos, you're the reason I started to do more IOT control with my vehicle😬but nothing in comparison. When I get there I'll be sure to post and credit you for inspiration!

[@elek101]

These cars have neither CAN bus nor a BCM, its all analog

[@kevinwilliams8951]

I like this whats its going to cost

[@matttomasetti8042]

Anyway you can put me in the right for this project? Trying to do the same for my nissan gloria.

[@stephencaro2985]

Just seeing this now, i would buy this so fast, or even just buy the code and buy the hardware myself. please make this a product

[@maximumcoast4002]

TAKE MY MONEY! Please let there be one for the NB >___

[@calebmorton3590]

Are you planning to open source it or sell it. Please do one of the two.

[@Rhinomods]

I don't have a car this would work with but I want it!! Open-source with options to buy kits and donations! That way others can build onto what you have created!! Also with open-source so others can help trouble shoot for you.

[@miatadondada2985]

Bro please show us the led taillights again your literally dope asf 😳😳Miata gang

[@timeylies]

What displays are you using for the dashboard