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      09-14-2018, 11:28 AM   #1
evanevery
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i8 Interior Design Shortcomings?

My i8 Roadster has finally made it home. I put 1200 miles on the car during the EuroDelivery, waited about 6 weeks for the shipping, and now she's home!

Anyway, now its time to sort the car out properly. I mostly just drove (and parked) the car in Germany, but now she's in my garage and ready to be personalized.

So where the #$@!% are you guys putting stuff? I knew the trunk was going to be limited (and split my luggage for the ED to accommodate that). I also new I was losing the back set in the Roadster (and traded for a cubby hole).

I'm just wondering where are folks putting stuff like their freekin' sunglasses in the car? An all-around amazing lack of storage I must say!

The manuals and docs are in the glove box and my glasses won't even fit inside in their case...

The cubby behind the seats in the Roadster has very little in the way of restraint to keep stuff from flying around and falling out. (I've ordered a bag on Amazon which should fit in there nicely to hold my hat, glasses, etc that I usually leave in the car).

No real usable room in the two console compartments. They won't even fit my phone (Note 8)... Certainly won't even come close to storing my sunglasses. Maybe some change...

Additionally, a glaring lack of USB or Power Outlets in the car. Only one power outlet in the console and the cover closes so close to the outlet you can't fit a proper USB charger in the socket. You can't even fit even a low profile (flush) charger in the socket with a cable coming straight out and still be able to close the console cover. (I ordered a low profile charger and a couple of 90 degree USB adapters to see if I can remedy this obvious design shortcoming. So whats the point of a 12V accessory socket if you can't use it?

Whats with the rear cup holder in the console (in the Roadster)? No easy way to use it as a cup holder (and no, it won't even hold my sunglass case either...)

I'm also looking at designing and 3D printing a base which will fit in the little, fairly useless, cavity in front of the gear shift to try and embed a dedicated dual port USB charger outlet and a phone mount.

So, I go through this with every car I buy. But who the heck designed the ergonomics and creature comforts in the i8? Surely they could have fit a few more pockets/cavities and given us a 12v accessory port which was actually usable (or maybe two)...

I really like my i8 and I'm sure I'll get all this sorted out eventually, but how are you guys dealing with this?
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      09-14-2018, 11:44 AM   #2
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I keep my glasses in the console by my elbow. There is a hidden cigarette outlet under the passenger side by the center hump. Below the glove box. I have my charger there and I feed the cable alongside the trim to about midway on the passenger side.
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      09-14-2018, 11:59 AM   #3
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Originally Posted by jojo View Post
I keep my glasses in the console by my elbow. There is a hidden cigarette outlet under the passenger side by the center hump. Below the glove box. I have my charger there and I feed the cable alongside the trim to about midway on the passenger side.
Thanks for the info, I found the hidden socket. Its really well out of sight and reach! Anyway, that will help solve my power problem!

:-)
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      09-14-2018, 12:01 PM   #4
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Shhhh! It's a secret. I use a 6 ft cable from there. Perfect length.
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      09-14-2018, 12:10 PM   #5
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Now all I need to do is find a way to mount my phone... (NOT using the cup holder...)
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      09-14-2018, 12:26 PM   #6
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what do I do? I moan, then I laugh and throw my stuff on the back seat. Couldnt get my water bottle to fit today, so i just drunk it and chucked it in the back lol, all part of the character, if it all fitted it would be a volvo
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      09-14-2018, 01:36 PM   #7
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Originally Posted by Maxxsirrah View Post
what do I do? I moan, then I laugh and throw my stuff on the back seat. Couldnt get my water bottle to fit today, so i just drunk it and chucked it in the back lol, all part of the character, if it all fitted it would be a volvo
You realize the Roadster doesn't have a back seat, right? I don't even have floor space behind the seats (unless I reach over and power them forward/backward)...

No, if it all fitted it could simply be a better design. More than just volvo's have room for sunglasses...

I spent a good many years riding motorcycles. Once I went to convertibles for my fresh air fix I never looked back. The simple lack of cubby space in the i8 painfully reminds me of some of the benefits that made the move from bikes to verts so welcome...
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      09-14-2018, 02:20 PM   #8
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Does the roadster not have the usb jack in the small center compartment next to the shifter?
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      09-16-2018, 10:19 AM   #9
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I rarely have anything in my i8. I use my 328 to carry things in.

That said, have you seen this vid?
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      09-17-2018, 08:12 AM   #10
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Originally Posted by vance View Post
Does the roadster not have the usb jack in the small center compartment next to the shifter?
Yes it does, but I have a thumb drive with my music installed in the USB port (256 GB USB 3.0). This way I can carry and have access to ALL my music and easily update the contents by simply removing the thumb drive and copying new MP3 files from my PC. So I needed to find a power port which was actually usable...

So I need a power adapter. But the one in the "rear" console is all but useless because of the low clearance. Although I did find a solution to use the "hidden" accessory port under the glovebox (thanks JoJo!), I do have a flush mount USB charger and a right angle USB adapter which might actually make the power port in the "rear" console actually usable:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Last edited by evanevery; 09-17-2018 at 11:03 AM..
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      09-17-2018, 08:13 AM   #11
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Originally Posted by atthelimit View Post
Precisely why I removed the snap-in base in the big console compartment and replaced it with the rubber tray. Couldn't close the lid with just my wallet and phone.

For the little compartment, I had to ditch the plastic coin organizer I prefer and go old-school with a urethane coin pocket. Fortunately, right-angle lightning/USB cables are easy to find, allowing an iPod to lie flat.

I now have space left over for a thimble!
ooooh, me likey!

Where did you get that little rubber mat?
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      09-17-2018, 08:14 AM   #12
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Originally Posted by orion1977 View Post
I rarely have anything in my i8. I use my 328 to carry things in.

That said, have you seen this vid?
Hah!

10-4! I'm with you. I'm just trying to make "the best of things"!
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      09-17-2018, 08:56 AM   #13
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Originally Posted by jojo View Post
Shhhh! It's a secret. I use a 6 ft cable from there. Perfect length.
So I checked the "hidden" power port and unfortunately its constantly powered. (I want to leave my phone holder in place permanently and don't want the usb charger draining the battery).

Luckily, the fuse box is also under the glove box, so I put a micro-fuse power tap into one of the unused sockets connected to the "accessory relay" (#51 if memory serves) and put a 7.5a fuse in the tap. Then I reached up and pulled down the wires to the power port (red/yellow and brown). There was enough slack that I didn't have to disconnect the wires from the power port. I cut the red/yellow wire (acc power) and crimped in a pair of mating, insulated, spade connectors (so I could return the outlet to default function in the future if I wanted). Then, I ran a wire (with mating spade connector) to the micro fuse tap.

So, now the hidden acc/power socket ONLY powers up when the car is powered on.

Power issue resolved! So on to the actual phone mount...

I installed a Ram Mount Adhesive Ball into the little cavity in front of the shifter. It fits nicely and just had to be trimmed slightly, with a 1/8 inch straight cut, along the bottom edge of the circumference. The ball is completely out of the way, relatively unnoticeable, and adds lots of value to the pretty useless little cavity:

Name:  Ram Mount Ball.jpg
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Here is where you can buy the ball:

https://www.amazon.com/RAM-MOUNTS-Fl...+adhesive+ball

The ball then attaches to a long Ram Mount Arm (which is easily removable). However, I changed out the plastic thumb screw for a low profile allen head screw since I will be leaving the phone mount in my car semi permanently:

Name:  Ram Mount Arm.jpg
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You can get the arm here:

https://www.amazon.com/RAM-Mounts-Do...ram+mount+long

Then, I designed and 3D printed a nice slide mount for my Samsung Note8. It holds the phone nicely and is easy to slide the phone up and out when I want to take it with me. I designed a little hole in the bottom so I could glue in a USB-C cable (for connection to the power port). Here is what the mount looks like when fully assembled. (Its empty cause I'm taking photos with my phone). It looks closer to the shifter than it actually is (due to the depth of field), but it is easily out of the way of the shifter. Using the Ram Mount arm, it can be re-positioned and adjusted pretty much to any angle. This keeps my phone in full view yet out of the way. It has a power source (which is only on when the car is on) which keeps my phone charged - and Waze happy! The phone easily slides up and out of the holder when I want to take it with me:

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Here is a screen shot of the 3D printed design. If anyone has a Note8, and a 3D printer, let me know and I'll post the DWG file...

Name:  Phone Holder.jpg
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You can also get other commercially available phone mounts which work with the Ram system. Ram mounts rule. They are my goto soloution for many mounting challenges. They are very convenient and adjustable!

If the above helps anyone please let me know!

Now, I'm off onto mounting my Radar Detector...
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      09-17-2018, 09:58 AM   #14
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This lightning charger works in the center larger console:

https://www.scosche.com/strikedrive-...htning-devices

It sits flush and you can pull the charging cable out of the console and close the console on it while it charges a device. The cable isn’t that long but I keep it around when a passenger needs to charge something (I always use the USB adapter for my phone)
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      09-17-2018, 11:02 AM   #15
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Quote:
Originally Posted by vance View Post
This lightning charger works in the center larger console:

https://www.scosche.com/strikedrive-...htning-devices

It sits flush and you can pull the charging cable out of the console and close the console on it while it charges a device. The cable isn’t that long but I keep it around when a passenger needs to charge something (I always use the USB adapter for my phone)
I guess that's OK if you own Apple products (I don't)

Hopefully the 90 degree adapters will resolve this for non-appleheads...

;-)
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      09-17-2018, 11:24 AM   #16
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Quote:
Originally Posted by atthelimit View Post
Precisely why I removed the snap-in base in the big console compartment and replaced it with the rubber tray. Couldn't close the lid with just my wallet and phone.

For the little compartment, I had to ditch the plastic coin organizer I prefer and go old-school with a urethane coin pocket. Fortunately, right-angle lightning/USB cables are easy to find, allowing an iPod to lie flat.

I now have space left over for a thimble!
Note that the Roadster has less space available in the "forward" console due to the roof retract switch. Here is whats occupying my USB port. Its a very small, 256 GB, USB 3.0, thumb drive, that has both USB-A (for Car/PC) and USB-C (for phone) connectors. It has ALL my music on it (MP3) and can be removed for easy update via PC. I don't have to sell my soul to Apple, deal with iTunes DRM, and/or import anything onto the very small internal storage.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Name:  Thumb Drive.jpg
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      09-17-2018, 12:41 PM   #17
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You don't need that thumb drive. You can just download the music from it onto the hard drive.
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      09-17-2018, 12:58 PM   #18
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You don't need that thumb drive. You can just download the music from it onto the hard drive.
Nope!

The internal hard drive holds only what, 40 GB? My music library won't fit on the internal hard drive. That tiny thumb drive holds 256 GB!

The thumb drive is also MUCH easier to manage and much faster (USB 3.0) than the internal hard drive. I can pull it from the car, attach it to my PC and Copy, Move, Delete, Edit files individually with whatever tools I want. I don't have to use iDrive to delete songs one by one, or delete the whole hard drive contents, and then SLOWLY import stuff all over again.

Working with the LIMITED SPACE space on the internal hard drive is SLOW, PAINFUL, and CUMBERSOME.
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      09-17-2018, 01:11 PM   #19
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It is. I have about 70,000 songs. But I just transferred 2500 to the hard drive. More than enough. And I also use Sirius so I'm set. This way the USB is not in the way and I can put stuff there. As you know, we need all the space there is!
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      09-17-2018, 01:26 PM   #20
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jojo View Post
It is. I have about 70,000 songs. But I just transferred 2500 to the hard drive. More than enough. And I also use Sirius so I'm set. This way the USB is not in the way and I can put stuff there. As you know, we need all the space there is!
Well, that USB thumb drive is VERY small and its much faster to manage and easier work with than iDrive. And I can keep my Whole music library there (80+ Gb)! So no worries about what I want and when I want it...

That thumb drive doesn't take up much room but my phone is connected to the high power outlet under the glove box anyway. The USB charger in the socket under the glove box will charge/power at a full 2.4A. I think the onboard USB ports only charge/power at the default 1.0A...

Last edited by evanevery; 09-17-2018 at 01:53 PM..
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      09-18-2018, 08:34 AM   #21
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Quote:
Originally Posted by atthelimit View Post
Here is one resource.



The original 12V accessory plug circuit isn't disabled when the car sleeps? That's odd.

Tiny thumbdrives are the way to go. Fill up a bunch with random stuff and throw 'em in a bowl and grab one whenever ya leave. Fun way to experience music.

I only run lossless audio, FLAC or ALAC, depending on the storage device and car (well, and because the files tend get played over very big and revealing speakers at times).

Original audio sources are anything from converted vinyl (45/33/78), CD, high def DVD, or original analog and digital master recordings. Have never purchased an mp3 or itunes AAC file. Nevermind Apple's **** licensing agreements.

USB3 thumb drives with FLAC files in our Tesla MX are nice. One can actually hear detail.

The i8 and F10 M5 seem to be fine with either FLAC or the little iPod Touch, though album art with FLAC tends to be iffy with any late model BMW (if ya care about that sort of thing).

My E60 M5 and E61 535i run iPod Classic models with USB/audio dongle, because everything else sounds like **** due to the E60 head unit's limited dynamic range and SNR (but then nothing is heard over the V10 anyway, heh heh). The 535i has some updated drivers and stuff, but is still not an ideal listening environment at higher speeds due to wind noise. Loving the i8's low Cd!

We have dozens of the tiny Samsung USB3 drives like the one below, from 64-128GB. And now we're moving to the USB3/USBC drives for compatibility.
No, the Acc port under the glove box is always on. I put a USB charger with a blue "on" light in the port and closed the car up. I looked in the car a few minutes later and could see the blue light illuminating the passenger foot well. This clearly indicated that the port remained powered up even after the car had fully powered down. I don't want my USB charger to be a parasitic load on the car's battery so I rewired the Acc port under the glove box to get power from one of the Acc Circuits in the fuse box (also located under the glove box).

I'm with you on the "CrApple" DRM nonsense... All my music is ripped into MP3's. I can copy them anywhere I want, use any tools I want to manage them, any player I want to play them, and easily put them on USB Thumb Drives. I will not be a slave to Apple products or their ecosystem. Once you get you music into their ecosystem (iTunes) its effectively lost forever for any other purpose. I ALSO have my music in iTunes, but my MASTER copy of my music library is on my network in a folder full of MP3's.

I'm OK with MP3's but I applaud your use of lossless compression. However, my ears are very old and abused and I doubt I could detect the difference. ;-)

The USB 3.0 Thumb drive I'm using is almost as small as the one you pictured. The main reason it is a bit larger is that it has a USB-C connector on one end (for use with cell phones - other than Apple ;-), and a standard USB-A connector on the other end (for use with PC and Cars). The USB 3.0 is very fast. Faster than many SSD's in fact!

Its interesting to note we both have an i8 and a Model X!
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      09-18-2018, 08:38 AM   #22
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Quote:
Originally Posted by atthelimit View Post
When I'm in the car I usually don't want to see or hear my phone. If it has to be in front of me, this is where it goes:
I want to see and have access to my phone as I use Waze pretty regularly. I use the cars Nav system for navigation and the phone runs a parallel copy of Waze to watch for road and "legal" hazards.

I also prefer not to block the A/C vents and want to have the charging wire to my phone semi-permanently tucked out of the way.
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