AIM SoloDL with E46 ECU harness

PoBoyR6 · 02-16-2012, 01:16 PM

I recently got the new AIM SoloDL from Richard@M-World. I was his first SoloDL customer with an E46 and using my car as the guinea pig he developed a plug and play harness that directly attaches to the ECU for all the data channels and it doesn't require any cutting or splicing. Am very happy with the results now that I can get throttle, brake, steering angle, gear, clutch, wheel speeds, temps, and tons of other data that I can analyze over and above what you would get if you simply plugged the unit into the OBD connector. You can see in one of the pics that the cable coming from the ECU is easily tucked away behind the center console/carpet overlap.

The bracket over the air vent is where my old AIM MyChron lap timer used to go. I'm very happy to be moving into a GPS based timer, no more lugging around a tripod and lawnmower battery and ensuring the beacon/receiver can see each other...and forgetting to pack them up at the end of the weekend. Plus the predictive lap timing feature in the Solo/SoloDL is worth the price of admission all on its own. Getting instant feedback on the track to find out if you are slower/faster when you try a different line/approach is priceless. Non GPS lap timers are pointless IMHO nowadays.

As for what I plan to do with the data, I'm going to use my GoPro camera and overlay the pertinent data (revs/speed/gear/throttle/brake/track map/lap time, etc.) using Dashware software like some others that are already on YouTube. In terms of analysis, I'm pretty new to using the data to go faster so my plan is to get some pro driver coaching sessions and find out where my weak points are and then hopefully I'll be able to continue self analysis with the data once I get more familiar with it.

Looking forward to sharing my first track vid with data overlay from TWS in April!

Franklin Joseph · 02-16-2012, 02:19 PM

Awesome that the gopro will work with the solo...i'm thinking of getting the new gopro soon.

LiM3y · 02-16-2012, 02:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Franklin Joseph

Awesome that the gopro will work with the solo...i'm thinking of getting the new gopro soon.

He is using one of the online software apps to co-ordinate the gopro footage with the solo_dl data stream, rather than plugging a gopro into the solo_dl unit

PoBoyR6 · 02-16-2012, 02:49 PM

That's correct. You still need Dashware to overlay your data and sync to the GoPro video, so there is no direct connection between the SOLO and the GoPro. I've been playing around with my data from the last NASA event at MSRH with Dashware to verify it works. I didn't have my GoPro mounted so I just put the overlay on a test video. Lots of stuff to figure out and tinker with but Rolf with Dashware is very responsive and helpful and even makes custom gauges if you want them bad enough.

ThunderMoose · 02-16-2012, 06:52 PM

My trackcar is an E46 and I want to do the same. I wanted to keep the SoloDL on my existing mount, which is about where yours is, but on other vent - can that be done? I am assuming the GPS antenna will still work.

PoBoyR6 · 02-16-2012, 08:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ThunderMoose

My trackcar is an E46 and I want to do the same. I wanted to keep the SoloDL on my existing mount, which is about where yours is, but on other vent - can that be done? I am assuming the GPS antenna will still work.

Yeah, you can pretty much mount the Solo wherever, the GPS signals still come through, they just take a bit longer to initialize. I was originally thinking of mounting it on the vent clip where my old MyChron was, but I really need it to be in my line of sight where it is mounted in the pics because with the predictive timing display, I'm looking at it several times during a lap. The vent mount is just too low to be looking at that often.

M3roar · 02-17-2012, 09:01 AM

You do NOT need it in sight while driving on the track. I stuck the go pro in the window on the passenger side and it lined up with the pilar so I didn't have any extra stuff cluttering my line of sight. If you do TWS DE and have an instructor. They'll call out the times for you. I get why you would want to see it. But do you really need to know that very second or can you wait till you get to the pits?

And moose! Hurry up and get one too!!

PoBoyR6 · 05-20-2012, 12:50 PM

As promised, here is my first video using the GoPro, SoloDL and Dashware from my last NASA event at Texas World Speedway (TWS). The sync is still not perfect as it seems like the data jumps ahead a bit when Dashware converts it to a video file but I can adjust for that next time. Also, the camera mount was super shaky so I'm getting a better mount…but you get the idea.

Now that I know what I’m doing the next event video will be even better.

(video will probably be choppy if viewed here...best to view in youtube)

02-16-2012, 01:16 PM	#1
PoBoyR6 Track Junkie 3 Rep 38 Posts Drives: 2015 335i Join Date: Jul 2011 Location: Houston, TX iTrader: (0)	AIM SoloDL with E46 ECU harness I recently got the new AIM SoloDL from Richard@M-World. I was his first SoloDL customer with an E46 and using my car as the guinea pig he developed a plug and play harness that directly attaches to the ECU for all the data channels and it doesn't require any cutting or splicing. Am very happy with the results now that I can get throttle, brake, steering angle, gear, clutch, wheel speeds, temps, and tons of other data that I can analyze over and above what you would get if you simply plugged the unit into the OBD connector. You can see in one of the pics that the cable coming from the ECU is easily tucked away behind the center console/carpet overlap. The bracket over the air vent is where my old AIM MyChron lap timer used to go. I'm very happy to be moving into a GPS based timer, no more lugging around a tripod and lawnmower battery and ensuring the beacon/receiver can see each other...and forgetting to pack them up at the end of the weekend. Plus the predictive lap timing feature in the Solo/SoloDL is worth the price of admission all on its own. Getting instant feedback on the track to find out if you are slower/faster when you try a different line/approach is priceless. Non GPS lap timers are pointless IMHO nowadays. As for what I plan to do with the data, I'm going to use my GoPro camera and overlay the pertinent data (revs/speed/gear/throttle/brake/track map/lap time, etc.) using Dashware software like some others that are already on YouTube. In terms of analysis, I'm pretty new to using the data to go faster so my plan is to get some pro driver coaching sessions and find out where my weak points are and then hopefully I'll be able to continue self analysis with the data once I get more familiar with it. Looking forward to sharing my first track vid with data overlay from TWS in April! Attached Images Last edited by PoBoyR6; 02-16-2012 at 03:31 PM.. Reason: Reduced Pic Size
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02-16-2012, 02:19 PM	#2
Franklin Joseph Captain 57 Rep 820 Posts Drives: BMW Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Texas iTrader: (1)	Awesome that the gopro will work with the solo...i'm thinking of getting the new gopro soon.
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02-16-2012, 02:49 PM	#4
PoBoyR6 Track Junkie 3 Rep 38 Posts Drives: 2015 335i Join Date: Jul 2011 Location: Houston, TX iTrader: (0)	That's correct. You still need Dashware to overlay your data and sync to the GoPro video, so there is no direct connection between the SOLO and the GoPro. I've been playing around with my data from the last NASA event at MSRH with Dashware to verify it works. I didn't have my GoPro mounted so I just put the overlay on a test video. Lots of stuff to figure out and tinker with but Rolf with Dashware is very responsive and helpful and even makes custom gauges if you want them bad enough.
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02-16-2012, 06:52 PM	#5
ThunderMoose Lieutenant Colonel 746 Rep 1,848 Posts Drives: PY E46 M3 and SG E46 M3 Join Date: Aug 2010 Location: League City, TX iTrader: (0)	My trackcar is an E46 and I want to do the same. I wanted to keep the SoloDL on my existing mount, which is about where yours is, but on other vent - can that be done? I am assuming the GPS antenna will still work.
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02-17-2012, 09:01 AM	#7
M3roar Lieutenant 19 Rep 456 Posts Drives: 2010 e92 M3 Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Houston, Texas iTrader: (0) Garage List 2010 BMW M3 e92 [9.34] 1998 BMW M3 [8.50]	You do NOT need it in sight while driving on the track. I stuck the go pro in the window on the passenger side and it lined up with the pilar so I didn't have any extra stuff cluttering my line of sight. If you do TWS DE and have an instructor. They'll call out the times for you. I get why you would want to see it. But do you really need to know that very second or can you wait till you get to the pits? And moose! Hurry up and get one too!! __________________ "Out of pure habit, I gave a black M3 a point by on the way home from work this evening." - ThunderMoose
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05-20-2012, 12:50 PM	#8
PoBoyR6 Track Junkie 3 Rep 38 Posts Drives: 2015 335i Join Date: Jul 2011 Location: Houston, TX iTrader: (0)	As promised, here is my first video using the GoPro, SoloDL and Dashware from my last NASA event at Texas World Speedway (TWS). The sync is still not perfect as it seems like the data jumps ahead a bit when Dashware converts it to a video file but I can adjust for that next time. Also, the camera mount was super shaky so I'm getting a better mount…but you get the idea. Now that I know what I’m doing the next event video will be even better. (video will probably be choppy if viewed here...best to view in youtube)
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