Pioneer AVH-3300NEX w/ Apple Carplay Radio

[englewoodfl]

Last car show of the year is over and with high Covid no more until things get better here in SW Florida. I bought a W 000 589 88 63 00 set of MB removal tools. The current radio is a Sony CDX-GT200 which is apparently after market or from LTV. I insert the two keys and there isn't any "CLICK" - doesn't matter which way I put them in - they're just loose. Do I have the proper tool for an early 2006 Sprinter? Any thought on how I should remove this?

 

[Cheyenne]

It looks like you've got the wrong keys...

https://www.sony.com/electronics/support/res/manuals/2669/26697221M.pdf

Keith.

 

[englewoodfl]

Yes. I went by the service manual - mistake. There is a UK company Keple that makes the correct "keys" for a CDX-GT200. I ordered a set but with Christmas and with super slow US shipping won't be here for almost 2 weeks. More later.

 

[englewoodfl]

My Keple keys came - slid them in - click - slid it right out. With the connector and antenna disconnected thought I could remove the metal frame because before the new radio I want to get the mode control knob so that rotates and works. It's frozen in place so air only blows out the front vents. I hoping some careful lubrication will do the trick.

So what exactly am I looking at - factory, Sony, generic? How does it come out? Other things I need to know?

 

[PhilipE]

Try the keys in the sides. My Sony AVX8000 unlocks from the sides. If you look at your din adapter. It looks like the locks on the side also. See the guides on the front area to guide the keys.

 

[Cheyenne]

My Keple keys came - slid them in - click - slid it right out. With the connector and antenna disconnected thought I could remove the metal frame because before the new radio I want to get the mode control knob so that rotates and works. It's frozen in place so air only blows out the front vents. I hoping some careful lubrication will do the trick.

So what exactly am I looking at - factory, Sony, generic? How does it come out? Other things I need to know?

The frame is usually retained by the triangular tabs being bent outwards but I can't see any other than possibly bottom right hand?

 

[englewoodfl]

There are 2 triangular tabs in the front of which one was bent down. I used a small screwdriver and bent it up. I'll relook for triangular tabs although it's not easy as the sun here is very bright and washes out my LED light. Is this the original radio "frame" or is this part of the Sony install?

 

[englewoodfl]

Using my 12" focal length "coke" glasses, with the sun to the back and with a shop LED light saw this tab right at the front on the top of the frame bent in. Undid it and one more that had a slight bend. With some help from a very thin putty knife the frame came out. I can see one air adjuster and by working that with my fingers I can rotate the mode control further than I could comfortably before. Can't tell yet if the "mark" on the top is a mold part line or a crack. Looks like slowly dribbling WD40 might be called for.

Now I still have the rest of the bezel assembly to remove so that I can see the back of mode control knob. Any quick thoughts?

 

[englewoodfl]

Good news and I'm going to start a new post since the radio part is done. I'm now able to rotate the mode control 90 degrees down after soaking the wire with WD40. Ended up using a hypodermic needle to get better flow and control. It looks like the brown trim is just glued to the upper dash and thus the bezel is not removal - not what I thought based on comments. If I'm wrong please let me know.

Getting control to work partially is OK but now what about the rest? See you in the next post?

 

[englewoodfl]

Back to this again - one of two items left to address. Decided the AVH-3500NEX (which seems to be nearly identical to the 3300NEX) is what we're going to do. The "blue store" will install the unit but won't do a backup camera because they have determined that the backup lighting circuit doesn't have enough current capacity for both the bulb and the camera.

Clearly the connector for the former radio (Sony CDX-GT200) isn't a straight connection to the 3500NEX. I like either a source for a conversion cable or a proven wiring diagram so I can make my own.

For the backup camera if current is really the issue it would likely be easy to swap the current bulb for an LED. I have taken the psgr side rear panel out just to see what's involved. Just use a trim tool to pop the buttons off and then remove the screws. The construction seems a little "cheesy" but doing it "my way" would have been far more expensive.

Any further thoughts as I need to get working on this?

 

[Lojack72]

I used this harness to minimize cutting into the stock Sprinter wires:

Amazon.com: Harmony Audio Compatible with 2003-2006 Dodge Sprinter HA-709401 Factory Stereo to Aftermarket Radio Harness Adapter : Electronics

Buy Harmony Audio Compatible with 2003-2006 Dodge Sprinter HA-709401 Factory Stereo to Aftermarket Radio Harness Adapter: Radio Wiring Harnesses - Amazon.com ✓ FREE DELIVERY possible on eligible purchases

www.amazon.com

Adds some bulk, but could at least make all connections to the stereo outside of the vehicle.

 

[englewoodfl]

Not enough wires for what I have. There are about 11 wires plus two added pairs for a total of about 15. What I really want is a double ended adapter that I can just plug into the MB connector and then the other end into the AVH-3500NEX. No muss, no fuss. If I can't buy one perahps I can match the MB plug I can make my own adapter.

 

[Lojack72]

This may help. You're not going to find a pre-made connector for an aftermarket radio, but can use the one that came with the Pioneer & the link I put above to build one. You'll also need a European antenna adapter I believe.
A few of the wires aren't used, on both sides. Note that I split off the rear speaker wires direct from the stereo as my van didn't have them originally but I put two more in the headliner. I also wired in the parking brake bypass to ensure I could access all menus all the time. If I was doing this again, I'd trim the wires more & use butt splices with heatshrink tubing.

 

[englewoodfl]

There's an antenna adapter already installed. I really want to leave the MB connector alone. I did get faked-out by the pic of the connector in the ad. Looked like it was short of "pins". But a better pic of the 70-9401 connector got me back on track but has some missing pins. In my T1N the radio has A1 is for VEHICLE SPEED SENSOR OUTPUT, A2 is R-TOM/RADIO and A3 for CTEL MUTE- they obviously don't matter since it runs without them.

First is the current adapter from the T1N to the Sony CDX. - the Sony end looks to match the Pioneer harnesses that are for sale.

With more monitor time I found something described as a: 16Pin Car Stereo Radio Wiring Harness Connector Plug ISO PI100 for Pioneer 03-on
In a few places I found the year range from 03-18. From what I can see this looks like the harness I want. The colors don't match mine but I can do a complete diagram. FYI - the Mercedes end has MADE IN CHINA - METRA. Thoughts?

 

[englewoodfl]

I thought that I would document the harness that was in the 2016 when we bought it. So MB connector to Sony connector. My documentation is accurate as far as I know.

 

[RedLens]

There's an antenna adapter already installed. I really want to leave the MB connector alone. I did get faked-out by the pic of the connector in the ad. Looked like it was short of "pins". But a better pic of the 70-9401 connector got me back on track but has some missing pins. In my T1N the radio has A1 is for VEHICLE SPEED SENSOR OUTPUT, A2 is R-TOM/RADIO and A3 for CTEL MUTE- they obviously don't matter since it runs without them.

First is the current adapter from the T1N to the Sony CDX. - the Sony end looks to match the Pioneer harnesses that are for sale.

With more monitor time I found something described as a: 16Pin Car Stereo Radio Wiring Harness Connector Plug ISO PI100 for Pioneer 03-on
In a few places I found the year range from 03-18. From what I can see this looks like the harness I want. The colors don't match mine but I can do a complete diagram. FYI - the Mercedes end has MADE IN CHINA - METRA. Thoughts?

View attachment 170978

View attachment 170977

I am going through an install right now, and was thrown off by the harness adaptor I bought missing the A1 & A2 completely. Yours works correctly without those wired to the new receiver?

 

[englewoodfl]

Not in yet but the MB-to-Sony harness has no pins A1, A2 and A3. My guess is that different build packages might have had some "fancy" options but the LTV is a bare bones chassis.

 

[englewoodfl]

For the bluetooth microphone, which I don't have yet, I was considering installing it next to the ASR switch on the console. I would just cut a small "indent" for the wire in the blank-out and then fasten the microphone to the blank-out. Is this a good location for the microphone balancing difficulty vs. sound quality vs. looks?

I do have the USB cable installed in the rightmost blankout. Was a little finicky cutting a .5" x 1.0" hole in the blank-out as it's rather thick but it looks good now. The clips don't hold it in so I used some E6000 to hold it cable in place.

 

[englewoodfl]

I've received my order from a major retailer which includes 3 parts for the installation of the AVH-3500NEX in our 2006 Sprinter. For documentation the P/Ns are Metra 99-6509 Dodge Sprinter 2003-2006, Metra AntennaWorks 40-VW53 powered antenna adaptor cable and a VW-9000 VWLEAD TO CAR HARNESS 94-80 which is only identified as MADE IN CHINA although the order has Metra listed. The 99-6509 looks to have the correct outside dimensions but the depth is shorter than the adapter for the old Sony radio. The antenna adapter is entirely different - the Sony was just a wiring adapter. The wiring connector looks similar to a Metra 70-9401 that I bought previously bought except that the VW-9000 has 4 pins that are not wired through while the 70-9401 only has 3 pins not wired through.

I'm getting a free install from the retailer so I went with that - and it will make the CEO happier.

 

[parkgt]

Did my AVH-3500NEX install a couple of weeks ago. Very pleased with how it works and sounds with my upgraded dash speakers and added 6" door speakers.