The plan hatched! Rob was lined up for the future, when all the parts came together. Dan Barton was my next victim. I cornered him at the club meeting one month and he told me to check Electronic Supply or similar for a switch for easy changeover between CD and iPod inputs. You need a DPDT switch (DP = Double Pole, meant we could switch right and left channels at once. DT = Double Throw, meant we could select two inputs ( CD or iPod )). I also got some ultra geek white transfer letters and labeled the switch for both! (see photo below right).

Todd's iPod holder installed  in a cupholder  in his Range Rover

Wiring Procedure

Soon came the surgery day! I pulled up to Casa de Dassler with a Starbucks greeting and we got to work. Out came the head unit. Cut into the cable jacket! Crap, that is a lot of skinny wires. Tape up cable jacket. Rob had the idea to open the head unit and tie in there! Genius!  We opened up the top of the head unit and found where the 13 plug DIN became a 13 wire inline connector to the head unit's PC board.

Using the following link :http://carstereohelp.net/wireharness_LandRover2.htm  (long search for this one!) I found a GIF (reproduced below) showing what all the 13 wires do! With an Ohm meter we found the right wires right away! The 13 pin linear plug to the PC board do not go in order so don't skip the Ohm meter test!

We ran a jumper between ground pin 1 and 3 and tied the shielding from my new interconnects to it. (not positive this is necessary, but it works). We then cut pin 2 and 4 and added in our two sets of interconnect cable back to the switch mounted in the glove compartment. The glove compartment was chosen due to lots of room behind it for wiring and the fact that I don't have to access it very often since all my CD's are already on the iPod's hard drive. So the input interconnects went to the center pins of the DPDT switch. The CD out put went to the pins opposite to where the switch was labeled CD, and the new 3.5 mm cable from the cigarette lighter adapter went to the last set of pins. I have heard the CD player must be on due to pin 12 wanting data from it to allow signal in, however I have noticed that if I leave the CD player powered up but no disc playing the head unit will say no disc but will allow the iPod signal through anyway! And save wear and tear on the CD mechanism.

For power to the cigarette lighter adapter I chose to buy a second 12v socket to be hard wired to the car and hidden behind the glove compartment for security, aesthetics, and keeping the function of my in dash one for cell phone charging, etc (see photo below of wirring behind glove compartment)

As usual, assembly is the reverse of removal!  DONE! (See photo at top of page for completed installation).

Problems, Trouble Shooting and Future Upgrades.

1. I noticed that the signal cuts out, I have traced this to the 3.5mm plug not being fully seated in the cigarette lighter adapter even though it was taped into place. This is also rare.
2. There is some alternator noise in the system. Only noticeable when volume is way up and a quiet passage in the song occurs, admittedly this is rare for my music but it happens. I will try to eliminate the ground loop I created by powering the cigarette lighter via the plug where the daytime running light relay goes. Or possibly I will get a switch with a full Faraday cage around it. Or I will use a noise suppression device of some sort. This problem is also rarely heard, except during Violent Femmes songs. I will get to it someday.
3. I am searching for a better way to hide the set up, even though this is very convenient.