So i posted over the weekend about wanting a TB for my Garmin..... with the only response pointing me to a website of other types of vehicles i got tired of searching, decided it didnt exist and set out making one of my own from an existing .srf file.
There are ways to make your own totally. Using a camera, and a model of the car is the easiest i have seen, but that requires alot of work, and at least 36 pictures then put together somehow with photo editing software....
While bored at work today, i started on it.
I took the existing file for the garmin, available here
http://www8.garmin.com/vehicles/product.html?vName=suv
I used a .srf conversion file someone else made here
http://techmods.net/nuvi/
That turned it into a PNG file which fireworks, photoshop, gimp can use.
(note: i tried using paint, it cant handle the transparency around the truck. it will work but you end up with a black box around the car you create)
Using this png file i plugged away for hours going pixel by pixel on some of the more detailed sections.
I added a bug guard on the front, shaped the tailights more like mine with reverse lights included, took the grey off the side, it had black towards the bottom anyway which really looked like running boards once i got the grey out of there, added some headlights and turn signals to the front. took off the roof rack cross bars and made them black. and of course changed it to a pretty spot on color of my truck. (i did this by bringing a picture of my truck in with it, and using the dropper to pull off a decent sample)
Anyway. after alot of tweaking and moving, and shading and things of that nature.
Remember its still in PNG format which will not work on your garmin, so you have to use the second tool on this page to convert it back to a .srf file.
http://techmods.net/nuvi/
After that you will need the little usb cord that attachs to this gps (usually with mp3 players, dig cameras, etc)
You open up the gps in my computer as though it is removeable storage. In there is a file called vehicles, copy your.srf file in there. (you can also delete any cars you dont use or want)
Note: be careful while in the garmin folders not to delete any other files, it can kill random things in your gps.
The results were grand in my opinion. It looks like my little truck driving down the road.
So without further rambling, here are some shots of the finished deal
(the white truck was the original)
And heres an edited screen shot of the back, i paid most attention to that shot because its the one you generally see the most on the gps
If anyone is interested in the .srf file i would be happy to send it to them. Better yet it would be great if someone could upload it and share it for others. I think just changing the color of the truck shouldnt be that much of an issue for those of you with other colored TBs.... (but we all know green is the best....aside from a Black SS.....i think a Black SS beats even my totally awesome green)
What do you guys think?
Edit: I have the Garmin Nuvi 250. It should work for sure on the 200 series. Id imagine it would work on most to all Garmins but i really dont have any idea, try it and see
I made (edited) a .srf file for Garmin Nuvi of my TB
