Based on this story about an iPod interface install I purchased a PIE TOY03-AUX aux input adapter so I could finally listen to my iPhone without using the lousy FM transmitter. Sure, I coulda bought a new car, as the manufacturers seem to have finally come to their senses and started including such inputs, but I refuse to buy another car until I can have one that gets well over 40MPG.

The parts:

Thing is, buying all the parts is the easy part.

The dashboard:

Remove all three knobs and these two screws:

Pull the panel out from the bottom. As the hooks at the top of the panel are released, the panel should move freely:

Be careful of the wires to the A/C, defrost, and hazards. Thinking of electrics, most people recommend unhooking the battery to guard against short circuits while doing this sort of thing. For my part, I usually skip that and let a fuse automatically disconnect things when it blows.

Once the panel is clear, remove the four screws that hold the radio in place (two each side):

With the radio out, the interface adapter plugs in easily. There’s lots of room behind the dash to hide the box, and lots of open space to route the audio cable through.

But why spend so much time on this and still plug the iPhone into the dash’s 12V accessory socket? I wired the extension cable into the existing power. Getting at the wires to the power socket requires removing another panel. Easy enough, but it looks an awful mess:

With the audio cable and the new power jack, I simply plugged in an old Belkin car charger, plugged the audio cable 1/8th inch end into that, and now all I have to do is connect the dock connector to listen to my iPod in the car.

Total time for the job? If you don’t include having to run out for a new fuse, then it’s under an hour.

Team Pneumatik’s FAQ addresses the question “why do I need air suspension” simply: “Because you wanna be cool!” And now, with Pneumatik’s forthcoming kit, Scion xB owners can be cool too. Thing is, based on the photos it just doesn’t have the same effect on an xB as it does on, say, a 1965 Caddy.

tags: air suspension, low rider, montreal, pneumatic suspension, pneumatics, pneumatik, scion, scion xb

A reader, Mike, wrote in to reccomend the Precision Interface Electronics aux input adapter to connect the audio from my iPod to my Scion’s factory head unit.

I don’t know if you ever found a solution to connecting your iPod to your Scion head unit, but if not, you can use this adapter to add an AUX input to the Scion factory head unit.

I asked Mike for followup and details, and he offered this:

I am not affiliated with myradiostore.com, I sent that link because I am comfortable recommending that retailer based on my past experience with them. That particular part is available from a variety of other retailers as well.

I myself have not used that particular part but I have installed similar products from that manufacturer in customer’s vehicles (I install stereos as a side job). Sound quality is just the same as if the receiver had its own AUX input jacks.

I have yet to try any input adapters, so it’s nice to get reader feedback. Thanks, Mike.

A quick glance at the PIE website shows that the adapter is available in several models for compatibility with cars and stereos from a the full range of manufacturers.

Also look here and here for related news.

Related iPod stories at MaisonBisson:
Integration: In Car iPod, In Car iPod Take 2, iPod Integration Kits Proliferate For Home And Car, Saab, and PIE iPod Input Adapter.
Hacks, laughs, and background: iPod Hacks, iPod Giggles, What Does Proprietary Mean Anyway?

Technorati Tags: adapter, apple, car, integration, integration kit, ipod, ipod mini, scion, stereo, stereos

Engadget echoed a story from AutoBlog (duh, I just noticed that they’re both from Weblogs Inc.) about an iPod integration kit that works with most all 1998-or-newer cars: iPod2car.

First, it gives a clean line-in to the stero from the iPod, then it gives next and previous track as well as rewind and fastforward control on the stereo. Sure, you can buy a 2005 BMW and get the same deal as an option, but this is cheaper.

Most importantly, it’s compatible with both my Scion xB and Sandee’s Honda Civic. The FAQ answers some questions, and links to the installation manual.

The manual also helps answer some basic questions about the xB stereo. For instance, all Toyota (1998 – 2005), Scion (2003-2005), and Isuzu (1998 – 2003) factory stereos apparently have the same connections. But, Toyotas require a cable adapter that’s only available from the dealer (part #08695-00370). With this in mind, I can probably get a cheaper audio-only input adapter. I went looking for such a solution before, but details about the Scion radio are scarce.

Also in iPod2car FAQs is a link to carstereohelp.com’s stereo removal guides. And, back at Autoblog, they’ve got an entire section devoted to the xB.

Then, for home-use, I can’t help but like the Bose SoundDock.

Related iPod stories at MaisonBisson:
Integration: In Car iPod, In Car iPod Take 2, iPod Integration Kits Proliferate For Home And Car, Saab, and PIE iPod Input Adapter.
Hacks, laughs, and background: iPod Hacks, iPod Giggles, What Does Proprietary Mean Anyway?

Technorati Tags: adapter, bose, civic, engadget, honda, honda civic, icruze, integration, ipod, ipod2car, scion, scion xb, toyota

Without wanting to get into the rest of the story, I’m now trying to figure out how to plug an iPod into a Scion xB. The xB comes with a stereo by Pioneer, but I haven’t been able to get details about what inputs it supports.

Installer.com and Logjam both offer connection kits that appear to give me RCA aux inputs to the radio head unit, but Pioneer offers a simple IP Bus adapter that might also do the trick. The question is: does the Scion radio by Pioneer have IP Bus support?

I’d RTFM, but I can’t get specifics about what model Pioneer is in the xB, and Scion doesn’t have any manuals that I can find online.

Pioneer is using the xB as a demo car. In this context, their story about it reveals that the xB has a full double-DIN radio bay, and that they successfully installed both an AVIC-80DVD navigation system and AVH-P7500DVD head unit in place of the standard stereo.

Though nice enough, the sales guys knew nothing, of course. I’m hoping to get more details about it when the radio actually gets installed. Maybe the service guys will actually let me see the back of the radio before it goes in, or maybe they’ve actually got docs they can share with me. Maybe.

[update]: More info, details, and solutions in In Car iPod, Take 2.

Related iPod stories at MaisonBisson:
Integration: In Car iPod, In Car iPod Take 2, iPod Integration Kits Proliferate For Home And Car, Saab, and PIE iPod Input Adapter.
Hacks, laughs, and background: iPod Hacks, iPod Giggles, What Does Proprietary Mean Anyway?

Technorati Tags: adapter, apple, ipod, pioneer, scion