I want an in-dash GPS.

[justplayxtragic]

Ok so those in-dash GPS's are super fly. I want one, baaaaaaad. I want one with iPod connectivity AND that nifty Bluetooth feature where you can use your phone through your head unit. I could care less about any other features. I hate the radio and I have a shorty antenna anyway. However, I am not trying to shell out 00+ on one of these bad boys but I don't want bad quality. I could care less about it being "last season's" model or any of that garbage. Any recommendations?

[cribbs-tC]

I'd recommend doing some searches on fatwallet.com. They tend to have some sweet deals posted. But a quick search for "In-dash navigation" gave me a link to this:

Amazon.com: Pioneer AVIC-F700BT In-Dash Navigation Audio Receiver with CD Playback and Advanced Voice Controls: Electronics

Looks pretty good to me. If I had a spare $400 sitting around (wife would kill me after all the $ I spent this past week lol), I would get one.

::Edit:: It has an in-dash navigation screen, iPod connectivity, cell phone bluetooth, supports voice commands (even for browsing the iPod); pretty much everything you want, except it only reads CDs, not DVDs.

[justplayxtragic]

Are Pioneers actually good quality? My stock one freezes up a lot at random.

[cribbs-tC]

hehehe well, anytime you want a cheaper price, you should expect a cheaper product. But in this case, I would say you should be alright. I've never had much of a problem with Pioneer.

But I'll keep looking for you. Do you have any preferences on brand?

[cribbs-tC]

If you are willing to go on-dash, you could get this:
Pioneer AVICF500BT Nav Sys w/ NDG500 Amplifier & CD-IU200VM USB Cable (Bundle)(PIOAVICF500PKG) and other affordable Portable Navigation at 6ave.com.

It has all the features you want, except it is on-dash, and it is only $250 ($300 if you get the 3-year warranty). Hey, this could be a good "fabrication" opportunity for you to somehow build it into a spot on your dash ~_^

(I didn't know this thing was out there. I'm thinkinga bout getting it LOL.)

[justplayxtragic]

That's pretty nifty actually!!! I'll investigate it. I just wasn't sure if Pioneer is actually a good brand. I was just going to trust it cos it's already in my car but I definitely want better quality if I'm shelling out money. I don't want it to freeze up or do whacky stuff. I have no preference, just not no name brand that will fall apart after 5 days.

[SquallLHeart]

the avic f-series are good units... you got another person here to recommend them.

[justplayxtragic]

Thank you Squall. I don't know much about audio but like I said, I want to upgrade. I've heard good things of Kenwood but I don't know. This might be a stupid question but I'll ask anyway. Say I upgrade my head unit to the first one that Cribbs recommended. Would I incur any wiring or installation issues, especially since my iPod is hooked up through the whacky cable directly through my car?

[SquallLHeart]

with any aftermarket headunit.. you're gonna lose all the stuff that's with the stock one..

yes... your stock ipod stuff won't be usable..
(i'll take those extra parts off your hands if you want.. i'm working on a small project and i could use extra parts.. )

but the avic f-series does have ipod capabilities.. and function alot nicer than the stock unit anyway.. you can route that cable back into your armrest if you wanted.. most people just shove it over to the glove box

for any aftermarket headunit install, you're gonna need a wiring harness.. but that's not hard to put together... you'd have to be color-blind to mess up.

for which of the f-series you want? depends on what features you want and how much money you wanna spend. all of them come with bluetooth as well.

start here:
Pioneer USA - Car Navigation

you'll probably be looking at either the 700bt or the 900bt
unless you're a crazy audiophile that wants the 90bt which is the premier one with hi-volt preouts

[justplayxtragic]

Ah ok. If it functions a lot nicer, I'm very down with that. Mine annoys me like no one's business. The stupid knob is just poorly designed and more distracting than scrolling through the actual iPod. Not only that but if it stays idle for like 5 seconds, it goes all the way back to the beginning and that becomes a royal pain when you have over 10,000 songs and your iTunes library is constantly expanding. Thank you for the help, you definitely have been very helpful. I'm glad all of them come with bluetooth. Kinda random question just hit me. You know how some iPods have video capability? Do you think if its hooked up to the head unit, it would actually play videos that are stored on the iPod? That's not something I'm terribly worried about but it seems like it'd be a nifty feature. My biggest concerns are bluetooth, navigation, and iPod. I honestly don't care about any other fancy stuff.

[SquallLHeart]

lol.. did ya read what i linked ya to?

videos will play... hooking it up isn't difficult.

if you aren't worried about being able to play actual dvds.. the 700bt will be fine.. you'll still be able to watch vids from your ipod.

also.. not that it's really.. a big thing... but there is a safety thing that prevents you from doing certain things while driving... however.. it is bypassable..

[bdis3]

pioneer Avic f90bt. Love it.

[justplayxtragic]

lol.. did ya read what i linked ya to?

videos will play... hooking it up isn't difficult.

if you aren't worried about being able to play actual dvds.. the 700bt will be fine.. you'll still be able to watch vids from your ipod.

also.. not that it's really.. a big thing... but there is a safety thing that prevents you from doing certain things while driving... however.. it is bypassable..

No I didn't. I'll be honest. I was more focused on researching stuff for Darfur and saved it as a favorite then wrote a note to myself to check it out later. Yeah I could care less about actual dvds. I have most of them on my iPod anyway. I have been told before that you can't actually watch dvds while driving due to obvious risks. But I know rewiring anything is possible. I'd probably keep that safe little feature so I'm not worried. If I change my mind, I will search around

Again, thanks for your help.

[cribbs-tC]

I think you only have to clip a wire and you can watch video while moving. lol. The cake is easy on this one.

Now to convince the ol' ball'n'chain that I need a new h/u. ~_^

[SquallLHeart]

it's not that simple..

you'll need to re-pin a connector (which isn't that difficult).. avic411 would be the forum to research on.

[justplayxtragic]

Hmm. I don't think I'll mess with trying to re-pin anything or re-wire anything. I don't do very well with wires, unless wire clippers are involved and I'm in a firefighter suit. Other than that, not so much.

[SquallLHeart]

ehh.. you just need a small needle.. even a push-pin will work.

[cribbs-tC]

Hmm. I don't think I'll mess with trying to re-pin anything or re-wire anything. I don't do very well with wires, unless wire clippers are involved and I'm in a firefighter suit. Other than that, not so much.

xtragic, you'd be amazed how easy a lot of this stuff is. I had never done any sort of house remodeling before, but I managed to install bathroom lighting, hardware, etc quite easily. Same goes with cars; I'll be doing my springs this Saturday and have ZERO experience lol.

Just give it a shot, and if you fail then take it to a shop. It's actually really fun!!!

[justplayxtragic]

Yeah but if you mess something up, you have a bigger mess on your hands. I feel like such a hypocrite. I'm doing all of my stuff to my car by myself too. I just don't know how I feel about wires. Maybe that's just the cautious side of me.

[fusionzt4]

Do you guys know which year these navigation systems will fit?
I called the dealership today to try to get the Scion Navi system but they said that it only fits in the 2008 models and I currently have a 2007 tC.
I did some browsing on Best Buy on their navis and the "pit check" said the navi models they had doesn't fit my car.