X358 XJR - how on earth to play MP3s? and other things

[munky]

I've had my first Jag, (a 2008 facelift XJR) a couple of weeks now, and it is superb. Compared to the TVR it's like mission control, with all manner of gadgets like an electric rear sunblind (why, I'm not sure yet, maybe it's bulletproof) and chilled as well as heated seats. And unlike the TVR, the headlights on the Jag actually work, every time. Lovely.

However, given such gadgetry, there are a couple of things that seem, well, a little behind the times. Or, quite likely, I'm just not doing it properly and hopefully someone can point me in the right direction.

Firstly, it has a 6 CD changer, which is a little old school. Especially as neither the changer, nor the single slot head unit, will play MP3 CDs. They will play CD-Rs formatted as audio CDs, but not as data CDs. Can this be true? Even my dad's Skoda plays MP3 CDs. In the TVR I have a kenwood keg hard drive that fits 200+ albums, (and that's 2003 technology) so 6 albums seems a bit limiting. Or.. I hear there's an audio connector module (basically a wire with a plug on it?) to connect an iPod or similar, at a cost of about £400 fitted(!), but from what I've read on other forums this still won't display track/album titles on the touchscreen, but it fools the system into thinking the iPod is a 6-CD changer. So it allows 6 playlists, but you can't see what you're playing.
Is there another way? (it's apparently the 'premium' sound system, Alpine I think. Can an Alpine MP3 compatible CD changer be swapped in for the existing one? Would it display track names on the touchscreen? If so then problem solved)

Secondly the satnav - how do I get traffic avoidance on it, or is that not possible? How about speed cameras? And finally - say you have put in your destination postcode and want to find a car park near the destination, or a petrol station on the route, how do you do it? My 4 year old garmin does all these things, so I was rather hoping the built-in Jag unit would. Even the vauxhall vectra I hired in 2007 had traffic avoidance, and I seem to remember it had POIs en route / near destination.

Finally, and this really is a very minor point, I was surprised that there's no visual indication of the parking sensors. It beeps from either the front or back speakers which is of some help, but again a skoda shows on the screen which individual sensors are approaching an object.. handy in very tight garages/car park ramps, for instance.

The fact that these trivial items are the only minus points I can find says how good the rest of the car is, but I'd really like to be told that I'm doing something wrong and these things are possible. Traffic avoidance on the garmin has saved hours of motorway hell, so the backup option is to continue using it in the Jag, but it seems daft given there's a touchscreen one built in.

Any help appreciated - thanks

[tr7v8]

My S-Type has & my previous one had the Audio Connectivity pack, they are about £270 or so fitted. This has three connectors, a pair of phono connectors, an iPod connector & a USB flylead for an MP3 loaded USB key. I've never done iPods so mine has a USB key in & works very well. Yup no display of track but it never worries me.
Not sure why you need a display on the parking sensors? It has two different tones for the front & the back & if you can't see how close you are to whatver it indicates then you need SpecSavers not a Jaguar.
Yup no POI load for the Sat Nav, speed cameras etc. which is a PITA. It will do some POI as default but not sure about car parks. It does restaurants etc. Most installed Sat Navs are light years behind the Garmins & TomToms etc.

[Simpo Two]

munky said:

Firstly, it has a 6 CD changer, which is a little old school. Especially as neither the changer, nor the single slot head unit, will play MP3 CDs. They will play CD-Rs formatted as audio CDs, but not as data CDs. Can this be true?

Yes. Latest models possibly excepted, Jaguar audio is always two generations behind state-of-the-art. And you can't pull it our and fit anything else, other than another Jaguar system.

munky said:

I hear there's an audio connector module (basically a wire with a plug on it?) to connect an iPod or similar, at a cost of about £400 fitted(!), but from what I've read on other forums this still won't display track/album titles on the touchscreen, but it fools the system into thinking the iPod is a 6-CD changer. So it allows 6 playlists, but you can't see what you're playing.
Is there another way? (it's apparently the 'premium' sound system, Alpine I think. Can an Alpine MP3 compatible CD changer be swapped in for the existing one? Would it display track names on the touchscreen? If so then problem solved)

I tried a similar thing with my (admittedly 2001) S-Type. I even chose a new head unit and took the car to an ICE installer - only for them to ring half an hour later and say it couldn't be done due to the 'digital bus'.

munky said:

Secondly the satnav - how do I get traffic avoidance on it, or is that not possible?

Very much doubt it - that needs a whole extra layer of gubbins. But there are many categories of POIs you can select for display, eg petrol stations, hospitals and even marinas!

munky said:

no visual indication of the parking sensors

Never felt the need for this - when I'm parking I like to look round, not have my head in 'the office'.

munky said:

Traffic avoidance on the garmin has saved hours of motorway hell, so the backup option is to continue using it in the Jag, but it seems daft given there's a touchscreen one built in.

Actually I always use a TomTom in parallel with the built-in satnav. Not only does it give redundancy, but they present the information in different ways. TomTom does the close-up view and gives the directions while the car satnav gives a larger scale scrolling pverview and I can see where I am in relation to towns, roads and waypoints. The car system can be better in that it doesn't need ages to find satellites, it's instant - but you can't enter a destination while moving, and it mutes the audio for every voice prompt which can get tiresome.

[munky]

Thanks fellas.

At some point I'll get Guy Salmon to install a DVD and rear screens, maybe they have a way of combining that with MP3 capability, although I doubt it if the software simply doesn't support it.

Parking sensors less of an issue as I get used to the size of the car (I have never had a 4-door car before, let alone something the size of an XJ). The problem was, even though the garage was (I say was, as I have moved since I posted the above) more than wide enough for 4 cars, the 2 doors were not quite double width so I'd have to park one car right up against the wall - side and front - to get another one in at an angle. And with the Jag so close to the wall on the left, the front sensor was already sounding a constant beep, so that on approaching the front wall there was no indication of how close it was. A skoda would show this on the screen, but the Jag doesn't. Anyway I solved that problem by swapping cars - found that it was easier to put the smaller TVR in against the left wall and then put the Jag in, especially as it has folding mirrors.

Anyway, hope that explains! I'm not going blind quite yet

[Piersman2]

munky said:

Thanks fellas.

At some point I'll get Guy Salmon to install a DVD and rear screens, maybe they have a way of combining that with MP3 capability, although I doubt it if the software simply doesn't support it.

No they won't. I've got the DVD rear screen system in mine and the method I have for playing MP3s is either via a USB stick connected in the glovebox, or a I-player thingie in the glovebox as I have the audio connect kit fitted. But I don't have a iplayer thingie that's charged up so can't tell you if that works, but I do use the USB stick in the glovebox. Only problem with that is that the system only seems to 'find' the USB stick when you plug it in. So if you leave it there, the system doesn't seem to sense it until you lean over, pull it out, then push it back in again. Maybe it's the wrong type uf USB?

Basically you shafted unless you get the conectivity kit fitted... or burn you own discs for the 6-player like I did with my previous XJR which didn't have the connect kit.