Double DIN Navi Install

[cooldude117]

I am planning on installing my 2 DIN Pioneer Navi out of my old car into the brand new 3. I think this will be one of my most involved installs yet :D. I bought the Metra 2 DIN install kit and wiring harness. I don't like the way that the Metra kit's finish matches the new Piano Black dashboard. In the 09's the trim strip, climate controls, stereo, steering wheel controls, and window switches are all piano black, It all looks pretty sexy and the dull metra kit would ruin it IMHO. SO, I've started my project :). I've glued the trim ring on to the install kit and just finished applying bondo to the whole thing. This is my first bondo project so I hope it all goes well. My plan is to make the kit completely smooth and then finish it with a high gloss black treatment. (prime, sand, prime, sand, colour, sand, colour, sand, colour, sand, sand, clear, sand, sand, clear, sand, sand, clear, sand, rubbing compound, wax & shine)

PICS:
http://memimage.cardomain.com/ride_images/1/968/1341/2418170046_large.jpg?144215-021
Trim ring glued in

http://memimage.cardomain.com/ride_images/1/968/1341/2418170047_large.jpg
BONDO!!!

Updates to come!

[Whosit]

Very interested in the results.... I don't like mine either.....

[bluemazda3]

good luck.. show us the finished product.. i'd like to see it..

[gabbygenier]

it better look good for all the work ur gonna put into it. cant wait to see the outcome.

[x_o_k_x]

How would you match the paint with piano black color? Is there specific paint code?

[cooldude117]

I just picked up a Dupli-color universal black spray paint can from Canadian Tire and am hoping for the best! *fingers crossed*

[Pimpin_29y]

Great idea! This would be something I'd be interested in doing as well! Please update us on the progress!

Doesn't the trim ring need to be removed to install the double din deck?

[yearoftherat]

Doesn't the trim ring need to be removed to install the double din deck?

I thought so too. Don't you first have to install the outer piece seperately into the console? I thought the trim ring attachs to the deck and then that slides into the outer piece which is already installed.

[cooldude117]

Doesn't the trim ring need to be removed to install the double din deck?

I am able to slide the deck in from the rear and then use screws to attach it to the instal kit, so when I go to install it, it will be one piece.

Update:

So I didn't glue the trim ring in good enough the first time, and when I went to sand off the bondo I cracked the bondo. After getting some 5 minute epoxy and making sure it didn't happen again, I removed the rest of the bondo, and primed it. Unfortunately there were still too many imperfections (Including the crack that I thought might be filled by the filler primer that I got.) So, time to re-bondo! I guess you only learn to do things right if you mess up a couple times! The second coat of bondo is a little thinner than the first one I did (it took forever to sand off!) and I'll sand this one much more carefully!

Pics:
http://memimage.cardomain.com/ride_images/1/968/1341/2418170048_large.jpg?064610-023
Bondo sanded off.

http://memimage.cardomain.com/ride_images/1/968/1341/2418170049_large.jpg?064610-023
Primed (You can see the crack on the left side)

[IMG]http://memimage.cardomain.com/ride_images/1/968/1341/2418170050_large.jpg?064610-023[IMG]
More Bondo!

[cooldude117]

How do I edit?

http://memimage.cardomain.com/ride_images/1/968/1341/2418170050_large.jpg?064610-023
There's the last picture.

[skunk2]

if the filler is still cracking, try to fill the gap between the trim ring and the actual 2din kit with melted abs. you shouldn't need to glue it after that. you can smother some of the abs behind the trim for a stronger bond. make sure that you don't have any imperfections on the surface before painting, it will show easily on gloss black. good luck.

[SpeedBaby]

http://www.japanparts.com/images/ImageFromDB.php?base=1&no=18172

http://www.japanparts.com/images/ImageFromDB.php?base=1&no=18078

[cooldude117]

That looks fantastic! Did you do it yourself? If so, what did it take?

[SpeedBaby]

Mazda OEM

[cooldude117]

Where can I find one of those?

[SpeedBaby]

$300 :whoa

http://www.japanparts.com/db/parts_detail.php


http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e88/axela1/DSC00094.jpg

http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e88/axela1/IMG_9635.jpg

[cooldude117]

Ouch.. That's steep.. I think I'll try to finish what I started before dropping $300 on one. Looks really good though!

[cooldude117]

Ready for Black :D

http://memimage.cardomain.com/ride_images/1/968/1341/2418170051_large.jpg?544716-023

[b]

Looking good! You could make more and sell them if they come out nice :)

[cooldude117]

http://memimage.cardomain.com/ride_images/1/968/1341/2418170052_large.jpg

First coat of black. Not sanded yet. The picture doesn't do It justice, it looks pretty awesome without any sanding.

[cooldude117]

http://memimage.cardomain.com/ride_images/1/968/1341/2418170053_large.jpg

After 4 coats of black sanding smooth between each one. It keeps getting better after each one. Not sure how many coats I'll end up doing maybe one or two more then Clear.

[cooldude117]

Good News! I took the partially completed piece out to my car to check the black against my dashboard, and it looks like a perfect match. Mine just needs a bit more gloss to it. Just letting the first coat of clear dry.

[cooldude117]

FINISHED!

After waiting a couple of days for the clear coat to harden up (as the can recommends) I went at it with some rubbing compound. For anyone doing this in the future, the rubbing compound did nothing. I assume that if you do not have access to 2000 grit sandpaper or higher, it will finish nicely in its place, however in my case the rubbing compound did not enhance the look after the 2000 grit sandpaper. After that failed, I got some polishing compound. WOW, what a difference, the polishing compound brought it up to a magnificent shine, but it left a ton of swirl marks. I did some searching online and found that Mother's scratch and swirl remover as well as Nu Finish Scratch Doctor rated among the best of scratch and swirl removers. I used the Nu Finish and I have to agree, it removed almost all of the swirl marks from the previous step. After 2 applications, I waxed and buffed the finish to a brilliant gloss black.

Pics:
http://memimage.cardomain.com/ride_images/1/968/1341/2418170054_large.jpg?234909-027
The final product. It's hard to tell in the picture how good the finish turned out.

http://memimage.cardomain.com/ride_images/1/968/1341/2418170055_large.jpg?234909-027
Here is a close up to try and show the smoothness of the picture. The light looks blurry from my camera (just a cell phone camera) and the texture you can see in the picture is a reflection of my ceiling texture. In person it looks like a mirror.

Here are the steps that I used.
1. Glue trim ring into mounting Kit. On hindsight I would elect to use a better glue and more of it. I used only a few dabs of superglue the first time, while it held the face fine areas without glue later flexed and cracked the first application of bondo. If I had to do it again from the beginning, I would use epoxy and apply to the entire perimeter of the trim ring to prevent cracking later on.
2. Bondo. Primarily used to fill the seam between trim ring and install kit, also good for adding a bit of "substance" to the face, so you have something to sand smooth and not remove material from the install kit.
3. Sand. After the bondo cured I roughly shaped it with 40 grit sandpaper. I would recommend that if you are going to try this to use a slightly higher grit than 40. It works fast, but leaves large scratches that are hard to remove later. After the rough shape is worked in with the 40, I used 320 grit to completely smooth it out.
4. Prime. I used a total of 3 coats of filling primer. Between the first two coats I sanded with 400 grit wet sandpaper, and after the last coat I used 600 grit wet sandpaper.
5. Colour. In total I applied 6 coats of black. Between each coat I sanded with progressivley higher grit sandpaper. The first couple coats with 800 grit wet, the next couple with 1500 grit wet and the last one with 2000 grit wet. With the sanding it's important to knock down the entire surface to a uniform smooth dull finish. You might think that you're ruining it, but in the end it will polish to an amazing shine if you do these steps properly. The application of paint leaves slight high and low spots in the paint, and sanding evens them out creating a perfectly flat and eventually glossy finish.
6. Clear Coat. The first coat of clear coat was extremely light and I did not sand it. According to the package, the clear coat will re-flow the previous layer slightly and recommends the first coat to be extremely light to avoid ruining the paint finish. After the first light coat I applied a heavy second coat. Having two coats prevented me from sanding through to the paint. I used 2000 grit wet sandpaper and sanded until all unevenness was removed (dull and smooth).
7. Rubbing Compound. As I said earlier, if you have used 2000 grit sandpaper previously, skip this step. I used a power polisher/buffer and this product did nothing for the finish.
8. Polishing Compound. I used Turtle Wax brand polishing compound and it worked wonders. Using a power polisher/buffer and a terry cloth applicator this product worked the dull smooth finish into a high gloss mirror like finish. I did 3 applications in total. After this step it was shiny, but still had a lot of swirling in the finish.
9. Swirl Remover. The Nu Finish Scratch Doctor works amazingly well. Before the application it looked a little cloudy from the numerous swirls. Afterwards it was an incredible deep glossy black. I used 2 applications, the second one did improve the finish, but not as dramatically as the first.
10. Wax. I don't think it really matters what kind of wax you use, I just used whatever I had in the garage. From what I've read pure carnuba wax is the best, and I had a Turtle Wax brand liquid carnuba wax hard shell formula. It made the finish feel protected, and that's the important part here.

All in all it took me about 12 hours of work over 3 days to finish this project. Patience is definately key when trying to get an amazing finish.

[swales]

Have you installed it yet? Would love to see what it looks like in the car

[Hives]

looks great!

[cooldude117]

No I haven't installed it yet. I'm waiting for a steering wheel interface and an iPod adapter I ordered off of eBay to arrive.

[gabbygenier]

looks awesome, good job man.

[Trinidad]

That is a good job! Nice work, always nice when a project turns out well.

[Pimpin_29y]

That looks pretty sweet! Wanna do mine? :)

[Nagimao]

+1

Wow kudos to you on all the hard work and patience.

Can't wait to see it installed.

[Mafty]

nice, i want to paint my double DIN dash piece but i thought that trim piece has to be seperate for when you put the HU in? or atleast i think with my HU i think it needs to be seperate to put in after the HU goes in.


what HU are you using? because i want to get the steering wheel control mod as well, but i cant find a part that works with the HU i have.

[cooldude117]

I've got an AVIC Z1, a couple of different manufacturers make the steering wheel interface modules. I've ordered one made by peripheral, there's also a company called PAC that makes them too. They all seem to have the same ones available for different head units. You should be able to find one that works.

[cooldude117]

Well, It's been 2 months and I finally got my stereo installed. I was shipped the wrong steering wheel interface and had to wait for the proper one. Anyways, I'm going to go run out and take a couple pics for everyone to see.

[cooldude117]

PICTURES!!!

http://memimage.cardomain.com/ride_images/1/968/1341/2418170057_large.jpg
Ta-DA!!!

http://memimage.cardomain.com/ride_images/1/968/1341/2418170059_large.jpg
While I was in there I reverse polarized my info screen. I need to take it out and adjust it slightly, it's a little bit low. I had to fabricate my own brackets to hold it in place, and lengthen the stock harness to make it work.

http://memimage.cardomain.com/ride_images/1/968/1341/2418170062_large.jpg
You can see how it matches the finish pretty close! (Just ignore the reflection of me lol)

http://memimage.cardomain.com/ride_images/1/968/1341/2418170060_large.jpg
The finished cracked while I was installing it. It's hardly visible unless you're looking for it. I might rub some black shoe polish in there so it doesn't stand out as much(you can see lighter colour in the crack from the primer)

http://memimage.cardomain.com/ride_images/1/968/1341/2418170056_large.jpg
The contents of my centre console now. Re-did the AUX IN panel with 3 RCA plugs for the aux in on the deck (Ipod video out cable plugged into it and the charger - its the same cable - for my iPhone cause the pioneer ipod interface wont charge my iphone, and now i can watch videos too) also the cable for the CD-IB100II (ipod interface) plugged into my nano.

It's a pretty sweet setup and sounds good with the factory speakers.

[x_o_k_x]

so the info screen still displays fuel economy and outside temp?

And I gotta say this looks awesome, there is no piano black options out there, and this is the closest you could get. Looks awesome. Im gonna wait untill piano black units come out.

[cooldude117]

[QUOTE=x_o_k_x;408472]so the info screen still displays fuel economy and outside temp?[QUOTE]

You can have it display any of the displays that you would normally have, you just cant change it once it's installed because you need the factory deck installed to do it.

[Mafty]

looks awesome, cant wait to do mine soon

[Studio8]

:bana Wow! That looks awesome! :bana

[Shotta-KB]

Great pics man...Navi install for me is on 2010's budget... :)

[cooldude117]

Here's a couple of pictures I took last night. My camera kinda sucks at night.

http://memimage.cardomain.com/ride_images/2/4777/3661/24441830004_large.jpg

http://memimage.cardomain.com/ride_images/2/4777/3661/24441830002_large.jpg

[Mafty]

how were you able to attach the middle piece of the dash kit prior to installing the nav unit? doesnt that little piece go on after? or does the unit just slide in regardless?

hopefully you know what im talking about, because i like what you did, and i have the same dash kit (obviously) and it would be nice to smooth out that ugly two pieces.

[cooldude117]

There are pretty much 2 ways to mount a stereo in an install kit(depends on the stereo). Some come with a "cage" that gets mounted to the install kit and then the stereo slides in the cage. With this install kit the only way to remove the stereo from the kit would be to remove the trim ring and slide it out forwards. The advantage is that you can get the stereo out of the "cage" and out of the car without having to remove the whole install kit from the dashboard. The other way is with screws. For mounting this way you need to attach the stereo to the install kit with machine screws (usually M5x6) and then install the entire stereo/install kit assembly as one unit in the car. My setup used the latter, and I was able to just slide the stereo in to the install kit from the rear and then screw it in place. However if I ever want my stereo out I have to remove the entire install kit from the dash, which is fairly simple in my opinion(for this car). If you do need to use the cage, what you could do is mount it in the install kit, install your stereo into the kit, then you could fill and paint the install kit and have to mask the stereo to keep from spraying it too. Then just treat the stereo/kit assembly as one piece. But if you ever wanted to separate the stereo from the install kit (ie, upgrading, moving it to a different car, etc.) the removal process would be destructive and would most likely render your install kit, and possibly your stereo if you weren't careful, completely useless. I guess this was a bit of a long winded explaination but I hope it helps you to understand your question.

[Shotta-KB]

http://memimage.cardomain.com/ride_images/2/4777/3661/24441830004_large.jpg


The MZ logo looks so cool...how'd you get the Navi to display that...is it a built in feature or u had to load it as a background?

[Mafty]

There are pretty much 2 ways to mount a stereo in an install kit(depends on the stereo). Some come with a "cage" that gets mounted to the install kit and then the stereo slides in the cage. With this install kit the only way to remove the stereo from the kit would be to remove the trim ring and slide it out forwards. The advantage is that you can get the stereo out of the "cage" and out of the car without having to remove the whole install kit from the dashboard. The other way is with screws. For mounting this way you need to attach the stereo to the install kit with machine screws (usually M5x6) and then install the entire stereo/install kit assembly as one unit in the car. My setup used the latter, and I was able to just slide the stereo in to the install kit from the rear and then screw it in place. However if I ever want my stereo out I have to remove the entire install kit from the dash, which is fairly simple in my opinion(for this car). If you do need to use the cage, what you could do is mount it in the install kit, install your stereo into the kit, then you could fill and paint the install kit and have to mask the stereo to keep from spraying it too. Then just treat the stereo/kit assembly as one piece. But if you ever wanted to separate the stereo from the install kit (ie, upgrading, moving it to a different car, etc.) the removal process would be destructive and would most likely render your install kit, and possibly your stereo if you weren't careful, completely useless. I guess this was a bit of a long winded explaination but I hope it helps you to understand your question.

wow thanks for the right up, im actually usnure as to what method mine uses, its a AVIC-F700, also a pioneer. so hopefully it uses your method, otherwise im left with the ugly trim piece :P

[cooldude117]

The MZ logo looks so cool...how'd you get the Navi to display that...is it a built in feature or u had to load it as a background?

It's a feature of the stereo I have, you can upload your own background images to use.

[Thrizzl3]

that looks sick man nice job:)

[philipfreire]

Hey, just a heads up. If you want a really durable and super high gloss - add a coat of polyurethane (the same stuff you can use to redo your hardwood) it will make it so tough and shiny!

You can pick up a rattle can for like 9.00 (or so) at Home Depot