hard-wired ipod/iphone install (w/o nav interface) -- long-winded, w/ pics
07-06-08, 10:53 PM
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hard-wired ipod/iphone install (w/o nav interface) -- long-winded, w/ pics
From the first day I had purchased my 2008 IS350, I had planned on hard-wiring (and, importantly, hiding the wiring to) my iphone for audio playback/charging. I did not want to utilize the 12VDC/AUX jacks in the center console because I did not want exposed nor to bother with the pain of connecting/disconnecting an audio and charge plug every time I drove. At the same time, I did not want to use any of the systems that integrated directly with the navigation system for a variety of reasons (such as not wanting to rely on playlists, needing faster scrolling than the nav allows, not wanting to interrupt maps/navigation in order to interact with the iphone, etc.) After writing to this forum and my.IS to see if others had attempted the same setup, and getting no responses, I endeavored to do this installation myself, relying on a bit of trial and error.
A few hours and $200 later, I am very happy with my installation. Many will balk at the price tag, arguing that for $100-$200 more I could have had nav integration. As I said, I purposely avoided that. Additionally, over 2/3 of the price tag was not what I would call wiring but rather physical installation. Even the nav integration systems require some physical install: some put their ipods in the glove box; some put them in the cupholder/center console. The whole point of my installation was that I wanted something that was both clean and accessible (the latter because I wanted access to the phone for taking in/out of the car as well as for dialing/scrolling). Although the phone does work wirelessly through the bluetooth system, my install gives me access to the numbers and display and keeps the phone charged. Combined with the audio installation, the effect is very convenient. I always have a charged ipod/phone; the music cuts out when I get/make a call and resumes when I end a call; and there are no unsightly or bulky wires. As a bonus, I replaced the AUX audio jack in the center console (now hidden under the console as part of the hard-wiring) with a USB jack that I can use to charge/power just about any piece of modern electronics (phones, computers, gadgets, etc.).
Here's how I did it, divided into three sections: (1) parts list; (2) physical installation (the same installation some might want even if they use a nav-integrated system; and (3) audio/wiring installation.
PARTS
PHYSICAL INSTALLATION
The Kuda mount was a great find, designed for precisely what I wanted -- a clean, OEM-looking install that gives the driver easy access to the ipod/iphone. And the Dice charging cradle made it easy to pop the iphone/ipod in/out without needing to reattach the plug each time. Like the Apple ipod docks for your desk, the Dice mount comes with the audio/charging pins attached to the bottom so that they make physical contact when you slide the ipod in/out. The pins act as a pass-through, with the male pins in the bottom, and a female plug on the back. You basically connect an ipod proprietary charging/audio plug to the back of the cradle, and you simply drop the ipod in/out to connect/disconnect. Easy as pie.
The only rub (can you tell I'm a perfectionist?), is that the Kuda mount, while designed for the car, did need a bit of tweaking for a really tight fit, especially when using the Belkin adapter kit (which has an annoying right-angle plug that inconveniently turned toward the dash and made it hard to get a truly flush fit out of the box). Enter my Dremmel. I notched the bottom of the Kuda mount in order to make room for the Belkin plug and also shortened the length of the tab that was supposed to slide into the gap to the left of the stereo.
A few minutes, and a coat of spraypaint (Tamiya Polycarbonate PS-31 Smoke) to clean up the cut surfaces and blacken the white Belkin plug (I could have just bought the black one!), and the Kuda piece was ready for mounting. The Dice cradle is supposed to mount to the Kuda piece using a ball joint. Whatever advantage that joint provided in terms of precise angling were lost in its bulky and ugly appearance. Why spend $130 on a custom mount/cradle only to have it look like a $20 generic ipod kid from Best Buy? So, I ditched the ball joint, drilled a couple holes in the back of the cradle, screwed it directly to the mount, and put a couple round pieces of the soft side of velcro over the screws (to hide them and to eliminate any rattle between the iphone and cradle).
WIRING
The easiest way to think about my installation is that I did actually use the 12VDC and AUX jacks, only in a way that was hard-wired internally -- direct connections that were out of sight and that ran to a single ipod proprietary plug for audio and charging. (That's the plug that I connected to the Dice cradle above.) I accomplished this by using a the Belkin kit, which is a clever, well-made, and reasonably-priced gadget. You don't need to do a fancy install to use this thing. All you need to do is plug the main unit into your cigarette lighter socket (in center console) and run a stereo dubbing cable from it to the AUX audio jack (also in center console). That gives you a long single cable that attaches to your ipod for charging/audio. All I did was hide the connections.
Using these instructions as a guide, I removed the shifter/ashtray assemblies. That took about 1 minute. I had assumed it would be equally easy to unscrew and lift out the center console. Wrong. An hour and eight bloody knuckles later I simply couldn't figure it out. So I compromised. The reason I wanted to lift out the console was to get access to the AUX audio plug. With a little work, I was able to tug the plug assembly out from above. I then disconnected the wiring harness and dropped that back inside the console. I figured out that if I removed the rear ashtray assembly (a matter of pulling on it with moderate force), I could get to the back of the center console, lift it just enough to get my already bloody knuckles under it, and fish out the audio jack assembly. One I did that, I ran the audio patch cable and USB cable from by the shifter under the center console, again lifting the console from behind just enough to fish the USB cable back up through the hole to old AUX jack and the audio cable to the AUX jack (that I reconnected to the harness from behind the center console). I tucked the AUX audio assembly under the center console, replaced the rear ashtray assembly, and connected the flush mount USB jack to the USB cable (again, through the old hole to the AUX jack).
Next, I concentrated on power. I spliced into the cigarette lighter power (the harness toward the bottom of the radio) [A], connecting the 12VDC to a two-conductor wiring harness [ B] (not on parts list -- picked up for $2 at local electronics shop). I soldered the other end of the harness to a male-to-double-female cigarette lighter plug/socket y-adapter [C]. That setup gave me two sockets under the shift plate, easily detachable from the car thought the two-conductor plug [ B]. Finally, I plugged the Belkin unit [D] into one socket and a Kensington powered USB port [E] (along with the other end of the USB wire) into the other. Voila.
EPILOGUE
As a final note, I should add that this whole endeavor was frustrated by the fact that, since day one, my audio system suffered terrible alternator whine when using the AUX jack. I had read about the problems on the 06-07 models and the TSIB advising to install a filter. But I was assured by all in the know that the '08s did not require the installation of the filter. After a couple trips to an equally confused service department, they determined that I needed a new radio/head unit. Problem solved; no filter necessary.
A few hours and $200 later, I am very happy with my installation. Many will balk at the price tag, arguing that for $100-$200 more I could have had nav integration. As I said, I purposely avoided that. Additionally, over 2/3 of the price tag was not what I would call wiring but rather physical installation. Even the nav integration systems require some physical install: some put their ipods in the glove box; some put them in the cupholder/center console. The whole point of my installation was that I wanted something that was both clean and accessible (the latter because I wanted access to the phone for taking in/out of the car as well as for dialing/scrolling). Although the phone does work wirelessly through the bluetooth system, my install gives me access to the numbers and display and keeps the phone charged. Combined with the audio installation, the effect is very convenient. I always have a charged ipod/phone; the music cuts out when I get/make a call and resumes when I end a call; and there are no unsightly or bulky wires. As a bonus, I replaced the AUX audio jack in the center console (now hidden under the console as part of the hard-wiring) with a USB jack that I can use to charge/power just about any piece of modern electronics (phones, computers, gadgets, etc.).
Here's how I did it, divided into three sections: (1) parts list; (2) physical installation (the same installation some might want even if they use a nav-integrated system; and (3) audio/wiring installation.
PARTS
- Kuda USA Leather Mount / Dice Ipod Charging Cradle ($130)
- Belkin Auto Kit for iPod with Dock Connector ($33)
- Kensington Auto Power Adapter with USB Power Port K33418US ($14)
- Radio Shack 12VDC 2-Outlet Car Power Y-Adapter ($8)
- 6-Ft. Dubbing Cable with Mini Plugs ($5)
- L-Com USB A-B Coupler ($6)
- L-Com Premium USB Type A - B Cable, 0.5m ($7)
PHYSICAL INSTALLATION
The Kuda mount was a great find, designed for precisely what I wanted -- a clean, OEM-looking install that gives the driver easy access to the ipod/iphone. And the Dice charging cradle made it easy to pop the iphone/ipod in/out without needing to reattach the plug each time. Like the Apple ipod docks for your desk, the Dice mount comes with the audio/charging pins attached to the bottom so that they make physical contact when you slide the ipod in/out. The pins act as a pass-through, with the male pins in the bottom, and a female plug on the back. You basically connect an ipod proprietary charging/audio plug to the back of the cradle, and you simply drop the ipod in/out to connect/disconnect. Easy as pie.
The only rub (can you tell I'm a perfectionist?), is that the Kuda mount, while designed for the car, did need a bit of tweaking for a really tight fit, especially when using the Belkin adapter kit (which has an annoying right-angle plug that inconveniently turned toward the dash and made it hard to get a truly flush fit out of the box). Enter my Dremmel. I notched the bottom of the Kuda mount in order to make room for the Belkin plug and also shortened the length of the tab that was supposed to slide into the gap to the left of the stereo.
A few minutes, and a coat of spraypaint (Tamiya Polycarbonate PS-31 Smoke) to clean up the cut surfaces and blacken the white Belkin plug (I could have just bought the black one!), and the Kuda piece was ready for mounting. The Dice cradle is supposed to mount to the Kuda piece using a ball joint. Whatever advantage that joint provided in terms of precise angling were lost in its bulky and ugly appearance. Why spend $130 on a custom mount/cradle only to have it look like a $20 generic ipod kid from Best Buy? So, I ditched the ball joint, drilled a couple holes in the back of the cradle, screwed it directly to the mount, and put a couple round pieces of the soft side of velcro over the screws (to hide them and to eliminate any rattle between the iphone and cradle).
WIRING
The easiest way to think about my installation is that I did actually use the 12VDC and AUX jacks, only in a way that was hard-wired internally -- direct connections that were out of sight and that ran to a single ipod proprietary plug for audio and charging. (That's the plug that I connected to the Dice cradle above.) I accomplished this by using a the Belkin kit, which is a clever, well-made, and reasonably-priced gadget. You don't need to do a fancy install to use this thing. All you need to do is plug the main unit into your cigarette lighter socket (in center console) and run a stereo dubbing cable from it to the AUX audio jack (also in center console). That gives you a long single cable that attaches to your ipod for charging/audio. All I did was hide the connections.
Using these instructions as a guide, I removed the shifter/ashtray assemblies. That took about 1 minute. I had assumed it would be equally easy to unscrew and lift out the center console. Wrong. An hour and eight bloody knuckles later I simply couldn't figure it out. So I compromised. The reason I wanted to lift out the console was to get access to the AUX audio plug. With a little work, I was able to tug the plug assembly out from above. I then disconnected the wiring harness and dropped that back inside the console. I figured out that if I removed the rear ashtray assembly (a matter of pulling on it with moderate force), I could get to the back of the center console, lift it just enough to get my already bloody knuckles under it, and fish out the audio jack assembly. One I did that, I ran the audio patch cable and USB cable from by the shifter under the center console, again lifting the console from behind just enough to fish the USB cable back up through the hole to old AUX jack and the audio cable to the AUX jack (that I reconnected to the harness from behind the center console). I tucked the AUX audio assembly under the center console, replaced the rear ashtray assembly, and connected the flush mount USB jack to the USB cable (again, through the old hole to the AUX jack).
Next, I concentrated on power. I spliced into the cigarette lighter power (the harness toward the bottom of the radio) [A], connecting the 12VDC to a two-conductor wiring harness [ B] (not on parts list -- picked up for $2 at local electronics shop). I soldered the other end of the harness to a male-to-double-female cigarette lighter plug/socket y-adapter [C]. That setup gave me two sockets under the shift plate, easily detachable from the car thought the two-conductor plug [ B]. Finally, I plugged the Belkin unit [D] into one socket and a Kensington powered USB port [E] (along with the other end of the USB wire) into the other. Voila.
EPILOGUE
As a final note, I should add that this whole endeavor was frustrated by the fact that, since day one, my audio system suffered terrible alternator whine when using the AUX jack. I had read about the problems on the 06-07 models and the TSIB advising to install a filter. But I was assured by all in the know that the '08s did not require the installation of the filter. After a couple trips to an equally confused service department, they determined that I needed a new radio/head unit. Problem solved; no filter necessary.
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JasonGS
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