Aftermarket Head Unit Clarification

[JBona]

I’ve done the research, but the massive amount of info is all just a clusterF***.
Just looking for someone to confirm or correct my research.

I picked up a Pioneer double din touch screen that’s a few years old.
I plan on getting these for the conversion:

DKMUS Dash Installation Trim Kit for BMW 5 Series E39 1995-2003 X5 E53 1999-2006 Facia Double Din Radio Stereo DVD with Wiring Harness Antenna Adapter https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01MXID3BB..._UhLbFb7DK9815

Metra Axxess ASWC-1 Universal Steering Wheel Control Interface https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00B4PJC9K..._eiLbFbVZGT6FK

My questions are:
Will these work to complete my conversion?
Do I need anything else?
If these won’t work, what will?

Thanks

[MarcoZandrini]

Does your car have factory navigation?

[JBona]

Does your car have factory navigation?

No. 2000 528i M-Sport
It’s the regular radio with the cassette tape player behind the trim

[DennisCooper]

Hi JBona,

No point in posting up twice !

The information about fitting a double DIN head unit has plenty of threads and pictures with all the information and I agree, some of it is a little unclear.

If you have a 'traditional' depth double DIN head unit, it won't sit flush to the dash contours as the rear lower edge will 'hit' the front upper edge of the cabin airbox. Pcitures below;



Some fitting kits 'tilt' the head unit so that the rear lower edge, clears the top front edge of the airbox. The result is that the front upper front edge of the head unit 'sticks' out and this is the result;





There's some fascia's available which look like this;





Some owners are happy with this look.

To allow a traditional depth head unit to sit flush, the airbox needs to be cut/modified so that enough space is created to allow the head unit to 'sit/fit' further back. So if that's the look you'd like, then this is something you'll need to have done unless you are confident you can DIY without messing up the airbox internal airflow flaps.

back in 2009, a E39 kit was available from Connects2 and it was this;








That grey piece is a metal frame which affixed to the OEM mounting holes and the plastic fascia clipped in securely to it. The end result was the head unit 'tilted' to clear the airbox. I had it in my car and these pics are from then. This kit was discontinued in 2011/12'ish. There's similar looking ones out there now, like the one you've linked to but they all omit that frame piece when they're 'cheap' at $20/50 USD worth. So, you'll need to fabricate some way of securely attaching the dkmus product to the dash area and in turn, to then securely hold the head unit.

I've not cut my airbox, and I used some super sticky tape as used by car audio and car trade garages to securely stick my head unit in place and I took the front trim ring off, so it looked like this for a while;











In 2013, Parrot released the first fully featured shallow depth double DIN head unit called 'Asteroid Smart'. Shallow depth is acheived when the disk mechanism is omitted from the specification so the head unit's body can be much shorter. This Parrot Asteroid Smart fitted into the same Connects2 fitting kit. (My photobucket isn't showing all pictures currently, so I can't link)

If you have a look at a previous thread I've made, you can see more pictures there

https://www.bimmerforums.com/forum/s...-Audio-Upgrade

So, depending on what you want, then the dkmus item you've chosen will work or won't be suitable. As you have the radio/cassette setup in your car, I understand that USA spec E39's all had a separate amplifier in the trunk/boot of the car. You'll need to check to see which wires / connector you have in your car as I can't remember what the US spec setup is like. As for steering wheel control interfaces, the Metra should work, Pioneer will do their own ones as well.

Hope this clarifies things for you. Any more questions, myself and Marco (and perhaps others) will help as best we can.

Cheers, Dennis!

[JBona]

Thank you for the in depth reply, Dennis.
-I didn’t mean to double post. I wasn’t aware posts required approval so I thought I closed out without posting the first time lol.
-As for the tilted look, that is fine by me. Easier to not heat and modify the air box.
-Good to know about that retaining bracket. I’ll have to pay attention to that when shopping.
-I’ll have to double check my connectors and just try to match it up.
-Thanks for tipping me off about Pioneer probably doing their own module, I’ll look into that.
Hopefully my next post will be pictures of the completed job!

[Alwaystouring]

So I just completed my retrofit on a 2001 525i wagon. I redid the speakers with the Bavsound kit and got the head unit (Alpine ILX W 650), wiring and install kit from crutchfield. I can shoot you some pictures when I get home today, but I will say I haven't been able to get the steering wheel controls to work, even though the wiring harness comes with an adapter that's supposed to make this work.

Oh and I ran a mic up to the mic slot, which I can help you with too if you're needing any.

Let us know how it goes for you.

[Mless5]

^ how much of an upgrade was it? In other words, is it worth the $?

[Isis M]

How do you like the sound, do you have pictures?

[JBona]

Hey Dennis, I’m having issues connecting everything and getting it to work. Local shops want $250+ to finish my install, so I’m trying to finish it myself.
Basically all I’m getting is the HU to power on. No Bluetooth, no sound.

[DennisCooper]

Hi Jbona,

As you've got power to the head unit and that it switches on, don't connect it to anything except for a speaker on each speaker output channel to see if there's any sound from it. If there is say the radio playing on each channel then you'll know you have that much working. Leave the speaker connected and try the bluetooth pairing. Does that work as well?

If you get no output when the radio is playing on the speaker channels then maybe the unit is faulty. If you do get sound output then connect to the cars speakers. If at that point there's no sound, then there's something wrong with either how you're connecting it or the speakers in the car (and amp) might be faulty.

Which actual head unit is it ? model number etc?

Cheers, Dennis!