Trying to decide if I should run the wire from behind the car stereo (afraid to drill holes in dash) for the ipod or just use the front jack. Any thoughts? Anyone use the front Aux jack? Would love to see pics of your setup!

 

Stock non nav radio? No way to do. You need a navi radio or aftermarket unless you want to use a transmitter. If you can figure out how to hardwire into a stock non nav radio you'll make a lot of people happy here but no one has been able to do it so far. There are no aux outs on the back of the stock non navi radio.

 

I apologize for not making this clear.... I am getting an aftermarket radio with the ipod hookup in the back and an Aux plug in the front. Just curious how everyone plugs their ipod in to their aftermarket radios. If you ran the wire from the back, how did you get it through the dash?

 

Ahh! Different answer. Mines hardwired (removable if I want) to the rear so you can't see any wires. My unit accesses the songs on the I-Pod. In other words the I-pod goes in the glove box and I forget about it. Enjoy your new stereo.

 

Me too. I'll eventually route the cable to my armrest when I install the cupholder replacement bin.

 

How did you get it in the glovebox? Did you have to drill?

 

Yes, I did anyway. Just big enough to put the end of the cable through. I-pod sits in the glove box under one of my micro-fiber towels. No rattle or shake.

 

Sorry, yes you drill a hole through the side of the glovebox. You can't see it and the cable runs through it into the back of my stereo unit. You could also do what max is going to do in the arm rest. My stereo is made for the I-Pod so it more or less mimics the controls (to a point). There are other I-Pod hook ups where you have to control the I-Pod from the I-Pod. I didn't want that. Mine is set up so the stereo controls the I-Pod. Check my gallery for pics of the new stereo in the car. The Alpine also has a removeable face plate so it can go in my pocket or locked in the glove box.

 

Thanks guys. I may try to run the wire out of the dash somehow without drilling. I will probably set it up so I can control the ipod by hand and not the radio.

 

I posted a few times in the audio section regarding my new install of the Blaupunkt St. Louis (MP56). While I don't have an Ipod and wasn't particularly interested in making the hookup for one, I did buy the Blaupunkt for two reasons. One is that several members of this forum reported that the unit was a simple plug-and-play (which it is--hooray!), and the other is that it has a provision for a USB port on the rear side.

I bought a 16GB flash drive Sunday and downloaded most all the music I care to hear on it. The Blaupunkt ships with a cord to plug into the rear port that has about 18" of length before terminating in the female USB fitting. I routed the cord down the right side of the center console, which is super easy through the hole when the radio is out, and poked it out the bottom of the plastic trim piece right above the elastic mesh keeper in the passenger footwell. I plugged the flash drive loaded with music to the cord and tucked in inside the mesh. It's hardly noticible unless you are really looking and easily accessible.

My point is that you could do the same thing with your Ipod cable and Ipod itself if you feel squeamish about drilling blindly in the vicinity of the glove box.

BTW, the sound is great to my ears. I set the USB drive to mix, all, to shuffle all the music. I've not listened enough to know whether it's playing seamlessly, but I stuffed the card absolutely full, and maybe should have left some breathing space. I'll be watching for a deal on a 32GB card, as the prices on flash memory seem to be dropping like an anvil.

 

That is what I was hoping to do.... is send the wire down the passenger side of the console. It is good to know it could be done without a problem. I am going to get a Blaupunkt since they say it is a plug and play. Thanks for the info!