MY08 2.5i Audio Upgrade

Stereos, amps, phone kits, Navi...

MY08 2.5i Audio Upgrade

Postby Pak75 » Fri May 05, 2017 8:29 am

It all started with a blown factory speaker…. probably Led Zeppelin’s fault!
Visits to Ryda and Strathfield Car Radio left me more confused about speakers, head units and potential problems with installation so I decided to do my own research first. One installer would only quote an hourly installation rate, citing known difficulties with Gen 4 Subarus.
Many hours sifting through threads of this forum and others helped me put together a plan.
Speakers I looked at and that were recommended to me all required large amounts RMS power to run. Shop assistants said these would work on factory head units, I would just need to turn the volume up more than usual…
Car does not have an amplifier so I wanted a Head Unit that put out max power. However, they all put out about same 18-22W RMS so that meant looking at speakers needing less power.
As the car is 08 it does not have hands –free telephone so that was another essential requirement.
Initially looked at Alpine CDE-265BT but then Strathfield decided to raise their prices so eventually chose Pioneer AVH-295BT- might as well get USB/iPod compatibility as well plus a touch screen.
Opted for Pioneer TDS speakers as they only use 60 watts RMS.
Kit list
Pioneer AVH-295BT
Pioneer TSD 1703c component speakers
Aerpro Subaru to ISO Harness APP090
Aerpro Pioneer to ISO APP9io8 includes 3.5mm patch lead for SWC controls
Double Dn Fascia kit
Install
Removed Kenwood GX204 as per info on this forum. I found that by partially undoing three screws each side of HU this provided enough play to remove ash tray without too much effort – it is held by two lugs on top edge which locate it in bottom of AC unit

Initial comparison of wiring revealed that none of Subaru wiring colours matched Aerpro harnesses or harness provided with Pioneer HU. This was resolved with help of SVCdx website here:

David Carter SVXdx
http://ae64.com/Legacy-pinout.htm

There was one extra Orange wire on Subaru harness which did not have an equivalent on ISO plugs but I decided to leave this and find out what didn’t work later on.
Aerpro kits worked well and most of install was plug and play. Green Pioneer parking brake line was simply grounded on chassis HU and DVDs will now play while vehicle is in motion, not that I intend to watch any while driving. Barbie DVDs can be particularly annoying….
Steering wheel controls were not quite so straight forward. One reason for choosing Pioneer HU was that this has a ‘self-learning SWC’ factory feature. Initial connection of Pioneer patch lead straight to Orange/White and Violet/White SWC control wires did not work. There was also a Green wire in the factory SWC connector harness the function of which was not known - possibly Ground from SWC or SWC illumination.
MY08 SWC signals are still modified by going through the LAN module so new HU did not read them. Therefore I decided to try and find LAN module and tap into Orange/White and Violet/White wires to bypass this LAN module, as per video here for 2006 Liberty/Outback:

James in NZ - Car Audio Etc -How to Wire up Steering Wheel Controls in a 2006 Subaru Outback/Legacy - YouTube
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=c-lE0TNh6po


However could not find LAN module or large white connectors shown in above video. Eventually found yellow air bag connector and a white connector beneath steering column covers and with aid of 08 Field Service Manual identified it as B68 through wire colours. Field Service Manuals here:

http://sl-i.net/FORUM/showthread.php?18 ... nuals-(FSM)-Every-Model-USDM-EU

Tapped into wires and ran twin wires to HU and connected straight to 3.5mm patch lead (Black = ground, White = SWC 1 control wire) after using Kenwood website here for wiring info (Kenwood, Pioneer and Sony are all using same SWC 3.5mm jack plug patch lead):

Kenwood
http://www.kenwood.com/au/car/visual_navigation/oem/


Pioneer unit recognised Subaru SWC immediately and was easily programmed.
Other stray wires (Orange on factory harness and Green SWC harness wire) were not needed as all illuminations including SWC and cruise controls were working without any additional wiring and Pioneer HU dimmed automatically when lights were switched on.
End result was an MY08 upgraded to modern touch screen unit with Steering Wheel Controls without need for Axxess SWC-1 or PAC adaptor.
Well worth doing and I was able to do work myself, although it took some time.
Pioneer HU cost me $300 and speakers $176 so whole upgrade about $650 after fascia kit, miscellaneous plugs, squares of Dynamat etc.
.
If there are any Gen IVs out there not yet upgraded I would thoroughly recommend doing it with this Pioneer.
SWC controls are more important now as buttons on touchscreen are really small and I found I had to take my eyes off the road to use them compared with previous Kenwood dial controls which were easily operated without having to look.
So I have a working Kenwood 6-CD GX204 in good condition if anyone is interested!

PS I took photos of install so if anyone interested let me know.
Pak75
 
Posts: 6
Joined: Thu Feb 09, 2017 9:32 am
Car: MY08 Liberty 2.5i
Real name: Stephen

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