USB penetration help needed?

I need some suggestions of how to get a USB plug from enigne bay to inside of cab in a D40.

Would rather not cut head of USB if i can help it.

Why not convert to mini USB, run the mini USB through to inside the cabin (as it's a MUCH smaller plug), then if you need full sized USB, convert back up again. Plenty of converter plugs on the market.

Would rather no have any plugs out side of cab, as USB plugs are not exactly, water/dirt/ weather/etc proof.

above accelarator pedal (20-30cm) theres a decent size grommet..i managed to fit a thickass coxial cable. feed the usb cable mid way first so when u pull the cable it goes thru the hole small end first (like an arrow)..if u get what i mean

If worse comes to worse you can get "U.R Connectors" to cut and reterminate the cables. They are a connector which have a vaseline type gel inside them which keeps the join insulated from the elements. You can tape them up once done and all should be good. easy to use and effective.They are the type of connectors Telstra use for phone lines.

If your running the gps out under the bonnet, there is no need, I have mine sitting under the dash coin tray and it works fie.

As long as you can get to any grommet you use you can seal it up with a bit of bog. I was too lazy to cut the connector off the UHF lead for my CB but I was able to push it through a grommet on the passenger side. It's a little bit of screwing around because the grommet is below the carpet line but it does work. Either clear "do anything silicone" or that black automotive stuff works a treat to seal it up then all you have to worry about is having the right length lead.

It's in, did the old 'ugly stick' trick, bend it back around on itself. Jammed a straighten coat hanger in the rubber penetration above accelerator gave it a tug and presto.

Although i instantly regret doing it this way as now it is outside the car it can be ripped off by some bored knob and vandalised. Should have gone for the top of the stereo under coin tray. But it already has a wifi antenna and an aux stereo plug hanging out the top so it is busy enough up there.

only time will tell though.

Personally I like to keep USB cables as short as possible, because USB 2.0 performance is directly related to cable length.

Biscuits said:

Would rather no have any plugs out side of cab, as USB plugs are not exactly, water/dirt/ weather/etc proof.

Click to expand...

That's not strictly true - there are plenty of sources of IP rated USB plugs and sockets out there - Jaycar is worth a shot, probably most decent sized DSE stores as well...

And even if you used standard plugs just wrap them in some self-amalgamating tape - problem solved.

Think outside the square!

Rescue tape is the answer! $20 @ Jaycar. I bought some - it's bloody awesome stuff to use.

I have some now too Tony, it is great stuff.

I spend plenty of time in and out of our local Jaycar due to my line of work. When last in the i grabed a 5m self amplifed USB 2.0 cable, so length is not my issue (neither is girth for those of you who went stright there.).

Also picked up a handy little 6.5mm audio jack penetration type. So i will be drilling another hole soon and it will sit flush as part of the dashtop. 6.5mm was only because they had no 3.5mm in stereo, plust the 3.5mm all had exposed thread after insertion, 6.5mm was flush fit.

The USB length isn't a voltage-over-distance issue. It's a signal-over-distance issue.

Sure, 5V (USB voltage) does diminish over the length of the cable, but the key factor here is how the USB packet data is sent and received.

USB is a serial communication, which means data has to be placed into packets and sent. My understanding of the actual technology is that the packet is checksummed, transmitted and once received, it is checksummed again and the two checksums are compared, in order to determine packet viability. If the packet is viable (no checksum errors) an acknowledgement is sent. Only after this is received does the next packet go.

Now, in order to understand a little better in your mind how the cable length affects this (and I'm writing this for all readers, not just the few who are tech savvy so please don't take offense at how basic this seems) imagine that a packet of data is an envelope, and it needs to be picked up by a postman and walked to the other end of the cable. At the other end, the post office opens the packet, checks that the contents are intact, and sends the postman back with an "ok" or "not good, send again" message.

Ok, now if the postman has to walk just 2 metres, he can send lots of packets in a short time, but if he has to travel 100 metres each way, he is not going to be anywhere near as fast.

Try this test: get a big data file (like a Linux ISO or DVD VOB file). Using a long USB cable, copy it to an external drive and note how long it takes. Delete the file.

Replace the long cable with one of those little 6" cables and do it again. Note the reduction in time ... because those packets don't have to travel as far.

Naturally if your thing isn't time-critical, there's no worries, but for anyone that wants to use USB storage devices, my advice to you is to get a nice short cable!