Install Guide for DICE kits has been posted!

I know I promised some people personally I would have the install guide up over the weekend and I'm sorry - I had an unexpected trip to a place without internet or cell phone access, then with Priuschat being up and down all night and today. I'll get it up really really soon. Cross my heart hope to die n' stuff.

 

I got the pics uploaded. Now I have to post em' here and add notes.





OMG! Exploding car!

 

OK, here it is. I'll be using pics from different cars to try and give you the maximum amount of info. And I think some of them need to be spun so I'll be editing this as time goes on. This will be writing the maximum amount of humor and irony. And bad spelling.

Don't be intimidated by this. If you take your time you'll be fine.

You're going to need a few tools: A 10mm socket, a Philips head screwdriver (a matnetic one would be good) and a prying device. I use a piece of flat plastic or a wide flat-head screwdriver. Be sure to use something that's slightly soft/has a little give and doesn't have very sharp edges! If you don't, you're easily scratch the dash's plastic. If you use the screwdriver, wrap the head in some electrical tape. If you have strong hands, you can yank the most of this stuff off without need for the prying tool. Also, you're gonna want some fairly big pieces of clean cloth, and a rag for your hands.

First: Turn your car off. :lol:

Remove the vents.






Next, unscrew the top half of the dash.

 

....apparently you can only have so many pics in a posting. I wish I knew that, I had the entire thing typed out for nothing.

And gently yank. It's pretty hard to break these tabs, but try and pull uniformly at all times. Don't fully remove it, just clear the tabs and let it hang slightly because in a min you'll be removing the top.









Take off the top with your hands.
























Ok, time to remove the next vent that has the shifter attached to it.








Remove the under radio tray with a few screws.







Let's get socketing! Grab your 10mm and remove the screen.






Grab your clean cloth and put it on the dash to the right of the screen. You're gonna put the screen on it. Be careful. It has VERY sharp edges so watch yourself and your dash.






If you look down and inside the dash, you can see a spot to keep the HD unit while the radio is fully installed.



If you need to drop your glove box, it's easy. Just push in the tabs holding it up. They pop right out. Let it come down gently, you can break the plastic if it drops down too fast.



Pull the 3 screws out of the top of the radio. Careful, they can drop behind the radio and you'll never see them again.



Now the bottom ones.



Pull out the brain!




You don't have to fully remove it. Just so you can get to the plugs in the back. Plug in the DICE kit into the middle spot. If you have something already there like a SAT radio or something, pull it out and plug in the DICE kit first, then whatever plug you removed into the DICE harness. The DICE kit has to be firmly plugged in. It should make a pop sound of the retaining clip.





While you're doing all this, keep an eye out on where you want to locate the DICE kit. Some people like to put it behind the radio, some behind the glove box (my favorite place) or if you want to run cables under the carpet, put it under the armrest, etc etc.

Finally pop the headunit back in.



You shouldn't have had to unplug anything, so check your connections and turn on the radio. We're gonna test everything before we finalize the install.


More later.

 

Anyway, we are now gonna test the DICE kit now. Possible trouble spots will be in red. And we'll go over testing those spots.

Did you set the DIP switches yet? In a 04/05 Prius, you're gonna most likely want them to all pointing UP. This sets it in CD mode. If on the extremely rare chance you have a external CD changer, Have the DIP switches on the left in the DOWN position. This is SAT mode. But if you have a SAT kit already AND a external CD changer (my aren't you hooked up and extreme) you're going to need a unit with the latest firmware because it supports MD mode.


Oh, you have an 06/07! Well then you're gonna want to use MP3 mode. That's going to have the DIP switches UP DOWN on the left bank. Or you can use SAT, which was DOWN DOWN. You don't have the option for CD or MD on your stereo. Toyota yanked these protocols on 06+, most likely to make space for MP3.

<here's where I'll post pics of the DIP switches later>

So, plug in your unit with the DIP switches set, plug in the iPod and turn on the car and the radio. When you turned on the radio check and see if the iPod started charging. If it's not, turn off the car and check all your cables. If it's good and tight and it's still not charging, call DICE or PM me. When you turn on the radio, your iPod is gonna go crazy for a minute. That's perfectly ok.

Go to the audio menu, and press CD if you used CD/MP3/MD, and AM if you used SAT. The DICE kit should come up as the device you set it to. If not, check your cables. Then call DICE or PM me. You should start to hear audio from the iPod. If not, check to see if the iPod is playing. It's not? Did your iPod go crazy when you turned the radio on? If not first unplug the iPod and wait 30 seconds then plug it back in. It should go crazy for a min. If not, call DICE or PM me. So it went crazy but still no audio. Press 5 on your display and make sure it's on track 1. This is the default setting but let's make sure. Track 1 is iPod, track 2 is the AUX 3.5mm jack. We'll go over that way later. Still no audio? Reset your iPod. http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=61705 Finally call DICE or PM me.

Ok so far we know the car sees the DICE module and you have sound. Let's check text. Have something playing from the iPod and press the TEXT button on an 04/05. On an 06/07 you'll see it at the top, above the 6 buttons. You see the title of the song and the artist info on the display? Super. If not, check the iPod first. Do you have the artist and track info on the iPod screen? If so, plug your iPod into your computer and make sure the ID3 tag is filled in. Most music you buy online will already have this, but music you steal (I'd say shame on you, but I do it too) from the net or rip from a CD likely won't have the tags and you have to fill them in yourself or use a program to do it. If that's ok, reset your iPod. Still no text? Call DICE and blah blah....

That sums up testing the DICE kit. Check to make sure every else works in the radio normally real quick. All good? Turn off the car and put everythng back together!

Once that's done test everything on the DICE and radio again. Congrats, you've installed a DICE kit.

An add-on for HD installs will be along shortly! I realized all my pics of a proper install are crappy so I'm gonna retake them all. It's exactly the same except you have to install the antenna.

Comments? Complaints? Death threats? Post em! I'll gladly answer the 1st two.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(priusFTW @ Apr 24 2007, 06:12 PM) [snapback]429430[/snapback]</div>

This way you can really customize how and where you install the unit, or if you have a SAT radio, you'll need to see what you're doing since you have to use the pass through cable. Also the HD module is much bigger than the iPod cable, the center of the dash is a good spot for it. There's alot of space for stuff down there. Since I had my dash pulled, I ran my iPod cable through a drilled hole into the center cubbyhole under the radio.

Removing the that block of a wire harness isn't a good idea when the battery is connected, I'm not exactly sure why. Some Toyota engineers warned us that.

And for those who had their kit installed professionally and want to move it or remove it themselves, they can use this guide.

Hopefully people who install a coastal kit, or a SAT, or whatever could use this info. A way for me to give back.

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Mr. Zorg @ Apr 24 2007, 10:32 PM) [snapback]429582[/snapback]</div>

Yea, you have to push pretty hard sometimes to get it to seat correctly. It's gotta make that 'pop'


<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(aaf709 @ Apr 24 2007, 09:41 PM) [snapback]429560[/snapback]</div>

The install guide applies equally to all years actually. The only difference would be the DIP switch settings.

 

I didn't realize so many did it that way actually. I'll post a EZ version as well then.