DVD player and USA-Spec Comprehensive DIY Install
#1
DVD player and USA-Spec Comprehensive DIY Install
Okay, folks. Here is the DIY I promised I would do in another thread. I just completed this install in my car and it works PERFECTLY. It's LONG but hopefully it will be useful to you all. I know there are several DIY's for this mod out there but I hope that this will replace them. It's fairly detailed and I think it's pretty good, if I do say so myself.
PLEASE, if you decide to follow this DIY, read the whole thing BEFORE you get started. That way, you will know what to expect and what to look for. There's nothing more frustrating than getting into a DIY job and the next step not making sense because you don't understand the big picture yet. Reading the DIY before you get started should help avoid this.
Also, to those of you who have done this before and are smarter than me, please let me know if there's something I need to change. I was doing this all off of memory so there is a chance I missed a detail or two. Let me know and I'm sure one of our gracious Moderators will allow an edit.
Thanks!
Jayson
PLEASE, if you decide to follow this DIY, read the whole thing BEFORE you get started. That way, you will know what to expect and what to look for. There's nothing more frustrating than getting into a DIY job and the next step not making sense because you don't understand the big picture yet. Reading the DIY before you get started should help avoid this.
Also, to those of you who have done this before and are smarter than me, please let me know if there's something I need to change. I was doing this all off of memory so there is a chance I missed a detail or two. Let me know and I'm sure one of our gracious Moderators will allow an edit.
Thanks!
Jayson
#2
Okay, guys. I know I volunteered a DIY walkthrough but my camera battery is caput and so I couldn’t take pictures. I’m still going to write a walkthrough though, because this install is pretty straight forward and can be done without the pictures. I will try to be very detailed and clear in my writing so that it is easily understood. So here it goes. Sorry about no pictures, guys!
First, I need to give a shout out to Dave (dwb933). This guy is awesome. He offered to give me a hand with my install and answered any and all questions that I had. He even opened up his driveway to me and helped me do some of the wire connecting and such. This man represents what Acurazine is about. Generous, friendly, helpful, and cool as hell. THANKS, DAVE! Also, Aaron (sharksbreath) was around to give a helping hand, too. So a shout-out to Aaron as well! Thanks, guys!
Also, a thanks to all you guys who offered suggestions, answered questions, etc… to help me get this thing done. I’m really appreciative of this community and it’s an invaluable source of information thanks to you all!
Let’s get started!
This walkthrough would work for someone just wanting to install the USA-Spec device ONLY. All you will need is the USA-Spec device and a few tools and you’ll be set with your purchases. If you’re only installing the USA-Spec, follow the directions in blue. If you’re installing the entire DVD system, then follow the whole DIY.
I’m just going to list out everything I bought, the prices, and what I would recommend you to buy.
1. USA-Spec PA15 Hon3. $130 on Amazon. You need this for your audio input. The nice thing is that you can use it for both your DVD player AND your iPod/iPhone/whathaveyou. I really like this thing and would recommend it.
2. NAVTOOL. $180 on eBay. I just bid in increments until they accepted my offer. You may be able to get it for $175 but they rejected my offer of $170. As I understand it, this is the same thing as Dom’s TVandNavToGo. It was just easier for me to order NAVTOOL on eBay (I’m not sure if it’s cheaper).
3. Myron and Davis AD212 DVD player. ~$150 online. I bought mine used on eBay for $93 shipped. HOWEVER, my recommendation would be to just buy it new online. The eBay seller cheated me and the player did NOT come with a power cord or remote extender sensor, so I had to pay more money for the harness. Obviously, any DVD player will work though. I went with this one because it’s used by a lot of people on the board. You can go any route you want.
4. Remote Extender. $17. I bought this because my DVD player didn’t come with one and I thought it would work. Because I’m not putting my DVD player in the front (it will be in the trunk) I thought a good solution would be to run a remote eye extender to the front so that I could control everything with the remote from the front. The only time I would have to access the actual DVD player is to change DVD’s. WELL, it didn’t work. This was the wrong part, and I can’t find an aftermarket one online. It looks I will have to order it straight from the OEM. If you want to go this route then make sure your DVD player comes with one of these. The Myron and Davis AD212 comes with one NEW.
5. SPST Rocker Switch from RadioShack. $8/$3. I bought this online for $8 shipped. Save yourself $5 and buy it at a RadioShack location. Just get it when you’re buying your wire/connectors/cords etc…
6. Add-a-Fuse. $7. I got this at advanced/AutoZone but RadioShack may have it. I HIGHLY recommend this method for running your power source. It’s very easy to do and will keep you from frying your expensive electronics.
7. Dremel. $40. I just bought a cheap one at Wal-mart. Cordless, basic, but it works. The only thing I used it for was to drill for my switch and to drill a hole to put some cords through. This isn’t necessary for the install.
8. Wire. ~$10. Any 12/14/16 gauge wire should work perfect. Get at least 20ft. I think I bought 40ft. You’ll also want to get wire to run your switch.
9. RCA Cables. $??. I didn’t have to buy these as they came with my DVD player. You need the two audio (red and white) and one video (yellow) cable. This shouldn’t be expensive.
10. Connectors. ~$10. If you want to do the job well (I hate half-assing), get some wire connectors. You can use electrical tape but using connectors gives me piece of mind. I bought a pack of ring wire connectors, splicer connectors, and female end connectors. I like the heat shrink kind as well. Honestly, if you spend $400 on electronics you should fork over the extra $10 to do the job well. Just my two cents. Make sure your ring connectors are large enough to fit around the factory ground bolt, and make sure your female end connectors fit on the Rocker Switch.
11. Extra fuses. $5. Always handy. I intended to buy only 5 amp fuses, but they were out so I had to buy a small variety pack. It came with two 5 amp fuses which should be more than enough. It had a few other amperage fuses which are nice to have for the future.
12. Miscellaneous. ~$20. For anything I forgot. You’ll need tools like screwdrivers, wire cutters/strippers/crimpers, zip ties, etc… Hopefully you’ll have a lot of this, but the $20 should cover any inevitable Wally World runs you WILL encounter.
This brings MY total for the whole job to about $550. Yikes. Don’t tell my girlfriend.
However, hopefully my mistakes will be your learning experience. Determine what you need to buy and shop around. I had to buy a bunch of random crap like wire crimpers, dremel, connectors, ect… which really adds up. I think it’s completely possible to do this job for around $400.
First, I need to give a shout out to Dave (dwb933). This guy is awesome. He offered to give me a hand with my install and answered any and all questions that I had. He even opened up his driveway to me and helped me do some of the wire connecting and such. This man represents what Acurazine is about. Generous, friendly, helpful, and cool as hell. THANKS, DAVE! Also, Aaron (sharksbreath) was around to give a helping hand, too. So a shout-out to Aaron as well! Thanks, guys!
Also, a thanks to all you guys who offered suggestions, answered questions, etc… to help me get this thing done. I’m really appreciative of this community and it’s an invaluable source of information thanks to you all!
Let’s get started!
This walkthrough would work for someone just wanting to install the USA-Spec device ONLY. All you will need is the USA-Spec device and a few tools and you’ll be set with your purchases. If you’re only installing the USA-Spec, follow the directions in blue. If you’re installing the entire DVD system, then follow the whole DIY.
I’m just going to list out everything I bought, the prices, and what I would recommend you to buy.
1. USA-Spec PA15 Hon3. $130 on Amazon. You need this for your audio input. The nice thing is that you can use it for both your DVD player AND your iPod/iPhone/whathaveyou. I really like this thing and would recommend it.
2. NAVTOOL. $180 on eBay. I just bid in increments until they accepted my offer. You may be able to get it for $175 but they rejected my offer of $170. As I understand it, this is the same thing as Dom’s TVandNavToGo. It was just easier for me to order NAVTOOL on eBay (I’m not sure if it’s cheaper).
3. Myron and Davis AD212 DVD player. ~$150 online. I bought mine used on eBay for $93 shipped. HOWEVER, my recommendation would be to just buy it new online. The eBay seller cheated me and the player did NOT come with a power cord or remote extender sensor, so I had to pay more money for the harness. Obviously, any DVD player will work though. I went with this one because it’s used by a lot of people on the board. You can go any route you want.
4. Remote Extender. $17. I bought this because my DVD player didn’t come with one and I thought it would work. Because I’m not putting my DVD player in the front (it will be in the trunk) I thought a good solution would be to run a remote eye extender to the front so that I could control everything with the remote from the front. The only time I would have to access the actual DVD player is to change DVD’s. WELL, it didn’t work. This was the wrong part, and I can’t find an aftermarket one online. It looks I will have to order it straight from the OEM. If you want to go this route then make sure your DVD player comes with one of these. The Myron and Davis AD212 comes with one NEW.
5. SPST Rocker Switch from RadioShack. $8/$3. I bought this online for $8 shipped. Save yourself $5 and buy it at a RadioShack location. Just get it when you’re buying your wire/connectors/cords etc…
6. Add-a-Fuse. $7. I got this at advanced/AutoZone but RadioShack may have it. I HIGHLY recommend this method for running your power source. It’s very easy to do and will keep you from frying your expensive electronics.
7. Dremel. $40. I just bought a cheap one at Wal-mart. Cordless, basic, but it works. The only thing I used it for was to drill for my switch and to drill a hole to put some cords through. This isn’t necessary for the install.
8. Wire. ~$10. Any 12/14/16 gauge wire should work perfect. Get at least 20ft. I think I bought 40ft. You’ll also want to get wire to run your switch.
9. RCA Cables. $??. I didn’t have to buy these as they came with my DVD player. You need the two audio (red and white) and one video (yellow) cable. This shouldn’t be expensive.
10. Connectors. ~$10. If you want to do the job well (I hate half-assing), get some wire connectors. You can use electrical tape but using connectors gives me piece of mind. I bought a pack of ring wire connectors, splicer connectors, and female end connectors. I like the heat shrink kind as well. Honestly, if you spend $400 on electronics you should fork over the extra $10 to do the job well. Just my two cents. Make sure your ring connectors are large enough to fit around the factory ground bolt, and make sure your female end connectors fit on the Rocker Switch.
11. Extra fuses. $5. Always handy. I intended to buy only 5 amp fuses, but they were out so I had to buy a small variety pack. It came with two 5 amp fuses which should be more than enough. It had a few other amperage fuses which are nice to have for the future.
12. Miscellaneous. ~$20. For anything I forgot. You’ll need tools like screwdrivers, wire cutters/strippers/crimpers, zip ties, etc… Hopefully you’ll have a lot of this, but the $20 should cover any inevitable Wally World runs you WILL encounter.
This brings MY total for the whole job to about $550. Yikes. Don’t tell my girlfriend.
![Tomato](https://acurazine.com/forums/images/smilies/tomato.gif)
#3
Okay, time for the install. I’m not a professional and wouldn’t consider myself even adept at this stuff. Thanks to Dave (dwb933) and other guys on the forum I was able to get this stuff done. I’ll try to list everything in order so it’s easy to follow these steps. Just so you know ahead of time, I put my USA-Spec device under the center console cupholders, my NAVTOOL behind the navigation brain, and my DVD player right behind the rear seat pass through. The USA-Spec and NAVTOOL are completely hidden. If you couldn’t see my DVD player, my install would look 100% factory. If you want to put anything in a different area, then my DIY walk through won’t be quite as much help. The principal connections will be the same, but the steps will be different. Some people mount the DVD player in the glovebox, under the seat, in the rear armrest, or in the center cubby (if you’re really ballsy), but I did mine in the trunk for ease of install and so I didn’t have to hack up my car.
Step 1: Remove all necessary trims and covers. I will try to do this in the best order possible, so remove trim in the order I describe. Just try to use strong and controlled motions when you try to remove. Don’t jerk, but be firm. It’s the best advice I can give. I’ll try to let you know the problem areas and where there are screws and fasteners! DISCLAIMER – I’m doing this from memory, so it is YOUR responsibility to check and double check for any screws and fasteners before you start tugging. If you break something, don’t come to me crying about it. I’ve already cried about my broken clips too much to cry about yours. J So let’s get started on the trim/covers.
First, remove the two silver trim pieces on either side of the silver console. These simply pull out. No, really, they do, I promise. Just pull. Keep pulling. Yes, I know it’s about to break… keep pulling. Now make an “Oh, man, please don’t break” face. FINALLY, it pops off. Nerve racking, huh? Well, get used to it because that’s how the whole freaking car is. I HIGHLY recommend some kind of plastic tool to pry off a lot of these pieces. But I did it without so it can be done. Next, remove the piece under the steering wheel. There is one plastic fastener on the bottom right side that you need to remove. The rest just pulls down/out. You will have to detach the plugs (trunk switch, VSA switch, and mirror switch).
Next, pull the fuse cover out. Then you will need to pull up the weather stripping to get to the baseboard trims. These are the two trim pieces that go from the dead pedal to the vertical piece of trim next to the driver’s seat. These just pulls out as well, but make sure that you don’t leave any plastic fasteners in the car. They need to be in the trim for when you reinstall. If they stay in the car you will have to remove them and place them back in the cover. It all needs to come out because you have to run wires to the fuse box and the switch (if applicable). Next, detach the BOTTOM ONLY of the vertical trim piece (near where the bottom of the seatbelt is bolted. You don’t have to remove the whole piece; just enough to allow you to get the baseboard trim out. Then pull the weather stripping in the backseat up do the trim on the floor inside of the back door, followed by the trim that follows the left portion of the rear seat. Simply put, you should have removed all plastic covers that line the inside of the car from the fuse box to the very top of the driver’s side rear seat (now I’m starting to realize just how important pictures really are). The vertical trim that lines the rear seat is difficult to remove, but can be done. You basically just have to try to reach around the side of the seat and pop the trim out. Once that is removed, move to the trunk. You have to unscrew all the cargo net holds, and remove several little plastic fasteners. Once you do this, you can pull away the side covers to give you access behind them. You will also need to remove the plastic piece on the very front of the trunk (in front of the spare tire area). Remove that plastic piece, pull up the spare tire floor cover, remove the spare, and pull away the sides to give you access to the navigation brain and the left side of the trunk. Go back to the front of the car.
Remove the plastic cover to the right of the first cover you removed (under the steering wheel). This will give you access to the back of the navigation unit/radio/cd player. You may have to undo one screw to get that piece out. It should be in plain sight. Next, take out all screws from the center cup holders that were hidden by the silver trim. There should be three, as well as one additional screw at the top right (near the e-brake handle). There might be one adjacent to the e-brake screw on the opposite side. From memory, these are all the screws I can remember. Lastly, go INSIDE the center console storage and pull up the bottom cover. There are two screws beneath the cover that need to be removed. Once you take out all those screws you should be able to pull the center storage away from the shifter console. This will let you pull out the cup holders and gain access to some free space underneath. You will have to unplug the accessory lighter that is inside the storage console, as well as unhook it from a clip on the bottom of the cup holder. If my memory serves me correctly, that should be all the trim and covers that you have to undo in order to do this complete install (the way I did it).
Next, pull the fuse cover out. Then you will need to pull up the weather stripping to get to the baseboard trims. These are the two trim pieces that go from the dead pedal to the vertical piece of trim next to the driver’s seat. These just pulls out as well, but make sure that you don’t leave any plastic fasteners in the car. They need to be in the trim for when you reinstall. If they stay in the car you will have to remove them and place them back in the cover. It all needs to come out because you have to run wires to the fuse box and the switch (if applicable). Next, detach the BOTTOM ONLY of the vertical trim piece (near where the bottom of the seatbelt is bolted. You don’t have to remove the whole piece; just enough to allow you to get the baseboard trim out. Then pull the weather stripping in the backseat up do the trim on the floor inside of the back door, followed by the trim that follows the left portion of the rear seat. Simply put, you should have removed all plastic covers that line the inside of the car from the fuse box to the very top of the driver’s side rear seat (now I’m starting to realize just how important pictures really are). The vertical trim that lines the rear seat is difficult to remove, but can be done. You basically just have to try to reach around the side of the seat and pop the trim out. Once that is removed, move to the trunk. You have to unscrew all the cargo net holds, and remove several little plastic fasteners. Once you do this, you can pull away the side covers to give you access behind them. You will also need to remove the plastic piece on the very front of the trunk (in front of the spare tire area). Remove that plastic piece, pull up the spare tire floor cover, remove the spare, and pull away the sides to give you access to the navigation brain and the left side of the trunk. Go back to the front of the car.
Remove the plastic cover to the right of the first cover you removed (under the steering wheel). This will give you access to the back of the navigation unit/radio/cd player. You may have to undo one screw to get that piece out. It should be in plain sight. Next, take out all screws from the center cup holders that were hidden by the silver trim. There should be three, as well as one additional screw at the top right (near the e-brake handle). There might be one adjacent to the e-brake screw on the opposite side. From memory, these are all the screws I can remember. Lastly, go INSIDE the center console storage and pull up the bottom cover. There are two screws beneath the cover that need to be removed. Once you take out all those screws you should be able to pull the center storage away from the shifter console. This will let you pull out the cup holders and gain access to some free space underneath. You will have to unplug the accessory lighter that is inside the storage console, as well as unhook it from a clip on the bottom of the cup holder. If my memory serves me correctly, that should be all the trim and covers that you have to undo in order to do this complete install (the way I did it).
Next, to install the USA-Spec, simply disconnect the large plug closest to you and at the bottom (from the driver’s side) from the back of the Navi unit. It’s a little hard to get to but it’s not too bad to unplug (just wait; the hard part is coming up). Once you disconnect that plug from the Navi, plug it into the USA-Spec provided cord, and then plug the other USA-Spec cord back into the Navi (same place as before). This step is much more easily said than done. In fact, it downright sucks. It’s extremely hard to do, but in my opinion it’s better than undoing the entire console. Just keep working at it and you will manage to get it in there. Try having a friend/girlfriend/sibling with small hands give it a shot if you have big hands. They may be able to do it more easily, although I have very large hands and was able to get it. Once you have it hooked up, run that cord under the center console (beneath the shifter) to underneath where the cup holders would sit. This is where I kept my USA-Spec hub. There is an empty place that fits the hub perfectly. I simply wrapped it in a towel to prevent rattles and velcro’ed to the empty space. I wanted the wire that connects to my iPhone to run through the center console, so I had to drill a hole in the bottom of the storage bin and run the wire through the hole. I drilled in an empty spot right beneath the accessory power plug. Make sure you’re plugged into the back of the Navi unit, into the USA-Spec on both ends of the hub, and into your media player and give it a test drive once you have selected which mode you want USA-Spec to run in. I chose 1-off, 2-off, 3-on, 4-off. It’s the best option, in my opinion. This will allow you to have some control at the Navi screen but also control directly from the iPod/iPhone if you would like to. If you only wanted to install the USA-Spec, you’re done! Just put everything back together and enjoy your music! NOTE: The directions for connecting the device are provided with the USA-Spec device if my directions are confusing.
Last edited by jsonkimz; 05-25-2011 at 08:57 AM.
#4
If you’re doing the whole DVD install, your work has just begun. Leave your USA-Spec plugged up, but leave your trim and covers all undone. Your next step is to run some wires. Start with your Add-A-Fuse. Wire it to the wire that you bought using a splicer. Terminate the end with the Add-A-Fuse attached at the fuse box. Run that wire along the floor underneath where the trim was. There are existing wires and tubes there; I kinda wedged it between all those wires. While you’re running your power wire, you should run your switch wire as well. Terminate this wire to where you will want your switch to be. I put mine in the blank spot next to the VSA and mirror switches and I have to say that it looks PERFECT. ![Thumbs Up](https://acurazine.com/forums/images/smilies/thumbsup.gif)
Keep running that wire beneath where all your trim would be and you should be able to see a little ray of light if you try to look in the trunk from where you stopped removing trim. I basically just shoved the wires towards the light until I would walk around to the trunk and pull them through from the other side. Once you get them through, take the wires and run them ABOVE the cover at the top of the trunk. You’ll see what I mean. You will have to pull out tabs to get the cover to pull down if you haven’t done so already. Run the wire from the left side of the car (if you’re at your car doggy style) to the right side to the navigation brain. Be careful to run your wire such that you don’t get it pinched in anything when you close the trunk.
Once you’ve finished running your wire, get your NAVTOOL ready. If you’re planning on installing a back up camera, I apologize, but I can’t help you. In the interest of time (had a long vacation drive coming up) I elected not to run a back up camera; maybe someday in the future. If you don’t use a camera, then you’ll have no use for some of the wires running from the NAVTOOL. All the wires are labeled so it should be very straight forward. Just cut the existing switch and splice your switch wire to them. Then, TAPE your power wire to the NAVTOOL power cord (DO NOT SPLICE YET: you will have to splice later when you add the DVD player. This is simply to test your power). I would connect the two wires close to the place where you want to affix your NAVTOOL. Next, ground the negative wire. You can use the factory ground bolt using one of the ring wire connectors. If my memory serves me right, everything else can be grounded except for the power cord and switch cords. Hook up your NAVTOOL to the navigation brain by the same “method” you used with the USA-Spec (unplug from brain -> plug into device -> plug back into brain). Once you’ve connected it (leave the power cord out for now) attach the NAVTOOL to the vertical crossbar in the car using zip ties (the bar is vertical and is somewhat behind the navigation brain. You should understand when you see it). Wrap the NAVTOOL in the towel to prevent rattles. I fastened it so that the end of the NAVTOOL with the color adjusting buttons faced UP. Once you have it securely fastened you can plug in the power cord. Run to the front of the car and plug the Add-A-Fuse into fuse #32. I believe you should have a 7.5 amp fuse and a 5 amp fuse plugged into the Add-A-Fuse, and the 7.5 is the “primary.” Once you have that plugged up, if you wired everything correctly, you should have power to your NAVTOOL. Crank your car or turn on the battery and run look at your NAVTOOL to see if it’s on. If you’re using DOM’s I’m not sure if there’s an indicator light, but with NAVTOOL there is. Just look for that little red light. If you attached your NAVTOOL like I did then you may have to use a mirror to see the light because it will be at the bottom. If it’s dark you can just look for the glow. If you have power than you’re one step closer to completion!
Time to wire up your DVD player. You will have to choose your location, and do any work involved with installing the DVD player in the location you choose. I decided to simply put mine on the floor of the trunk. It’s simple and not too fancy, but it is effective. Someday in the future when I put in a sound system I will create an enclosure for the DVD player to clean it up, but for now I am satisfied. I have my DVD player facing the front of the car sitting just inside the rear seat pass through. This will allow any passenger that I have (which will probably be the only time I’m playing DVD’s) to access the DVD player from the inside of the car.
![Thumbs Up](https://acurazine.com/forums/images/smilies/thumbsup.gif)
Keep running that wire beneath where all your trim would be and you should be able to see a little ray of light if you try to look in the trunk from where you stopped removing trim. I basically just shoved the wires towards the light until I would walk around to the trunk and pull them through from the other side. Once you get them through, take the wires and run them ABOVE the cover at the top of the trunk. You’ll see what I mean. You will have to pull out tabs to get the cover to pull down if you haven’t done so already. Run the wire from the left side of the car (if you’re at your car doggy style) to the right side to the navigation brain. Be careful to run your wire such that you don’t get it pinched in anything when you close the trunk.
Once you’ve finished running your wire, get your NAVTOOL ready. If you’re planning on installing a back up camera, I apologize, but I can’t help you. In the interest of time (had a long vacation drive coming up) I elected not to run a back up camera; maybe someday in the future. If you don’t use a camera, then you’ll have no use for some of the wires running from the NAVTOOL. All the wires are labeled so it should be very straight forward. Just cut the existing switch and splice your switch wire to them. Then, TAPE your power wire to the NAVTOOL power cord (DO NOT SPLICE YET: you will have to splice later when you add the DVD player. This is simply to test your power). I would connect the two wires close to the place where you want to affix your NAVTOOL. Next, ground the negative wire. You can use the factory ground bolt using one of the ring wire connectors. If my memory serves me right, everything else can be grounded except for the power cord and switch cords. Hook up your NAVTOOL to the navigation brain by the same “method” you used with the USA-Spec (unplug from brain -> plug into device -> plug back into brain). Once you’ve connected it (leave the power cord out for now) attach the NAVTOOL to the vertical crossbar in the car using zip ties (the bar is vertical and is somewhat behind the navigation brain. You should understand when you see it). Wrap the NAVTOOL in the towel to prevent rattles. I fastened it so that the end of the NAVTOOL with the color adjusting buttons faced UP. Once you have it securely fastened you can plug in the power cord. Run to the front of the car and plug the Add-A-Fuse into fuse #32. I believe you should have a 7.5 amp fuse and a 5 amp fuse plugged into the Add-A-Fuse, and the 7.5 is the “primary.” Once you have that plugged up, if you wired everything correctly, you should have power to your NAVTOOL. Crank your car or turn on the battery and run look at your NAVTOOL to see if it’s on. If you’re using DOM’s I’m not sure if there’s an indicator light, but with NAVTOOL there is. Just look for that little red light. If you attached your NAVTOOL like I did then you may have to use a mirror to see the light because it will be at the bottom. If it’s dark you can just look for the glow. If you have power than you’re one step closer to completion!
Time to wire up your DVD player. You will have to choose your location, and do any work involved with installing the DVD player in the location you choose. I decided to simply put mine on the floor of the trunk. It’s simple and not too fancy, but it is effective. Someday in the future when I put in a sound system I will create an enclosure for the DVD player to clean it up, but for now I am satisfied. I have my DVD player facing the front of the car sitting just inside the rear seat pass through. This will allow any passenger that I have (which will probably be the only time I’m playing DVD’s) to access the DVD player from the inside of the car.
Last edited by jsonkimz; 05-25-2011 at 08:58 AM.
#5
I’m just going to write this portion of the DIY with respect to the DVD player in the location I chose. However, all the wiring will be the same, the only thing that will change is how you run your wire and how much you have to use.
I placed my DVD player in my chosen location and drilled a hole in the spare tire floor cover to run all my wires through. Once you run the power cord and audio/video cords through the hole let’s go ahead and hook up the DVD player. Depending on what DVD player you purchased you may have different wires, but once again I will write this using the same set up I had. The Myron and Davis DVD player had 4 wires (blue, yellow, red, and black). Blue is nothing. Cut it; tape it up; leave it loose; whatever you want to do. Black is your ground. Yellow and red are your power wires. Go ahead and start with your ground (make sure the car is off and the Add-A-Fuse is unplugged). You can attach the ground to the factory ground location. For this simple and low power install that ground location should suffice. NOTE: The first time I did my ground I used a ring connector to wire my ground (like I did with the NAVTOOL ground). However, this caused some interference and my video quality wasn’t quite as good when the car was running. With my setup running off the battery only it was perfect, but starting the car caused interference. For this reason, you want to make sure your ring connector is on the factory bolt with perfect metal to metal contact, OR you can abandon the ring connector and just attach the wire itself to the ground bolt (strip the wire so you have about an inch at the end and wrap that puppy around the bolt). The ring connector should work, but if you have interference that is a likely problem.
Once you have your ground set up, we’ll attach the power cords. Un-tape your NAVTOOL power cord from the fuse power. At this point you will be splicing together the red and yellow DVD power cords, the black NAVTOOL power cord, and the fuse power wire. Once again, the blue DVD wire is useless. Make it all neat and pretty and make sure you have a good connection. Once you have the power wires connected and the grounds done securely you can test your power to the NAVTOOL AND the DVD player. MAKE SURE YOUR GROUNDS ARE GOOD. Plug in the Add-A-Fuse and turn on the car battery. Check and make sure you have power for both. If you do, well done! If you don’t have power, check all your connections. Make sure your fuse isn’t blown as well (this is why I suggest getting a few extra 5 amp fuses in case you blow one). This is a simple install, however, and you shouldn’t have any problems. Once you have established power to your NAVTOOL and DVD player you can shut the car down. Unplug the Add-A-Fuse. Now run your RCA video cable. Make sure it’s a quality one and that you don’t have more length than you need. The more efficient you are with the amount of cable you use the more you decrease your chances of interference (my first attempt I used a video cable that was iffy quality and WAY too long. Getting a shorter and better cable helped fixed my issue of interference). Run your video cable from the DVD player to your NAVTOOL (video input #1). Plug in your Add-A-Fuse and let’s give it a shot!
I placed my DVD player in my chosen location and drilled a hole in the spare tire floor cover to run all my wires through. Once you run the power cord and audio/video cords through the hole let’s go ahead and hook up the DVD player. Depending on what DVD player you purchased you may have different wires, but once again I will write this using the same set up I had. The Myron and Davis DVD player had 4 wires (blue, yellow, red, and black). Blue is nothing. Cut it; tape it up; leave it loose; whatever you want to do. Black is your ground. Yellow and red are your power wires. Go ahead and start with your ground (make sure the car is off and the Add-A-Fuse is unplugged). You can attach the ground to the factory ground location. For this simple and low power install that ground location should suffice. NOTE: The first time I did my ground I used a ring connector to wire my ground (like I did with the NAVTOOL ground). However, this caused some interference and my video quality wasn’t quite as good when the car was running. With my setup running off the battery only it was perfect, but starting the car caused interference. For this reason, you want to make sure your ring connector is on the factory bolt with perfect metal to metal contact, OR you can abandon the ring connector and just attach the wire itself to the ground bolt (strip the wire so you have about an inch at the end and wrap that puppy around the bolt). The ring connector should work, but if you have interference that is a likely problem.
Once you have your ground set up, we’ll attach the power cords. Un-tape your NAVTOOL power cord from the fuse power. At this point you will be splicing together the red and yellow DVD power cords, the black NAVTOOL power cord, and the fuse power wire. Once again, the blue DVD wire is useless. Make it all neat and pretty and make sure you have a good connection. Once you have the power wires connected and the grounds done securely you can test your power to the NAVTOOL AND the DVD player. MAKE SURE YOUR GROUNDS ARE GOOD. Plug in the Add-A-Fuse and turn on the car battery. Check and make sure you have power for both. If you do, well done! If you don’t have power, check all your connections. Make sure your fuse isn’t blown as well (this is why I suggest getting a few extra 5 amp fuses in case you blow one). This is a simple install, however, and you shouldn’t have any problems. Once you have established power to your NAVTOOL and DVD player you can shut the car down. Unplug the Add-A-Fuse. Now run your RCA video cable. Make sure it’s a quality one and that you don’t have more length than you need. The more efficient you are with the amount of cable you use the more you decrease your chances of interference (my first attempt I used a video cable that was iffy quality and WAY too long. Getting a shorter and better cable helped fixed my issue of interference). Run your video cable from the DVD player to your NAVTOOL (video input #1). Plug in your Add-A-Fuse and let’s give it a shot!
#6
Now, because you have already plugged up your NAVTOOL to the navigation brain you will not have a video signal at your navigation screen. With the NAVTOOL plugged in and no rocker switch wired up your screen will remain blank. It still has power, and you can even use the touch screen, but you will not have any video. This is because (without the switch wired) your NAVTOOL is automatically putting the display in DVD mode. If you want to access your Navigation, simply touch the two switch wires together. Touching them together signals that you “flipped the switch” and you will have your Navigation screen back. So at this point, wires connected = navigation and wires not connected = DVD.
If you have power to the NAVTOOL and DVD player, your grounds are good, your Add-A-Fuse is plugged in and functional, and your switch wires are not connected then you SHOULD see the DVD screen!! If you do then congratulations! It’s a good feeling. If you don’t, then you suck.
Nah, just check and double check all your power, grounds, and fuses and you should be fine. I don’t know if I was just really lucky but it worked for me the first time. I think that is a tribute to the simplicity of the job more than my mad skillz, yo. Once you have a working video, enjoy it for a few minutes and let’s get back to work.
If you have power to the NAVTOOL and DVD player, your grounds are good, your Add-A-Fuse is plugged in and functional, and your switch wires are not connected then you SHOULD see the DVD screen!! If you do then congratulations! It’s a good feeling. If you don’t, then you suck.
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#7
Time to run your audio. This part is…. fun??
If you have everything in the same location as me, then follow my directions exactly. If not, then your wires will run in different places, but again, the wiring itself will be the same. You will run your red and white audio cables in the same place you ran all the other wires. If you have a remote eye extender (REE) with your DVD player then run that wire at this time (unfortunately, mine did not work so I don’t get this convenient feature
). Plug them all into the DVD player and wire them through the left side of car. Start in the trunk, aim for the light, and pull it through by the rear seat on the driver’s side. However, instead of running it along the whole side of the car, stop right at the bottom of the rear seat. Now take the cords and shove them beneath the rear seat right at the base where the bottom of the seat and the carpet meet. Stop at the middle of the seat right on the hump (IT’S MY HUMP! I BELIEVE THE HUMP IS MINE!).
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You want to run all three wires (2 audio and the REE) beneath the carpet on the hump. Take a metal clothes hanger and bend it so that you can shove it under the carpet. Start with the center console end, not at the rear seat. Push the hanger under the carpet along the hump until you can fish it out at where the rear seat and carpet meet. Once you get the coat hanger under the carpet and hanging out both ends (it might take you a while) then attach your 3 cords to the hanger and pull the coat hanger through. Good job! Pull your audio wires to where it will reach the USA-Spec hub as it sits in the location it will be affixed. Pull your REE to wherever you would like to attach it (as I said, I didn’t get to do this part so you’re on your own. I would put it in the cubby). Plug your audio wires into the USA-Spec hub and put it on the following settings: 1-on, 2-off, 3-on, 4-off. This will make XM preset 2 be navigation unit control, preset 5 direct mode control, and preset 6 your auxiliary (or DVD) control. Do a test run (don’t forget about how your switch wires work and double check everything even if it’s functioning). If it works, congratulations!! The confusing part is now over. You have a fully functioning DVD player wired through your car. Sit back, relax, and take it in for a second. It’s a good feeling of accomplishment.
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#8
Let’s do one final test run before we start putting the car back together. Check and make sure you have power to your DVD player and NAVTOOL (obviously you do if it worked, but it’s better to be safe than sorry). Check, double check, and triple check all your connections and make sure they are solid. CHECK YOUR SWITCH WIRE TO MAKE SURE IT WILL GO BACK AND FORTH BETWEEN DVD AND NAVIGATION. Check your grounds and Add-A-Fuse, too. Now put in a DVD, if you haven’t already done so, and watch for a few minutes. Check your picture and make sure it’s clean. It’s not HD, so don’t look for quality of the picture, but make sure the picture is clean and there’s no interference. There shouldn’t be any lines in the picture. Check the quality with the car running off of the battery only AND with the car started. The picture should be clean both ways. If the quality is worse with the car started, you need to check your ground and the video cable. But if you follow my directions in this DIY you should have a clean picture with both the battery and running.
#9
Even though this is the “easy” part of the job, it is definitely the hardest. The wiring and stuff may seem confusing at first, but it is really simple and easy to do. To me, the removal and reinstallation of the trim and covers is 1000x more difficult and I really hate it. It tests my patience. Good luck – I feel for you.
Now you’re ready to put the car back together. I would start in the trunk, taping down and wrapping up any loose wires. You don’t want anything loose because it could cause rattles (even more than you probably already have in your TL). Also make sure that nothing gets pinched when you put the covers back or when you close the trunk lid. You can be as thorough as you want here, but I took my time to make sure everything was neat and organized. Put the covers back on in the trunk and make it all 100%. Check your DVD player install again just to make sure nothing came loose while you were reinstalling your covers. Next, I would do the center console. Make it all neat and pretty and button it back up. Again, be careful not to pinch any wires.
Once you have the center console back up you can move to the side trim. Get it all back together EXCEPT for the single cover that goes under the steering wheel. You want to make sure that you don’t pinch any wires and that your Rocker Switch wire is still running where it needs to run and that it will reach your switch location.
Now you’re ready to put the car back together. I would start in the trunk, taping down and wrapping up any loose wires. You don’t want anything loose because it could cause rattles (even more than you probably already have in your TL). Also make sure that nothing gets pinched when you put the covers back or when you close the trunk lid. You can be as thorough as you want here, but I took my time to make sure everything was neat and organized. Put the covers back on in the trunk and make it all 100%. Check your DVD player install again just to make sure nothing came loose while you were reinstalling your covers. Next, I would do the center console. Make it all neat and pretty and button it back up. Again, be careful not to pinch any wires.
Once you have the center console back up you can move to the side trim. Get it all back together EXCEPT for the single cover that goes under the steering wheel. You want to make sure that you don’t pinch any wires and that your Rocker Switch wire is still running where it needs to run and that it will reach your switch location.
#10
Once you have the whole car together (except for the cover under the steering wheel) it’s time to wire up your switch. I put my switch in the blank spot next to the VSA and mirror switches. If you have a TL you know exactly where I’m talking about. In my mind this is the absolute best place for it, and you can make it look very good and 100% factory if you take your time. Pop out that little plastic piece. You will want to dremel/drill a hole for the Rocker Switch to sit in. Depending on what year TL you have this may be easy or difficult. My TL’s (2005) plastic piece had a lot of plastic on the back of the piece, so it was difficult. I had to basically dremel it all out so that it was empty behind the switch so that I could drill a hole for my switch. In any case, once you get the piece to where it will clip in and is only a single-layered plastic cover you can drill your hole. You can use a spade drill bit to cut a perfect hole if you want. I just used a dremel. I really took it slow and was careful, trimming bit by bit until my switch fit firmly and perfectly. I don’t know if I got lucky but it looks amazing and I was really pleased. Just take your time.
Now, leave your newly affixed switch and plastic piece out and start putting the cover back on the car. Just make sure that the Rocker Switch wire is coming through the hole where the switch will go. Once you have the cover back on, use the female end connectors and attach the wires to the switch. Test it… it should work. If not, then you’re SOL. That’s why I suggest checking everything so often so you don’t get to the end of a project and find out something doesn’t work. Once you find that your switch works like a charm, sit back and enjoy!!
Now, leave your newly affixed switch and plastic piece out and start putting the cover back on the car. Just make sure that the Rocker Switch wire is coming through the hole where the switch will go. Once you have the cover back on, use the female end connectors and attach the wires to the switch. Test it… it should work. If not, then you’re SOL. That’s why I suggest checking everything so often so you don’t get to the end of a project and find out something doesn’t work. Once you find that your switch works like a charm, sit back and enjoy!!
#11
Registered TL Lover
iTrader: (1)
thanks for the this although there are others i havent seen the usaspec under the cupholder which is where i planed to install mine but was unsure if there was room i couldnt remember if there was enough room. but now that i know i can proceed as planned. i just got my hon3 for 114 @ http://www.electotronics.com/usaspec...ecthondas.aspx
but it took a long time to get mine as when i ordered it they ran out.
but it took a long time to get mine as when i ordered it they ran out.
#12
No sweat. It fits with room to spare and in my opinion is the absolute best place for it. The ONLY downside is that if you ever need to get to it you have to take apart the center console, but it's not that bad.
If you want to run your wire through the center console I would suggest doing that, too. Good luck!
If you want to run your wire through the center console I would suggest doing that, too. Good luck!
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