Aftermarket or Dealer Nav System?

[MadBlackCoupe]

Question for you.

I was told at the dealership that I could have a Nav system installed aftermarket. I didn't want to pay for yet another package and, I wasn't intending on getting the premium in the first place, that was enough.

After I purchased the car, they told me they don't install the dealer Nav systems...go to Best Buy.

I have a 2.5 S Premium Package, no Nav.

Any advice on how to proceed? I test drove a friend's Acura this weekend, with Nav, and loved it...now I'm hooked.

What are my options at this point?

Trade my car in and get a coupe with Nav?If so, how much will I lose out in the trade, having the car 1 week and 600 miles?

Get an aftermarket Nav?Are there any out there that are good as the dealer nav?

Any help would be appreciated.

MadBC

[Goon]

I don't know about anywhere else, but the Altima Coupes are selling exceedingly well. I brought my coupe with Nav, by convincing myself that I'll keep this vehicle for a long time, so I might as well go the extra distance and get it fully loaded.

I'm sure if you can convince them that they would be able to sell this coupe just as fast, then you should order one. I guess it gets a lil clogged if you have additional Nav hanging inside your car.

I'm not sure if it is harder to steal stock Nav than aftermarkets either.It's probably the same.

[LongBeachCoupe]

Congrats, you saved $$$Get a d3 installed!Flushmount... its awesome!

[MadBlackCoupe]

Thanks bro.

When I asked them about installing the Nav, they said go to BestBuy or trade it in.

So, they are willing to do the deal, but I figure I will come out in the negative in the trade due to depreciation.

MadBC.

[MadBlackCoupe]

Serious?

What's a D3?

Sorry I'm not up on all the lingo.

You mean:

AVIC-D3 In-Dash Nav Receiver??

Prob so.

Is it as good as the default Nav?

-MadBC

Congrats, you saved $$$Get a d3 installed!Flushmount... its awesome!

[MadBlackCoupe]

Hmmm. Looks good.

They are on sale at BestBuy for $899.

MBC
Modified by MadBlackCoupe at 9:19 AM 10/1/2007

[LongBeachCoupe]

Yea.... check the threads...

[Cali 2 Balti G]

After market Navigation/Dvd players should be as good or better than factory - they may also give you more options such as playing DVD while driving.

Hard part will be finding an installer - you can check best buy - but you might need to try a independent shop - either way make sure they are comfortable with the install. Looks like they will have to use a Double DIN set-up. It has been done - do a search on this forum and cardomain for examples.

I'm not sure I would trade the car in just because it doesn't have Nav. That is one of those things where you should have bought it that way from the start.

Did you pay a good price for the car (discount below sticker) - otherwise you may well lose in the switch.

[LongBeachCoupe]

Get the d3... dont let bestbuy anywhere near the car... pay a quality installer... Ebay has them for 720 DELIVERED! Buying the stuff on ebay and paying a good installer, you can have that girls setup (d3, dvd changer, camera) for under 1500... And you can watch DVDs.. and get sirius if you prefer... AND you get to keep your console space!

[MadBlackCoupe]

Thanks guys.

You guys are great. I did try searching first, to no avail. Either I'm searching wrong or using the wrong search string.

MBC

[tsigoloeg]

... Ebay has them for 720 DELIVERED! Buying the stuff on ebay and paying a good installer,

One good thing you should always check out before buying this stuff on ebay is whether or not the mfgr warranty will be honored. A lot of equipment mfgrs have policies that if their products are not purchased through an "authorized reseller" is they WILL NOT honor their warranty! Most ebayers are not "authorized resellers." Beltronics and Yamaha are two that I know of first hand.

[AltiCoupeDriver]

Just go to cardomain.com and do an advanced search for 2008 Altimas and she should be the first link in the list. She has the d3, it looks like its factory and she even has a bluetooth model. She says it cost her under 1500 for all that and a back up camera and the dash kit.

[MadBlackCoupe]

Thanks bro. I found it...sweet!

Another question. It appears that several folks here have the D3. The one knob on the left side of the unit makes it appear to be unballanced.

Would you guys say the D3 is better than the:

Alpine: IVA-w205http://www.amazon.com/Alpine-I...r=8-1

or

Eclipse: AVN 5495http://www.amazon.com/Eclipse-...r=1-2

Thanks in advance,MadBC
Modified by MadBlackCoupe at 6:23 PM 10/1/2007

[rjdmmfl1]

MBC.. aftermarket navigation systems most likely will be superior to the factory navigation unit, for a number of reasons.... but I think it depends on what system you get. Out of all I have installed and played with (Car audio/video has been a hobby of mine for about 5 years), the pioneer units appear to be the best...

I think the Avic Z2 is the best aftermarket navigation system /dvd player out there...

In comparison to the D3, the Z2 has a built in 30 Gb hard drive with 20 Gb dedicated to navigation (bye bye nav dvd) and 10 Gb dedicated to your own personal mp3 storage system. It will rip your cd's onto the harddrive, now you can keep your entire music library in your car. Most of us have ipods nowadays, and both of these have optional ipod interfaces for use with an adapter. (The D3 has an av jack on the front for direct input, however you can't use the ipod interface with the av jack)

All in all, if you get the D3, you have to take out your nav disc in order to watch a movie... even if you save a route, if you decided to change destinations, you then have to take out the movie, reinsert the nav disc, wait for it to load, change the route, save it, take out the nav disc and put the movie back in....F*&% that!!! That's why I'm going with the Z2... The only thing is, it costs about twice as much... so if you're on a budget, the D3 is the SECOND best aftermarket system out there and is still a great choice (as long as you don't ever change destinations

As for the Alpine, kenwood, and Eclipse, they are all nice in there own right..but i think they all fail in comparison to the pioneer units. Oh yes, one last thing, processing speed on the Z2 is wayyyy faster since its from a harddrive and not dependent on a nav disk. Also, all of these models (except for kenwood) requires purchasing navigation update discs [~$250-$300], even the Z2!) Or you can buy a bootleg copy off of ebay for $20!! The kenwood has a usb port which allows you to just download the latest nav map information, save it on a flash drive, and the update is free) Ok I know this was a mouthful, but I do hope it helps... the best thing I would do is find a local install store and ask them to go over what I just explained one by one, and make your decision after that. If they have these different models in the store, that's even better, screen resolution is NOT equal on all of these units!!! That's something you just gotta see for yourself!

[nissantech06]

Aftermarket Navi units offer something factory ones don't, iPod control. I don't know about you guys, but I'll give up a 6disc changer for a single disc AND direct control. I'd rather have 650 songs at my fingertips than have cds shuffling around.

There are dash kits out for the Altima, the sedan and coupe is exactly the same in terms of interior trim pieces around the dash. Go to http://www.installer.com and check out what they have.

[rjdmmfl1]

Last I checked, installer.com did NOT have one for the 07/08 altimas yet....but metra sells a pretty decent aftermarket kit...you can find them available on ebay!http://cgi.ebay.com/2007-2008-...wItem

[Vhernandez919]

I'd would get the Z2 over the D3! More $ but worth it!

[LongBeachCoupe]

Obviously theres a design flaw with the D3 being 1 disc..Look at the girl on cardomain... theres the solution... DVD changer!

[rjdmmfl1]

I feel you LBC, however, how useful is a DVD changer in a car...between the price she paid for a dvd changer and the D3, she almost could've jumped on the Z2. At least the old D1 and D2 had two drives, one for the cd player and another for the navigation disc. I guess it's a matter of personal preference, ya dig! As for me, I think I'd get annoyed really quickly having to keep changing the dvd everytime I wanted to change directions. I'm always playing music video dvd's in the car while I'm driving, so the D3 just wouldn't fit my driving habits. But for someone that won't be utilizing the dvd video too often, maybe it's not so bad!

[LongBeachCoupe]

IDK... IMO ill take a 5 disc dvd changer in the glove box... and theres your hidden ipod holder as well... Even if you are changing dvds, its like the old cd changers in the trunk... in 1 ride, you need more than 5 discs?

Without a changer, you are 100% correct though, the D3 is a waste..

[MadBlackCoupe]

Great comments and suggestions folks. I appreciate them all.

I stopped by Tweeter in my area today. They can do the Z2 for 3,700.

This includes:

Base unit: 1999.99honors prices from major retail stores, not Amazon.

Back camera: 299

XM Traffic Updates: 200

Bluetooth: 199

Sirius Satelite Receiver Install: 74.99Sirius Satelite TNR, IP-Bus: 99.99Satelite, GPS Antenna: 39.99

iPod: 49.99

Factory Amp ByPass: 45.00

How does that sound?

The cost of the base unti is high compared to Amazon, who had it for 1,499. The guy at the store said Amazon sells used stuff, so he doubts that was price new. Hmmm, and, they woun't install anything not purchased from their store.

I don't really like that either.

Anybody in Maryland have better suggestions for an installer?

Thanks in advance!

MadBC
Modified by MadBlackCoupe at 8:05 PM 10/2/2007

[rjdmmfl1]

MBC...first off, whatever you do... DO NOT GO BACK TO TWEETER!!! Those prices you just got quoted is freaking rediculous! Tweeter overprices like crazy, and they are going out of business all over the country! I've had a lot of success with buying off ebay from REPUTABLE POWER SELLERS! (Don't buy a Z2 from somebody selling a speaker, some socks, and a nav system, ya dig!) But everything they just quoted you is drastically overpriced!

You're in luck my friend... you're about 10 minutes away from the spot that I use to get all of my aftermarket stuff done (molded body kit, lambo doors, etc). I live in San Diego now but I went to medical school in Baltimore... the name of the spot is GW motorsports... http://www.gwmotorsports.com/

They have great install prices, they will install anything you buy on your own and bring in! Great guys!

GW Motorsports, Inc.

1344 West Nursery Road

Linthicum, MD 21090.

Phone: 410-636-6560

Fax: 410-636-6561

general inquiries: [email protected]

online sales inquiries: [email protected]

[LongBeachCoupe]

Yeah man thats way too expensive... amazon gets a billion hits a day, its not because they are screwing their customers lol.. id go the ebay powerseller route... im also a powerseller and its great... you can even email someone selling them on ebay and get it cheaper... ebay fees are around 7% of the total, cut ebay out, and ask for a 6% discount!

[pat1999]

In my opinion, getting the factory Nav is foolish. Aftermarket Nav units are so much more powerful and flexible. But the biggest mistake you can make is buying an aftermarket unit from a retail store. Always buy what you need off ebay. You will save hundreds of dollars.

I just bought an 2008 Sedan last month and immediately started researching aftermarket nav units.

It came down to the Pioneer D3 and the Kenwood DNX7100 because I didnt feel like shelling out 2 grand for the Z2. I ended up going with the Kenwood because I didnt like how the D3 Nav worked of DVDS. The kenwood has the maps stored in memory.

So I bought it for $965($1399 in stores) shipped off ebay and installed it yesterday and I'm in love with it .

The Nav is made by Garmin, easy to use, and works great.

If you plan on doing a self install, it is pretty easy to do and there is a perfect spot for the nav antenna and ground wire just behind the unit. I got the metra kit off ebay and it fits great. It is also very easy to bypass the park sensor(just connect sensor wire to ground) so you can watch DVDS and make changes to your Nav while driving.

I'm still waiting for the ipod video adapter so i dont have that hooked up yet.

Im not home right now but I can take pictures with my camera and post how it looks this weekend.

ANy more questions just ask.

CNET did a review on the DNX7100, they loved everything about it except for the menu. Honestly they must be retarded because I only had it for a day and I got the menu down pretty good. I think it is very easy to use.

http://reviews.cnet.com/car-gp....html

Modified by pat1999 at 8:47 AM 10/3/2007
Modified by pat1999 at 9:23 AM 10/3/2007

[LongBeachCoupe]

Where can you showcase your car with jersey freeze closing!Im waiting on pics...

[pat1999]

Jersey Freeze??

I will post pics on friday when I get home.

[LongBeachCoupe]

Rt 9 freehold staple... right by the racetrack... horses that is...I used to live within earshot of englishtown raceway

[MadBlackCoupe]

All I can say is:



Good looking out as we say in the hood!

rjdmmfl1, I am about 15 minutes from that spot. I'll be calling them tomorrow. Great news! That's what this forum is all about! Hell yEah!

Thanks to everybody--you guys have been extremely helpful.

I'm going to get up with GW and get my Nav on.

I checked out the Z2 at Tweeter. It looked better than the D3. I need a Nav system that is symmetrical--that fits better into the overall design--with the two knobs of the air condition on both sides.

The factory Nav is hot--looking, that's for sure, but the idea of getting more for less, is hot as well!

So, it looks like it's between the Z2 and the DNX!

Yeah, take some pics Pat.



I should have known LBC, but the reference to Amazon selling used crap for new--should have raised an eyebrow. I should have just left the store right then...lol. Anyway, the guy and I talked for over an hour, so, at least I picked up some terminology and learned a couple things...not about Amazon though...lol.

I'm not a big movie DVD guy. I don't really watch em at home, so I can't see getting a 6 DVD changer to watch in the car.

I gotta get the backup camera, bluetooth, and iPod connections though, and the XM traffic updates.

[rjdmmfl1]

No problem MBC, that's what these forums are for.... also I agree with the homie earlier about the kenwood DNX. That's a great unit. My choice was also down to the DNX and the Z2 (for features not price)

++++'s for Kenwood... 1. less expensive 2. Free download maps on flash memory 3. powered by Garmin 4. EASY TO WATCH DVD's while moving...just ground the parking brake 5. USB port for faster, cleaner audio transfer

-----'s for Kenwood 2. No voice activated navigation 2. no hard drive for your music library

++++'s for Z2 1. 2 many to list, but shortly, hard drive for nav and music, 2. voice activated 3. Really nice ipod interface (so does kenwood)

---'s for Z2 because its on a hard drive, THE HARD DRIVE CAN CRASH!! I've heard of a coupl of folks whose harddrives froze up...however, Pioneer has recently released a patch to prevent this from happening in the future!

All in all, although there are virtually no flaws with the Z2, I think you get more bang for your buck going with the kenwood. I have see both and operated both and I think the Pioneer has nicer menus and nicer navigation graphics. And once again, you can't discount the voice activated nav operation... In any case good luck, if you need any further info, just jump back on the thread!

[MadBlackCoupe]

Thanks bro.

It's looking like the Z2 baby!

Just doing some investigating!

A download that overides the motion restriction?Thoughts?

This is a patch that will allow you to unlock your AVIC Z2 featurs while you drive!

You won't have to pull over every time to input you destination or check the traffic conditions (providing that you have XM traffic). You can do all that while you drive!!!

This is the real deal! But take note that it will only work on the Pioneer AVIC Z2 models.

Upon Payment you will have access to the ISO image file along with the instructions on how to use it.You burn the ISO onto a CD and load into your unit: It's very simple and WILL NOT VOID YOUR WARRANTY!!!http://cgi.ebay.com/PIONEER-AV...wItem

---------------------

PRICE CHECKS:

Wisetronics has the Z2 for 1,200. Are they reputable? Thoughts/comments!http://www.wisetronics.com/Pro...Specs

Ebay (audiovideo4me) for 1,379Are they reputable? Thoughts/comments!http://cgi.ebay.com/Pioneer-AV...wItem

This new model is Pioneers top-of-the-line flagship 2007. These are factory fresh units with production dates newer than 6/2007. WHY IS THAT IMPORTANT? In June 2007 Pioneer revised the AVIC-Z2 mid year and made it Motion Bypass Capable (WITH NO EXTRA PARTS NEEDED and a FREE download available on the web. These new units also have all the latest navigation and software enhancements and updates right from Pioneer.

Any truth to this statement?

CarDomain Store for 1,399Are they reputable? Thoughts/comments!Special Offer!Get a FREE Connector Kit, Installation Kit, and Wiring Harness with your purchase! http://www.cardomain.com/item/PIOAVICZ2

As always, thanks guys! MadBC!