Has anyone found a good place to mount a laptop. I would like to use a quick disconnect mount to keep the computer out of the way of prying eyes and sticky fingers.

Guess you know you can play your music back from the computer thru the mp3 player. We have a number of books on the hard drive we like to listen to and want to use the computer with a gps hookup.
thanks,

http://www.laptopcarmount.com/

A little cheaper here..
http://www.profilon.us/jottodesk.htm#
http://www.mobileplanet.com/product.asp?pf%5Fid=MP321020&dept%5Fid=8380

Thanks, but I have mount, want input from someone who already has a laptop mounted as to where they placed it. Hoping to prevent trial and error.
thanks

You can also build your own laptop-car mount. They sell the plans on e-bay in the GPS section of electronics. You go to Home Depot, buy threaded pipe, flanges, threaded articulating joint and 12" x 12" Particle board. Costs about $25-$30. Research all of the police supply sites for ideas. I'm going to build it in 2 weeks. I'm also ordering the new Delorme lap top USB GPS. Total cost of Element GPS =$130-$150 includes GPS and laptop car mount (I already have a laptop from work) Or you can pay $600-$800 for the portable color GPS ) the screen is tiny compared to my laptop. It's good to have options.

Are you looking to install one in the front seat or back seat?

If the back seat...have you considered using the same bolts that the driver's side armrest uses to mount a laptop stand?

Definitely front seat. Would like to be able to view while driving. Have the voice option so all I have to do is vocalize to get where I want to to. The Delorme Earthmate system is really nice and is the way to go. Also I could play movies If so desired. Just trying to find that perfect place without a lot of t and E. Still waiting for info on when the 2004's will be out. Am supposed to have one on order.

I welded my own L bracket in order to keep the mount in the best position. My mount is sharing the seat bolt for the front passenger seat. It quick disconnects right from my L bracket just above the seat bolt.

Will get pics if more details wanted.

Keep the airbags in mind when you pick your location. My opinion is that there's practically no way to mount a laptop in the front of an Element that allows the driver to use it and still leaves the other seat safe for passengers. You can squeeze a netbook in between the seats but anything bigger either gets in the way of the gear shift or is between the passenger and the passenger air bag. Getting caught by an airbag propelled laptop can be more deadly than a head-on collision.

If you do a search for laptop on here, you'll find all sorts of discussions and pictures from people who've already done what you want to do. I prefer the RAM mounts over those Jotto mounts. I used to make my own pipe fitting mounts for cars but that's when we had no problem with drilling the floors full of holes. Whichever way you go, having a good solid mount is just as important as the quick release feature.

Little late on the airbag advise since the last person actually asking about this was from 03.... ;-)

Little late on the airbag advise since the last person actually asking about this was from 03.... ;-)

Yup! And the next person to come here looking for info might not get their face blown off.

Found a City cop teaching a newbie how to use the lookup on the car's Ram-mount laptop about a month ago. Said newbie was sitting in the passenger seat with the computer right in front of him, so I leaned in and casually mentioned the airbag problem. The topic was brought up next class meeting and I got a nice thank you note back. Those cars all had switches on the passenger airbags but nobody thought to turn them off.

Little late on the airbag advise since the last person actually asking about this was from 03.... ;-)

Yup! And the next person to come here looking for info might not get their face blown off.

Precisely. I had a friend who was force fed a laptop by the air bag. It's not a fun experience. He is fortunate to have minimal scaring. Funny thing about that particular road trip... I was supposed to go on it and something came up.

Lessons learned on that trip:
1) Ad-hoc wireless networking does not work well in moving vehicles. Especially when your trying to network between two cars.
2) Passengers should not operate laptops in front of an air bag.
3) People stop for absolutely no reason on the interstate. Even if your friend is the lead car, don't tailgate. When your friend needs to stop because of stupid stuff happening in front of him, you need some space to re-act equally.