Finalled added hands free and xm to my truck

[berettafan]

Been getting the itch for a new vehicle lately but my '06 Tundra is running fine with only 107k on the clock and I really don't want another payment. but I really love it when I drive a vehicle with good Bluetooth and xm. makes travel time so much better.

decided to try Crutchfield and ordered a Kenwood DDX492 and a couple adapters to allow my steering wheel controls and factory amp to be used.

after some help from the fantastic tech support I now have all the goodies in my truck and love it. Just under $500 all in and it's like a new vehicle!

[ckelly78z]

I'm not tech saavy, but XM without the commercials and the static would be nice.

[red-beard]

My parents have a 2003 Explorer with maybe 25K miles on it. I was looking to put in one of the Garmin units with the backup camera. XM Radio would be nice too.

[berettafan]

these new touch screen radios are not expensive (the unit itself I got was around $340) and has backup camera ability. you can get backup cameras on amazon for dirt cheap (do your own research on which). I will be adding one this year as well so I can stop hitching my boat up by feel.

after a lousy experience with a tom tom years back I just use my phone for a GPA. set it up on the dashboard and go. no bs about paying for updated maps, etc.

mid-90's I was a car audio junky. loved installing stuff. nowadays you just buy the harness to adapt it to your vehicle. I had to mate wires of two harnesses but they were perfectly color matched and I was able to do it on a bench and not in the truck itself so relatively easy.

[VincentVega]

Any issues with the steering wheel controls? Crutchfield sells an interface box, is it as simple as it sounds? I need to make sure the existing bluetooth will work with phone calls, if it does I'm not far behind you.

[onewhippedpuppy]

Crutchfield is awesome. I personally consider hands free phone to be essential in any car, it makes driving so much safer.

[aigel]

Isn't it interesting that the only worthwhile technical upgrade on a Tundra truck over the last 10 years is satellite radio and bluetooth?

G

[VincentVega]

Bigger gas tank?

They make nice trucks.

[onewhippedpuppy]

Originally Posted by aigel

Isn't it interesting that the only worthwhile technical upgrade on a Tundra truck over the last 10 years is satellite radio and bluetooth?

G

Basic power stuff, Bluetooth, I'm good. I love the simplicity of the RX7.

I think the 1990s and early 2000s were a really sweet spot for cars. Great functional technology like EFI but not a lot of added gadgets, and all simple enough to work on and be reliable.

[berettafan]

Steering controls are perfect. There were two brands that they sold and the sales guy suggested what to get so I went with it. They really do know what they're doing.

[berettafan]

I had to connect wires from two harnesses that came with my order then pull old radio, plug in what fit and done

[aigel]

Originally Posted by onewhippedpuppy

Basic power stuff, Bluetooth, I'm good. I love the simplicity of the RX7.

I think the 1990s and early 2000s were a really sweet spot for cars. Great functional technology like EFI but not a lot of added gadgets, and all simple enough to work on and be reliable.

In a daily driver I appreciate the newer safety features - say 2008 and up. Stability control, tire pressure sensors, side and curtain airbags. But since 2008 nothing even changed there.

One hint in my original comment was that Toyota seems behind on fuel mileage improvements - that's where other truck manufacturers have made significant progress.

G

[aigel]

BTW - I am hooked on satelite radio. It is so nice to be on a road trip and have reasonable stations. Otherwise you are left to country music, radio preachers and polka.

G

[gacook]

Originally Posted by aigel

BTW - I am hooked on satelite radio. It is so nice to be on a road trip and have reasonable stations. Otherwise you are left to country music, radio preachers and polka.

G

I live in a town that has very limited music selection, so Satellite was a godsend when it first came out. Now, I simply put all my music on my phone and use Bluetooth. No satellite bill, and only listen to songs I like with no commercials, anywhere in the world.

[herr_oberst]

Originally Posted by onewhippedpuppy

Basic power stuff, Bluetooth, I'm good. I love the simplicity of the RX7.

I think the 1990s and early 2000s were a really sweet spot for cars. Great functional technology like EFI but not a lot of added gadgets, and all simple enough to work on and be reliable.

Right? I can't justify a new truck; I'd be committing myself to a lifetime of payments for non repairable replacement vehicles every eight to ten years.

[Shaun @ Tru6]

Timely thread. I have a Volvo S60 with all the conveniences: heated seats, steering wheel controls, amazing stereo system, one touch up and down windows. Good little car.

But my 94 E320 is a world's better car. So I've already ordered a heated seat kit and was going to look into the stereo system next week and thought there'd be a mountable steering wheel thing by now. All I need to do now is figure out how to do one touch windows UP. Can that be done with some sort of electronic device wired into the system?

[greglepore]

One touch up is dangerous, my w140 has them but has sensors built in to stop the window if resistance, think dog's neck or child's neck...

[onewhippedpuppy]

Originally Posted by aigel

In a daily driver I appreciate the newer safety features - say 2008 and up. Stability control, tire pressure sensors, side and curtain airbags. But since 2008 nothing even changed there.

One hint in my original comment was that Toyota seems behind on fuel mileage improvements - that's where other truck manufacturers have made significant progress.

G

I'm all for modern airbags but much of the other stuff can be annoying. I always turn off stability control in the snow because it doesn't allow any slippage and cuts all power, like when you are trying to plow through a snowy intersection. Not fun to have the pedal go dead when turning left across oncoming traffic. I also did just fine before TPMS, which likes to freak out when the temperatures get cold and makes tire changes much more expensive.

[A930Rocket]

My 2001 Ford F150 Lariet Super Crew and had all the options but 4x4, but after 13 years and 225K miles on the clock, it was time to get a new one. I got 2014 Ford Crew Cab with all the options but 4x4. I really enjoy the Sirius radio, hands free phone and back up camera. What scares me though is the computers and electronics longevity. Will it last as long as my 2001 with 225K trouble free miles?