so i am a noob to the MAX when it comes the the car audio scene. i mean noob, never had an aftermarket deck/Sub/speakers nothing. so that will explain my total lack of what may seem to be "should knows" in here.

i am wondering what the most affordable aftermarket am/fm/cd/ipod/navi system is out there. i am way to chicken to cut my dash up for the JDM navi option. i know i have scene navi units that pop out of the dash and flip up. i am guessing that unless the shifter is in the lower gears the probably dont work.

help from you would be appreciated. just want a simple navi system to use for road trips.. oh and if i plays DVDs that be cool too so the wife has something to distract here when i hit the mountian passes.

 

Ahhh...I can see you dont come around to electronics often.

This has been a problem for all of us since the s2000 was created.

All the headunit/navis are out of the question, as they dont fit in the stock location, and you dont want to cut the dash.

You can get a PDA navi, that can be mounted on a separate mount.
You can get the new Garmin navigation, and mount that somewhere are well. Installing a navi in this car isnt the easiest of projects.

 

 

I use a Mitac Mio 168RS - It isn't as popular as Palm powered Garmin PDA nav systems, but I couldn't be happier with it. It uses PocketPC, which I prefer, and with the addition of a 2gig SD card I have my nav system, PDA, and portable MP3 player all in one.

That said, I'm sure the Garmin units are good as well. I would advise a PDA unit over a standalone GPS unless you strongly prefer tech that is simpler to operate over all other considerations. The versatility and normally lower cost of PDA nav systems certainly gives them the nod in my book.

 

good to know, i guess i'll have to do some research on this. any pics of PDA/other mounted in the cabin?

 

garmin c320 i got $309 shipped in june 06.

i love it. its great. i think it being portable is a plus, over multiple thousand dollar oem options. and i personally think its worth it over the c340 which has a harddrive and all maps preloaded for the extra $100 or so, over the cost of a 1gb SD card that can fit all the the US. its got a lot of uses, such as a portable directory, showing you what the name of the street ahead is without finding a road sign, rather than simply just telling you where to go.

best use i found with my S is driving around unfamiliar mountainous roads, you can just look at the map and it will give you a heads up as to the direction and degree of turn(s) coming up.

i place it right above the radio controls. its great there, just within direct sight, but not distracting once you get used to it. and its close to the fuse box for hardwiring. almost all the wire is hidden and out of the way down the side of the dash.

 

hmmm. i have my vafc mounted there....i really like this garmin idea much better. $300 is much more affordable. has anyone fab'd a bracket to mount off the side of the radio location? or maybe a garmin radio door type deal?