Want New Chrome Mirror Covers???

[TingleFingers665.5]

Okay, so let's imagine for a moment that I might be able to create from scratch, and produce (in limited quantities) a whole new, high quality line of chrome mirror covers. Are you interested? If so, let me know. I've wanted a pair for myself for quite some time now but, as you probably know, they are very hard to come by. So I began brainstorming about the production of new ones. In researching the costs involved, I realized it would be too expensive to go to the trouble to create only one pair for myself, but worthwhile if enough people were in on it with me. I cannot say what the cost would be at this time, nor can I say how many sets could be made. I simply want to know if it is worth my time investigate any further. I'll let you all know more, when I hear more from all of you. Thanks for your time and interest.

[tomcat837]

Hell yeah I am interested!!!

[TingleFingers665.5]

Hey Tomcat, thanks for the interest. I'd like to think there are more than just the two of us interested in these, but the lack of posts says otherwise. Perhaps it's my lack of posts and my "NooBee" status that is discouraging people. Is this it guys? I mean, this post has received 52 hits, but only one response. I'm just interested in a head count. This doesn't commit you to buying!!! I just need to see that the interest is still there. Okay, let me tell you guys a little about me. Although I've only been a registered member a short time, I've owned my VX a little over 3 years, and frequently viewed this site for over 4 years. This web site is what turned me on to the VX in the first place. I found it by accident, fell in love, and had to have one. Despite the fact that I've rarely posted up until recently, I've used this site as my primary resource for troubleshooting, modification and fabrication ideas and instructions, to keep up on new available products (what little there are), maintenance advice, and just about everything the rest of you use it for. And now I have a great idea and I feel it's time I give a little back. I'm an artist, of a sort, and a grocery store employee. I wish I could make a living doing only art, but believe me-- its highly competitive, and the term "starving artist" was not coined for nothing. So the grocery business pays the bills. I am always advancing my knowledge and degrees in the arts though, as I am in school, as well. I work primarily with various plastics and resins, as well as plexi glass, and have done so for years. I prefer to work with plastics, because I find them infinitely versatile, and nearly limitless in variety, consistency, and color. Most of my work is sculpture based, and much of it consists of custom lamps. I've created all kinds of lamps, ranging from the conservatively traditional stained glass look (made with transparent tinted plexi), to audaciously large twisting and bubbling molded chandeliers. I've sold many, and a handful to a hollywood celebrities, including Sarah Jessica Parker and her husband Mathew Broderic, Alec Baldwin, and director Ridley Scott. So if its my ability to work with the material that you guys fear, fear no more. If there's anything else anyone wants to know, just ask. Despite the apparent lack of interest, I've begun prototyping the covers. Even if I don't have enough people to produce them in reasonable quantities via machined molds (since that is where most of the cost comes in), I'll still make at least five sets by hand. Chroming it where the remainder of the cost comes from. If the numbers are too low, and I can't make enough covers to break even, I'll offer them unchromed or primered. That way, those of you really interested can get them chromed yourselves by a metal shop, or they can be painted instead. If I can get ten or more people interested in buying, I think I can sell them between $150 and $175 per pair, and that is WITH chrome. However, that figure is not yet set in stone. I WILL MAKE NO PROFIT HERE! I'm only looking to break even for my costs and labor. Check in regularly for updates. Thanks again for your interest and support, everyone!

[Dallas4u]

I appreciate your willingness and your ability... but I already have a pair of OEM covers.

For the price I have seen people WILLING to buy these for I would guess you would have no problem selling them for what you are thinking of selling them for... now, how many would you sell? I have no idea.

I think we would love for you to come up with other ideas as well. I'm sure we can help you think of things we would like to see custom made, like a shiney red plastic, smooth center console that runs from the hand brake up above the radio... THAT would be sweet!

Good luck, and we should bump this to see how many are interested... I know there are more than one!

[TingleFingers665.5]

Interesting idea for the console, Dallas... and very conceivable. Although I can see a problem with access to the shifters, depending on how smooth and steep a slope we take up to the radio. Perhaps extensions on both shifters... simple to do, but then we run into the problem of increased degrees of movement. For example, if they both only move 5" or less from front to back, a vertical extension of 4" or so could now require 7"or more from front to back... unless the extension came out at an angle, which could bring it back down to a cool 5" or 6"... in theory. Or maybe eliminate the shifters all together. On many other 4wd's I've seen, they have dial-type controls to switch into 4wd. Turn the dial, and you're in gear. This could easily be made into a push button system, if it hasn't already. Push a button, and your in 4wd. We take it a step further, and do the same with the automatic gear shifter. Just push a button on the console and you're in "drive." I can't be the first to think of this. With everything going to digital, someone has to already make this. Okay, moving on... The dash instruments such as the radio and vent/ac controls are easily moved or replaced, as anyone who has pulled the dash knows. But if we're going to make the console more ergonomical, sporty, and digital, why stop there? Why not complete the rest of the dash? Nothing too extreme or restricting, just smooth things out a bit, make it wrap around a little more. Get a little more of that "cockpit" feel going. I mean after all, the thing already looks like it's ready to take off, and you sit behind that sweeping windshield with (faux) carbon fiber under your arms, so why not complete the feel? I never understood why they made everything so smooth, so sporty, gave us a great two-tone interior, and then slapped in a plain old ordinary solid black flat dash right out of a Rodeo. Mildly disappointing. So we'd continue the two-tone color scheme, throw in a touch of carbon fiber here and there, and count down to lift-off. This is all brain storming, of course... but a possible product down the road.....
But first, mirror covers. Ahhh, so many ideas, so little time.

[tomdietrying]

I'd be interested in the mirrows.

Peace.

Tom

[MachineVX]

I'd be interested

Brian
http://www.livejournal.com/~brianmachine/

[Dallas4u]

I think I see what you are saying with access to the shifters. I wasn't really thinking of such a sweeping angle on the console as to cut off shifting range over stock, but now that I can "see" your concept, I think I like the look a LOT! In fact, couldn't you just keep the stock shifter, lengthen the throw for the sifter in the custom console, and wire the gear display into the console? If the console was a bit taller than stock it might make the stock shifter look like a "short" shifter... maybe a bit more sporty.

As for the 4wd dial, if it can be done, it's a pretty cool idea!!!

I'm thinking, shiney red/orange color to match the stock color (in the VX's that are proud enough to wear the signature colors!). Outdated dash and console really hurt the interior look, and having TWO FITTED CUP HOLDERS would REALLY make this a go!

Maybe just something along the lines of the Axiom center console would be easier and work better...

[Raque Thomas]

Already have the chrome mirrors - but I'm definately in for the console and dash - those have got to be the weakest points of the stock design.

[TingleFingers665.5]

Originally posted by Dallas4u

...couldn't you just keep the stock shifter, lengthen the throw for the sifter in the custom console, and wire the gear display into the console? If the console was a bit taller than stock it might make the stock shifter look like a "short" shifter... maybe a bit more sporty...
...having TWO FITTED CUP HOLDERS would REALLY make this a go!...
...Maybe just something along the lines of the Axiom center console would be easier and work better...

Lengthening the throw on the shifter is kinda what I was talking about with the extensions I was considering, but I love the idea of the sporty "shorty" shifter look. I think we'd still have to lengthen the shifter a bit, just to raise it above the new curvature of the console, but maybe not as much as to get that short-shifter appearance. Good call, Dallas! I forgot to mention cup holders, but I was thinking of that too. We definitely need cup holders! But I'd probably create a retracting or folding cover to make them "disappear" when not in use. It would smooth out the design and help maintain the "cockpit" look. I mean lets face it, practical as they are when, there's nothing visually appealing about cup holders. And WOW!!! Is that really what the Axiom int. looks like? I've yet to see the inside of one until now, and I'm impressed! Now why couldn't they do that for us? Well, I guess I'm just gonna have to pick up the slack, huh? The only thing I dislike about it, is the nearly 90 degree right-angle where the vertical portion of the dash meets the center console portion. That's the same thing that bugs me most about the vx console, and they didn't really improve it very much on the Axiom. I mean, it does have a little more curvature than the vx's in the very corner, but it's still not enough. I mean the way I see it, the vx center console/dash insert is large enough already that it creates a definite separation between passenger and driver, so why not take it just a little further? Nothing too extreme, but just a slight angle added to the vertical center-dash portion, and a more rounded "swooping" transitional area where it meets the center console. I'm not talking about building a wall between passenger and driver, just continuing the sporty feel. I suppose an aftermaket mock-up of the Axiom center console for the vx would be possible, and perhaps a bit easier, especially if you aren't interested in something as extreme as my idea. But it might look a bit out of place, if placed over the existing dash insert. The reason I say this, is because the current dash is made so that the driver's dash appears to flow into the center-dash controls. If we were to create a piece that isolated the center-dash controls like in the Axiom, the drivers side would look a bit incomplete, as it would seem to flow into... the side of a divider. You'd look at it and go... Huh? And it would look like something slapped over the stock dash. Well, technically, it would be! But you don't want a modification like that to look like a modification. You want it to look like it was supposed to be that way. So we'd create a divider of some sort, to isolate the center instruments. The next step is to redesign the driver's dash so it can work independently of the center-dash control section, but by the time you go to all that trouble and all that modification, you might as well have designed a totally custom console and dash, much like the one I'm considering. That's just my feelings on that. But if one were truly interested in changing the vx dash into the Axiom dash, I'd recommend checking into it. It would appear from the picture, that the upper half of the dash, both driver and passenger side, along with the center dash insert are the only things that are different from the vx dash. The driver's instrument cluster and the bottom half of the dash appear to be the same as that of the vx. If this is as it appears then, in theory, it should be possible (with some possible minor modification) to switch the center and upper dash portions out. You'd have to buy the upper and center Axiom dash portions from the dealer first, of course. The only real problems I can see one running into is with center-dash section. Not only is the instrumentation entirely different, but it is arranged oddly, as well. And the vents would require new placement. Hmmm, I wonder... Is that center portion of the Axiom dash perfectly perpendicular to the rest of the dash, or is it pitched slightly towards the driver? It's hard to tell from the picture. The corresponding center portion of the vx dash IS angled toward the driver though, so this too, could cause a problem. I'm not trying to discourage anyone from trying this modification, just throwing out some things to take into consideration before attempted this. If anyone does try this, keep us posted! I'd love to see how it turns out! As far as my dash/center console ideas go, lets not get too excited about this one yet folks, it's all just brainstorming for now. Besides, a modification of this magnitude would not only take many months to perfect, but mass-producing them is a whole other challenge, by itself. And I can tell you now, this would be VERY costly to prototype, produce, AND TO SELL to the consumer. And I'd probably have to make these out of fiberglass, as well. Well, on second thought, it might be possible to make them out of plastic (if it were thick enough and internally reinforced), which would be significantly cheaper. I'd still have to make an original out of fiberglass though, and use it to create the molds for the plastic ones. But FIRST, I'm doing mirror covers! I get distracted easily when a new idea comes along (I'm sure you can tell), and I have a tendency to drop the project in progress, and start the new one. I can't do this here, so for now, I'm all about mirror covers...
...but I'm still interested in your ideas and input if you guys have any! As always, thank you everyone, for your support.

[Dallas4u]

I'm pretty sure, and I could be mistaken, that the Axiom dash is just a newer Rodeo dash with a center "add-on" piece and new center console between seats. I don't see why it would be hard at all to make something that just covers the middle and flows into a new console between the seats... something that can use the OEM DIN spaces and not have to re-engineer DIN spots for radio, air, and whatever else. It would save on money and, well, look better.

Now, center console wise (between the seats), I like the sound of something higher and flowing up to meet the center dash piece. You see them more often in concepts and they seem to never make it to the production.

Just a side note... you've seen the new Volvo S40 center console, right? It's only like 2" think... not a lot of "WOW" stuff on it or anything, but it's kinda like a metal "waterfall" from the dash:



Maybe you can do something like this Honda concept?

Honda IMAS interior

[Raque Thomas]

Originally posted by Dallas4u
I think I see what you are saying with access to the shifters. I wasn't really thinking of such a sweeping angle on the console as to cut off shifting range over stock, but now that I can "see" your concept, I think I like the look a LOT! In fact, couldn't you just keep the stock shifter, lengthen the throw for the sifter in the custom console, and wire the gear display into the console? If the console was a bit taller than stock it might make the stock shifter look like a "short" shifter... maybe a bit more sporty.

The Axiom shifter is actually shorter than the VX shifter. I installed an Axiom shifter on my VX, and had to cut about 1" out of the the actuator to make it fit. Also, the shift knob itself is not as tall. There is a picture in my gallery after I cut out 1/2" and you can see that it was too tall (the shift handle didn't meet with the console - I had to take it apart and do more cutting to make it flush). So the Axiom has a taller console and a shorter shifter - not a taller console AND shifter. You compensate for the taller console by making the shifter shorter rather than longer/taller.

[Dallas4u]

We're not talking about actually taking the Axiom center console and mounting it in a VX. We're talking about custom making something like it to work in the VX.

By custom engineering it you can make it work the way you want without retrofitting.

[sam]

YES!

I would like a pair of chrome mirrors (need to send them to the UK, so please advise of the shipping cost sinvolved!).

Regards

Sam

[MZ-N10]

how did it go from chrome mirrors to axiom center console?
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