Seeing the new 2023 model with the modern dash and electronics made me look again at upgrading the cockpit as much as I could. Splurged on the Sony XAV-9500ES that has a 10” “floating” screen. Definitely overkill on the audio side with the stock speakers, but I like the integration with my phone and the vehicle computer so far! The latter requires the Maestro interface between the Sony and the van ECU.
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Updated the radio…
ohecht
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Sure!
How to install an android radio with steering wheel...
This took a lot of digging, however it basically ends up being the the Fiat Ducato and Promaster are similar. First you need a canbus decoder and I ended up finding one that lists Fiat Ducato and Ram Promaster...
www.promasterforum.com
I just put a 7" one in my antique car. Still have to clean up the wiring & add speakers. $135 plus the speakers!
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Replacing the antenna is an easy task and often improves the reception a lot.
Has anyone actually found a replacement antenna for the Promaster that w I’ll really improve reception? If you have please feel free to post links!
I did a similar 10 inch aftermarket installation and like yours all the features worked with Maestro. Factory back up camera etc. I made one mistake and that was not buying a unit with built in GPS navigation. The iphone car play navigation is great in urban areas but when driving in remote areas it stops working. There are apps with downloadable maps but it is better to have it in the unit.
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It’s about four screws on the back of the screen to do that but I doubt I’ll ever think of that when I should. Maybe a towel over the dash if we don’t put the full window shade up…
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I didn’t have that feature…
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I haven’t driven with it enough to note any difference and don’t really have anything to compare it to. We’re streaming music and other content 99% of the time so I have no idea about radio reception. Sorry.
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That’s impressive and many times cheaper! We’re in the process of moving so I skipped all the self research and DIY on this one and just splurged to get it done quickly…not my usual approach and it does feel icky!
This looks fantastic! A couple of questions:
What year is your van? I notice TPMS in one of your photos, and my 2015 did not come with TPMS. I wonder if adding factory sensors would enable that through this head unit.
Did you get the Maestro RR or RR2?
Does the Maestro interface completely eliminate the need for retaining the factory Uconnect 5 head unit?
I frequently use the compass in the UC5, does this have a compass?
TIA
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Thanks. I think you’d need more than just the factory sensors to get OEM TPMS. There are receivers near each wheel and a cpu module somewhere to process it all. Even with factory TPMS (that only warns of a generic issue of any of the tires is low) and before I got this head unit, I bought a relatively inexpensive stand-alone TPMS system that I like a lot. It’s solar and fits under the silly built-in clipboard on the dash, so installs without even any Velcro, etc. It shows temps and pressures and can alert you based on setting you set. These ~4-ton+ vans are supported by the actual air in the tires so I want to know what’s going on there all the time! I’ll probably leave this in place even with the head unit since the alarms are easier to configure.
I actually got the RR2 but the shop found out the relay-controlling aux switches (which are the only difference compared to the RR) aren’t yet supported for my van. A Maestro update might update that in the near future. They only charged me for an RR and I can add the pigtail to control 4? relays from the touch screen if I need to in the future. I think you get another menu on the head unit with some virtual switches you can hook to anything via a relay. I’ve already integrated all my lights to the factory aux switches but I might use those relays someday as a fancier way to control my B2B chargers from the driver seat or to configure how my light bar and driving lights work with the factory high beam switch on the fly.
I don’t think there’s a way to get a compass this way unless you figure that out either in Apple CarPlay or (more likely) Android Auto. This unit replaces the entire UC5 unit.
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I actually had to remove the unit to do some more wiring and it’s a total of three easily accessible Philips screws to remove the screen and make it look like there’s no radio at all.
The first screw allows a little plastic cover to slide slightly and reveal the two other screws that actually attach the screen. The electrical connection between the screen and the main unit is a plug rather than wires, so that makes it really easy to disconnect and reconnect. And all the Tilt/depth settings are preserved. So, if I was leaving the van in a sketchy area for any length of time I probably would remove the screen just to avoid tempting anyone.
Have been following most of the amazing posts to de-Uconnect the Promaster and go to a much bigger display.
I have some observations. The current tiny screen is not compatible with my older eyes. And for navigation using Google Maps, neither the phone or the PM screen is adequate. So I'm in for the bigger screen now too. And thank you all so much for posting your work. It is greatly appreciated by all who come later. That goes for the whole site, not just the audio-fond.
So just to be clear, the Crutchfield order for the ohecht setup was:
Sony XAV-9500ES
Maestro RR2
Metra Axxess AXVI-6524 Radio adapter.
Crutchfield ReadyHarness
And maybe a new radio antenna?
And last question, is 10 in the largest possible display in the PM, or have people gone bigger. I see that Alpine has an 11 inch in production. Alpine Halo11 iLX-F511
Thanks again,
Tim
I have some observations. The current tiny screen is not compatible with my older eyes. And for navigation using Google Maps, neither the phone or the PM screen is adequate. So I'm in for the bigger screen now too. And thank you all so much for posting your work. It is greatly appreciated by all who come later. That goes for the whole site, not just the audio-fond.
So just to be clear, the Crutchfield order for the ohecht setup was:
Sony XAV-9500ES
Maestro RR2
Metra Axxess AXVI-6524 Radio adapter.
Crutchfield ReadyHarness
And maybe a new radio antenna?
And last question, is 10 in the largest possible display in the PM, or have people gone bigger. I see that Alpine has an 11 inch in production. Alpine Halo11 iLX-F511
Thanks again,
Tim
That Alpine should be fine. These are all double DIN radios with a front that projects out of the dashboard. No new radio antenna is needed.
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Glad it helped. To clarify, my order was just the Sony unit and RR2 module…I had mine professionally installed (which still bothers me) and don’t know exactly what trim and wiring adapters they used. Also you only really need the RR module - the RR2 adds no additional capabilities that I’m aware of yet but it’s possible a firmware update in the future would allow you to control four custom relays from the head unit.
The only negative to this upgrade other than time and cost was that the factor backup camera looks terrible on such a large display. It’s kind of usable, but it’s blurry enough to make you less confident using it in tight situations. I finally upgraded the rear camera to the one below. Much better resolution! It’s a pretty distorted view right at the corners of the van because it’s wide angle, but you can still see more detail while watching those corners backing up. Getting one with less of a wide angle might be closer to the stock image.
I also like the fact that I could turn off the guide lines on the new camera and then adjust the guidelines that are part of the Sony system. Now that they’re set up, they show me exactly where the corners of the van are going despite the distortion at the bottom of the image. It looks weird in the image, but those lines are lined up exactly with the corners of the van.
I initially tried to match the wiring and connection to the factory camera but game up on that since the connector on my van is buried in wires above the rear doors and I couldn’t get to the at connector. So I ended up just leaving the stock camera loose in the rear housing (in case this didn’t work), mounting the new one by slightly enlarging the opening in the housing, and then running a new wire all the way to the head unit.
NATIKA Backup/Front/Side View... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B083SF5VVN?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share
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Looks Good @ohecht
I am looking into a new aftermarket head. One thing I have noticed on my factory backup camera is it seems a bit askew & if I follow the lines, I backup a little crooked. I think it is the factory mount for the little factory camera.
The reason I mention this is it looks like you are suffering from the same skewed lens (green marks on the photo below unequal - edge of van);
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