Hi, I’m looking for recommendations on after-market Head units to add BT, CarPlay & Backup camera.
My mom needs a new older car since her 2008 Accord was flooded and totaled in NYC. She is over 80 and likely will only drive another few years, so reliable transportation is what she needs.
I’m looking for something a little smaller, Civic, Corolla or Elantra size, 2010-2013 in age, so most of those don’t have Backup Cameras or Apple CarPlay. All of these have double DIN radio space, so I’m hoping there are options to choose from,
If you have experience adding an after-market and can recommend a brand that works well with Apple products and CarPlay, it would be great. I mention this since in my research many of these units run Anroid under the covers, and provide a better user experience & integration with Android based phones, and some reviews have mentioned some units have issues working well with CarPlay.
I like Alpine’s head units and have heard good things about Sony/Pioneer. Best buy offers installs if you buy from them on most units I think. Before you pick one make sure they are compatible, some may require IDatalink for full functionality. Crutchfield is great for this.
Don’t think you can go wrong with Alpine, Sony, Kenwood or Pioneer.
Crutchfield is a good place to check out reviews. It will also check to see if you need additional wire harnesses too.
Recommend finding a unit with wireless Android Auto or wireless Carplay so you do not need to run another wire for a USB port.
All of these head units should have an AV port for a backup camera too.
Avoid installation from GeekSquad / Best Buy as it is hit or miss. It can be DIY if you are handy with electronics wiring, but a local AV shop can do it faster of course.
Yes, so my mom can connect her iphone and use larger display for Waze.
She has used a holder w/ her iphone, but having a rental car w/ the display, she would like the same in her replacement car. But insurance only gave her $5300 for her Honda Accord and she would have to throw another $4-5k into, to get a car w/ it all OEM built-in. She will likely only drive another 2yrs so it doesn’t warrant the investment on her part.
Then it’s possible she may be in for a disappointment. A modern car didn’t just have ACP: it had probably a larger screen, placed closer to eye level, compared to a typical Double Din location and size.
I wonder if a 7” Garmin with voice recognition on the dash comes closer to replicating the real estate of her rental’s screen?
Btw there’s 5.5” Garmin that has a backup camera if you get an older car without one (pretty sure all Garmins have BT too):
Check out Seicene brand. I first saw it on Tavarish’s YouTube channel. They make oem looking Android / carplay head units. The fact that they look original is their selling point I guess , not sure about long term reliability though.
Bought an Android system for about $250-$300 from Ebay for my 2011 Toyota Corolla back in the day. It was built for the vehicle - matched the trim perfectly and was larger than the 7” double din you get. It was a great value for the price. Got one actually delivered for a different car we have as well and equally impressed with it,
Just search “VehicleName Android Stereo” and see if anything pops up for the vehicle you’re getting.
I have a pioneer double din in my ‘06 RSX Type S with back up camera and Bluetooth. Newer versions of the same also have CarPlay. I’ll see if I can dig up a line to a modern equivalent.
I installed a no-name double din stereo from Amazon for my teenage daughter. It took me a couple of hours including fishing the backup camera on a 2011 subaru forester. Cost me around $170 and included the camera and wire. You can search this ASIN on Amazon to see it: B091TS4JHC. Good luck.
