Guys, need some help. I've ordered the components to do this, and installed the Arduino IDE on my Mac, but the plain truth is I don't know Arduino from Andouille. When I open a new "sketch" with the software, I see some basic code:

void setup() {
// put your setup code here, to run once:

}

void loop() {
// put your main code here, to run repeatedly:

}

SO... where do I put the code that oldskool73 shared aboe (comment #116)???

I've found a basic tutorial on Arduino, but frankly thought it'd be a bit more direct to just ask here.

Appreciate any help &/or advice anyone can offer. TIA!

Just paste the supplied code over the top, replacing the default. If you look at the code I posted, it already has the setup and loop functions in it, along with the rest of the logic.

Ah, thanks. Appreciate your help!

JayG (or anyone else who can help),

What are these connectors called and where did you pick them up? Thanks in advance.

http://986forum.com/forums/uploads02...1495582692.jpg

they are pin header connectors

5" JUMPER W/ TWO 8-COND. F HEADER SOCKETS, 0.1" SPACING | All Electronics Corp.

get 1 and cut the wire in the middle

Thanks for your help!! :)

Sorry about the broken link. I changed web servers and forgot to put the code page back up. Looks like you've got it sorted, though.

Very cool idea. Dumb question...where physically does this get wired in? Is it between the roof switch and the harness that connects to the switch or down near the relay? I have a friend who is a pro with Arduino and programming so the rest should be ok :)

edit: Perhaps this video illustrates installation? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IsmqUgMN1P4

Yes, you unplug the harness from the switch and connect the autotop between the two

AutoTop DIY
 

I don't know why I procrastinated this so long but finally installed it today. Awesome!



Of note, I wired to the un-switched power on the cigarette lighter. There is a small led on the board that is always lit. Any concern?

Also, it seems my buttons are reversed. I push the side with the roof to open and the side with the convertible to close. Which pins are reversed?

I am currently debugging. I removed the system to try and get the button switched (The open button closes the top and the close button opens it). Since pulling it out, I have not been able to close it at all.

I assume that close is pins 3 and 9 on the Arduino. They do not correspond to matching pins between the switch and harness. What am I missing?

Just swap the wires that come off of pins 8 & 9 on the switch

It appears I bricked my Nano board. The RX, TX and Power lights are all lit up and online it says that is bad. I ordered another one (actual Arduino brand) and will wire it up again. I did use my Son's Arduino Uno board and it worked correctly.

Another update. I ordered a new Arduino Nano board and attempted to upload the program to it. The IDE fails. If I change the target to Arduino Mini, it uploads, so I tried it. I plugged everything in and had the motor start immediately. The top opened once and then not again.

Any ideas folks?

I just did this to my recently acquired 986 and now my Dad wants it in his car. Thanks to everyone who made this a successful DIY project. There is so much good info on this thread.
Does anyone know if this will work on a 997?

This looks cool! Tempted to try. Any chance someone that's done it recently can post links to all required hardware?

In addition, it looks like the original post had additional pictures that no longer show up. I assume this was how to assemble this thing? Any more help there?

Hi Polaris,
Do you still make them? I would love to order one!
Kind regards,
Rene

excuse the potential stupidity.
i'm just thinking here, but if the windows have something in them to allow them to go up and down fully without needing to hold down the button, could whatever does this, be wired into the button part of the hood up/down buttons?

No. The window operation is controlled by the immobilizer/ECU under the seat. The top is on a special relay. ;)

Best mod
 

I made one of these soon after the thread started and its been one of the best mods I've done to my car.

Just bought a 987.2 :) is it possible make a board to do the same thing?

Fingers crossed

I was looking into buying the commercial version of this, but it now costs $500. Found this thread and wanted to say thanks to Polaris and all the contributors over the years. This is an excellent mod and works great!

Since not everyone who wants one of these is an electronics wiz, one tip I thought I’d throw out there that might help someone in the future:
I bought a clone Arduino Nano V3 with header pins already soldered. To wire everything up, I used breadboard jumper wires (female to female), like these: https://www.amazon.com/GenBasic-Piece-Female-Jumper-Wires/dp/B01L5ULRUA/ref=mp_s_a_1_3?dchild=1&keywords=breadboard+jumper +female+to+female&qid=1586186495&sr=8-3

The DuPont connectors plug directly onto the pins of the board, but for the connection to the car harness and switch, the bare wire is too high of a gauge to securely crimp to the spade connectors. So instead of stripping the wire for the spade connector, I removed the DuPont housing. The crimped DuPont receiver inside the housing fits securely into a red (18-22ga) spade connector and crimps well.

Then, for the transistors, you can plug those directly into the breadboard wires, put some heat shrink on the transistor and wires and that secures them.

Finally, I soldered the resistors into the corresponding wires rather than directly to the board. The spacing for the pins on the board is just too close for my cludgy soldering abilities.

Welcome to the forum.

You may also want to contact THSTONE. He bought the robotop company a few years ago and may still have some units for sale

Thanks

This is a good tip for anyone who wants this functionality. Even after building POLARIS' design, I would have been comfortable paying $100-$200 for a ready-made solution.

Hi Jay, I put this project on a back burner and started it up again given the current stay at home orders.

Anyway, I started over from scratch and still cannot seem to do it correctly. I am going to post some pictures of my (crappy) wiring. Something has to be wrong there.

http://986forum.com/forums/uploads02...1590170236.jpg
For Nano power, I am pulling power from the cig lighter. It goes from there to one leg of the voltage regulato.
The second leg (center leg) of the voltage regulator is connected to ground. The final leg of the regulator is connected to the 5v power on the Nano. This also shows ground connecting to the harness.

There are also two connectors that connect directly between the harness and switch as in the diagram.

http://986forum.com/forums/uploads02...1590169726.jpg
For Nano Pin 2, it is connected through a 1k resistor connect to the center pin of the 547B transitor.
One leg of the 547B transistor is connected to ground
Final leg of the transistor is connected to harness pin
For Nano Pin 3, it is connected through a 1k resistor connect to the center pin of the 547B transitor.
One leg of the 547B transistor is connected to ground
Final leg of the transistor is connected to harness pin

http://986forum.com/forums/uploads02...1590169997.jpg
For Nano Pin 8, It is connected to a 10k resistor through to ground AND is connected to the switch
For Nano Pin 9, It is connected to a 10k resistor through to ground AND is connected to the switch

This is the place I believe that I made a mistake. Does the 10k need to be directly between Pin 8 (or 9) and the switch?

Anyway, when installed, I see the power light. I push the switch and nothing happens.

If anyone else knows what I screwed up, please let me know!

From the schematic,
the resistor goes between pin 8 & ground and pin 9 & ground
pins 8 & 9 go to the switch

the resistor does not go from the switch to pin 8 or 9

When I built mine , I soldered the resistors on the andrino. If you look up a bunch of posts, there is a pic I posted

Is the 5v both input and output???

Hi everyone I just got a 986 and working on making it an awesome fun ride.
Very late and i've thoroughly went thru this post. I know it's been a while since anybody wrote here.
I soldered everything up and loaded program and pretty much ready to test this but I don't know where to find the Switched 12V. Can someone advise.

Thanks in advance

Since you have US car you should have the telephone plug somewhere behind the dashboard.
It should have ground, constant 12v and switched 12v.

For my ROW car I had to switch outputs of fuses D5 and E8 to only power my cigarette lighter with ignition.

Among other places, look under the center armrest.

Do a search

Thank you JayG for the advices and all your contribution. I will take a look this weekend and report back. Thank you Polaris and everyone on this forum.