T5 transporter aftermarket radio options

[T5Pete]

Thank you for a great write up we also have the Android system from China in ours since early January and seems it has all the same functions that your does and yes all the functions work without interference from VW wanting their donation of blood to make all those functions work . Ours also has the guide lines in the reversing camera which turns as you turn . Does your home screen show a few functions and then in the top RH corner there is a symbol which when touched brings up three screen pages of apps ? Interesting to see they are working on the next Android system ours is the 4.4.02. I would caution you about those back ground shots in their video I have also seen similar plus a lot of the sites show "factory workers "at test equipment and a nice shiny reception , problem with that is several companies use the same photos it seems . From what I have learnt over the last 8 years dealing with some of these Chinese companies is that some are only little shops onselling the units which are made by only a few major companies but then sold through dozens of smaller traders on a variety of Chinese websites . Some one posted few years back that as he was travelling to one city there , he was going to pick up his unit direct from the "showroom " the owner panicked and told him it was not possible because as I suspect he only was an online trader with no actual "factory" as seen on his site . But hey they work so no big deal .

Like i said, the hardware is common but this guy seems to be doing his own thing with it. I emailed him direct about a few things and he emails back same day with a screenshot of the setting. seems his own android rom too and he's quite protective about his downloads.

I just ordered from his website via paypal. it was easy, took a week and i had the feeling he was probably making it or getting in the hardware from somewhere.

he does all his own videos of his units so I'm guessing they aren't just stock pics. his name is Rambo, what could possibly go wrong!!

[markmac1]

Is there any tricks advise for placement of gps aerial and/or wi-fi, 3g cables for these Chinese units ?
Did you need to get a double fakra antenna adapter separately ?
whch gps software works best for andriod units ? Is Nokia Here ok - seems to get good reviews.

[Sunny43.5]

GPS antennae can go anywhere there is a clear view of the sky so to speak I have mine under the top plastic part which is on top of the dash above the head unit I cut a piece of styrene foam in a wedge shape and then cut a rectangular recess in the top of the foam the antennae sits there out of sight . The additional cables for Wi fi usb etc I just ran them into the back of the glove box there is a removable rectangular piece in the glove box on the rh side our cables are just there so we can connect GoPro or other device to view images . As for radio that's one thing that no one seems to be able to sort out I have spoken to several installation audio places and without fail they all tell me that once you remove the original VW units most aftermarket ones never work the same . I would order the double connector as it wont work on a single connection . I think its that VW tune their radios to their own antennae systems which are in each side mirror so the RNS radios are constantly locking onto the strongest signal being received by either side and the Chinese ones have to compromise , its not an issue for me as I very rarely ever listen to the radio {hate most of todays supposed music and then there are the moronic announcers as well } I just Bluetooth the phone or burn my own playlists to a blank DVD so that way I can have over 700 songs one disc . Also you can transfer music or music videos to the discs or to the SD card . Not sure about Nokia as I use Igo Primo which comes preloaded to the unit with Australian and New Zealand mapping its the top of range from Igo .

[markmac1]

thanks Sunny - I will try and take your advice for GPS placement and will check the Glove box for an entry point.

[ajvx01]

Is there any tricks advise for placement of gps aerial and/or wi-fi, 3g cables for these Chinese units ?
Did you need to get a double fakra antenna adapter separately ?
whch gps software works best for andriod units ? Is Nokia Here ok - seems to get good reviews.

Not sure about on this head unit but I use Nokia here on my phone and love it

[ajvx01]

Yes have done for many friends and other VW owners as well .

So what would you recommend to look for/ stay away from? I just want a decent gps (that doesn't use the internet) radio and Bluetooth system all in one as currently I have three devices to do the job and if my gps interrupts me whilst talking on the phone once more I may just kill it with an axe!

[Kombi]

Thanks Sunny and Pete
I am considering HU from both Erisin and Joying
Not sure which ones best
Anybody else with a 2006 model that can compare the dimensions of the hole in your dash ?
Mine measures 178×100 not sure if that's the original gap size
BTW I think my Transporter are also known as a Shuttle , basically a poverty pack Caravelle !

[Transporter]

So what would you recommend to look for/ stay away from? I just want a decent gps (that doesn't use the internet) radio and Bluetooth system all in one as currently I have three devices to do the job and if my gps interrupts me whilst talking on the phone once more I may just kill it with an axe!

Apple car play in Pioneer unit would be my choice.

In a lot of Chinese units the GPS function doesn't work very well and unit restarts when you stop and turn the ign. key off or even worst when changing between CD and radio, then you have to reenter your destination again.
I use iPad and google maps for navigation, you can easily use it in off line mode, it doesn't use any data.

[Sunny43.5]

Not in either of ours Transporter if I get out and turn off the car when its restarted to drive away even the next day the destination is still there . No issues with changing between functions radio or CD both our GPS continue in the background without selecting the GPS so it is still giving speed warnings and school zones speed cameras etc and that is REALLY handy . Maybe the one you had earlier had different GPS software , ours use Igo Primo and like any of todays technology its how you set them up which gives the best results . I was driving my son to a party on the weekend in his car as he did not want to drive home he was using the Google maps on his IPhone 6 to tell me where to go . So after ten minutes of driving around in a strange area in the dark we ended up in a dead end street . So I said okay lets see what the Chinese unit could do {yes he has one in his Astra }and bingo we were at the address within 60 seconds , so much for his hi tech Iphone 6 GPS and its mapping . 8 inch screen beats 5.4 inch Iphone screen any day for visual ease . Plus the 8inch screen is fixed in the dash and the sound is coming from the drivers side speakers as the unit will lower the playing music by 50% so you do not miss the directions . Look I know what you are getting at as I used to be a Pioneer fanatic , I was one of the first people in Qld to install the very first component Pioneer headunits back some 40 years ago the connecting cables from the head unit to the amps were 12mm in diameter in those days with screw in connectors about 25 mm diameter . Over the years I had still continued to use the best Pioneer had to offer , but in 2004 I saw the units coming out of China which by far had so many extras for a very reasonable price { insert here cheap } . Like I said earlier reverse cameras were $500 options then and only could be used with specific models of main stream head units whilst for less than $30 the Chinese had Reverse cameras with Infra red technology for night time . Same with Digital TV and then GPS they beat just about everyone into the market with new gadgets and functions . My son wanted a main stream radio in his T4 at the time before his Astra as he thought the Chinese ones were not for him , I took him to Autobarn and the cheapest one he could find with GPS option was a Phillips model for around $600 plus an extra $380 for the GPS component what a rip off . And again the Chinese ones features wise still ran rings around the Phillips for half the price . I will admit here the very first Chinese one I bought from a company in HK back in 2004-5 was a bit of a disaster it would not release the cd as the angle of the T5 dash seemed to cause a problem , I sent it back and then found the current supplier who I still use today .

[Foxpuppet]

here are some pics from the unit. i forgot the phone app. the bluetooth calling sounds way better than my VW one ever did and no-one has complained that they have problems hearing me which was a constant complaint with the old one.

So, i was actually really impressed with how easy it was to install, plug and play. the canbus does heaps, the screen with car info is all canbus but you can also hook up odbc via bluetooth if you want. canbus triggers reversing, you get your vw sensors (i don't have) on the reversing cam, it tells you doors are open etc and apparently talks to your MFD if you have one (i don't). steering wheel controls are easily programable via a config page. (you can set them to whatever you want)

sounds pretty good, has vid in/out for 2 other displays, pre-amp outs, reverse camera can be powered direct from headunit if you buy his one the cable has the power lead in it and there is a 12v that comes on when in reverse. (cable just long enough for a LWB) and the camera fits by replacing one of the rear plate lamp covers. (i ordered the multivan one)

This unit appears on ali****shop a lot but the SW is different. looking at the guys videos it seems he is doing a lot of the dev himself and he has a lot of good test equipment in the background. its also android 4.4.4 and he's working on android 5. he Ali ones are android 4.4.2 or lower.

the wifi works, tomtom on it is awesome, google maps can display offline limited maps but you have no search. you can plug in a usb 3g dongle if you want, I just wifi to my phone. it's all very well integrated and you can have FM (or any audio) behind any app. (you have to turn the radio off to use spotify etc)

has 2 usb cables, I've not hooked up the aux in yet as i need a cable. 2 mem card slots (one for gps)

all in all I paid $500 with the cam and postage. pretty happy with it. It still looks pretty stock... buttons are a little hit n miss sometimes but the touch screen is very good adn the resolution is very good too


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How hard was the camera hookup for you? I've got a 2011 T5 - I'm liking the look of this unit but will it fit?

Do you still have your RCD510 for sale? Why the swap?


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