veritas

I need help...I want XM ....took my car (02LS430) to local shop for install...They say..No Problemo !!......Leave it with them and they say....BIG PROBLEMO.....we dont know how to get the radio out to connect the fm modulator thingamajig !!

Calls to local dealer (less than 1 year in business) have not helped....

Apparently not many people have done any aftermarket stereo work on post 01 LS 430's....Understandable I suppose...

So, Does anyone have suggestions.....shop says they will install if they can get some tech sheets or pointers to determine how to pull the radio unit (I have standard stereo....NOT LEVINSON)

Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated...Im planning a 3000 mile roundtrip to Montana this summer, and I really want XM with me !!

Thanks Don

jstjohnz

I have an 01 LS430 with the Mark Levinson, but I suspect that the layout of the components is similar, as the 01 and 02 are virtually identical. The 'Tuner', which is where they would need to attach the FM modulator isn't part of the head unit, it's actually in the trunk, on the passenger side.

This can be a problem as most XM radio layouts assume that the modulator will mount at the dash.

I haven't dug into mine yet to see if the antenna connections on the tuner are standard or if they are oddball.

So which XM player do you have? I installed an Audiovox XM radio in my LS430. I chose the Audiovox because it had line-level RCA outputs. I am using a cassette adapter to get the audio into the system. To clean it up a bit I ran the wire from the cassette adapter inside of the radio, and out the back, so nothing is visible.

The quality of the cassette adapter isn't what you would get with a direct line-level input, but it's pretty respectable and I suspect is on a par with what you would get from the FM modulator.

-jim-