I'm wanting to build a system to replace my heating / A/C controls in my 2006 Honda Civic with a LCD touchscreen that will control my heating, A/C, alarm, automatic headlights, and auto start functions.

How should I go about this? I need this setup to have multiple I/Os, be able to multitask, utilize a LCD touchscreen with GUI. Is there an existing device (such as an ITouch) that can be reprogrammed and interfaced with a I/O board, or should I focus on microcontrollers and build my own setup. I'm more of a programmer than circuit builder so I would prefer something simple to build that can be programmed for any task (mainly GUI, timers, interrupts, and I/O commands)

Also, is there a company that builds custom sized LCD touchscreens? I need a 2x5" screen and two 1.5" diameter screens if possible.

Any help is appreciated

Thanx, Paul