USB mount for Suzuki Swift Mk3

Description

My new car stereo unit presented me with a slight problem: The previous one had onboard USB. But my new unit uses a non-removable USB flylead designed to dangle down behind the dash. Presumably intended to exit via the glovebox or something? Or maybe it's meant to be poked through some dirty great 'ole drilled in the dash? Either way, I dunno! There were no suggestions in the instructions, and neither idea appealed to me very much!! What was needed was a panel mount. But I didn't want something that looked horrendous or bodged. So I formulated some criteria with that goal in mind: 1. I didn't want any visible fixings - They're fine hidden on the back of a telly or PC case. But on a dashboard they just look cheap and amateurish. 2. I wasn't willing to disfigure any VISIBLE part of the factory dashboard - One day I might want to refit the original stereo and sell the car, and something like that can impact the resale value. 3. I wanted the USB to the left of the head unit - Well away from the driving controls of a UK right hand drive vehicle. (Good news for any overseas makers: A simple mirror-flip of the main part of this design will cater for those uncivilised fools who still insist on having their steering wheel attached to the wrong side of the car!) 4. I didn't want any sort of extension lead - In the automotive environment it's just asking for trouble. It's more stuff to rattle behind the dashboard, provides more opportunity for dirty contacts, and adds the potential for it to vibrate undone at some point down the line. (...And, no; I don't know why this criterion is displaying in a larger font either!!) If you want to fit an aftermarket stereo to a Swift you have to buy a fascia plate to fill the void left by the removal of the factory stereo. This worked in my favour as it provides a large area of now-vacant real estate on each side of the head unit aperture. OK, so I WOULD have to hack out a small chunk of dash behind the fascia to clear the new cable and mount. But it would always be concealed behind the new fascia (or by the original factory stereo if refitted). So I decided it was an acceptable sacrifice. The next problem was going to be mounting the unit to the fascia. Most double DIN stereos mount using a metal cage in the dash. Not so on the MK3 Swift though; their aftermarket fascia has a pair of small auxilliary cheek plates peppered with an assortment of various fixing holes. They're conveniently held to each side of the main fascia by 3 screws. So, to put it another way, I had a ready made fixing point! I figured out that extending the left hand plate towards the fascia's panel front would do the trick, and would result in a more solid fixing for the stereo unit as a bonus. So I temporarily fitted the head unit into the fascia plate and noted which fixing holes were needed for the position I wanted. All the other holes were irrelevant, and could be ignored. I then drew up a vastly simplified copy of the left cheek plate, then added an extra bracket that would finish up a little way behind the front of the stereo. I then measured out a good position where the connector would be centralised on the faceplate, and created a rectangular hole on the new bracket's drawing - one that the USB would just pass through tightly. Once it had printed, I test fitted it with the stereo in place. This allowed me to use a pillar drill (fitted with a very small bit) to transfer the corners of the opening accurately onto the fascia surface. These were linked with pencil lines, and the area within cut and filed to size. With the USB aperture in the right place I could now measure how far the socket would need to protrude through the bracket to emerge flush with the fascia. Once determined, I drew up a sub-bracket assembly to hold it firmly in place: It's basically just a glorified USB sleeve, in two halves, with the flylead retained in place with a rectangular locking sleeve. My plan was to use a small bolt each side to provide friction to stop the USB socket from moving forwards when unplugging things.But, in practice, the screws aren't needed as the sleeve is a f... I mean a very tight fit: That baby ain't goin' nowhere! Once printed and assembled it was time to test fit everything into the dash, and to see how much I would have to cut away behind the fascia to clear the mount and cable. The game plan was "as little as possible", so I started by removing small sections at a time, and testing until I found the clearance was sufficient. Then I removed another few millimeters all around just to avoid any potential rubbing points that might cause annoying noises at a later date. Once satisfied it was OK, I reconnected the wiring, and pushed it all into place to give it a quick test run. Everything worked as it should, so I now turned my attention to the new stereo's outer bezel trim. I knew this was going to be a problem because the aftermarket fascias are designed for the stereo to sit slightly proud of the aperture. I have no idea why they do it that way, as it makes the stereo stick out like a sore thumb and just screams "aftermarket!!". So I decided to make my life harder by making my stereo sit as far back as possible to give a factory fit look. The downside to this is that you can't get the stereo's outer bezel to fit in the fascia as the locating well is too small to accommodate it. As you can see in the main picture, I've temporarily printed a trim to fill the gap for the time being. But I have plans to print a full custom unit, possibly even incorporating a built in hood or cowl to shade the screen slightly in direct sunlight. This is now posted here: https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:4551915 So there you have it; it turned out really well, and doesn't look bodged (well, not TOO bodged, anyway). Obviously a close inspection shows where my hole-filing skills were a little uneven but, to be honest, if you're that close to it, the chances are the airbag's due to trigger any moment, and you've got bigger things to worry about than a little wobbly hole-filing! (Please note, since I prepared this page, I have slightly revised the mounting bracket's stl to remedy a weak point in the design. It's in the files, but it's not showing one of those fancy blue Thingiverse preview doo-dahs.) Happy printing folks!

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