Quote:
planenuts4speed said:
Quote:
hinckley said:

I've got the SR7's display unit high up on the dash just to the left of the instrument binnacle. It's unobtrusive but in my direct line of sight.

The best thing that my installer did was to place the mute/volume button on the shift lever, under the boot. It's completely unseen, but I know where it is by sense of feel. And it's perfectly place since my hand is accumstomed to being there for shifting gears.



I was considering placing the display unit forward of the gear shifter in a small compartment I now use for my cell phone (see pic). They said the could velcro it to the top surface of the compartment. Do you think it would be a mistake putting it that far out of the line of sight? Also, my installer said that if the display unit is accessible, that the mute button would not be necessary. Any thoughts would be appreciated. Any pics of your installation would also be appreciated (eg. location of the external components) or at least discriptions where they placed the laser shifters and detector unit. Thanks!



I'll try to get you pics this weekend, but ultimately this is a matter of personal preference.

For me, keeping my eyes on the road is most important. So I try to mount instrumentation high, in direct line of sight. In the case of the Escort, the display unit is unobtrusive and not unattractive (unlike say, the Valentine One). Having it up high on the dash, in front of the defroster, almost abutting the windshield does not present an aestetic problem for me and solves the ergonomic issue.

If you decide to place the display in the cubby in front of the shifter, you do not need the separate mute button. However, the mute button that's integrated in the display unit is small and, for me, would present the problem of taking my eyes off the road to activate it. My installer's solution of placing the button on the shifter lever, but underneath/behind the boot cover, makes it completely invinsible and allows me to use it in a similar way as I shift gears (i.e. by sense of touch, without taking my eyes off the road). It's funny, but because my hand motion is so slight, passengers don't even realize that I've done something when I mute the Escort.

Just what works for me . . .