Fitting aftermarket head unit

[chrislemon]

Well the MINI was delivered on friday. Quick drive out then back to fit the pioneer headunit that I had waiting for it.

I'd ordered it from www.incar-discount.co.uk along with the autoleads facia adapter and harness adapter lead.

Using gazzaman's instructions on how to get the stereo out, it wasn't long till I was sitting with a stereo shaped hole in the dash board. So I reach for the autoleads harness adapter. At that point I remember a toy I had as a child in which you put a square block in a square hole, a circular block in a circular hole etc etc. The reason this image had popped into my head was because the lead was wrong. Even though it says BMW MINI on the front of the packaging! I was stunned! A quick check on this website led me to various other owners that had experienced the same problem. So a trip to Halfords was required to buy an adapter for a BMW 3 series and an aerial adapter thingy.

So I now had all the right equipment. The stereo goes in lovely with the facia adpter fitting perfectly. One problem though. The cage for the stereo has press out tabs to hold it in place in the dashboard. The MINI seems to have a plastic "tunnel" leading back from the stereo mounting point, stopping the tabs from being pressed out. So now as I drive along a bumpy road the stereo slowly works it's way out of the dash. Has anyone else experienced the same problem? What was your solution. Thoughts of gluing the cage into the car have gone through my head but I thought maybe a bit drastic! Any help would be gratefully received

The car is great though!

[Dom]

With mine I just pushed them in as far as they would go (quite hard). It should just grip slightly on the plastic, as though making a slight indent. This has worked fine with me...

Dom

[bradg]

I thought I would have a similar problem, but just bending back the tabs at the top of the cage seems to hold it in place nicely.

[chrislemon]

Thanks for the replies lads. I shall have a look tonight and see if I can't make the thing stay in place.

Spoke to a mate last night who said that maybe I could get a full depth cage from a car audio store. If I could get one and it had tabs nearer the back of the cage, it might solve my problem.

I shall investigate today.

On another note, I am absolutley shocked at how loud and bassy the standard fit speakers are. It sounds like i've got a small sub in the boot when I put a bassy song on. Excellent!

[smiffy]

Im thinking of getting this head unit
it looks wicked

[jonathan_king]

I used a couple of sticky pads and that worked fine.

Jon

[Dom]

Quote:

Originally posted by chrislemon
On another note, I am absolutley shocked at how loud and bassy the standard fit speakers are. It sounds like i've got a small sub in the boot when I put a bassy song on. Excellent!

You should hear what it sounds like WITH a sub in the boot

Yeah, I agree, for standard speakers they are quite good

Dom

[JonBlakeburn]

Quote:

Originally posted by Dom


You should hear what it sounds like WITH a sub in the boot

I agree with Dom. I would never have a setup without a sub now. If it's done correctly it's fantastic. I've been driving an Audi A4 Avant today with a factory fit sub in the boot and the sound it great, especially with the nice components up front and 10" midrange's in the front pockets.

Sub's aren't for boy racers, they're for audio-philes!

[chrislemon]

well the problem has been solved by a strip of velcro tape on the back edge of the cage. The stereo now stays put - which is nice.

[smiffy]

Quote:

Originally posted by chrislemon
well the problem has been solved by a strip of velcro tape on the back edge of the cage. The stereo now stays put - which is nice.

Sounds like bit of a Blue Peter jobbie to me

[spanky2k]

Quote:

Originally posted by smiffy
Im thinking of getting this head unit
it looks wicked

Thats similar to the one I want to get:

Sony CDX-M770

Absolutely wicked, but how do I use the multifunction steering wheel with it?

[Damo]

Quote:

Originally posted by spanky2k


Thats similar to the one I want to get:

Sony CDX-M770

Absolutely wicked, but how do I use the multifunction steering wheel with it?

As your having a SOny Head Unit that is Easy, you need to get a Cable adapter for it. They only make one to work with Sony's tho, so your lucky. As for the adapter, not sure who makes it but I'm sure the people you get the radio from will help. It's expensive tho. I paid £40 2 years ago for the adapter for a 3 series Beemer (Mini has same electrics luckily). Although it may have come down in price as all the new 3 series Beemers have the Multi Function Steering now

[spanky2k]

Quote:

I paid £40 2 years ago for the adapter for a 3 series Beemer (Mini has same electrics luckily).

Ah well, 40 quid would still be worth it, cos no other head units fit as well with the Mini's interior!

[marcus]

I fitted a sony head unit after the audio shop made a mess
of it.Mine was coming out over bumps,So i pulled it out
for a look.I found that if i put the head unit in first,
then fit the facia over the front.It hold it all in.

[Dom_R]

Hi Everyone,

Im Dominic, new gezzer to the forum. Got a black MINI Cooper (54 plate) with white roof, bonnet strips, chilli pack, sun roof, etc.

I recently changed my single CD player for a Sony S2200 because the standard CD started playing up. I've had it changed under warranty but I felt I needed something more reliable. BMW garages are currently having a nightmare with those CD players because there are no end of faults with them.

But anyways, if you want to install a CD player with a professional result, you need to buy a special mounting bracket kit from a BMW garage. Mine cost me £12.

The kit consists of two metal brackets, they screw into the CD player and then the brackets will screw into the holes of the old system.

You also get the screws and a bezel which will make the opening small enough for a standard size system.

All you need to do then is put the bezel that comes with the CD player on top of the bezel that comes with the kit.

Put everything together and you're done.


Ah yes, you will also need two conversion cables, one for the main power leads, speakers etc and one for the aerial. I got the power lead from Halfords for around £13. Still yet to get the aerial cable though.

============

Just thought I would mention to save a lot of hard work. You do not need to remove the gear cover/ashtray assembly to remove the two pillars either side of the CD player. You can cheat without causing any damage too. All you need to do is:

+ Remove the left bottom pillar screw.
+ Open the glovebox and remove the top left pillar screw.
+ Remove the bottom right pillar screw.
+ Pull down on the panel below the steering wheel hard (try pulling down on that little storage compartment on the right of the steering wheel). It should just unclip. Once uncliped it should be on hinges.
+ Remove the top right pillar screw.
+ Pull on the bottom of the speedo panel until it unclips and gently but firmly remove both pillars.
+Job done!