New radio solution from the mainland?

Saw something interesting on aliexpress today. Was looking for some kind of way to hackjob my new radio in since the JDM kit I ordered has been lost in transit for about 3 months now. Found a new ABS fascia that replaces the top cubby / navigation area with a bezel for a nine inch screen.

 

Figured I could 3D printe an adapter to get a double din radio installed cleanly, will update once I get it. There are other models selling with a radio / android headunit already installed but they are much more expensive and the included headunit I think is a 10inch that sticks out of a double din slot, but I imagine all use the same base double din mounting I think so it shouldn't be too hard to adapt. Costed $46 shipped.

 

Take a look: https://www.aliexpress.com/item/4001039088367.html

Update: I just received my unit yesterday. The throughhole opening is exactly double din sized so a radio would fit PERFECT in this housing, and the mounting location in the car is so much higher up which I think is perfect for safety since you don't have to look down to see your radio. Also my hands won't block my view either.

 

I think this will be as simple as making a mounting bracket for the radio that somehow attaches to this fascia securely and 3D printing it. I don't know how motivated I will be to do this as I already installed my double din kit, but I'm currently unemployed so ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ we'll see. It also appears to use the stock vents, as the mounting tabs for the smaller size vents go much farther out and appear to be the same position as for the oem cubby thingy.

 

Attached are some pics. Overall quality feels good, haven't compared to oem yet but seems like it's good overall. Chrome is missing on the vent tabs but that's the biggest difference I noted.

Nice find, def would have bought this if I didnt already made all the plans to do the Nexus 7 install, will keep this in mind if Nexus ever ends up being way too slow for my liking

Update: started work on an adapter. I'm using the small 5 holes in the fascia and putting screws through them which will thread into my adapter. They can't be enlarged due to being so close to the vents so there isn't much meat around the holes, so I hope that they'll be enough to support the weight of the radio. If not, I will have to permanently bond the adapter to the fascia but that's not a big deal.

 

The cage that actually mounts to the side of the radio will be tricky to print in one piece as a structure that thin will definitely warp in ABS unless I print it flat, so I'm thinking I will print the cage separately and then bond/melt the cage to the main adapter. For now I'm just printing in PLA for prototyping.

 

Otherwise it's going well, and I think this will work excellently. I don't know if anyone still cares about a 15 year old car, but I'm personally excited that newcomers won't have to pay $350 for some jdm bullshit to get a radio in their car. Once I'm done I'll post the STL files so other people can print them out too, maybe put it on thingiverse too.

I ordered one to play with putting a larger tablet like a Galaxy Tab 8 or similar; as I know at some point my Nexus 7 2013 will no longer be viable.

Got the model finished minus the cage which I will be bonding for ease of printing. Will test tonight and if it fits well enough I'll release the STL. BARELY fits on my ender 3 pro but I think it'll be ok.

Keep up the good work

Argh... so close. Need to retolerance a few things and redesign the mounting system. This will 100% work though!!

Is that a boss audio deck?? Some of them don’t conform to the typical ddin sizes.

Did you already test fit this in the cubby area? I saw some reviews that said there were huge gaps. I'm down to buy one to fit my Nexus 9.

Is that a boss audio deck?? Some of them don’t conform to the typical ddin sizes.

 

 

That looks like Atoto head unit, which I also think dont use USA double din sizing, I got a Joying head unit and it is def not right dimensions.

I have not test fit the cubby into the dash yet. If there are huge gaps then I'll just have to figure something out haha. I think I saw a picture of some russian who installed one and it looked okay but don't quote me on that. I'll upload pictures once I have mine installed.

 

It is an Atoto head unit, but I was basing my dimensions based off of the jdm kit for the opening, and the atoto for the double din cage. The atoto also fits perfectly into the jdm kit so I didn't think there would be any issues. If it's too big it's not a problem as the screws will suck the cage into smaller units, and if its too small then some radios just might not fit because the cage is already pretty tight against the fascia and doesn't have a lot to hold onto in the adapter. I'll confirm dimensions with the stock radio to make sure my cage is big enough.

 

Also: word of advice, do NOT remove the air vent fins. I noticed there were some circular casting marks on the top of some of the fins so I figured someone installed them upside down from the factory. This is incorrect, as the pieces are actually numbered in order and each fin only goes in one spot to move at the correct angle. The passenger's side fins are slightly shorter than the driver's side so they don't swap. Reinstalling them takes a long time and is difficult, and the trim that holds the fins in is actually plastic welded with a soldering iron on one side to hold them all in. Just don't remove them, deal with the casting lines, they're barely visible anyways.

From the reviews on the product page. Looks like it fits perfect.

Yea, I got the JDM kit in my car and the Android headunits do not fit flush. Like I mentioned I have the Joying now and Heiche (member here who I bought my car from) had the Pumpkin Android unit. On the cubby for the Nexus 7 that every one does, I believe the Nexus 7 doesnt fill the hole 7" but it fills enough where you can use electrical tape to block off the light creeps. I bought a 7" cubby from someone on this forum a few weeks back and I am currently staging my Nexus and Audio install so I do it all in 1 go.

 

I know that that Nexus at some point is going to start degrading so this cubby you found would be awesome, and I probably might buy one when I get some more funds after all these projects end so I have it on hand for when the Nexus dies since it is getting real hard to find a 7" tablet that is worth buying, though finding a 10" is easy.

 

Also, there are 2 cubby versions iirc a 7" and an 8". Shogun sold 1 of each (which I bought the 7" one) on this post https://legacygt.com/forums/showthread.php/canada-7-and-8-cubby-bezels-nexus-7-8-tablet-281485.html?t=281485 which I just found he is selling a 2013 Nexus 7"

I see. I designed my adapter to fit flush with my radio but it may need some modification for other radios. My mounting also sucks, it would be better to make some kind of bracket to attach to the dash instead of to the fascia. No promises right now, if my version works for my I probably won't want to mess with it anymore. In any case I'll include the solidworks file as well once I confirm everything fits. The newest version is coming of the printer in a few hours so fingers crossed.

 

Bonus: I installed the fascia in my car and it fits perfectly. The dash will almost certainly require trimming to fit a long double din radio though. Hacksaw works perfect.

Success! Files coming shortly. The fitment is very tight, and the radio actually holds incredibly well without needing the side panels as shown just from friction fit. It would probably slide back in a crash but in normal driving I doubt it would ever come out. The screw holes probably aren't even needed for the adapter, but time will tell.

 

As such I'm posting two STLs: one without the side panels and one with. I would recommend probably trying the one without side panels and if that doesn't work too well, then try side panels or mounting to the inside of the dash.

 

A small section of the dash does need to be cut to fit the radio, unless you are going with a very shallow unit.

Here is the link to the files:

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1qq5EodmTjcSlFIfbg1KVtnK-M6qyxJLs?usp=sharing

 

Please do not sell my designs without my permission. These are for personal use only. If you would like to sell them, please pm me. I'm not always active but I get email notifications so I will see it.

 

If you appreciate the work I did, I have PayPal and Venmo you can donate to if you want. Please pm me and I'll send you the details.

 

Enjoy!

Looks like there aren't any files for a clean clock relocation kit, so I think I have my next project

Nice Job, looks good now you just got to paint it black and looks legit.

 

I ended up taking a look at head unit sizing just for reference. The Chinese Android units list having a dimensions of 178mm x 102mm for their 7" size, I found that a standard double din radio size is 180 x 100.3 mm pane since it goes by the ISO 7736.

Looks like there aren't any files for a clean clock relocation kit, so I think I have my next project

 

 

There are people who relocated the clock to where the ash tray location is. In the 3D develop thread someone posted this find on FB: https://www.facebook.com/347833012660792/posts/535040893940002?d=n&sfns=mo

 

 

 

Also found this thread:

https://legacygt.com/forums/showthread.php/clock-relocation-clock-replacementi-39632.html

The 3d printed relocation kit doesn't have any files, they only sell the product. Why buy it when I have all the tools to make it? Avo doesn't sell their relocation kit anymore but by the comments it looked like it was $200!

absurd. I looked at that FB post and that guy was selling his version for $65 as of last year. Interested in what you come up with though

I was going to buy one of those frames on aliexpress, but ordered one of these instead.

 

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/4001278047165.html

 

Hopefully its not hot garbage!

So, forgive my ignorance but is there another reason to install a tablet besides a radio replacement? Vehicle data or something like that? Curious because I’d like something like this but I already have the jdm climate and a really nice deck with five channel amp

Depends on your end goal, some people like to keep the stock radio since the Auto Climate Control requires splicing cables together on when using the JDM Bezel, I personally already have an aftermarket headunit and want to add the tablet to display BtSsm and maybe GPS data if the headunit GPS map gui isn't great.