josey88

Now that my old hard nav hard drive was stolen yesterday I am thinking that perhaps I can get a 01-05 DVD nav type and replace it . Can it be done without too much cost and will it be doable ? Maybe by replacing the hard drive box where the nav brain is with the dvd box will do the trick or it will be a whole complete system replacement ? if the whole system have to be replaced , then , it is not worth it .
Please, don`t suggest using the phone GPS or to buy a portable Garmin ... I already know that . I have been using my Garmin Navi for years , but I wanted to keep my old hard drive too on the dash screen ..
I can find an old hard drive to replace mine or to on the direction of replacing the system with a DVD type .
Someone by now has to have had done this , am sure .
There must be a lot of older threads on this issue .

josey88

I guess it can`t or it is very difficult at the least and not worth the time , effort or cost .

77i9

iTrader: (14)

I searched the forum and it seems that most people opt to upgrade to aftermarket headunit/navi. I even tried to look for threads on jdm navi like we talked about, but no luck.

RXGS

iTrader: (2)

Is this because of lack of availability with 98-00s since I know not many came with navigation, or simply to upgrade? If its jsut availability, maybe even the ones from LS400s could work?

josey88

As far as I know, the LS400 and the GS from 98-00 are exactly the same system .

JeffTsai

iTrader: (1)

You will have to change out a lot of stuff. Wiring harness and the whole head unit to get the new dvd based system to work. Easier and better just to go aftermarket since those units are updated with new models all the time. So the functions will be all up to date.

tereck

Just get a nice double din deck with real time navigation? Good luck

repugnante

It would cost you much less to purchase an aftermarket unit. To do this swap, you are looking at well over $1000. There is a lot that needs to be changed out.

josey88

well, guys ... very good news after all . It turns out that when the thief tried to steal the drive, unscrewed the 3 nuts that hold the unit and tried to take out the hard drive , but was not able to extract it because of 2 small screws that need to be taken out also in order to slide the hard drive out . Perhaps he did not have the time or the tools , but in doing all of that , he dislodged the back connections and the Navigation stopped working .
This morning I was securing the unit back in with 3 new 10mm nuts when I noticed that the 2 small screws were still there , so I unscrewed them and voila , the drive was still there .Then I saw that the back connection was loose , so I fixed everything and the thing is working perfectly .
It was very stupid of the thief on trying to just steal the hard drive instead of taking out the whole unit ... I was very , very lucky , indeed .
So, everything is peachy .
You see, I have been using my up to date Garmin nuvi 265 WT for years , but what the hell, I wanted to see my old hard drive on the car screen , too .

ThomasGS4

iTrader: (19)

What happened to that?

josey88

yes, I lifted the unit , slided the front cover up and it was empty , or so I thought .
There are 2 small screws inside that need to be taken out (beside the 3 nuts that hold the unit) to slide the whole plastic cover out and then the hard drive is accessed , but it is on the upper side , not the bottom side .
So, if you only slide the front cover up , you would think the drive is missing . The whole plastic front cover have to be physically taken out , completely separated from the unit to then , get access to the drive .
The unit was tampered , no question about it , but luckily for me it only cost me 3 new 10mm nuts . The unit received a few slight scratches on the finish around one of the nuts on the attempt , but nothing big , so , I pushed the connections back in , installed the 3 nuts and I was done .
Today is a good day .

tereck

To me sounds like u have to install a good *** alarm. Where u live damm. Anyways keep the car in your garage or lighted area

dbogotti92

how was someone able to get into your trunk unless you didnt lock the car. but kind of random to just take that.

josey88

The car was being aligned so it was been working on . I just don`t know what exactly happened , except that the 3 nuts were gone and the unit was almost disconnected from the back connections from yanking it or whatever ....
the hard drive cut not be pulled out so I was lucky indeed .
The car has its OEM alarm .