kdepew

Did anyone go for the $260 stereo upgrade w/ iPod capability?

Is it the exact same stereo as the base unit except the iPod input? The Scion website shows a unit w/o a volume **** (which I know they added to the base unit in 2006), but some of the other option pictures on the Scion website are from pre-2006 models (such as the foglights). I'm hoping the unit has a volume **** like on the base unit. That seemed to be one of the complaint areas from pre-2006 xA's.

A couple of other questions:
- What type of cable goes from the iPod connector on the car to the iPod? It is just the USB or firewire cables like you get with the iPod and AC adapters, or is it some type of custom cable.
- Does the cable power the iPod. My current car has an AUX input, but I have to always charge the iPod every week or so (I guess I could get a car charger).
- When you turn the car off, does it somehow also turn the iPod off, or do you have to turn the iPod off manually. With my current car, I have to remember to turn the iPod off when I park the car otherwise it just keeps running.
- What gets displayed on the head unit. Do you see the song, artist, and album information like is displayed on the iPod screen?

Thanks for any information. People on this site have been alot of help.

a1cusaf

I'm sure the xA radio is the exact same as the tC one, which I have. Not sure on the cable connection to the radio itself, it is a custom digital connector on the ipod end, though. The cable will charge the ipod, and i'm sure that it also turns it off - whenever I remove the ipod from the car, it's fully charged even if I haven't driven in a few days. You can control the ipod through the head unit just like using the clickwheel - there is a **** that acts the exact same way on the HU where you can turn right, left, push in, to the right/left, etc. You can view song/artist/album information just like on the iPod screen...you press "text" to switch between the three, and the only downside is there is no scrolling text. An added benefit is the ability to change the color of the backlight of the screen to whatever your heart desires (of the 8 or so options it comes with)

Here's some pictures I posted last year when I first got my car. Just imagine it in an xA enclosure

mdtjr

Nope, just the aux. input. Bought the car off the lot. It had the options I wanted.

Peteypabs88

my advice would be to save yourself some money and buy an ipod2car adapter which costs close to 200 i think, or you can try that harman/kardon thing it looks pretty nice and has a little display so u can see what song is playin. both of these are under 200 and would only require some free time for you to install them.

heres a link to the harman/kardon adapter: https://www.scionlife.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=126280

scionofPCFL

that sounds silly when for $260 you get everything but with no installation.

ScionDM

The i-pod upgrade is the best on the market. You get the full use of your i-pod through your head unit. It's a new feature on the 2006 and above models, unfortunately you can not put this system in the 2004 and 2005 models.

You get a standard AUX imput with the base unit as well as with the I-pod upgrade. which is a mini-jack to mini-jack connection. The i-pod upgrade also comes standard with the cord to connect to the car.

indigo_xA_06

i got the updated stereo specifically for the iPod. i LOVE it. there is a volume **** on the ipod thing, about 10 different backlight colors (including a mixer color that rotates between all the other colors), and you can see track, artist, and album. there IS a scroll option - press & hold the text key and it will scroll to the rest of the words (i just figured this out yesterday). the stereo comes with the connector - a special one just for the unit. you can also use the steering wheel controls for volume and track, and you can also use the controls to switch between FM, AM, CD, and iPod/AUX.

i am SO glad i got it. my iPod is always charged if i ever need to use it outside of the car. not sure if the ipod actually turns off, but it doesn't keep playing whenever the AUX isn't selected on the head unit (if you switch to FM, it will pick up where you left off on the song when you change back to the AUX setting).

kdepew

That all sounds good. The only thing I'm disappointed in is that they didn't use a standard connector on the car. There is NO reason they couldn't have used a firewire or USB connector like you get on an iPod dock. It sucks that the cable is unique to the Scion. If it gets messed up, buying a new one is probably expensive.

The iPod connector is Apple proprietary, but the other end could have been standard just like alot of iPod options.

Anyway, sounds like a worthwhile option for people who like to use iPods in their cars. For anyone who doesn't use an iPod or something similar, I highly suggest trying one. I very much prefer using my iPod in the car over my six disk CD changer. It's awesome having access to several hundred CDs in my car.

scionofPCFL

I just checked with my parts dept: $100.00 to replace.

One reason the conection is unique: It charges the iPod

a1cusaf

Clarifying the 'scroll' feature...
Holding in 'text' will go to the overflow text on the display, however, it will not "scroll" through the entire text (moving one letter at a time) and will not go past the two display screens even if the title or artist, etc. is longer.

kdepew

I finally went to the Scion dealer with my iPod to checkout the iPod capable stereo. The one question I had asked that I don't think anyone answered was whether the iPod would turn off when the car is turned off.

The good news (if anyone else cares) is yes. Whenever you turn the car off, the iPod is automatically paused. It doesn't actually turn off the iPod, but if the iPod is paused, it goes off (or standby) after a few minutes. For me, that is a really nice feature over using the AUX input. I currently use an AUX input on my car, and I always have to remember to turn it off before I leave the car or it will just keep running.

Navigating the iPod menus from the head unit isn't near as easy as on the iPod itself since the screen can't show much, but it is doable. Seems like a

The Scion salesman also said that they wouldn't be getting anymore xA or xBs after February 2007. He said they would only have Tcs for awhile. That falls in line with all of the rumor information on this forum.

chibi

GOOD to know. my xA has been delayed getting to the dealer thanks to the holiday, and right now i'm in a loaner car. it happens to have the ipod jack, which i ordered for my car, but i couldn't figure out how to attach my ipod and they don't seem to have left the cord in the demo car. i was getting worried, wondering if it would only fit a nano or something!