SI0M6GBJ
New member
I managed to install Pioneer's App Radio on my Wife's 2010 GTI.
Our car came out from factory in some weird specification with RDC510 and no steering wheel controls, no bluetooth etc… The main goal here was to enable smooth bluetooth playback and hands free calling.
Since both me and my wife have iphones, we decided to explore native Apple solutions -> the choice here is between Alpine iLX 007 and Pioneer App Radio 4 (SPA-DA120). This youtube video convinced me to go with Pioneer as Alpine does not have bluetooth (?!). Also Pioneer seems to have hipower output (since I am not planning to use external amp just yet it make sense to go after higher builtin power)
Installation
First thing is to get rid of my old radio. Check this vid if you have never taken off the radio bezel - it shows exactly where the clips are and how to remove it without breaking. I managed not to break anything. The original radio came down without any fight. Then I started playing with wiring. I wanted the original harness to stay intact (as much as possible), so I used harness from this kit to access speakers and power lines from original RCD socket.
Half an hour later my harness was ready:
I used the +12 Acc (and dim +12 signal) from the lighter:
One thing left is to attach all the missing inputs:
- GPS antenna (passenger side, cable routed above the glove box)
- external mic (I used the rear view mirror mount)
- USB cable (I used USB1 socket as it is meant for Apple devices)
- Radio antenna (needed a converted - came with harness kit mentioned earlier - we have only one English radio station here in Bahrain, but I connected it anyways - nice to have a working radio)
Mixed feelings so far. One thing that Pioneer does really good is the audio quality. I have FH-700bt installed in my other ride, so I knew what to expect - this radio makes the OEM speakers sound much more clear (although don't expect hi-fi from OEM installation). The voice quality when calling is fantastic! The screen is responsive, but it is still not the same touch experience like you get with your average tablet…
Car Play
First thing to point out is that you need siri to be ON at all times for this feature to work (there goes your battery life). Second thing is that it needs to be connected via cable - Pioneer mentions some extra cable/adapter allowing you to connect HDMI and mix the signal into apple's lightning cable - I am not going to watch movies on it, so I will not be exploring that option… There is no way to turn on Car Play via Bluetooth. Having said that - the radio suffers from some kind of interface schizophrenia - when you connect the cable, car play starts and you have all the nice Apple-touch interface with Siri asking you what to do next. But when the cable is not connected, the radio falls back to Pioneer's Bluetooth Audio interface - the music keeps playing, just the visuals are not that fancy anymore - the next/previous buttons are much smaller, there is no track artwork displayed anymore.
I'll post some more when I (my wife) get(s) to know the radio a bit more.
What's missing
Not everything is there tough. Weirdly enough I wasn’t able to locate an ignition +12 output in the OEM radio harness, so I used the below lighter power socket (I also found a dimmer signal +12V in the very same lighter outlet socket so the radio nicely dims when lights are on).
There is no rear/backup camera. OEM camera sends RGB signal to this third socket that I haven't connected to anything here. I may use some adapter to "extract" the RGB signal and convert it into composite NTSC video, but it is not a priority yet.
Similarly - the park assist only beeps - there is no visual anymore.
I still haven't figured out what to do with this hand brake cable. I left it disconnected - not sure what to expect - should it be connected to +12V or to ground. And why is it required anyways? I read it has something to do with laws in US, but since the radio works… well… Maybe when I figure out how to plug in external video it will just not work unless I connect it somewhere…
Our car came out from factory in some weird specification with RDC510 and no steering wheel controls, no bluetooth etc… The main goal here was to enable smooth bluetooth playback and hands free calling.
Since both me and my wife have iphones, we decided to explore native Apple solutions -> the choice here is between Alpine iLX 007 and Pioneer App Radio 4 (SPA-DA120). This youtube video convinced me to go with Pioneer as Alpine does not have bluetooth (?!). Also Pioneer seems to have hipower output (since I am not planning to use external amp just yet it make sense to go after higher builtin power)
Installation
First thing is to get rid of my old radio. Check this vid if you have never taken off the radio bezel - it shows exactly where the clips are and how to remove it without breaking. I managed not to break anything. The original radio came down without any fight. Then I started playing with wiring. I wanted the original harness to stay intact (as much as possible), so I used harness from this kit to access speakers and power lines from original RCD socket.
Half an hour later my harness was ready:
I used the +12 Acc (and dim +12 signal) from the lighter:
One thing left is to attach all the missing inputs:
- GPS antenna (passenger side, cable routed above the glove box)
- external mic (I used the rear view mirror mount)
- USB cable (I used USB1 socket as it is meant for Apple devices)
- Radio antenna (needed a converted - came with harness kit mentioned earlier - we have only one English radio station here in Bahrain, but I connected it anyways - nice to have a working radio)
Mixed feelings so far. One thing that Pioneer does really good is the audio quality. I have FH-700bt installed in my other ride, so I knew what to expect - this radio makes the OEM speakers sound much more clear (although don't expect hi-fi from OEM installation). The voice quality when calling is fantastic! The screen is responsive, but it is still not the same touch experience like you get with your average tablet…
Car Play
First thing to point out is that you need siri to be ON at all times for this feature to work (there goes your battery life). Second thing is that it needs to be connected via cable - Pioneer mentions some extra cable/adapter allowing you to connect HDMI and mix the signal into apple's lightning cable - I am not going to watch movies on it, so I will not be exploring that option… There is no way to turn on Car Play via Bluetooth. Having said that - the radio suffers from some kind of interface schizophrenia - when you connect the cable, car play starts and you have all the nice Apple-touch interface with Siri asking you what to do next. But when the cable is not connected, the radio falls back to Pioneer's Bluetooth Audio interface - the music keeps playing, just the visuals are not that fancy anymore - the next/previous buttons are much smaller, there is no track artwork displayed anymore.
I'll post some more when I (my wife) get(s) to know the radio a bit more.
What's missing
Not everything is there tough. Weirdly enough I wasn’t able to locate an ignition +12 output in the OEM radio harness, so I used the below lighter power socket (I also found a dimmer signal +12V in the very same lighter outlet socket so the radio nicely dims when lights are on).
There is no rear/backup camera. OEM camera sends RGB signal to this third socket that I haven't connected to anything here. I may use some adapter to "extract" the RGB signal and convert it into composite NTSC video, but it is not a priority yet.
Similarly - the park assist only beeps - there is no visual anymore.
I still haven't figured out what to do with this hand brake cable. I left it disconnected - not sure what to expect - should it be connected to +12V or to ground. And why is it required anyways? I read it has something to do with laws in US, but since the radio works… well… Maybe when I figure out how to plug in external video it will just not work unless I connect it somewhere…
. 