2003-2011 [Subscribe to Daily Digest] |
It came out kind of nicely, I think (see picture). The project took about 40 minutes. The iPod is charged and powered thru a connection (through a Belkin charger) to the power and ground wires behind the cigarette lighter. I mounted it on a mounting kit from proclipusa.com which swivels nicely so that the iPod can be operated by the driver or passenger. The line output from the iPod (thru the Belkin) is going direct to the Aux-in jack on the back of the CD player, which is normally wired to the Aux-in port inconveniently located in the center console. (I had to disconnect the cable going to the center console...I could have used that cable, of course, but I wanted to leave it in place, in case I changed my mind later and wanted to use the port in the center console.)
The project involved removing the center air vent and making a small indentation in its lower left corner so the Belkin wire wouldn't get pinched, and then removing the air conditioning panel and the CD player, to get at the Aux-in port behind the CD player and the wiring behind the cigarette lighter, and then replacing everything. I used a cable from etadyne.com to connect the Belkin charger to the Aux-in port; again, you could just as easily use the cable that runs from the Aux-in port to the center console...but then you'd have to open up the center console to remove the Saab-installed cable.
The iPod can be removed in about two seconds - you just disconnect the single connection, and lift it out of the mount.
The iPod doesn't get in the way of any controls in this position, though it does block a portion of the airflow from the center vent.
Anyway, it sounds great, and I hope it inspires others who might have been thinking of doing something similar. I'm happy to provide more installation details if what's above isn't sufficient, if anyone else is interested in trying this. The procedure would be exactly the same for a 2004 9/3 as for my 2005.
posted by 66.77.13...
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