So I finally bit the bullet and coughed up the money for navigation/dvd. I just decided to do it right the first time and get one of the best. Go big or go home... right? I went with the Pioneer Avic-Z2. It is awesome.. I would highly recommend to anyone considering navi. It is all touch screen voice commanded, you can search addresses numerous different ways, You can search for specific gas stations, that comes in handy if you are like me and only want Sunoco 94 or equivalent. I do have the bluetooth adapter which is awesome. I can get in the car and it automatically detects my phone, and basically your whole phone interface is now through touch screen menus. It logs all your calls, you can upload your phonebook and it stores everything. All your calls come in and it mutes your audio or DVD, and you touch a button on the screen to take the call. When the call is finished and disconnects all your audio comes back on. It is really cool! Also has 30GB HDD which stores the navigation maps, so no DVD map discs. Which allows you to keep whatever disc in you want. 10GB is reserved just for music library. ANy audio disc you put in it can rip it and store it. I also did two very easy bypasses which allows all functions of naviagtion and DVD to work while car is in motion. Anyway, I am super pleased with this system was very simple to install after the harness was all soldered together. If you are even remotely intelligent you can install this yourself. I'll let the pics do the rest of the talking.

The famous box picture.

 

Good work, congrats on the top of the line unit!

 

Looks good.

Semi-on-topic - how does the xm navtraffic feature work. I've heard mixed reviews, some say there can be like a 30 minute lag in info, others say it's awesome and up to the minute. Does it depend on the metro are you are in?

 

I don't know, you have to subscribe to it, XM radio subscription plus extra for XM Traffic. Traffic is not really a problem at all where i live so I have no need for it. There are a few others on here that have the Z2. Not sure if they have the XM radio.

 

OK, thanks. Traveling 40 miles each way to and from work every day on the Garden State Parkway can get sticky sometimes and I think i might benefit from the XM Traffic if it's up to the minute. You know how it is.....a leaf blows across the highway and EVERYBODY has to stop to watch it.

 

Outa interest, what trim kit you use ?
Looks great, and it doesnt look like a metra kit to me.

 

Nice work!

 

Do you lose functions for your steering wheel?

 

Very nice! Your fitment is as good as I've seen. What trim kit (bezel) did you use? It looks about perfect.

--Spike

 

Looks clean!

I've always been a fan of Pioneer.

 

Nice install, I just downgraded from the Z1 to the D3

 

they mac pac units to keep steering wheel function really easy to do

 

oh thanks now i just gotta save some money

 

Can you explain what you mean by they "mac pac units"???

Who is they?
What is a mac pac unit?

And is this something that can be bought through say Crutchfield?

Thank you.

 

nice. im putting in my avic d-3 next week

 

It is from Crutchfield, but the package did say Metra. I took the trim kit for the single din and cubby, it had a thin bezel connected through the middle of it, I cut that thin piece out that was between the compartment slot and the single din, and filed it till it was just one big opening, making it a double din. I had to file the top edge a bit because when the Avic-Z2 screen opens it goes up a little first and then the top slides down and the bottom of the screen come out towards you. It would hit a little and you could hear the motor bog down a bit, so i filed it a bit until it cleared. I am perfectly satisfied with the trim kit and the overall install.

No i don't lose any steering wheel controls because i never had them to begin with. 03' Touring.

 

I have a Z-2 in my G35 and the steering wheel controls are still operational.
Did you get the rear back up camera? I was considering it but I dont really drive the car enough to justify it. How do you by pass to get the DVD operational while in motion if I am barly rolling it works but once I am fast enough for the GPS to tell I am moving it shuts down.

 

Thanks for the info. I suppose we always think double-din bezel when mounting a double-din device, but your single-din solution (with some minor and simple modification) looks better. Nice… Thinking “outside the box.”

--Spike

 

is this how it operates with standard install? or did u have to wire something up to get it to work?

+1, i wanna know to, strongly considering getting this unit

 

I think what he was trying to say, albeit rather cryptically, was "they make pac units". To answer your questions:

They = PAC / Pacific Accessory Corporation / www.pac-audio.com

PAC "unit" = SWI-Jack, SWI-PS, SWI-X These are all steering wheel control interfaces made by PAC that will let you retain your factory steering wheel control functions with aftermarket head units. I used the SWI-PS (Pioneer/Sony) with my recent AVIC-D3 install.

Regards,
ClarkEMTP

PS - Oh, and yes, you can buy them through Crutchfield, that's where I got mine. Here's a list of the various SWI products from PAC's website.

http://www.pac-audio.com/products/pr...el%20Interface