In development: Modern instrument cluster display for 996.1

I aim to replace the center display in my 1999 C2 with a full-color display. I've made some progress that I want to share. I started by picking up a spare instrument cluster on eBay, removing the center display, and 3D printing a new mount for a 2.4" full-color TFT display connected to an ESP32/Arduino. Disclaimer: The poor-quality photo below doesn't do this justice. My phone kept focusing on the reflections in the plastic lens, and the exposure made the display look bluish. In reality, the background of the display is entirely black. So far, I've handled: Speed is fed from a GPS module for accuracy Oil temperature (needs a new icon) Water temperature (I'd like to switch this to reading the value from the K-line but haven't dug in yet) External air temperature In progress or ideas I'm exploring: Change the display's backlight brightness with the dimmer controls Reverse engineer the serial protocol to update the clock date/time via GPS like the PCM/PCCM+ units ( I need a donor PCM unit ) I've already used a logic analyzer to determine it's async serial at 50 bits per second (baud) 8-N-1 Receive and display TPMS data from Bluetooth low-energy (BLE) sensors on Aliexpress Mount the ESP32/Arduino and GPS module into the cluster for all-in-one packaging Tweak the display mounting (it's slightly askew right now) Connect to K-line to read additional OBD2 data (intake air temp, codes, etc.) Create a menu system that can be navigated with the 4th stalk for the OEM OBC, or use the clock button on the cluster to cycle through different screens. I'm open to any suggestions or ideas you all have. Thanks!

Wow...just Wow! Looks good. Where in the world do you guys find time to do things like this? (no response necessary )

If you could mimic the functionality of the P3 gauges you could really be onto something. And please do 996.2 next! https://www.p3cars.com/porsche/p3-v3...uge-2011-2019/

UUUHH Yesss !!! I'm your Huckleberry !! Suggestion:: add oil pressure to RPM warning @ .7 bar per 1k RPM... up to 3.5 bar

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Just to be clear, you mean warning if the pressure is _ below _ 0.7bar per 1k RPM, right? I was considering an alarm for the coolant/oil temperature, too. The buzzer for the speed gong is in the cluster, so I could easily trigger an audible alert.

This looks awesome. Great work. Keep us posted! I wish p3 made a gauge for our cars - I love the one I have on my e91

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Yes ..ie. Warning if :: @1krpm and v .7bar..@ 2krpm and v 1.4 bar ..@ 3krpm v 2.1 bar ,,@ 4krpm v 2.8 bar @5krpm v 3.5 bar @ 6krpm v 3.5 bar @7krpm v 3.5 bar ...

Is this something that you plan to market? Count me in, if so! What will you do with the 2 side displays? I have done some work like this and understand all the research and development time involved.

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Unsure, but doubtful... I doubt the market is very large (since it's 996.1 only) and wouldn't be a simple plug-and-play installation. End-user support would be the killer and not worth my time unless the price was very, very high, which would make it sell less. Most likely, I'll release all the details (code, PCB designs, 3d printed parts, etc.) as open-source once I'm happy with it and have actually tested it in my car. No plans for those right now. The left one handles the odometer, and I don't want to mess with that (for resale value). The right one handles the oil level check, which I don't want to bother recreating. The center one only handles speed, which is easy to replicate, and the onboard computer (range, mileage, etc.), which is pretty much worthless (to me), so it made the most sense as the one to replace.

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Yes, many people expect to pay $50 for something that takes weeks or months to develop. That being said, I do realize this would be expensive, but I would be interested in knowing what you would charge, nontheless.

[Image-only post; no author-written text. Original image references:] https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/rennlist.com-vbulletin/480x270/takemymoney_8aede50315d1c35ee7c484de823a523281795484.gif

Some of you guys are amazing at making things better....Was thinking about this for my 996.2

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Maybe update them to the color of the center?

Speed warning? This has saved my bacon before. What about the oil level reading?

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Something I've played around with a bit... it's difficult because the OEM displays are backlight with an incandescent bulb, so they aren't too bright. If you change to a white LED then the displays become more blue. It'll be impossible to get the side displays to be a dark black background with a white foreground.

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On 996.1 the oil level reading is on the right display. I'm not replacing that.

Coop's temp gauge had me thinking on this prior, I think a round LCD screen could fit over/outside the center gauge without fully obstructing the tach, or you could get one big enough to fill the gauge completely and do tach in software. The tilt of the plastic may make it a bit wonky, but if the viewing angle works on the screen it seems possible. You'd have to integrate it into something that would press fit around the cluster, but the aluminum gauge trim pieces you can buy are an example of how this looks good in general. If the exterior .1 and .2 dash dimensions are the same then that makes life easier, and it would be a reversible install which wouldn't require actually cracking open the cluster. A small (~1.28 inch watch face) screen could possibly fit right in the middle without obstructing either the tach or the original screen. The floating screen in the below thread still looks like the best bet for getting a large amount of screen space almost in vision while driving, and adding a companion screen in the cluster could be interesting alongside that. I feel like it should be possible to get some kind of floating screen setup without having to cut into the trim like the other install, something anchored to the hazard screw hole seems like it should work. https://rennlist.com/forums/996-foru...-upgrades.html

Please make these for the 996 turbos. I’d love to have an oil temp gauge in my car

What about lane assist?

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Right after I get drive by wire, brake by wire, and throttle by wire on a 1999 C2. https://comma.ai/

Wow, that looks fantastic.

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How are you decoding the signals from the cluster or ECU?

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Currently, from the cluster. The cluster receives the analog signals from every sensor it displays. As far as I can tell, the cluster is on the K-line for diagnostics purposes, but not to receive any data from the DME. Eventually, I'd prefer to fetch coolant temp from the DME so it's more accurate.

@binaryaudax Email me at [email removed] if you want one of my small integrated ESP32 12V CAN boards with Kline (the v2.5) https://github.com/MagnusThome/RejsaCAN-ESP32 Schematic ​​​​https://github.com/MagnusThome/RejsaCAN-ESP32/blob/main/Schematics/Schematic_RejsaCAN%20v2.5.png I have a 996.1 GT3 myself and have been thinking to get oil temp visible someway but haven't got around to it yet. I'll keep the cluster original but had some ideas on how to show it on it.

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Awesome! I'll email you when I get to that point. What IC are you using for Kline ISO communication? I just picked up a few MC33290 ICs but haven't played around with them yet. I'm not sure yet if the oil temp can be pulled from the Kline at the cluster. I'm crossing my fingers that it is. But I'll need to sniff the communication between Durametic/PIWIS first to see if the oil temp comes from the typical Kline pin on the OBD2 connector or the other Porsche proprietary Kline pin.

I made a spot on the board for the option to solder on a SN65HVD100 on the rear of the board in addition to the SN65HVD230 that is on the top side of the board for CAN. But I haven't gotten around to fiddling with the LIN/Kline stuff yet.

@MagnusT coudl you use one of the can boards as a can sniffer the try and decode the AC control module? The standard 996.2 HVAC controls suck and I want to see if the controls can be reverse engineered to work on a separate interface like the Grayhill canbus modules etc

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It's just a piece of hardware with no code on. But it's easy to write simple Arduino code for a sniffer that dumps out everything over USB, bluetooth or wifi. But you can instead also just load ESP32RET onto it and use savvycan to sniff CAN traffic if you don't want to write any code. www.savvycan.com

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These two tasks alone sound like the biggest fish to fry, but will be so freaking cool when pulled off. Watching it done on E30's has me bracing for impact though (either labor hours or cost). If everything works, one high-value thing that race dashes offer over OEMs is programmable limits (alarms). If oil temp goes over say 275F, water temp over 200F, etc. Bringing info to attention instead of having to scan the gauges is just objectively better.

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100% agreed. I see a visual or audible alarm as one of the most important features. I don't want to be constantly watching my gauges to know the temps are out of range.

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1000% agree or more important, the oil pressure. We have seen a large up-tick in the number of cars that have the scavenge pumps ( oil return pumps) oriented wrong...There are just too many people with not enough experience with these cars/engines working on them... I appreciate and respect what you are doing here and I too am bracing for impact..!!!

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But he needs to sell this to the community at large!

Don't know how I missed this thread. nice work!

@binaryaudax I just found this thread. Have you made any progress? Looks like a great mod especially for people who have pixelated LCD screens.

@Tom Loder unfortunately, no. We underwent a large home remodeling project so I was away from my garage/workbench for 6+ months. I'll be getting back into this project very soon.

I'm in if you can make one for the 996.2 Turbo.

Looking great keep up the good work! For oil temp where are you getting the signal from?

Directly from the sensor, but in the long run, I'd prefer to reverse engineer it out of the K-line from the DME.

This blob of pixels(?) just appeared. Was not there last time car was started. Is this repairable, or will your display fix it..?

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My display is far from being commercially ready -- if ever. The OEM displays do suffer from these "bad pixels" (not true pixels, but a different topic) after some age. They can be repaired, but it does require soldering. I have no experience with them, but there are a few sellers on eBay that perform this repair service. Example: https://www.ebay.com/itm/29173132561...display+repair

These pixels sometimes come and go especially if the interior gets quite hot. You can try the Piezo trick which sometimes helps the pixels reset https://www.reddit.com/r/BMW/comment...ure_does_work/