Add Nav, Sat radio and streaming music to your 456GT - while keeping it all OEM!

I have successfully added navigation, music streaming and SiriusXM – all using Bluetooth connectivity - to my 1997 456GT while leaving all stock parts unchanged. No OEM parts have been added or removed, and my installation is practically invisible to the naked eye: no unsightly satellite radio antennas, no head unit replacements, no deviations whatsoever from the stock look. Interested? This is what I did.

The first step is to read, understand and fully internalize JetX's seminal guide (http://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/456-550-575-sponsored-bradan/278293-456gt-stereo-replacement.html). He posted it in 2008 but to this date I can't find a better set of instructions that what he put together. If you are interested in this write-up I strongly recommend you familiarize yourself with that guide.

My 1997 456GT comes with the standard setup described in JetX's guide:

- XTC-F10 stereo head unit with tethered remote face plate
- CDX-F10 10 disc CD changer
- XM-F10 2 channel amplifier, 30 watts x 2 channels

To start with I acquired on eBay a Sony XA-300 Auxiliary input adapter (given that by now you have already read and digested JetX's guide you know full well what that is).

Secondly, I bought (also on eBay but this unit can be obtained from many other sources) a JL AUDIO MBT-RX Bluetooth unit (MBT-RX - Marine Audio - Amplifiers & Electronics - Bluetooth® Accessories - JL Audio).

I then proceeded to add the Sony XA-300 unit to my setup, and used JetX's instructions to connect the existing CDX-F10 CD changer (super easy).

I then installed the JL Audio MBT-RX unit in the AUX1 port. Note that this unit needs 12V power, which I obtained by splicing into the 12V connection that powers the entire trunk-based electronics ensemble. I used two quick splice connectors that I bought at the nearest Radio Shack.

That's it! You are now able to connect to the JL Audio bluetooth unit – no pairing code necessary. Once you have done so you are ready to stream any audio from either your phone or tablet: from navigation prompts, to SiriusXM (you will need to sign up for the Internet stream package – very inexpensive), to streaming your own music, everything will be piped through your car speakers once you press the CD button until you see AUX1 on your head unit screen.

For I must be one of the few boneheads left in the world who still uses a BlackBerry, that notoriously has the worst app support known to mankind, I am making this all work through a dedicated Android tablet so that I can have access to all needed apps – but any Apple product will work just the same provided it has Bluetooth connectivity.

Notice that the JL Audio unit can't be used as a Bluetooth phone device – meaning that you can't install a microphone and have that unit deliver phone calls through the car speakers while you speak into the microphone. I will research that option and will post a follow-up to this thread once I have found an effective solution.

While this isn't an in-dash solution, it does provide a great amount of added functionality that would otherwise be unavailable with the stock 456GT setup. The only caveat, if we should even call it such, is that one needs to use their own device to control it. The benefit, which I was very concerned with as I pursued this solution, is that everything is left “as OEM as possible” - the only difference being the small JL Audio unit that peeks up quite in unobtrusively from the audio equipment enclosure on the left side of the trunk. This is necessary so that the Bluetooth signal remains strong into the cabin.

Hope this helps and inspires you to duplicate or even expand on this solution

 

Interesting. Could you tell us more about the radio unit brand and model #, any additional modifications, etc?