Dearth of California DIYs and a Plea for Help

How about collecting it in the California section ?

More recent owners are reluctant to maintain or mod themselves for many reasons including concerns about compromising the extended warranty & maintenance programs

 

My impression is that model is, like most modern cars, not DIY friendly given all the electronic doodads. They are designed to be plugged into a diagnostic machine and serviced from there. Also the typical owner is not a DIY guy. Of all the California owners I have met not one is a wrench. So, I wish you well on your difficult quest.

 

If you haven't done so already you might want to look through the other threads for discussions and/or photos of other people's infotainment upgrades. I presume you already have some assembly drawings of the car.

This post on an earlier thread shows the extent of the dis-assembly of the dash that was involved with Wavey38's infotainment upgrade on his 2010 Cali. Here's a lightened version of the photo from his post:

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Personally-speaking I would not touch the dashboard because unless I have a fair bit of experience I would likely break fasteners and I may also end up with squeaks and noises from the re-assembled dash. I would also not want to kick myself afterwards, every time I hear something unusual from the dash.

OTOH, I've swapped engine compartment components, made minor body modifications and wiring upgrades on my BMWs without problems but I would consider those mods to be more straightforward and less potentially problematic than pulling a dash.

 

I paid FoSV to add a rear backup camera to my 2010 and it was quite a bit of work. The camera plugged into the head unit without much issue, but I believe they had to modify a support bracket to get the wiring to all fit back in the tiny space behind the unit. From there, it was pretty easy - they routed the wire to the rear license plate area and I have a camera attached there. I can remove it someday if I decide I don't want it. The radio automatically recognized the camera and it turns on when you engage reverse.

I believe "Gene" from Seattle was the first to do this, and my dealer contacted his to get the scoop on which camera to use and how to hook it up. When I got my 2010, reverse cameras weren't yet an option.

 

Thanks for sharing. Yeah, that's the sequence I suspected from the photo of Wavey38's car that I posted... reason why I posted it. However, I'm not sure why the fellow also removed the centre ventilation nozzles above the infotainment system.

Good luck with the "mod" and please let us know how you like the upgrade!

 

Tom,
Were you able to add the backup camera?
Can you share with me your expiernce, i'm thinking to do the same.

Thanks.