Apple CarPlay and Android Auto
- Thread starter mifanning
- Start date
I thought the same and placed my phone in the storage area in front of the gear shift. the problem with that is the phone doesn't have strong enough GPS signal with all the center console in between it and the satellites (urban setting). resulting my position on google maps not accurate and missed some exits.
I would be curious if anyone else heard that this is free for 2018 GT?
I just called my dealer and they quoted 500$ LOL. Another dealer that someone else suggested in Colmar, PA (North Penn Mazda) was 305$. I can do the install, just not sure I want to deal with possible messing up trim pieces. Would rather they do it and fix it if damaged.
I will share my experience with them post install, but seemed fair to have it done by someone that has done it before. Hopefully less risk of damaging any trim or having post rattles. Thanks to all for sharing information on this forum.
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Sorry if this question has been asked/answered already.
If my vehicle already has the AIO tweaks installed (via serial cable method, 59.00.504 firmware) and i upgrade to the latest 70.00.0xx firmware, will i need to re-install AIO tweaks via the serial method again or will the usb port still be accessible to load AIO Tweaks?
If my vehicle already has the AIO tweaks installed (via serial cable method, 59.00.504 firmware) and i upgrade to the latest 70.00.0xx firmware, will i need to re-install AIO tweaks via the serial method again or will the usb port still be accessible to load AIO Tweaks?
It will mirror the behavior in your phone. You can receive calls with Waze on the screen, but the screen will jump o the phone UI. You can however easily switch back to Waze.
That was disabled a long time ago. I believe version 58 or 59. However, the old hack still works, if you have it saved in your seat memory, it*ll stay. I can still access mine on Seat Memory 2.
Got the parts on eBay for $140 shipped (when they had 10% coupon), installed today on my 2018 CX-9 GT, took ~3h and only because I was futzing around with looking up stuff while doing it. It was minimally difficult, but you can do some cosmetic damage if not careful - the forum and instructions were very helpful, though wish there was an actual install video.
Best firmware install video I found - this one (from Mazda3Revolution forum).
Used these two videos for the install - overall install and screen and CMU removal (from this forum).
I mostly followed post #205: 1) prepped the wires with the foam tape per printed instructions, 2) disassembled rear vent/trim/glovebox/screen/CMU, 3) ran and zip-tied cable and 4) reassembled. I did not do step 9 (remove HVAC duct piece, not sure why needed).
I did use a trim removal kit, but I think it's very possible without it if careful. I didn't realize there was further disassembly after you pull the screen out to take the CMU (and biggest chance to gouge your dash), the hardest part for me was getting the CMU back in as the cables were getting in the way.
Quick tip on the USB hub - I took it out together with the trim piece around it (there are two tabs on each side you squeeze to do that), disconnected the cables, then pushed in the 4 locking tabs for the USB hub itself from underneath. Otherwise, I think I would have damaged the trim around the hub.
Used the tape measure method to run the cable from the front to the rear - pushed the tape measure through to the front (might take you a few tries), taped the cables fully and tightly to the tape measure, and pulled it back through (you'll need to pull fairly hard).
No issues so far, will be testing it on a long road trip tomorrow, pretty excited!
Best firmware install video I found - this one (from Mazda3Revolution forum).
Used these two videos for the install - overall install and screen and CMU removal (from this forum).
I mostly followed post #205: 1) prepped the wires with the foam tape per printed instructions, 2) disassembled rear vent/trim/glovebox/screen/CMU, 3) ran and zip-tied cable and 4) reassembled. I did not do step 9 (remove HVAC duct piece, not sure why needed).
I did use a trim removal kit, but I think it's very possible without it if careful. I didn't realize there was further disassembly after you pull the screen out to take the CMU (and biggest chance to gouge your dash), the hardest part for me was getting the CMU back in as the cables were getting in the way.
Quick tip on the USB hub - I took it out together with the trim piece around it (there are two tabs on each side you squeeze to do that), disconnected the cables, then pushed in the 4 locking tabs for the USB hub itself from underneath. Otherwise, I think I would have damaged the trim around the hub.
Used the tape measure method to run the cable from the front to the rear - pushed the tape measure through to the front (might take you a few tries), taped the cables fully and tightly to the tape measure, and pulled it back through (you'll need to pull fairly hard).
No issues so far, will be testing it on a long road trip tomorrow, pretty excited!
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I did not, nor did I see anywhere saying to disconnect, except for a vague thing in the printed insteuctions (no mention, but their #1 on the picture refers to negative battery terminal).
Just the the update a few minutes ago.
You do not need to disconnect the battery. That is only necessary if the update fail for whatever reason. In that situation, you need to either remove the ROOM fuse (fuse #16) _or_ disconnect the negative battery terminal for a few minutes.
My update took about 20 or so minutes. Actually went a whole lot faster than the instructions say it would. Coming from v59 stock with no tweaks installed. Maybe it's the USB stick, mine is rated at 17MB/s read speed. If you read the instructions 2-3 times and fully understand what each step is asking you to do, it is quite foolproof. I took an extra step of locking the brake (automatic) with a steering lock (the type that hooks the brake pedal and steering wheel) just in case I experience brain fart and starting the car by accident
Now to await arrival of the retrofit kit to install!
You do not need to disconnect the battery. That is only necessary if the update fail for whatever reason. In that situation, you need to either remove the ROOM fuse (fuse #16) _or_ disconnect the negative battery terminal for a few minutes.
My update took about 20 or so minutes. Actually went a whole lot faster than the instructions say it would. Coming from v59 stock with no tweaks installed. Maybe it's the USB stick, mine is rated at 17MB/s read speed. If you read the instructions 2-3 times and fully understand what each step is asking you to do, it is quite foolproof. I took an extra step of locking the brake (automatic) with a steering lock (the type that hooks the brake pedal and steering wheel) just in case I experience brain fart and starting the car by accident
Now to await arrival of the retrofit kit to install!
Just did my kit install today. Took me 1 1/2 hrs and I went slow to avoid damaging anything. Hardest parts were pulling the wires from the foot well to the rear hub. Fish tape kept getting hung up, took me about 10 minutes. Also removing the old hub, took out the hub with the trim piece as advised earlier. Released the inside if the hub first and then, the easy outside tabs. Install came out great with no damage, or scrapes.
Now to give it a test run (drive2)
Now to give it a test run (drive2)
Did the firmware update last night and the hardware install today.
Firmware was easy. I got a little nervous when I thought it got hung at 2%, but eventually it kept moving.
The hardware took me about 2 hours. I took my time. I also got stuck snaking the wire from the passenger footwell to the rear of the center console. Not sure what I got stuck on but for a while there I couldnt move it forward or backward. I eventually got it out and started that portion over. I think the way I did it wound up being much easier than snaking it all at once. You really only have to snake it a few inches to get around the front of the left track of the passenger seat. Once you get past that, you can just tuck it up under the bottom of the console by hand. So, I went from the front of the side of the console, just a few inches past the seat track and out the bottom. Much easier than snaking the full distance.
The only other thing Ill note is that when I took off the back of the console with the rear seat HVAC controls on it, I disconnected the wires, but they were also attached via a clip that I couldnt undo. It wasnt an electrical connection, just a routing clip. I didnt fight it and had enough slack to move it a few inches to the side.
Firmware was easy. I got a little nervous when I thought it got hung at 2%, but eventually it kept moving.
The hardware took me about 2 hours. I took my time. I also got stuck snaking the wire from the passenger footwell to the rear of the center console. Not sure what I got stuck on but for a while there I couldnt move it forward or backward. I eventually got it out and started that portion over. I think the way I did it wound up being much easier than snaking it all at once. You really only have to snake it a few inches to get around the front of the left track of the passenger seat. Once you get past that, you can just tuck it up under the bottom of the console by hand. So, I went from the front of the side of the console, just a few inches past the seat track and out the bottom. Much easier than snaking the full distance.
The only other thing Ill note is that when I took off the back of the console with the rear seat HVAC controls on it, I disconnected the wires, but they were also attached via a clip that I couldnt undo. It wasnt an electrical connection, just a routing clip. I didnt fight it and had enough slack to move it a few inches to the side.
Did the firmware on Sunday and like other users have reported, the firmware update did not take up nearly as much time as the instruction indicated (about 30 min, tops). Took longer for the hardware install (~2 hours) trying not to damage any of the plastic parts. Had a leftover plastic spudger from a dashcam install kit which came in handy as a pry tool. I would say the easiest part to remove is the leather trim piece on the passenger side as well as "removing" the glove box. The other parts I was more careful about- the display and CMU, and removing the rear HVAC cover. Had some difficulty routing the wires along the footwell also.
EDIT: My tach still shows on the HUD even after updating firmware (from v58) but it is not an option to toggle in the Active Driving Display settings.
EDIT: My tach still shows on the HUD even after updating firmware (from v58) but it is not an option to toggle in the Active Driving Display settings.
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colnago1331
Member
I did both the firmware and the ACP/AA hardware install today on my '17 GT. I also updated my navigation with the December 2018 release and installed the Gracenote update.
As others have mentioned, the firmware only takes about 30 minutes total to update. I'd almost swear it to longer to put the update files onto the USB drive than it did to do the actual update.
After installing all the software updates, I went up to my local dealer with the Med Center Mazda website loaded on my phone. My local dealer matched the price on the ACP/AA hardware, so I didn't have to wait for it to be delivered (yay!). The install took me ~2 hours as well. I found the most difficult thing for me was snaking the wires down from the CMU into the area next to/behind the glove box. After that it was smooth sailing. I'll admit I cheated a bit; I used fish tape (https://www.lowes.com/pd/Southwire-25-ft-Steel-Fish-Tape/50114245) to pull the wires down the passenger side of the center console. Best $12 I've spent for sure.
Anyhoo - everything's now up and running, and I couldn't be more pleased. Big shoutout to AdamOZ for the assist via post 123 and to phxzoom for the assist via post 131! You guys are awesome!
Quick question - I forgot to wrap the old, unused plug that went into the CMU in sponge tape. What are the odds I get unwanted noise/static/feedback from that? Now that I know what I'm doing, it shouldn't be too difficult to go in, take out the screen and CMU, and wrap it up if I have to. I have high-pitch deafness, so it's unlikely I'll hear it. But I don't want my passengers to suffer unnecessarily....
As others have mentioned, the firmware only takes about 30 minutes total to update. I'd almost swear it to longer to put the update files onto the USB drive than it did to do the actual update.
After installing all the software updates, I went up to my local dealer with the Med Center Mazda website loaded on my phone. My local dealer matched the price on the ACP/AA hardware, so I didn't have to wait for it to be delivered (yay!). The install took me ~2 hours as well. I found the most difficult thing for me was snaking the wires down from the CMU into the area next to/behind the glove box. After that it was smooth sailing. I'll admit I cheated a bit; I used fish tape (https://www.lowes.com/pd/Southwire-25-ft-Steel-Fish-Tape/50114245) to pull the wires down the passenger side of the center console. Best $12 I've spent for sure.
Anyhoo - everything's now up and running, and I couldn't be more pleased. Big shoutout to AdamOZ for the assist via post 123 and to phxzoom for the assist via post 131! You guys are awesome!
Quick question - I forgot to wrap the old, unused plug that went into the CMU in sponge tape. What are the odds I get unwanted noise/static/feedback from that? Now that I know what I'm doing, it shouldn't be too difficult to go in, take out the screen and CMU, and wrap it up if I have to. I have high-pitch deafness, so it's unlikely I'll hear it. But I don't want my passengers to suffer unnecessarily....
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- 2016 CX-9 GT
Installed the update a few days ago, took about 20 minutes. The hardware took me about an hour and 45 minutes thanks to all the instructions here.
I used the coat hanger trick to get the cables routed to the back without opening everything up.
Thanks for all the help!
I used the coat hanger trick to get the cables routed to the back without opening everything up.
Thanks for all the help!
Back from a road trip with the 2018 CX-9 with the ACP install, overall happy and I think $140 + time well spent to upgrade from using an iPhone with a stand. No install issues, and I just use Waze and Spotify so that's what my feedback is based on.
Overall, both Waze and Spotify generally work fine, voice search for addresses works well and the knob navigation is acceptable, if simple. The USB charging, well, actually charges the phone rather than just maintaining the battery, which alone makes it worth it to me.
Smaller complaints are:
1. I still find it easier to set my Waze on the phone, but need to unplug the phone to get the full phone app functionality - this is actually quite annoying. Some reasons why I unplug: I can't find a way to see the destination address in ACP, and adding a stop is unclear.
2. Waze satellite has been laggy a couple of times at the start of a trip - it seems confused for ~1 minute even after I've started driving, unlike what I've experienced before but may not be an ACP thing.
3. Had to adjust Waze app volume to ~30% to align speech volume with music playback volume, but that's a one-time thing.
4. Spotify playback does not consistently reconnect on re-plugin; not sure the expected behavior, but it frequently starts the music and then in a couple of secs stops it, which is clearly not a desirable behavior.
5. Can add a Spotify track to Favorites, but cannot take it out of Favorites that I can find in ACP; I actually need this so this is annoying.
6. Not an ACP thing, but the screen dims when the headlights turn on, which happens when still too bright to see the display well. Probably a setting that can be adjusted, just need to play with it.
Overall, both Waze and Spotify generally work fine, voice search for addresses works well and the knob navigation is acceptable, if simple. The USB charging, well, actually charges the phone rather than just maintaining the battery, which alone makes it worth it to me.
Smaller complaints are:
1. I still find it easier to set my Waze on the phone, but need to unplug the phone to get the full phone app functionality - this is actually quite annoying. Some reasons why I unplug: I can't find a way to see the destination address in ACP, and adding a stop is unclear.
2. Waze satellite has been laggy a couple of times at the start of a trip - it seems confused for ~1 minute even after I've started driving, unlike what I've experienced before but may not be an ACP thing.
3. Had to adjust Waze app volume to ~30% to align speech volume with music playback volume, but that's a one-time thing.
4. Spotify playback does not consistently reconnect on re-plugin; not sure the expected behavior, but it frequently starts the music and then in a couple of secs stops it, which is clearly not a desirable behavior.
5. Can add a Spotify track to Favorites, but cannot take it out of Favorites that I can find in ACP; I actually need this so this is annoying.
6. Not an ACP thing, but the screen dims when the headlights turn on, which happens when still too bright to see the display well. Probably a setting that can be adjusted, just need to play with it.
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