Hello,
I am a new owner of a 2007 Boxster S which I use to commute daily (about 60 miles a day).
It has been a pleasure so far (despite the water pump breaking into 2 pieces last week when I was on the highway, but that's a different story).
I have been planning to replace the current factory basic autoradio (CDR24 I assume) with an aftermarket option.
I know that there are a lot of threads about this, and it might not really be useful to open another one, but I really struggle with all the information available.
I have absolutely no mechanical nor electronic knowledge, and English is not my mother tongue so I am sometimes even struggling with some terminology. I also didn't own a car for the last 10 years, so I am not up to date with all the new technology gimmicks
I would really need some help to clarify everything. Additionally some threads are pretty old so I wonder if some better options are available now. Thanks in advance and apologies for the naive questions.
My current situation
- Boxster S 987 2007 with Bose.
- Basic CDR24 unit
- Using a cheap FM bluetooth adaptor to stream music.
My need
- Stream music/podcast from Iphones via Bluetooth (Apple Carplay?)
- Be able to make phone calls if possible
- Be able to either stream the GPS screen from the Iphone or get a GPS included would be nice but not mandatory
- Be able to plug a rear camera would be nice but not mandatory
- Nice look, big screen.
- Integrated. I park mostly on street so it needs to be kind of hard to steal - at least not too appealing.
- I am find with a "basic" sound quality, I mostly listen at podcasts
- I need a professional installation. I have a good address, but want to know if I should come in with specific details/models in mind. They don't mind if I purchase the pieces on my own.
My understanding
- Bose + Boxster S = trouble. I can either choose to bypass the Bose amp or to keep it (which is more complicated)
- I need to purchase one in dash system + a kit to adapt it into the car.
My questions
1-
What system do you recommend
? I read that one other user was happy with his
Avic 8100NEX, is that the best system as of today?
2- Would
Apple Carplay
work in my case?
3- Any specific kit I should purchase and/or any instruction I need to give to the professional installer?
I see that we have
different options (bypassing the bose amp or not
, etc), and I would prefer to have your advices beforehand in order to choose the smartest solution.
4- Is is possible to get a
rear camera
installed? My fiancee saw some fairly inexpensive systems with a camera integrated in the licence plate frame, and she would enjoy having one when she uses the car. I don't really need one but if that's relatively easy to do while working on the audio system, why not.
5- Could you give me a rough
price estimat
e for the different items? This would help me to know if the quotes from my installer are fair.
6- Is there a way to keep the text stream from the radio to the "computer" on the small
dashboard screen?
Not sure how to call that, but right now the radio station/song is displayed below my speed.
7- On a side note I don't think I have
rear speakers
- I have the "space" for them, but no sound. Was it optional on a Boxster S? I have read some contradictory statements.
Thank you very much for your help.
Ever figure out what you needed? I'm in basically the same situation with my 06 Cayman S. The one thing I've learned is that there are NO cheap options (at least that I could find).
This site was one of the more expensive I've found, but the info was useful and specific to our applications....
Car Audio Innovations — 997 Generation of 911/Cayman/Boxster '05-'13
I'm in a similar position think I will go with the alpine ILX-007 which is a car play only unit and no other fancies which won't need. I think other phones can connect by audio input, so no car play type feature comes up on screen. Have to work out what it looks like to see if there's any show stoppers.
Essentially, I've been looking for a nice simple solution as I'll only play music from my phone but most decks are tricked out with features.
The next decision will be whether to replace the AMP/Speakers given they are 8 years old. I'd be going from 12 speakers to 4 either rainbow or focal type speaker. Installer gave me an option to connect to the Bose amp, replace amp and keep speakers or replace the lot.
I went with the Parrot Asteroid Smart (android based) and I love it. Everything tethers off my iphone (hotspot) and works really well. I can run my waze navigation and have Spotify or Tunein streaming at the same time with no problems. The unit was only $500 but the kicker was paying the additional $750 to purchase the eurospeed kit to work with my Bose. Also, since the unit is made by Parrot the Bluetooth for calls works really well. This unit has been out for a few years and it's my understanding that they are coming out with a new version that's going to be way better (
#CES 2015: Parrot RNB6, the most connected in-vehicle infotainment system - Parrot news | Parrot news
). It maybe worth the wait.
The only real issues I've had is the volume button but you can help that by using an available widget in the marketplace that will give you volume controls when you're at the home screen. Otherwise you have to hit the volume button and scroll side to side and it doesn't work when you're in the waze app. Seems like they would fix this in an update. The only other real issue I had was that when you turned off the car you had to restart any apps you were using when you got back in. This can be annoying when you're just getting out to go in the store. However, I found a solution for this (
Parrot Asteroid Customisation
). When you download this app you can set a timer for head unit to power down. Basically I have mine set so that as long as I return to my car within 4hrs everything will be running exactly as it had when I got out. So far I've had no issue with this draining my battery. There's also an app called starter that will let you set-up any apps that you want to automatically run when turning on your car.
Here's another thread with additional info
http://www.planet-9.com/987-cayman-boxster-electronics/80561-parrot-asteroid-smart.html
I went with the Pioneer 8000NEX in my 2007 Cayman S last year. It comes with a capacitive screen for a really nice resolution and has the Apple Carplay as a bonus - as well as HD radio which is nice to have as a radio guy. I went with the Euromotorspeed kit, too - having worked with Loi at Euromotorspeed in the past, he's guaranteed to give great customer service. I have no complaints - and the unit looks a lot like stock. Very happy with the experience.
I installed the Alpine ilx007 and really like it. No bluetooth though, you have to plug in the phone. I always do that anyway.
Some crappy photos:
I found
this post to be helpful
(although not for the mechanically challenged)!
http://www.6speedonline.com/forums/...cayman/277591-987-boxster-double-din-8-subs-doors-rear-speaker-kit-install.html
You may want to have a quick look at this post:
http://www.planet-9.com/987-cayman-boxster-electronics/107322-experience-zenec-z-e7015s.html
Hope that helps expanding the options
