Anyhow, If it's ok I'd like to ask some of you long-time XB owners some questions. This will be the first car I'm going to own that I'm actually going to take the time to have customizations done to it. I'm not familiar with all the jargon that comes with customizing cars.

I've wanted a first-gen one ever since they first came out, and once I had enough money to buy a car I couldn't find any used 1st Gen's in my area with good mileage and price, and the dealers just kept trying to push the 2nd gen's on me (which I like, but I'm more fond of the 1st gen's shape). Now that I've got the money and car lined up, I'm ready to join the club.

So here are my questions:
1) Tinted Windows. I want to add "dark" window tint. Seems pretty basic, but I wanted to know if there's a specific type of dealer I'm looking for, or can I just go to one of the random car speciality places in my area and trust them to do it? What I consider dark tint is past the legal limit here in my state (32%). The car I'm driving now had aftermarket tint placed on it that's pretty dark, and I've been ticketed for it a few times. I like it being that dark though, so I want my XB to have it just as dark. So for anyone that has gone through this before, do the specialty places normally carry the tint that's darker than legal limit, or do I have to buy the film online and then have them install it? Is this easy enough to do be a DIY project?

2) Sunroof installation. I live near the beach, and I live in a city that's usually pretty hot during the summer. I was wondering how much it generally costs to get a nice aftermarket sunroof installed, and if it's worth it.

3) Installing a new in-dash receiver. I'm aware the 1st gen XB's have an AUX input for MP3's/Ipods, and that the OEM steering wheel has some buttons to control the receiver. I wanted to buy an aftermarket receiver that has bluetooth on it. I don't have an iPod, I use my old phone which has a 16gb micro card in it to play music in my current car, via cassette adapter. The phone has bluetooth audio capability, so that's why I was planning on getting a new bluetooth compatible receiver so I could just link it up and play my music. My question is, how is the XB's built-in AUX port and the buttons on the steering wheel effected by installing a new receiver? Will there be connectivity problems and would I still be able to use the buttons on the steering wheel with a new aftermarket receiver? Are there any aftermarket receivers out there specifically compatible with 1st gen XB's that I have to narrow my search down to?

4) Cruise control. I use cruise control often in my current car because I'm constantly driving on the highway back and forth to work. I drive a Pont Gran AM currently, and the cruise control buttons are placed on the steering wheel, which I find very comfortable ergonomically and easy to use. Could I possibly get this on the XB custom done as well, or am I stuck with having to get the toggle stick kind?

5) Interior seats. While going shopping online, I've noticed that some of the pictures taken of the interior in some of these XB's, depending on the dealer the seats either look gray or they look black. Are the interior seats standard color? I wanted to get something darker, wasn't sure if they had black cloth available.


I guess that's all I'll ask for now... just some basics. I have more questions involving stuff like getting lights for the dashboard/speedometer, installing a sound system, etc.

 

1. You can probably find a shop that will do illegal installations under the table, but not a reputable shop. How are they going to invoice it? "Installed customer-provided window tint"? You can probably do it yourself with less hassle, with a roller & squeegee to push the bubbles out.

3. Only the 2006.5 xB1s have steering wheel controls. Keep that in mind.

4. If you get a 2006.5, you can probably rewire the steering wheel control buttons to handle cruise control functions.

5. Stock interiors only came in gray, AFAIK.

 

Heres your answers:

1) Tinted Windows.
Tint shops will put whatever tint you want on your car, because you're paying for it. You have tint now, did you buy your car like that, or did you have it done after you purchased it?

2) Sunroof installation.
I had my sunroof done at a shop here in PA, and it was right around $900 for a webasto 700 series Inbuilt sunroof. Thats the type of sunroof that slides into the headliner, not out like a spoiler. Spoiler type sunroofs are generally cheaper, but also smaller. Keep in mind that if you go with an inbuilt sunroof, you will lose a couple inches of headroom, and you will have a "soft" headliner. Meaning that the majority of your headliner will be stretched fabric, instead of the hard card that it is now.

3) Installing a new in-dash receiver.
04-06 do not have steering wheel controls or aux inputs. 06.5 did. You can put whatever headunit you want in any vehicle, and any capable install shop will be able to hook up the steering wheel controls if you chose to purchase the adapter needed for it.

4) Cruise control.
the first gen xB does not come with cruise control stock. It was an aftermarket option. I installed it in my 05 xB, and it worked well, and I got used to the steering column stalk very quickly. The install only took me about 45 min, as its very straight forward.

5) Interior seats.
Stock, the seats are a gray color, that even look purplish in photos. Aftermarket covers and leather kits are available that can change the entire look of the interior.


Hope that helped a bit.

Edit: Any question you will ever have about your xB has been answered on ScionLife, or on any of the other scion forums. Search will become your best friend.

 

The Rostra cruise control for the 1G xBs was the one installed by Scion dealers as an option.

 

Did you buy it?