pixel2000

Hello everyone!

Since a few days I am the proud owner of a 2001 Lexus RX 300 with no Nav CPU installed and as I did not find a definite answer to my questions while browsing through the forum, I am opening a new thread here.

I don't have a navigation CPU / DVD player installed, but the buttons on the front panel and the wiring to the trunk seem to be in place.

My target / wish is to add an AV input that I can use when selecting the navigation screen (currently: external system not connected) in order to connect an android phone / stick to use for navigation / listening to music / etc (I want screen output on front panel, high def audio output on car speakers and would like to control the android device via eg. a bluetooth mouse / keyboard solution).

My questions regarding this are the following:
- Is it necessary to get a navigation DVD player to enable the navigation screen (have read sth. about a special signal that the navigation unit is sending in order to activate the screen) or are there adapters out there that "fake" a non-existent navigation unit
- If a navigation DVD player is required, which models can be used with RX300? Since I would have navigation on android in my proposed solution, I would not care about the quality of the stock navi, so it's "as cheap as possible"
- Does the whole setup that I have descriped sound realistic? Or are there parts that are infeasible?

Thanks in advance!
Phil

salimshah

Have you looked at the non-nav -> to_nav adaptation thread?

A few folks have done that conversion and you can try contacting them by PM.

Salim

pixel2000

Hey Salim,

Thanks for your response! Could u maybe provide me with a link of the thread u are talking about? Or a more precise title? Was not able to find it so far. Or is it outside the RX300 subforum?

Regards,
Phil

hypervish

https://www.clublexus.com/forums/rx-...e-project.html

https://www.clublexus.com/forums/rx-...on-w-pics.html

pixel2000

Salim, hypervish,

Thanks for your responses. I've read the threads u were pointing me at before.

But maybe I have not made myself clear enough (or I have overlooked sth, my apologies then).

From what I've read it should be pretty easy (plug and play) to connect a navigation system to my RX as it is from 2001 and thus has the nav compatible front panel and trunk wiring in place.

But what I really aim at is a solution where I use the wires for navigation to get an a/v input to the front screen / audio system w/o actually installing a navigation system.

All solutions I have found are front panel <-> a/v adaptor <-> nav cpu / dvd player, but what I would like to have is front panel <-> a/v adaptor.

Would sth like this be feasible?

salimshah

Although I am not answering your question here .. can you please educate me and tell us where you found this information. I was under the impression that there is either a dumb LCD (non-nav) or touch-screen for Nav model. More so they have different center-consoles (ac-control etc).

The wonderful thing about internet is that it provides us an opportunity to learn [there is bad information out there too]

Salim

pixel2000

Alright, what I have in my car is a touchscreen display, nav buttons (unit as on 1st picture in https://www.clublexus.com/forums/rx-...e-project.html) and wires going to the right side of my trunk. What I miss is a dvd player box connected to the cables in my trunk that is the actual navigation system.

So with this setup, my impression is that I do not need to modify the front panel at all or to add / patch some wiring if I want to add a nav system, but I just have to connect one in my trunk. Please correct me if I am wrong ;-)

salimshah

I noticed that you are in Germany.

In USA, Lexus vehicles come with bundled options. The active screen would come with a NAV dvd. So here in USA, people would think that the missing dvd player was removed post delivery.

Would installing a nav-dvd make your vehicle center console identical to the US models?

Salim

pixel2000

Yes, I guess so. At least from what I've seen so far compared to other posts in this forum.

Given this, I would assume that if I got a nav dvd player, it would not be problematic to add an av input to the chain and I could make the implementation I want.

But regarding the factor of cost and the fact that if I can connect an android system to my front screen, I would have a nav system over that and thus would not require the stock nav, I try to avoid getting a nav dvd player.

salimshah

Contacting the folks who have done the modification would be the best course of action (that is if they dont respond here).

Since I have not made the mod, please take my post as a general guideline ...

Lexus uses a proprietary Serial Link protocol that sends control signal to devices .. cd player etc. (it is the second plug). There is very little information published about it and most of the audio (and maybe video) add-ons do not mess with it and fake environment is created where the System thinks that CD player is running while the audio leads are hijacked for auxiliary audio input. So here is the leap ... I think similar set up might be needed for video. Again please verify with folks who have made the nav-mod.

One option is to just try it out with the av-adapter -> your screen and headunit. Worst is the control will switch back to Radio (I think that is the default arrangement).

Oh one more issue is the nav systems have undergone generational changes since introduction of RX. Just make sure that what you get is model/generation compatible.

If no one responds then you are pretty much on the forefront of discovery on your own. It would be nice if you would come back and post how you solved the problem.

Salim

gazi001

Non Nav radio screen is not possible to add videos.

salimshah

What I understand is that he has a NAv screen but no nav-dvd in the trunk. In the beginning, I also thought that he has a dumb lcd. His RX is not for USA market and is configured differently.

Salim

gazi001

You cannot add av to the screen without nav dvd ecu. pixel2000 should google it for learn more info's of nav dvd ecu which is not a normal dvd player only. He needs nav touch screen radio, dvd ecu and finaly the adapter to activate dvd video in the RX screen like Vaistech SL2Vu which I am using for AV by Ipod touch 4th Gen or Navtool RGB which only for video not the audio. Read the Hyper link for more details of compitable hardwares. Thanks.

gazi001

What I understand from your post that your RX has the nav gps radio & screen. If so what it display when you press the map button or can you touch the screen for cd tracks from 1 to 6? Upload some pics of your radio and rear right side of the trunk wiring harnese for nav.

pixel2000

Hey Gazi, Hey Salim,

First of all, thanks for your answers and your help!

Here are some pics of the connectors in my trunk and my touch screen. When I select MAP, the display says "the external system is not connected". I can switch CD tracks via touch screen.

It seems that the large connector in my trunk is connected to an Y-shaped cable that converts one large connector to two smaller ones.

I guess because the setup of my car (nav touch screen w/o nav) is so special, it is hard to find any information about connecting video to screen w/o having nav dvd player.

Only comment on this I found so far is that a user named artaquio mentions under his youtube vid that it should be possible "even if the NAV CPU is not installed [], but you have to cheat the screen as it was one".


However, I was not able to contact him so far.

@Gazi: If you don't know it already, would it be maybe possible for you to disconnect your dvd player in your trunk in order to see whether you can still select nav screen and watch a vid? (from your previous posts I understand that you have nav + a/v installed in your car)

Again, thanks for your help!