Montego Murph
Member
Hello all,
Just wanted to provide a followup on a recent installation for future searchers.
I recently bought and installed a USA-SPEC BT45-TOY in my truck.
Mine is a 2003 Limited, Factory Nav and JBL, no CD Changer.
The product itself works WONDERFULLY. Better than I could have ever imagined. When you're listening to the radio and a call comes in, it automatically switches over to phone mode, and you answer by pushing the "seek up" button (either on the Head Unit or steering wheel,) and push down to hang up. My only gripe is that the unit announces the phone number digits instead of saying "Call from Dad." Hopefully this is part of a future firmware update. When you're done with the call and hang up, just hit "FM" or whatever you were listening to.
In my installation, the unit replaced the nonexistent CD changer. Disk 4 is for the phone(Bluetooth), and Disk 6 is Aux Jack. I keep that straight by remembering that Aux and Six both end in X. When streaming music through Bluetooth (such as Pandora) it will display the song and artist on the screen, which is a cool touch.
The kit came with everything needed - wiring harness, instruction book (which lists all the vehicles it is compatible with) and a microphone. The only things you will need to provide are a dual-male ended aux cable, and a USB charging cable for your phone. I wish I thought ahead to get a black coiled-style usb cord instead of my bright white one for a neater look.
Edit: I ended up getting a phone mount with wireless charging, and ran that USB neatly to the port.
Since this project involves removing everything from the armrest, you might as well take this opportunity to replace any burned out bulbs in the area and if you're like me and forgot to take your pill, give everything a good toothbrush and q-tip cleaning.
The instructions say to install the box anywhere you like. Some suggest putting it behind the radio, but that makes it inconvenient for future cable swaps. I found that a perfect location is just below the hazard light switch. This way if you want to change out the cords, you just have to remove the storage cubby and climate control panel. I wonder though if I could move it lower and access the jacks just by removing the lower cubby.
The microphone included comes with a long cable -- roughly 80 miles of it. I ran the mic cable under the driver's kick panel, up the A-pillar, and across the headliner. I used some zipties for the lower part of it. Do this on a warm-ish day so that the plastic is a little more flexible. You should be able to just tuck it under the plastic with no tools. I used a rubber spatula to tuck it in. The mic has a clip and attaches easily to the rear view mirror. I did learn accidentally that the mic is directional and will pick up very well when pointed at the user. When testing it, I sat in the passenger seat and left it pointed that way. The next time I called my test subject, she mentioned that I didn't sound AS good. Moved the mic to point towards me and she said it was a world of difference. So that's good to know.
You can run the other two wires out however you desire. For my first run, I have them (usb charging and aux cord) coming out of the right side where the cubby meets the console and I coil them up inside the cupholder. I may make them come out of the cubby though so I can coil them up and hide them when not in use. I'm a big fan of no clutter.
So, a summary:
Great Product. Easy installation if you can follow directions well.
Technologically SEEMS complicated but easy to get used to.
Economically a great option if you don't want to lose OEM look or spend a ton on a replacement unit.
Gripe: Reads out phone digits instead of phonebook name.
Search around for a good price, I found a great deal through Amazon.
Just wanted to provide a followup on a recent installation for future searchers.
I recently bought and installed a USA-SPEC BT45-TOY in my truck.
Mine is a 2003 Limited, Factory Nav and JBL, no CD Changer.
The product itself works WONDERFULLY. Better than I could have ever imagined. When you're listening to the radio and a call comes in, it automatically switches over to phone mode, and you answer by pushing the "seek up" button (either on the Head Unit or steering wheel,) and push down to hang up. My only gripe is that the unit announces the phone number digits instead of saying "Call from Dad." Hopefully this is part of a future firmware update. When you're done with the call and hang up, just hit "FM" or whatever you were listening to.
In my installation, the unit replaced the nonexistent CD changer. Disk 4 is for the phone(Bluetooth), and Disk 6 is Aux Jack. I keep that straight by remembering that Aux and Six both end in X. When streaming music through Bluetooth (such as Pandora) it will display the song and artist on the screen, which is a cool touch.
The kit came with everything needed - wiring harness, instruction book (which lists all the vehicles it is compatible with) and a microphone. The only things you will need to provide are a dual-male ended aux cable, and a USB charging cable for your phone. I wish I thought ahead to get a black coiled-style usb cord instead of my bright white one for a neater look.
Edit: I ended up getting a phone mount with wireless charging, and ran that USB neatly to the port.
Since this project involves removing everything from the armrest, you might as well take this opportunity to replace any burned out bulbs in the area and if you're like me and forgot to take your pill, give everything a good toothbrush and q-tip cleaning.
The instructions say to install the box anywhere you like. Some suggest putting it behind the radio, but that makes it inconvenient for future cable swaps. I found that a perfect location is just below the hazard light switch. This way if you want to change out the cords, you just have to remove the storage cubby and climate control panel. I wonder though if I could move it lower and access the jacks just by removing the lower cubby.
The microphone included comes with a long cable -- roughly 80 miles of it. I ran the mic cable under the driver's kick panel, up the A-pillar, and across the headliner. I used some zipties for the lower part of it. Do this on a warm-ish day so that the plastic is a little more flexible. You should be able to just tuck it under the plastic with no tools. I used a rubber spatula to tuck it in. The mic has a clip and attaches easily to the rear view mirror. I did learn accidentally that the mic is directional and will pick up very well when pointed at the user. When testing it, I sat in the passenger seat and left it pointed that way. The next time I called my test subject, she mentioned that I didn't sound AS good. Moved the mic to point towards me and she said it was a world of difference. So that's good to know.
You can run the other two wires out however you desire. For my first run, I have them (usb charging and aux cord) coming out of the right side where the cubby meets the console and I coil them up inside the cupholder. I may make them come out of the cubby though so I can coil them up and hide them when not in use. I'm a big fan of no clutter.
So, a summary:
Great Product. Easy installation if you can follow directions well.
Technologically SEEMS complicated but easy to get used to.
Economically a great option if you don't want to lose OEM look or spend a ton on a replacement unit.
Gripe: Reads out phone digits instead of phonebook name.
Search around for a good price, I found a great deal through Amazon.
Last edited:
