OK.... as promised here are some details as to what I did on the install. I am not going to go step by step on the whole thing becuase that has been done. I just gave a few extra details and some things I did differently.
As a recap, the install is for a Pioneer AVIC Z series head unit into a 2008 Mustang GT. The unit is actually an AVIC Z1 that was upgraded to the AVIC Z3 with a swap of the harddrive. This give me the most updated maps and options. This information will work with any AVIC Z1, Z2 or Z3 as the wiring is identical.
Also, I wanted to mention I was going from the Shaker 500 Stereo to the Pioneer.
I'll start with the single biggest question I see everywhere..... the wiring harnesses. If you have the Shaker 500 or 1000 you will need the following:
Metra Ford Harness PN/ 70-5521: This is actually two connectors. One is the main power and speakers (more on that in a second) and the second is for the subs and related amps that are part of the Shaker system. You can check out their site at
Metra Electronics.
The harness is below. Of note, The red, orange/white and blue cable are NOT FUNCTIONAL on the car side of the harness. In other words, they are not 12V switches, as needed by the Pioneer. In short, you need to hardwire those separately. Also, I am a firm believer of soldering connections. I have had too many connectors come loose in cars that I just avoid it all together and solder all my connections.
Below is the sub-connection that is wired up to the Metra harness. This is where the Voltage regulator comes into play. The regulator takes the any voltage up to 35V on the input and sends out 5V on the output. This is the voltage used by Ford to switch the amps on that power the subs. The input side of the regulator comes from the Pioneer as a 12V output. The output of the regulator goes to the Blue wires on the Metra Harness. These blue wires need to be 5V output. Hence the need for the regulator. By doing this you avoid a "pop" when you turn on the radio. The RCA plugs are the L & R output for the subs. I heat shrink the connectors to avoid them coming loose. Again.... overkill, but I guarantee I will never lose a connection.
These two harnesses are pretty straight forward. You simply match the colors coming from the Pioneers' connectors to the Metra Harnesses. Basically, it's the speakers (8 Wires) and the constant 12V power (Yellow) and ground (Black). There are two exceptions to that. The Swithed Accessory wire and the LIghting / Illumination wire.
The switched power is taken from the passenger side kick panel fuse box. This is added with a "Add-A-Circuit" connector. In the 05 to 08 Mustangs you need the Mini Fuse type. You can get them at just about any auto parts store. I used the fuse that powers the wipers. Yes I solder to the wire here as well on the "Add-A-Circuit". This wire is REQUIRED to have the Pioneer power on when the ignition is turned.
The lighting / illumination wire is REQUIRED if you want the display to switch from Day to Night operation when the lights are truned on. I recommend you go to the headlight switch on the drivers side. The wire to tap into is Beige / White. This is the wire that goes hot when the PARKING LIGHTS are turned on. The reason for this is simple. When you use the headlight wire, you will have the display go to day mode when you hit the highbeams. Trust me...... if you have tints in the car, you want the day/night option to work. The display is very bright on the Pioneer and will make it harder to see out at night. Not to mention, everybody that drives by you will see the GPS unit......
VSS Wire. Some ssay it's not worth it....... I disagree...... I think it makes the unit more accurate and helps when you have weak or no GPS signal. I ran it. Frankly, it was one of the easiest parts of the install.
The VSS wire is not in the cabin on the 2008 Mustang. You have to go to the engine bay PCM to get it. That unit sits on the passenger side, hanging from the Fuse Box right behind the headlight. The connector you need is below.
The connector and how I tapped into the wire. To get to the wire, I simply cut into the insulation CAREFULLY so as to not cut the wire. I then expose about 1/2 inch. I wrap the wire I will run back to the radio around it and solder it. I then tape it all back up just as it came from factory.
This is a shot of how I ran the wire back to the firewall. In order to get back into the engine compartment, I used the path the bright orange radio antenna uses. It has a rubber grommet. To make your life very easy, remove the battery and the battery mount/support/box. You will then see it very easily. I took a bit longer but simply ran a wire hanger through the grommet carefully until I could see it in the engine bay. Not the easiest thing in the world to do, but I figure it took about as long as it would take to get the battery out. I ran it back in a split wire cover / loom and taped it. Unless I told you it was there, I doubt anyone would ever notice it was run.
OK....... Now the last thing I did that I think can help. I wanted to make this look as clean as possible and did not want a microphone hanging in the windshield. I decided to mount it between the maplights.
What I did was get a 3/8" rubber grommet. You can pick some up at just about any Home Depot. The 3/8" measurement is the inside diameter of the grommet. The microphone for the Pioneer is just over that. In short, the grommet will be a tight fit and will be plenty to hold up the microphone. The outside diameter of the grommet is 1/2". In order for it to fit well I had to open the hole a tiny bit more than the 1/2". I did it with a dremmel (high speed rotary) tool. I then slip the grommet in place and squeezed the mic in. Given the space on the map light plastic, I found it easier to feed the wire through and then squeeze the microphone in from the bottom up. ie. wire then the back end of the mic.
Where I drilled and the finished look for the microphone are below....
The final look:
Everything with the exception of the illumination wire (mentioned above) comes in from the passenger side. That means the VSS wire, the Accessory 12V Switched wire, the Microphone, the XM Antenna, and the GPS antenna all come to the radio from the passenger side. All of them are tie wrapped to a bundle of wires already coming across under the dash above the passenger foot well.
Hope this helps........ If there is anything else....... just ask....
use the search feature cuz i cant remember who. i know you will need the metra harness which was about $50 and you will need a voltage regulator for the factory amps (if you plan on keeping them)
