Step by Step guide to replacing MR2 MK2 Stereo with Double Din Android Unit

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Manticorp
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Step by Step guide to replacing MR2 MK2 Stereo with Double Din Android Unit

Post by Manticorp »

For reference, I am working on a JDM Toyota MR2 MK2 g-limited rev 4 from 1997, naturally aspirated automatic without active system.

I know guides out there exist for replacing the radio, but I thought I would share my recent experience.

Parts used:
I chose this particular head unit because of the claimed fast boot times, which I can attest to. Within 1-2s of turning the key, the radio has fully started and music is playing.

Being an Android unit, you can also install any apps you like, from map apps to games to music players.

So, without further ado...

Step 0

Identify your radio. It should be somewhere in the center of the front part of the car, and features a small screen, some buttons and usually a hole for CDs and casette tapes:

Image

Step 1

Remove the gear stick cover. It is held on with 4 tabs that are easily prized out.

You can use a special plastic trim removal tool for this, but I use a large screwdriver with the tip wrapped in duct tape or electrical tape:

Image

Step 2

Once the gear stick cover is removed, it should reveal two screws just underneath and at the front. Here they are removed, and where they came from:

Image

Important: Take note of which screws go where, not all screws you will be taking out are the same and should be put back in the correct places.

Step 3

Remove the ash tray and remove both of the two screws you find under here. One has been removed in this photo, and one remains for demonstration:

Image

Step 4

Now, the console cover should be free to be pulled towards you, towards the rear of the car. It may take some cajoling to get it free of the covers above and below the steering wheel.

Only pull the cover about 1-2inches away from the front at the moment, as there are 2 things we will need to unplug: the lighter socket and the hazard light switch.

Image

On mine, there was one plug leading to the hazard light switch, held in with a little clip. Reaching up from below I was able the push in the clip and unplug the hazard light.

There were two plugs leading to the lighter socket - an L shaped power plug (the white plug in the pic), and a plug leading to a little green light (the grey plug in the pic).

The little light on my lighter socket actually came off as I was pulling the plug out - it was only held on with some black sticky stuff, so I had to re-stick it later on.

Step 5

You should now be able to pull the whole console cover away.

This picture shows the location of all the tabs that hold it in place:

Image

Step 6

Unscrew the 4 screws holding in the stock radio:

Image

Note that you may have a smaller, single din stereo and a blanking plate underneath.

Step 7

Remove the old head unit, and unplug the wires, being careful to make sure they do not fall too far back into space behind the console.

The old head unit will have two black brackets, one on either side, which is a standard double din adapter and should be removed from the radio (save the screws!).

This should leave you with the following wires:

Image

Step 8

Do a test fit. Make sure that the front of your stereo fits through the hole left be the old stereo. Just sense check that there's even a chance it's going to fit.

It's also a good idea to plug the radio in and make sure it actually works with the car, making sure it triggers the aerial to extend if you have a motorised aerial.

Step 9

Do a second test fit, in the car.

Using the two black brackets you saved earlier, bolt them onto the sides of your new radio and bolt the radio into the car.

Now, try and fit the console cover back on.

In my case, the radio would not fit. The front part of the radio would fit through, but it would not quite go through far enough to allow the console to be fully inserted back into the car.

At this point you have two options: enlarge the hole or ensmallen the radio.

I decided to enlarge the hole, so I had to file away a very small amount, continually retrying the radio until it JUST fit through.

Image

Step 10

Plug in your harness adapter (Toyota to ISO) and plug the antenna and harness into the radio.

My radio came with a bunch of extra cables (GPS, Wifi Antenna, microphone, USB extension leads, etc) that you may want to route through the car.

I mounted the GPS and wifi antennas on my rear dash by routing the wire just underneath the centre console cover. It did not require removing the cover, just poking the wire up the sides from below. This seemed to hold the wires sturdily enough.

As pointed out, it is very easy to remove the centre console so I would recommend to just quickly lift that up and route the wires properly and tape them down to avoid them falling out!

I mounted the microphone just below the lip above the dash display in front of the steering wheel to the right by routing the wire under the cover just above the steering wheel, which was very easily done.

Step 11

Re-assembly is the reverse of the removal.
  • Tighten the 4 screws holding the radio in place
  • Push the console cover in place
  • Plug in the lighter socket and hazard light
  • Fully seat the console cover
  • Screw in the two screws above the ashtray
  • Screw in the two screws underneath the gear stick cover
  • Replace the gear stick cover
Here's the end result:

Image

Image
Last edited by Manticorp on 05/10/18 10:04, edited 1 time in total.


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Re: Step by Step guide to replacing MR2 MK2 Stereo with Double Din Android Unit

Post by ayresyboy »

Good write up. I have an older gen Pumpkin unit. What Android version is yours running? Andy
1997 2GR-FE | 1998 3S-GTE

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Re: Step by Step guide to replacing MR2 MK2 Stereo with Double Din Android Unit

Post by Manticorp »

ayresyboy wrote: 04/10/18 20:02 Good write up. I have an older gen Pumpkin unit. What Android version is yours running? Andy
Android 8 - can't fault it so far
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Re: Step by Step guide to replacing MR2 MK2 Stereo with Double Din Android Unit

Post by benckj »

I installed one myself a couple years ago to display my EMS data. Working on integrating a TPMS this weekend using my spare USB port. Think I'm running Android 5.1? Bought through aliexpress for around $100USD/delivered.

Couple of things which would be nice to know once you have worked with the new toy;

1/ Install screen display at start-up. I have the Toyota symbol but there are ways to upload a video clip. Would be cool to have an MR2 clip on boot-up

2/ Need an overlay button to control music. Mine does not have song skip on control panel so its a pain to exit a program and go into music server simply to skip a song. Installed overlay on screen but I have to activate it manually. solid white button at top left of screen is the factory overlay for music but only does volume & balance, etc.
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Last edited by benckj on 04/10/18 21:27, edited 2 times in total.

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Re: Step by Step guide to replacing MR2 MK2 Stereo with Double Din Android Unit

Post by Manticorp »

benckj wrote: 04/10/18 20:46 I installed one myself a couple years ago to display my EMS data. Working on integrating a TPMS this weekend. Think I'm running Android 5.1?
Yeah I saw your posts on here, I spent ages researching to see if I could achieve something similar.

I really wish the mk2 had an obd2 port - you have a special ecu right? I seem to remember looking and it was only available for the turbo model.

It looks really slick with the green dials!
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Re: Step by Step guide to replacing MR2 MK2 Stereo with Double Din Android Unit

Post by benckj »

Thanks . I'd like to actually change the green display to something more blueish but have yet to play with the settings. I'm running the MSPNP so connection to EMS is fairly straight forward.

I am not a regular Droid user so I'm glad someone else has a unit they can play with. Would be nice if you could share some knowledge on the questions I had above because I've reached a road block.

One thing I'd point out to other users is that installing a system like this makes it very personal and versatile to what you run in the car. Its like having your own computer and setting the Apps to your liking. Navigation, music, weather info, phone connection, DVR, TPMS are all functions that can be added . My goal is to get as much as possible on the HU and make it easy to use. Even my local Mechanic has commented how good the display works and he has never seen anything else like it (including the high end sports cars).

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Re: Step by Step guide to replacing MR2 MK2 Stereo with Double Din Android Unit

Post by notroubleclubber »

Not so sure about step 10 - just shove the wires in the side of the centre console. Wouldnt take 5 mins to unscrew the 4 screws for the centre console and if you want to do it properly then the other 4 screws that hold the cubby box and run and tape the wiring to the existing loom.
I can guarantee those wires will eventually fall out of their "tucked" position after a few bumps.

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Re: Step by Step guide to replacing MR2 MK2 Stereo with Double Din Android Unit

Post by Manticorp »

benckj wrote: 04/10/18 21:34 I am not a regular Droid user so I'm glad someone else has a unit they can play with. Would be nice if you could share some knowledge on the questions I had above because I've reached a road block.
Ah I hadn't seen your questions, let me take a look.
benckj wrote: 04/10/18 20:46 1/ Install screen display at start-up. I have the Toyota symbol but there are ways to upload a video clip. Would be cool to have an MR2 clip on boot-up
Aha - this is a funny one...

So, I too wanted to do this and I created this clip:

Image

Here's an MP4 version that may work a bit better.

The animation needs to be in a very specific format to make it work on your android head unit.

With the Pumpkin unit, there is an option to set an image as the boot logo in the stock firmware. On my machine, you go to settings > car > factory > type in a code > boot logo and you can select a custom user image there, but I couldn't work out how to get a custom animation using this menu.

Turns out, there is a way. First, you will need to download and install a better file explorer, such as ES file explorer:

https://play.google.com/store/apps/deta ... p&hl=en_GB

Then, you can just follow these instructions:

https://forum.xda-developers.com/androi ... a-t3351617

Here is the animation above in the 'dancing droids' format:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/rtyp8gx49mssb ... s.zip?dl=0

Here is another guide:

https://www.hongkiat.com/blog/change-an ... animation/

Might be slightly simpler.

With my particular unit, however, when turning the car off, it only puts the unit into a very low power sleep mode, so on resume it doesn't actually show the boot splash screen!

So I went to all that trouble for nothing, and I haven't gotten around to testing it by fully turning the unit off and on again, mostly because I will probably never do that.

The unit boots so fast anyway, the claims on their website are true - it really is a 1s boot. I know this is a problem on older units where they can take up to 30s to start up, which I can imagine is very annoying.
benckj wrote: 04/10/18 20:46 2/ Need an overlay button to control music. Mine does not have song skip on control panel so its a pain to exit a program and go into music server simply to skip a song. Installed overlay on screen but I have to activate it manually. solid white button at top left of screen is the factory overlay for music but only does volume & balance, etc.
I too have found this. I have yet to find a workaround for this. A screen overlay is a good idea - I will trawl through some media players later to see if any of them have that option.

My only thought was to use an aftermarket steering wheel control plugged into the unit. Something like this:

Image

Available here for £17.99:

https://amzn.to/2NnHtuf

Or a small bluetooth one like this:

Image

Available here for £8.00:

https://amzn.to/2yfEVJ3
notroubleclubber wrote: 04/10/18 21:55 Not so sure about step 10 - just shove the wires in the side of the centre console. Wouldnt take 5 mins to unscrew the 4 screws for the centre console and if you want to do it properly then the other 4 screws that hold the cubby box and run and tape the wiring to the existing loom.
I can guarantee those wires will eventually fall out of their "tucked" position after a few bumps.
Yes that's a good point - I shall edit my original post to reflect that sentiment.

In my particular case, the wires leading to the GPS receiver and WiFi antenna are just the right length that they are taught and so there is very little chance of them falling out of that groove.

Undoing the centre console and taping them down would be a much better idea.

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Re: Step by Step guide to replacing MR2 MK2 Stereo with Double Din Android Unit

Post by Manticorp »

benckj wrote: 04/10/18 20:46 2/ Need an overlay button to control music. Mine does not have song skip on control panel so its a pain to exit a program and go into music server simply to skip a song. Installed overlay on screen but I have to activate it manually. solid white button at top left of screen is the factory overlay for music but only does volume & balance, etc.
Just seen this on the play store - worth a try?

https://play.google.com/store/apps/deta ... ntrol.lite
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Re: Step by Step guide to replacing MR2 MK2 Stereo with Double Din Android Unit

Post by benckj »

Thanks for all the info you provided. Most of the suggestions I’ve already tried without success but I need to review again. Mine takes a good 30+s to boot up. Bought both of the steering wheel controls shown but didn’t work out. Overlay button on screen works great but have to load every time. Can’t seem to get it to auto start.
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Re: Step by Step guide to replacing MR2 MK2 Stereo with Double Din Android Unit

Post by benckj »

Some success over the weekend with my Droid TPMS install. Managed to load the App onto my unit and get working. Still having difficulties using this device when connected to my EMS. I bought a HU that had 3 USB ports as I wanted these available for separate inputs. Have disabled many Apps not in use and slowed down USB speed to 'medium' that may have helped.

Running Android 5.1 so not sure if this is an issue or can be updated. Maybe the newer SW will make life easier?

This is the TPMS unit I bought to run in background. Hope to get running automatically as well. Think I'm getting over my head with these toys and not understanding Droid SW very well. Surely I'm not the only one trying to load goodies onto the car HU?

https://www.aliexpress.com/snapshot/0.h ... 2907924229
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Re: Step by Step guide to replacing MR2 MK2 Stereo with Double Din Android Unit

Post by benckj »

Pic of TPMS for reference. This info may be of some use to others wishing to expand their Droid HU integration.
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Re: Step by Step guide to replacing MR2 MK2 Stereo with Double Din Android Unit

Post by Manticorp »

benckj wrote: 05/10/18 18:49 Thanks for all the info you provided. Most of the suggestions I’ve already tried without success but I need to review again. Mine takes a good 30+s to boot up. Bought both of the steering wheel controls shown but didn’t work out. Overlay button on screen works great but have to load every time. Can’t seem to get it to auto start.
I've been using MediaMonkey music player and the overlay I linked:

https://play.google.com/store/apps/deta ... ntrol.lite

And it's working great. I can't get the overlay to work with the stock music player on the unit, but it works with many third party media players.
benckj wrote: 07/10/18 23:49 This is the TPMS unit I bought to run in background. Hope to get running automatically as well. Think I'm getting over my head with these toys and not understanding Droid SW very well. Surely I'm not the only one trying to load goodies onto the car HU?
Have you got an alternate link to the TPMS? That one doesn't seem to work. Would love to install one on my car - are they hard to install?
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Re: Step by Step guide to replacing MR2 MK2 Stereo with Double Din Android Unit

Post by benckj »

The pressure transmitters simply thread onto the the valves so easy to install. Getting the software running on Droid HU is still challenging. If I didn’t have the USB connected to EMS it would work fine. Still getting conflicts between devices.

Try searching on Aliexpress usinf TPMS and Droid USB. Several choices to look at.
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