Next week in Spring Break for Clemson, and since I'm not planning on going anywhere except home, I figured I may as well get my Z-120BT and Magden M.1b installed. I ordered the PAC wiring harness and the Metra dash kit tonight, and I'll grab the stuff from Radioshack on the way home tomorrow.

I'll probably be back with questions, but I hope I can get it done as seamlessly as possible.

 

Picked up all the stuff from RadioShack today. I'll be ready to install once the PAC Harness and Trim Kit arrive.

 

Quick question. What should I do with the wires for the Bluetooth Mic and the GPS antennae? Obviously I don't want them to be coming out the front of the head unit around the trim kit, but where will I need to go with them to get them out into the cabin of the car?

 

By cabin, you mean the front of the dashboard? I´m unfamiliar with where most put their GPS antenna, I routed mine outside as it´s a weatherproof USB one. So can´t help there.

The mic, most usually put it in the center bottom of the Cluster (speedometer/rpm/etc gauges), you can just pull the cover straight off and out, then route the cable up to there and tie any extra cable off with zip-ties. Using double-sided tape to secure the mic base.

 

Yes, I do mean dashboard. I'm pretty sure most people put the GPS antennae up on the top of the dash on the passenger side, front right corner.

I figured I'd find a way to get it out the passenger footwell, and then route it up under there and then up along the side of the dash to that position. I just don't know what the process is for getting the wire out of the center portion of the dash. What do you mean by the cover?

Thanks for the response, by the way. Everything should be here on Friday, so that is when all this should be getting done.

 

The molding that covers the cluster; here it is exposed on mine from work I did a few months ago to replace all of my LEDs:




The molding covering the cluster just pulls out along with that one driver's side vent. You can then pull the wiring up from under there (beside the steering column) to mount it on the section of that molding directly below where my Odometer is. Some put it on the top rather than the bottom, if you´re shorter, you might need this or the steering wheel might be in the mic's path; as you want to aim it as close to your normal driving position [for your mouth] as possible.

 

I guess what I don't understand is how you are routing that point. Is there a way to route the wire to the cluster without bringing it out of the dash?

 

Srsly?

The 2 of the 3 pictures should explain it all. It can be routed from underneath, either pull it out beside the steering column for the bottom of the cluster molding for mounting, or behind the cluster itself to route over the top of the cluster to mount on the top of the molding. It´s simply 4 7mm screws to pull out.

 

Yes seriously, this may seem simple for someone who does this, but I've never even seen what is behind the plastic covering of the dash, so I have hardly any idea what to expect. It's actually pretty difficult to see what is going on in all of the pictures I have seen, I understand what has been removed in the pictures you are listing, and now that you have told me I understand, but that doesn't make it much easier to tell from the pictures alone.

 

Everything is here. I remembered now that I forgot to get a composite video cable to connect the Magden to the head unit. I was researching them before I went out and bought one, and I'm seeing a lot of different prices, ranging from $165 for a 6' cable, to $12, for a 65' cable.

I was planning on getting a longer cable so that I could run the unit to the trunk if I wanted to, but in all reality, it will be going up front, possibly under the passenger seat or in the glove box, so I'm only going to need like a 5'-8' cable.

My question is, is there anything different about them? Am I going to get a better picture out of a nicer one than I will out of a cheaper one? I'm obviously not going to spend $160, but if I'll get a better picture out of a $30 one than a $5 one, then I'd be up for that.

Any ideas?