stock or aftermarket?
does anyone know stock price just for parts?
do i have to put a computer in the glove box?

aftermarket-best brand? looks good and no gaps when installed?
i need sirius connectivity and ipod connectivity. i also want to be able to use a touch screen-does the toyota do that?

which is the easiest to install? cheapest price?
(dont want a plug and play)

thank you!

Do a search - lots of opinions and options.

so, no opinion? i did a search and wanted a fresher response, thank you.

general consensus is that there are two real choices today (if your budget is loose):

1.) Pioneer's AVIC-Z1 and 2.) Eclipse's AVN6600.

Do your search on those two. If you own a 4Runner, I feel it is pretty silly to go with anything else but double-din stereos. The Pioneer has more features (HD, bluetooth, etc.) but the Eclipse will feel more stock. I personally have the AVN5435 and love it. I do not regret spending the money on it at all. If I have to do it all over, I'd go with the AVN6600 for the better ipod control and dual-DVD slots (over the AVN5435). I hear the Pioneer is good as well, although it takes a little more to override it.

The AVN6600 has dual-DVD slots so you don't have to swap out the NAV DVD everytime you want to listen to a CD or watch a DVD. The Z1's nav is all HD based so the DVD slot is always open.

As for the Z1 override, it is easy...you flash your headlights once when booting up, but even easier is buying a circuit. A person on another forum (I have no relation to them, and am recieving nothing for promoting it) is making a little circuit that simulates the headlight flashing everytime. This means you don't need to ground any wires or solder stuff. No voided warranties!

I personally have the Z1 with the XM and iPod add-ons, I also have the bypass circuit installed. If you have any questions feel free to ask or PM me.

sounds like it'll take a lot to override the AVIC-Z1 to me.

With the Eclipse system, all you do is ground a wire.

Why do you feel that this is silly? I have the Eclipse AVN7000, a single din unit and absolutely love it. Maps are loaded on a 20gb hard drive so i could listen to cd's and use the navigation. I have the ipod controller so I dont really use cd's but the capability is there. It has a 7 inch touch screen and plays pretty much everything under the sun. I could understand it if you had a problem with moving parts but thats what extended warranties are for. Dontcha think?

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My opinion is really just that, my opinion.

Double-dins are not an option for everybody. We are fortunate enough to own a truck that give us that option. I jump through hurdles to try to keep my 4Runner looking stock and having a double-din stereo accomplishes these requirement for me quite well. I had to trade trim pieces with a fellow forum member from St. Louis to try to keep this stock look because I had the 6-disc JBL prior.

With that said, I think your install of the AVN7000 looks very sharp. Apologies for touching on any senstive nerves.

No need to apologize mate and you are right. Everyone is entitled to his/her own opinion. I get the idea of keeping everything looking stock also. If my response came off as "touchy feely" then i should apologize because that was never my intent. Just wanted to know why you favored double dins.

Nick

Appreciate the thread and comments. Im deciding btw AVIC-Z1, an eclipse unit, or a factory nav unit. Ive speen sporadic comments about the different units, but havent seen anywhere they are compared.

Also, there seems to be several eclipse units (5435, 5500, 6600) - can someone post a link where the units are listed with the differences described?

I want something that is going to look pretty stock while giving the most functionality. From what Ive seen the Z1s biggest advantages are the 10gig HD for music and the blue tooth options. Apparently both system's safety locks can be bypassed. The few pictures Ive seen make the eclipse unit appear a little more stock? Ive only seen a few z1 pictures and it appears there is a gap to fill on each side.

Any comments/suggestions/links on these units would be appreciated.

One thing to note about the Z1 and the 10GB for music. Music is ripped from a CD you put in to play, there is no way to just put a bunch of MP3s on the HD, nor is there a way to get the data off of it.

I think Eclipse's website is : www.eclipse-web.com
Pioneer's is : www.pioneerelectronics.com (or www.drivehappier.com)

Someone correct me if I am wrong, but I believe both the Z1 and an Eclipse unit require the trim pieces to cover gaps left on either side. So which appears more stock I think comes down to button color and user opinion. (Z1's buttons are lit blue, so that doesn't match very well)

Some other differences:
Z1 can support both XM and Sirius (integrated menus for each), and has the option for NavTraffic.

Z1 has 11 million points-of-interest compared to the Eclipse's 6 million (DVD versions, the 5495 has 3.1 million POI)

Z1 and the Eclipse 5495 are HDD based, so NAV response should be a little quicker. Other Eclipse's are DVD based for NAV.

The 5500 and 6600 are HD-radio ready, and I do not believe the Z1 is.

Here is the link comparing the 5435, 5500 and 6600:
http://www.eclipse-web.com/avn7000/fea-list2.html

You'll achieve the stock look if you have the non 6disc JBL system. If you have the 6disc JBL unit there WILL be a gap.

Installing the unit require some work around with the sound system. I believe you'll lose the base and center. AVN6600 has 5 speaker output. I recommend going with all eclipse speakers and digital amp as well. The 5th output is for the base.

Having the AVN6600, you don't have to purchase a harness for the steering wheel control. AVN6600 is a plug n play unit for toyota. I can't speak for the Z-1.

I'm sure which ever product you choose, it'll serve all your need. BTW, Bluetooth product ain't all that.

I have an 06 without the JBL 6 disc. I have seen pics of the Z1 in a t4r with pretty large gaps on both sides.

http://www.toyota-4runner.org/showth...threadid=18762

The eclipse pics I saw seemed to have smaller gaps.

Is the eclipse that much wider than the Z1?

Any install pics of a Z1 in a nonJBL t4r would be greatly appreciated.

it looks like the forum member 'bryan1436' did the install of his avic-z1 on a 4runner that previous had the JBL 6-disc. This is my opinion, but his install doesn't look as clean as some other installs on non-JBL systems.

I actually had a JBL-6 disc and swapped the stock 6-disc player with someone who just had the single disc player with the different trim pieces to achieve the stock look.

If the AVIC-Z1 has blue, then the AVN5435 doesn't look much more stock when it comes to lighting because it has green buttons at night. So the issue of being stock is less about which unit you want to install, but more about what unit do you currently have.

Could you post some pics or links to pics of Z1s and eclipse units HU installs in 4thgen t4r without the JBL? I havent seen that many pics posted (one eclipse unit I think). Thanks