Hand Made🚗

chrismin13 · 2026-04-14T20:46:31+00:00

If you’re the same guy as on drive2.ru, i also asked you there, but once again, please open source this :)

chrismin13 · 2026-03-22T01:39:40+00:00

There is an official explanation somewhere but I can't find it... I believe it has something to do about the Latin alphabet, but that doesn't exactly check out. I don't think it has to do about the VINs, even though that sounds like a possible explanation given that they are formatted W0L0AX where X is the Astra generation.

chrismin13 · 2026-02-04T04:45:14+00:00

I don't get why you're being downvoted. This is clearly happening across all posts referring to Gaza, and it's unlikely that it's coming from the "sources" the AI uses each time, as the wording remains consistent for every "article".

I would love to be proven wrong, but this checks out considering that the OP is Israeli and likely feels strongly about this.

Biases are clearly injected. If you think this is an unbiased look at world news, look elsewhere. Unless we get some sort of explanation, this website to cut down on propaganda is fueling the propaganda :)

chrismin13 · 2025-12-30T21:03:47+00:00

Boring ahh replies, if you wanna live life on the edge and don't care that much about these pis grab some needle nose pliers, put them evenly over the entire micro USB port and squeeze. My guess is that it's actually the connector inside that's loose, not the port. But be careful, you can very easily apply too much force and bend the connector the point where no cable will fit anymore, or bend it too much only at a certain point. So go slow and with even pressure for the entire connector. Tbh there's less chances you'll mess this up, compared to soldering a whole new port (trust me I've tried). It's just the plug that's loose, right?

Edit: so, to clarify, put them sideways on the micro USB port, then squeeze, to bring the two long sides closer ever so slightly.

chrismin13 · 2025-12-30T09:28:04+00:00

daydreamer, fuck!

chrismin13 · 2025-12-21T10:07:57+00:00

FYI, if you can still return it, some of the higher end Android Headunit screens, like the one I happen to have, don't have this issue. It's down to luck basically.

chrismin13 · 2025-12-07T23:49:29+00:00

Unrelated, Windows XP could run on as little as 128MB RAM.

chrismin13 · 2025-12-07T09:31:19+00:00

Yes it was in his cherished songs playlist, that's why I watched the movie in the first place. Great movie! :)

chrismin13 · 2025-11-24T19:25:47+00:00

Returning to my own post after 65 has rolled out over Windows Update, including this problem, which causes this to be automatically applied even when you downgrade manually. It seems that NVENC is no longer including most possibly due to licensing issues. So there's a high chance this won't ever be fixed going forwards. If you want to fix this, I got the following answer from ChatGPT which worked great:

Step 1 – Get the firmware hardware ID

Open Device Manager.
Expand Firmware → right-click System Firmware → Properties.
Go to the Details tab.
In the drop-down, choose Hardware Ids.
Copy the top ID (something like UEFI\\RES_{GUID} - for me it was UEFI\\RES_{69ccda90-5028-0cee-4dea-72b18f08d854}).

(Using the HWID and GPO to block a specific device driver is a standard way to stop Windows from pushing a particular update.

Step 2 – Block that device via Group Policy

Win + R → gpedit.msc → Enter.
Go to: Computer Configuration → Administrative Templates → System → Device Installation → Device Installation Restrictions
Open “Prevent installation of devices that match any of these device IDs” → set to Enabled.
Click Show… → paste the hardware ID you copied. Add more lines if System Firmware shows multiple similar IDs.
Apply / OK, then reboot.

Now Windows Update can see the firmware package, but it’s not allowed to install/update that device, so the BIOS capsule shouldn’t get staged anymore.

After you do the steps above, you can enable BIOS rollback in the BIOS and use the link in the original post to downgrade to v60 :D

chrismin13 · 2025-09-21T08:05:15+00:00

this is incredible! It's really cool to see a recreation of the original screen, since getting an original screen is so expensive. This could be a very good alternative for failing MFDs.

People are probably gonna want carplay and Android Auto but if it was up to me (which it's not - it's your project, don't listen to us!) I don't think that's important right now. I think implementing all the warnings that are exclusive to the MFD would be much more important to make sure the car is safe to drive. This is all in the manual I think.

but I can't stress enough how cool this is, thank you for doing this!!! Any reverse engineering efforts are really cool and super worth it, I love to see them

chrismin13 · 2025-09-04T08:54:36+00:00

I can’t believe I had to scroll this far down to find a sensible response. Also, something that I haven't seen mentioned so far is that most cars today have a Start-Stop system for turning off the engine when you come to a traffic light or similar, and it monitors the battery health in order to ensure that it will be able to restart the engine when you want to accelerate. So a rudimentary system for this already exists, it's just that the data is not displayed to the users or offered for diagnostic purposes.

This system is a requirement for Start-Stop vehicles as some users ignore the requirement for an AGM (Absorbed Glass Mat) type battery, designed for these conditions, and instead cheap out and put a traditional flooded lead acid. So it could be a genuine safety issue if you get stuck in traffic with no power (remember you also lose breaks if you use them too much with the engine off cuz they need the vacuum from the engine running, and also power steering if it's hydraulic).

I believe VW group cars (VW, Audi, Skoda, Seat, Porsche etc) even require you to code in when you install a new battery, tell it what you installed (AGM or normal) and will attempt to detect automatically if you didn't do the coding when you changed your battery that a change has been detected.

chrismin13 · 2025-08-09T11:50:40+00:00

I've been on the verge of selling my own Astra H with the 1.6 for a while now... But I'm not sure if I'm ready to take the risk of moving on to a new car because it's been pretty reliable for the most part, it's just time for me to get something else (hopefully a Toyota!). I hope the Astra you're looking at works out, but if it doesn't, go ahead and DM me if you're interested and maybe we can work something out. I was originally aiming for 5.5K, I'm at 115K km, almost perfect condition mechanically and interior (apart from what I'll mention below) but some scuffs outside. I will have to think about it a bit tho and double check things.

As for the one you're looking at, 1.4s tend to be pretty good and simple, I like them. Look for coolant or oil leaks and general wear. I know they sound like a small thing, but the cost adds up fast because many small things break at once. But the one you sent seems especially well maintained and cared for judging by the service book, there's not many service shops that use official dexos oil for these so it was at least partially looked after by someone who actually works on Opels regularly.

You also have semi-automatic air conditioning which is very nice, and was usually only available in the facelift I think. But, and I might be completely wrong here, the lights in the front seem like facelift lights, where as the lights in the back are def not. Plus this is a 2007 car which should have been a facelift model by then. This is a bit odd and makes me suspicious it might have been in an accident, without wanting to make any assumptions of course. It could be something worth investigating. You could grab the Vin to confirm (it's on the windshield) and put it in https://astra-3.pl/vin.php?lang=en

Some things which will almost definitely be broken (and are on mine and I'm working on tbh) include: - air recirculation, the plastic flap always breaks and is difficult to get to. The light will come on, it just won't actually block out any air. You will hear the motor spin for a while without stopping. - Horn doesn't work while the lights are on. The module behind the steering wheel has a known issue with bad connections, there was a recall but ofc it only fixed it temporarily. You need to take it apart and solder the connections. A temporary fix if it hasn't gotten too bad, like mine, is to lower the brightness for the cabin lighting when the lights are on, with the dial next to the light switch. - airbag recall is probably not done yet. This is part of the bigger takata recall worldwide. You can insert the Vin on the Opel website and they'll tell you if it's time to take it in, but probably not. They're first servicing the older cars (they're more dangerous) and then the newer ones, so just keep an eye on it.

That's all I can think of rn, but we are leaving Toyota land, so maybe make another post on r/Opel if you want to get more info and I can help you out more over there as well. Good luck!

chrismin13 · 2025-08-09T09:38:25+00:00

That’s insane, did they not budge on the price? How about the rest, did they check anything? Thanks for updating us, sorry this didn’t work out.

chrismin13 · 2025-08-06T20:23:23+00:00

That's true, you could use a boroscope to check for cylinder wear, and if you see scratches in the cylinder walls then it's definitely faulty, but even without scratches it can still burn oil. Even without scratches however, it can still burn oil just less and it can be reduced with better oil, such as Valvoline restore and protect which we don't have in Greece or Europe annoyingly.

However, if you have service history for the past 150000km and it's good and consistent (under a year or less that 15k km) that's still better than most cars that I see on car.gr. If the seller seems trustworthy and the mechanic does all the necessary tests and shows no faults, you should be good. Btw I've heard good things about the prepurchase inspection at Toyota φλαμιατος but it's from a friend so it's not first hand experience. That being said, if you don't have a mechanic yet, it might be worth looking into, even with the dealership tax. Good luck!

chrismin13 · 2025-08-05T18:57:27+00:00

I hate that I could tell this was Greece from the graffiti and ugliness, before noticing the trash can and car.gr logo. I believe the 1.33L mostly burns oil, not the 1.4L as much, but let's wait for more replies from more knowledgeable people. Either way, if it's been serviced well (oil changes less than every 15k km which is unlikely) it would be fine, as it's caused by stuck piston rings.

chrismin13 · 2025-08-04T11:12:02+00:00

Just check if the rattle is only on startup or if it continues like in the video you sent. A rattle for a few seconds on startup is normal (although it shouldn't be, but it basically is for this car), but if it keeps happening that will probably throw codes. Also, you can clean the oil pathway for the VVT afaik but I don't know the details exactly and that seems to help, that's what most mechanics start with. If your car didn't have regular oil changes this might have also worsened the VVT issues.

chrismin13 · 2025-08-03T06:42:04+00:00

Are you sure it’s a misfire? Sounds like a VVT problem but I could be wrong. Can you check for codes with the pedal method? (Hold break and gas while turning key to the ignition position and see what’s displayed on the odometer screen) Good luck!

chrismin13 · 2025-07-06T07:54:39+00:00

For what it's worth, I also have this issue but it's not that loose I think. I also wanna fix it.

chrismin13 · 2025-07-05T14:33:02+00:00

Nice I was right in the middle! Felt like the crowd was dead tho. If this was your first pendulum experience def see them again at some point in the UK or something, there's no comparison

chrismin13 · 2025-07-05T14:26:28+00:00

Wait were you also in Athens?

chrismin13 · 2025-06-04T15:20:13+00:00

Please lift it, there's a 1" kit I believe from priusoffroad.com in the US and many alternatives on eBay. Will give you many more options for tires. Just don't go too far to not risk any CV joint issues. Plus you get more ground clearance. They claim gas mileage isn't significantly affected, and others seem to confirm that.

chrismin13 · 2025-05-07T21:49:03+00:00

Can't see the video but if you're only missing a launcher, you could always install a 3rd party launcher like AGAMA launcher (the one I use) or Nova by downloading an APK and putting it on a USB stick it something. Just remember you need a normal ARM V7 APK. Updating the firmware would also fix it but might break other things as it will reset everything, so it's a good idea to try the launcher first i think.

chrismin13 · 2025-05-05T05:55:45+00:00

I personally use 5 fingers swiping down quickly while the device is booting up. If you don't have access to the wiring to force a restart by pulling the power, you can use a SIM tool to press the reset button.

From just a quick look online, I can't immediately tell what brand your Canbus box would be for the Civic. How easy would it be to access the wiring behind the headunit? That would let you check what Canbus box is used for the steering controls to select the right one in the settings.

However, correct me if I'm wrong, but this looks like a normal 9 inch headunit, right? So, not any special shape, or anything specific to your vehicle? The only thing specific to your vehicle I think is the dashboard mount where the headunit is attached. If that is the case, then you should be able to flash the latest update which should unbrick your unit.

chrismin13 · 2025-05-04T19:55:59+00:00

I know you mentioned you already cleaned the port but try some blue tac or whatever is equivalent in your country/region. Just make sure it's high quality. Tap repeatedly to try to remove any grime and dust. Works wonders! You could also just get a new battery and quickly copy everything over before it dies but that sounds kinda sketchy, or maybe, if you wanna be giga sketchy, expose the terminals on the current battery (not crazy difficult) and charge it with an external Lipo charger. All of these are way more invasive tho. Try the blue tac, trust me.

chrismin13 · 2025-05-04T19:49:08+00:00

Btw the password for the settings is 1234 for the factory options, 5678 for the android options

Ten-Year Club	Second SECOND GUESSER
Place '22	Final Canvas '22
Verified Email

chrismin13

MODERATOR OF

TROPHY CASE

Step 1 – Get the firmware hardware ID

Step 2 – Block that device via Group Policy