Fitting an after-market stereo to an XJ8

[bmc123]

Fitting an after-market stereo to an XJ8 has been covered before but I thought I may as well photo document my own attempts from today. Things did not run smoothly, mostly caused by the fact that the fascia adaptor I bought was not exactly the right size – more of that later but here we go.

First off, here is what I started with.



I bought a Sony MEX-BT3800U after a bit of searching around for a stereo that had Bluetooth built in that could play MP3 CD’s and came with an infra red remote and a front USB socket and this one suited my needs, there are of course many units out there now with these features but this particular one was in my price range and had all the features I wanted.

I also needed a converter plug and a remote stalk adaptor – both bought from eBay and they can be seen here already plugged in (the stereo patch lead is slightly out of shot though)



To start off, park your car safely on a flat road and leave in drive – as can be seen from the photos I did not do that and had to wander around to the driver’s side and do that mid install. Anyway, remove the gear selector cover carefully (unlike the previous owners of this car, it almost fell off, as all the lugs were broken bar one.)

You will now see 2 x 8mm nuts at the top and 2 x 8mm bolt/nut/screw things at the bottom – I don’t know if these are the same in all cars, but that is what was in mine. Remove these, lift off the switch housing and unplug it.



Holding the ski slope at the bottom beside the ashtray, lift it out carefully by pulling it towards the back of the car and upwards at the same time (if that makes sense) you will now see 3 screws in the console, I only needed to take out two of these (marked)



Now gently pull the stereo unit towards you and wiggle (good word that) it over the gear selector and out of the console (its tricky but easy enough) Once out remove the plugs from the back of the unit – Antenna, multi connector and round connector. The earth strap is on with a 10mm nut.



Once out the stereo and cage need removed, press down on the two metal springs shown and push the unit out of the plastic shroud.



The next bit I have no photos for as I almost gave up – the fascia adaptor did not fit properly, I have not contacted the person who made it as I simply did not have time to send it back for a replacement so I had to modify it to fit, and it is still not right – it was at least 2mm out in both internal and external dimensions and I had to cut away the leather and use a hacksaw and sander to modify it to get a rough fit. Also, once the cage was fitted I discovered that the stereos plastic surround will not fit properly as the unit is too low.

This cannot be a fault of the stereo as it is (as far as I know anyway) a standard DIN fitting. Anyway, here is the finished article.



The stereo is brilliant, the Bluetooth worked first time with my HTC Diamond 2 phone, and the remote control is handy for rear passengers and as long as you don’t look too close the finish is not bad.

In all I would say it took me 3 hours but that was with me having to modify the fascia adaptor and being careful - and spending 20 minutes looking for two of the screws that I managed to lose down the transmission tunnel..... (hint – use a magnetic screwdriver)

[joejag308]

bmc.....that's the first attempt Ive seen that works......after a fashion...depending on what you want.....i have just been to the Local "stereo bespoke installer"...first of all he decided to unravel himself from the phone to his beloved, then he started clicking away on the PC for some reason and then the magic words..."can i help you pal"....so i then said i need a new set up can you alter things and change units..."think so pal".....so he then managed to actually open the door and come and look at the car....then the sharp intake of breath...."wot u want done" i almost told him.......he then glanced at the interior of the 308 and said "ooh haven't done one of those mate"....i'm no longer his pal i'm his mate now
"cant be done he said".........then he walked back in and closed the door.
Now this is supposed to be the top man in Leeds re car stereo LEEDS CAR AUDIO...they have plaudits all over the mags and search engines....but in the real world this is the service i got.
Now there must have been someone who has had their system updated without losing any of the current system ....cd,cassette,radio,( in fact mine is the premium sound system with the sub woofer in)....any one ???.......

[bmc123]

Cheers, with a bit of time and patience I would have made my own fascia adaptor - after I bought myself a spare panel that I could cut/modify - to allow the head unit to sit up a bit as in operation it really is too low. When parked up you simply can't view the display as the gear lever blocks it. An alternative that may suit some people is one of the single din head units that plays video with the retractable screens like this one:

http://caraudiogiant.co.uk/shop/clarion ... _1010.html

that might suit as the display would sit up and out a bit more - (although the bluetooth and ipod adaptors add to the price so its just an example) I will get something like that eventually but finances don't allow it at the moment.

Overall though I am pleased with it as it does do exactly what I wanted and was a relatively inexpensive way to get full hands free bluetooth and mp3 compatibility into the car without modifying any of the stock wiring. As I mention in the article, everything can be simply removed and the original head unit put back in again, however the CD auto-changer in the boot will still not work as its jammed and I can't get the disc free.

I've been living with it for about 10 months now and apart from the stock speakers occasionally complaining (too much bass) I am very happy with it and the fact that I did not have to pay some box shifting pretend grease monkey to fit it makes it even better

[joejag308]

bmc.....guess what......ive contacted a guy in Manchester at a good looking audio shop, he says if i can take the vehicle to him he will strip it and have a look to see if the unit can be adaptewd to take the more modern plug ins.....not losing any of the current buttons or fascia.....this involves adapting the wiring to take the more modern equipment...possibly having another small add on unit on the side of the trim above the drivers left knee.........to include the Blootooth adapter and usb plug also a micro mp3 unit.....im away for the weekend in Scotland....the Drum Castle event is a bit of a annual pilgrimage for Ridings.....thenits home for two weeks before the JEC Southern Day at Beaulieu....if i can sort out the guy i will have it done for then....are you going to Southern Day ?

[bmc123]

I think you can "hotwire" a bluetooth module in - I seem to remember it being done somewhere however that means a control box placed elsewhere and the associated wiring something I don't want. I don't get to any mainland meetings - can't drive over the Irish sea and I hate ferries

[joejag308]

bmc.....i also thought you would be able to do that somehow....so i contacted the Alpine engineering dept for some idea of what can be done.
They....ALPINE ELECTRONICS
Technical/Customer Support. Tel: 0845 313 1660
Direct Line: 0845 313 1657 Mobile: +44 (0)7714 524240 Fax: 0845 313 1659

Email: barryjohn.vincent@alpine-electronics.co.uk
Alpine Electronics of UK Ltd.
Alpine House, Fletchamstead Highway, Coventry, CV4 9TW, United Kingdom
Replied by phone and roughley speaking they said the system as it was and is installed cant be altered without a major removal of the main components, if the radio head was changed for an up market model the basic structure of the dashboard display inc the info screens and most of the steering wheel controls would have to be replaced with the new upgrade whether it was Alpine or any other make or model.....at the time of manufacture the system hadnt heard of Bluetooth ,MP3, and USB connections....so no allowances were built into the system. This was at the time an anti theft measure.........so time rolls on ...i for one wont be having my standard Alpine Premium Sound System altered...i love the set up of the facia...i will, and do, use a transmitter and a usb memory stick yto get my MP3 music.....i use my Bluetooth phone in conjunction with my Tom Tom which manages my Sat Nav needs perfectly, plus a new toy for the no hands phone bought at Halfords for round about £20 which enables you to recieve calls and answer automatically....so, ways and means if you want to retain the standard features....otherwise take the lump out and start with from scratch with a retro system of your choice.....it looks like bmc has done as much as you can there...

[PaulGover]

One cheap alternative upgrade is to buy a dummy cassette with a plug that goes into your favourite MP3 player's (e.g.iPod) earphone socket. Mine cost around £10 from ASDA, but it squeaks when it gets hot (and it does in about 1.5 hours with all the waste heat from the gearbox). Down side is you need to keep the player's battery charged, and pull over to change playlist. You can put the player in the centre arm rest.

IMHO that works better than the low-power FM transmitters you can similarly plug into an iPod's earphone socket. They (a) disable the RDS radio Traffic Alerts and (b) on any long journey you seem to get interference from at least one local radio station.