Day 3 of '06 Crossfire ownership and all is well, except the factory radio. It worked a while, but the moment I tried to program a station, boom! No display, stuck at the last volume level, and now nothing works. If you apply a little pressure to the lower left corner, you can get some LCD activity, but I can't change a thing. Also, my Nav Cd is now stuck inside now too. No fun little North arrow to laugh at.
Something I have noticed since day 1 is that there is a little red light in the center-top of the radio. Is that a security thing? (see attachment)

 

Its trying to tell you something.

That something is to install a stereo from 2022 with all of the current features and conveniences.

Lot’s of really amazing aftermarket options that will not break the bank

 

I prefer the original aesthetic as this is not a daily driver, it is a cruiser that I don't want my phone ringing in.

 

Completely understand that desire. I too felt that way for the first year after I bought it. Mine is also a garage princess (2,000 miles in 2021)

But a few trips convinced my otherwise so I installed something a little more user friendly.

There is a double din kit available here on the site and it allows you to revert back to factory if you decide to sell it.

Gives you both options and a user friendly interface. Several members have installed A double din with user friendly touchscreen

You’ll be super happy you did.

Just my thoughts, leaving it stock is really great too

 

You really are trying to sway me. That looks quite good. Curse the Gods...

 

The double DIN was one of the better mods we put in both of our Crossfires.

 

If you insist on having the outdated, 2 channel, low quality head in the car that the factory stuck us with - simply find a used one and pop it in. Do not pay over $50 for one.
MANY of us have upgraded and old heads are a dime a dozen, you just need to get the word out you want an old head unit.

I gave mine away, in fact.

 

Ballesco
Please know that we’re NOT attempting to sway you, we’re just letting you know that there are ways to improve your experience and an upgraded head unit (single din or double) is relatively inexpensive and dramatically improves your level of enjoyment when listening to your favourite tunes. There are lots and lots of posts here about upgrading the sound system.

Someone told me early on; “if you’re not spending a ton of money on your crossfire then you haven’t had it very long.” I’ve had mine for 8 years and know this to be very true.

There are a lot of things that you’ll come across and say” oh I need to have that.” Just own it for awhile. Visit the site often, you’ll see

Enjoy

 

I was not satisfied with the OEM radio, I put in an OEM Navigation radio, not satisfied with that I put in a Kenwood
After a while I saw that some people were making Double Din face plates to accept Navigation head units. How hard could that be?
So I purchased a Kenwood head unit, and used face plates etc. and got to work.

This was my first model that I used for a few months until I decided that I would prefer the buttons on the vertical face plate. This never got painted. The ashtray does pop out but not like the original.


So I purchased more OEM face plates and made a second DD face plate. This one got sprayed and is the one I settled on for the car.
I still have all the original face plates so it could go back to a stock look.

This is the second face plate which is a one piece item, the ashtray was lost in this design. This design needed transfers,you can see one above the Passenger Air Bag light, this light and the lighter socket were move to the gear shift face plate. The transfers are sandwiched between the silver and clear paint.

How hard can it be? I found out that it takes time, the correct tools, patience, a moderate amount of skill with the hands and money as it isn't cheap to do. The first faceplate cost the most as the ashtray module had to be purchased, luckily I found one that did not work properly so it was cheaper, I did not want to cut up one that worked.

 

I agree with all this. I've only had my Crossfire a handful of months and keep saying to myself, I want to keep that centre console looking factory and sleek as it is. I can get by with that Infinity.....
But the Stereo is one primary component, as you say, that certainly enhances enjoyment while driving... won't be long before I'm posting that "Looking for a new Stereo with a Silver faceplate, that matches the centre console of the Crossfire! ". Actually a Double DIN would be nice !!!