Retain OEM GPS Antenna with Aftermarket Head Unit

Hi All,

I just wanted to put this little nugget of information out there for all that find themselves in the same boat that I was in - trying to retain the OEM GPS antenna when replacing the factory HU with an aftermarket HU.

The OEM antenna on my 2012 PIP (Navigation, none JBL) is located on the right underside of dashboard forward of the airbag. It's wire is routed to a connector point behind the upper glove box and from there then it is routed to the head unit.

The pin (actual contact within the plastic connector housing) appears to be a standard pin for automotive or radio use. The reason I say that is because on my Pioneer AVIC 5200 and Kenwood DNX693S the pin is the same as the pin on the OEM GPS antenna. However, of course the individual manufacturers want to attempt to keep things proprietary. Meaning, the housing surrounding the pins are different on all three devices. So to remedy this and retain the clean install of the OEM GPS with the aftermarket head unit do the following:

- Remove the pin from the OEM connector using something very small to pry up the retaining clip and gently pulling it out
- Remove the housing for the aftermarket GPS antenna following the same method as above
- Put the aftermarket housing on the OEM GPS antenna pin (you may have to trim or clip to metal guides on the OEM pin, as I had to)

I currently running this setup on my Kenwood DNX693S and the GPS / navigation is working flawlessly. I'll post up pictures and part numbers in a bit.

One more bit of useful info - don't worry about losing the option to configure certain car setup option when tossing out the OEM head unit. Just pick up the Carista ODB2 app and a supported ELM327 Bluetooth ODB2 adapter and you'll be pleasantly surprised to see you can configure the options that are available via the OEM head unit and much more. Below are the compatibility specs from Carista.

CARISTA OBD2 APP:

• • 
    Works with iOS 8 or newer (iPhone/iPad/iPod) and Android 2.3 or newer
• • 
    Works best with the Carista OBD2 adapter, but also compatible with generic ELM327 v1.4 or newer adapters (WiFi for iOS or Bluetooth for Android)

CARISTA OBD2 ADAPTER:

• • 
    Works with all iOS 8 and newer iPhones/iPads/iPods except iPad 2
• • 
    Works with all Android 2.3 or newer phones/tablets that support Bluetooth
• • 
    Works with all ELM327-compatible apps on Android.
• • 
    Works with a multitude of partner apps on iOS

 

CORRECTION: The GPS is located on the driver side as pictured below.

The GPS is circled.



Male GPS connector for junction behind upper glove box


Female GPS connector for junction behind upper glove box


GPS connector located behind upper glove box


GPS connector for the radio


Example of pin removed from aftermarket HU GPS antenna