Some more audio fiddlings + aux lead install

[Ferret]

Finally got all my headunit hardware in place - took me long enough!

Had everything in except the Aux Input lead, decided to fit it so that it popped out the back of the nick-nack tray.

Here's how I did it:
Take one fairly clean car:
http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a190/Ferret101/aud/IMG_1759Large.jpg

Apply 5 minutes of effort:
http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a190/Ferret101/aud/IMG_1760Large.jpg
Is it a defining moment of being an E34 nut when you can take apart this much stuff in 5 minutes without conscious effort?

Insert connector end of cable (pink connector) here:
http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a190/Ferret101/aud/IMG_1762Large.jpg
Damn, all my expansion ports on the stereo are now full!

Feed cable through from stereo console down into the furry kick panel:
(apologies for bad focus!)
http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a190/Ferret101/aud/IMG_1763Large.jpg

[Ferret]

Feed cable back up through side of transmission tunnel and pull through for neatness:
http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a190/Ferret101/aud/IMG_1764Large.jpg

Pop the bits of plastic out of the back of the e-brake & nick nack tray assembly, unbolt the front two screws, then remove the rear screws through these holes in the back:
http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a190/Ferret101/aud/IMG_1766Large.jpg

Remove the lot and pull your audio cable(s) under the window switches and haz lights.
http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a190/Ferret101/aud/IMG_1767Large.jpg

You can see in the above photo where my audio leads disappear in the trans tunnel carpet to head into the boot... if you lift the rear carpet there's a protective shield you can run cables under, on top of the trans tunnel. I found this to be the most direct route while doing sub installs.

You'll have to punch your audio cable through somewhere suitable in the moulding you removed, I chose to bring it through the inside wall of the nicknack tray.

[Ferret]

Re-assemble and enjoy!
http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a190/Ferret101/aud/IMG_1768Large.jpg

I bought this headunit mainly becuase you can choose the color scheme and I like the way the headunit display matches the rest of the car, though I've still got the color slightly off at the moment in the photo - it looks almost spot on in person :)
http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a190/Ferret101/aud/IMG_1770Large.jpg

[BMWDriver]

Nice job ! Gives me inspiration for some mischief...

[Paul in NZ]

can you describe how the radio/obc module and the heating control panel actually come out??

[Ferret]

can you describe how the radio/obc module and the heating control panel actually come out??

Yep,

The two outer strips just pop out forwards, get a small flat blade screwdriver behind em and lever em out.

Next, on the left hand side there's a small hole behind where one of the strips was on the left:
http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a190/Ferret101/Heater/01-Release.jpg
Insert a small, flat-blade screwdriver and push inwards while levering what's inside towards yourself...

The unit should pop out very slightly and allow you to pull the left side forwards....

Grab the whole panel and shift it to the left slightly - the right hand side will pop out of where it's docked in the panel. Wiggle the pannel towards yourself out of the hole until you can see the black connector on the top. Slide the locking clamp to the left and the plug will pop out of the top.

This makes it a lot easier to slide the panel out, reach in and squeeze the clips on the ends of the yellow heater cables - these should pop out but dont try unhooking the cable ends yet.

There's two more electrical connectors to pop out - one on the left and one in the centre - once these are out pull the panel further forwards and you can unhook the heater cable ends easily off the back of the panel.

The panel's now loose and you can shift it to one side.
http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a190/Ferret101/Heater/02-Released.jpg

Next, take out the four screws around the panel corners (they're under where you removed the plastic strip from) and you need to remove a screw out of the console trim.

To remove this screw - open the glovebox and look on the console right where the top of the glovebox lid closes to - around this area there's a single screw in towards the centre of the car. Remove this screw and it will give you the flex in the console you need to get the rest of the HVAC/Stereo panel out.

Getting the panel out is in itself a work of frustration if you've never done it before. The bit of trim we loosened in the last step? Bend it gently towards the outside of the car - and pull the top of the hvac frame forwards... now you have to wiggle the whole frame untill the bottom mounting pops out of the trim at the bottom. This can be a bitch to do unless you're used to it so take your time.

Once the glovebox side of the panel is free from both the top and bottom mountings, yank the whole panel towards the glovebox and the steering column side will pop out... leaving the whole frame floating free.

It's easier to remove the radio and obc first, but I find these days that it's quicker not to - though you're more likely to damage something in the process.

The above guide is a quick and dirty one - and can be hard the first time you try it!

Hope it makes sense.

[Paul in NZ]

does...might not be exactly the same in mone as i have the ihka,but,hopefully with your instructions i can finaly get the cd34 in!

[Ferret]

does...might not be exactly the same in mone as i have the ihka,but,hopefully with your instructions i can finaly get the cd34 in!

The IHKA is actually a lot easier to get in and out - it's just three connectors or so instead of all the fiddly cable crap!