Cayman Gen 2 AUX Input

[jimmyt1202]

Good Morning all,

My Dad has just bought a 2011 Cayman Gen 2. It's fairly basic and doesn't have the PCM Nav, just the single CD. It does have an AUX button on the stereo but I can't seem to find the AUX input. Does it have one or is it something that needs to be retro-fitted?

Thanks

[Webdunk]

My Aux is clearly labelled / visible in the armrest storage. If yours isn't there then looks like retrofit/alternative approach

[iandc]

+1 on my 2010 Spyder. Lift the centre console and it should be at the front of the storage bin and, as stated, is clearly marked

[gsewell]

Assuming that you have the CDR-30 head unit, the aux input in the armrest had to be specified at build or can be retro-fitted at a cost of £100+ by OPC. It is a worthless interface as it does not allow the music to be played at a sensible level unless you have an older iPod with the 30-pin connector and a suitable line-out lead (fiio do a couple). This is because the EU in their wisdom think that people aren't sensible enough to know when music is too loud and have forced all MP3 players and phones to limit their output to -12dB. So what happens is you whack up the volume on the head unit to compensate and it starts to get hissy just to get a volume loud enough to hear over the engine. Then you switch to radio and blast the system at full volume.
Additionally, it does not have any means of charging your player, so you have to keep taking your player indoors to charge it. IE you cannot just fit and forget.
Finally, it has no control over the player - so you are constantly delving into the arm rest to change album/playlist etc.
Considering how much OPCs charge for this interface, I decided to put the money towards a Kenwood head unit that provided:
Bluetooth connection to my phone - both for calls and music
USB connection to play music from a memory stick
Full iPod connectivity with controls using the built-in DAC in the headunit
DVD player capability - 2GB of MP3 and AAC encoded music as a backup
DAB radio - much better quality and selection of music
SatNav - Garmin's finest
All with touch screen controls with the exception of the volume knob. This was about £600 for the head unit and £400 for fitting kit and labour.
Yes, I know it invalidated any remaining warrantee on the car, but OPC denied my only claim with coffin arms are a maintenance item and not covered. I have never had suspension bushes wear on a production car in under 15,000 miles - so they can keep their money making insurance policies to themselves.

[JackReacher]

Apologies for the thread resurrection, a dealer has just quoted £600 to supply and fit an AUX input to my cayman with CDR-30.

At that price, it's an absolute non-starter! If I can get hold of the cable for a sensible price, is it an easy fit?

[johnconners]

I got myself one of these:

http://www.discountcarstereo.com/3.5F-CDR30.html

Then removed the stereo and the cubby hole under the aircon controls (found instructions via Google on how to do it - slightly fiddly), drilled a small hole in the back of it and attached the female connector there. All in took about an hour and my iPhone sits in the cubby hole via a short 3.5mm male to male cable that I can remove and leave the cubby clear. Discount car stereo have several other cable alternatives you can see on their site (USB, lightning or male 3.5mm), I just preferred the fixed female connector option. I didn't see the point of getting the Porsche retrofit as it reduces the space under the centre arm rest to the point where I doubt an iPhone 6 sized phone would fit. I also believe the AUX-only retrofit is cheaper, I reckon they've quoted you for the full multimedia interface which has some more electronics if I remember correctly.

Only downside is the EU sound limit issue mentioned above - but I just turn the iPhone up and the stereo too, it's about the same as AM radio volume then.

[JackReacher]

Thanks, shame about the sound output but presumably nothing I can do about that. Does having Bose make any difference to that?

This looks like the genuine part at a much more reasonable price, so would fitting be easy?

http://www.design911.co.uk/fu/prod14042/Ipod-Inter...

[johnconners]

No, the relatively low volume is built into the head unit I believe. Not sure about Bose as mine doesn't have it so I didn't investigate.

Fitting the standard Porsche AUX kit isn't much more work than what I did - you can see one fitted in the instructions for a short shift kit here:

http://billswebspace.com/Porsche987ShortShiftDIY

The main difference is disassembling the centre trim where the handbrake is. But with the right torx screwdriver and a trim removal tool it's straightforward.

[gsewell]

For the low volume issue, if you are using a pre-lightning Apple device (30-pin connector) then FiiO do a line out cable that takes the full 2V output to the CDR-30. It still won't give you "remote control" of the iPhone or iPod but at least the sound is reasonable. Also, the aux-in does not provide power to charge the device, it is only a 3.5mm jack socket.

You have to love the Americans, they seem to do things to their Porsche that few do in the UK. For example, on the Discount Car Stereo site above, they also do Bluetooth and Apple Lightning adapters for the CDR-30. My preference would be the Bluetooth as it requires less work to plumb in and also works with a greater range of 3rd party audio sources. The volume issue disappears with Bluetooth.

Edited by gsewell on Thursday 17th December 08:26

[JackReacher]

Thanks both, maybe it's an excuse to fit a short shifter as well

[johnconners]

As an addendum, I decided to remove the AUX connector I'd fitted and tried the bluetooth streaming adapter gsewell mentioned above instead (it wasn't available when I originally got my AUX cable):

http://www.discountcarstereo.com/A2D-CDR30.html

Works extremely well, simple to fit (an hour's work) and the volume seems better than regular AUX but not quite the same as a CD. Doesn't provide bluetooth calling (as it plugs into the same socket in the stereo as the regular AUX connector) but I'm loving not having to plug my iPhone in (also makes picking it up and changing tracks easier). Even if my car had the factory multimedia interface I'd still prefer this. Best $50 I've spent in a long time.

[JackReacher]

That looks like a great option, will order one! Any special tools required for the head unit removal?

[johnconners]

You just need T20 and T30 torx driver to remove the side bolsters and an allen key to get the stereo out (the top-right is quite fiddly to get to but if you've turned the other 3 you can just push the bracket in with your finger to remove the stereo). This video shows what you need to do:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p0MdRdbmseY

Note that the screw he removed with needle nosed pliers wasn't in mine so maybe it was only on older models.

I used one of those piggy back fuse adapters to wire it into fuse C6 in the fuse box so it's powered when the ignition is on (seemed to be the only switched fuse I could find). Definitely a lot simpler to fit than the factory aux kit as removing the centre console by the handbrake is somewhat more time consuming.

[JackReacher]

Great, sounds straightforward enough, will order and give it a go.

[M1chaelw]

I'm in the same boat and was just about to go down the official aux route

How did you get on with this , the Bluetooth receiver looks a good bit of equipment

Although when I read through the instructions it said about aux mode being enabled " if not visit Porsche dealer"

Is there any way to see if aux mode is enabled ?

Edited by M1chaelw on Tuesday 2nd February 22:17

[JackReacher]

M1chaelw said:

I'm in the same boat and was just about to go down the official aux route

How did you get on with this , the Bluetooth receiver looks a good bit of equipment

Although when I read through the instructions it said about aux mode being enabled " if not visit Porsche dealer"

Is there any way to see if aux mode is enabled ?

Edited by M1chaelw on Tuesday 2nd February 22:17

I haven't got round to it yet, but that's a complication I hadn't picked up on! would be interested to know as well.

[johnconners]

So AUX mode was already enabled on my CDR-30 meaning no dealer visit required and mine did not have the original AUX kit fitted. Basically if you hit the CD-AUX button twice it'll go from CD to AUX on the display and if that happens it's enabled I believe.