Any aftermarket headunit look right in an e46?

Cyrus

Cyrus

Cyrus

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ive got an bmw e46 coupe with grey leather interior, grey trim and black/grey dash

any aftermarket head units with bluetooth preferably that look okay? pics would be great
 
You win, you have an awesome interior ;)

Unfortunately, not very much aftermarket stuff goes well with its design. The best thing you can do is retrofit the 16:9 OEM widescreen and the Comms pack. However this will stretch well over a grand to get sorted.

I have looked into Pioneer units with brushed Aluminium facsias, but the really nice ones are very pricey, there's not that much that suits the dash otherwise. Other options would include keeping the current unit where it is and sneaking another headunit in elsewhere where it's out of sight. I believe TomO's done something like this with his e39, but not sure how much space there is in the e46.

What is it that you want out of the upgrade? If you just want much better sound, this can still be had out of the existing head unit.
 
you have the same interior? :)

im not a big audiophile, to be honest id just have done it if there was a nice one and i could have the phonekit built in, i may just get a decent hands free instead, prob be handier :)
 
There's a guy on BMWLand who has fitted a screen to his M3, but not sure if this is what you're after - I think he just has the standard HU in the normal place. Not sure where the other one is.

garage.php
 
Cyrus said:
you have the same interior? :)

im not a big audiophile, to be honest id just have done it if there was a nice one and i could have the phonekit built in, i may just get a decent hands free instead, prob be handier :)
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Haha, yup - have the same interior, and the tape HU really bugged me.

I've installed the Sony 'Sound-on-top' amp to give the system the power that it should have had from the factory which really brings out clarity at low and high volumes and giving it a bit more bass.

I've changed my rear speakers for some new coaxials which cost about £80 for the pair, and added a Subwoofer in the boot for £100 (£250rrp, but bought it off eBay). All very easy to do - I'd never worked on a car before and never had any problems. I've learnt to live with the standard HU now that it sounds better.

It is quite easy to hardwire in a phone kit to the current stereo, so that might be a better bet. You might even be able to get the steering wheel controls to work with it.
 
Cyrus said:
im not a big audiophile, to be honest id just have done it if there was a nice one and i could have the phonekit built in, i may just get a decent hands free instead, prob be handier :)
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Probably a good idea - what phone have you got?
 
That SE kit won't work with Nokia phones very well (if at all).

If you're going to stick with Nokia, get a CK-7W, otherwise get a Parrot CK3100.
 
Cyrus said:
@Nick

Have you any wear on the driver bolster? i have, prob from people getting in and out the back, wouldnt mind getting it repaired

also what colour floor mats, dya have (gay qn i know!!)
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Omg, you're my long lost twin :p

I have very minor wear on my bolster, but it's nearly gone with a bit of Autoglym conditioner.

Depending on the condition of your leather you have a couple of options - one is 'Liquid leather' which I think is a sort of conditioner. There are some pictures here

If it's in a really bad state you could try these guys who seem to be recommended a lot on the BMW forums.

Decent floor mats are essential for a nice looking interior in these cars. I've got the OEM black ones which are fairly plush and work well. Would like to know what the light grey ones look like though.
 
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why not? surely its just a bt kit, i know its se branded but bluetooth is bluetooth is it not?
 
Cyrus said:
why not? surely its just a bt kit, i know its se branded but bluetooth is bluetooth is it not?
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Yes, but different manufacturers do things in different ways. Nokia put the echo cancellation software in the handset, rather than in the car kit, which can cause problems with other manufacturer kits.

The Parrot kit is universal and will work with most phones on the market.
 
NickXX said:
Omg, you're my long lost twin :p

I have very minor wear on my bolster, but it's nearly gone with a bit of Autoglym conditioner.

Depending on the condition of your leather you have a couple of options - one is 'Liquid leather' which I think is a sort of conditioner. There are some pictures here

If it's in a really bad state you could try these guys who seem to be recommended a lot on the BMW forums.

Decent floor mats are essential for a nice looking interior in these cars. I've got the OEM black ones which are fairly plush and work well. Would like to know what the light grey ones look like though.
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I have liquid leather so ill give it a go so how i get on :)

I have grey carpet in mine, mats that came with were horrible some off cream things, ive just got a set of dark grey from ebay, that look decent. Do you have black mats with black carpet or black mats with grey carpets? any pics :p
 
Cyrus said:
Do you have black mats with black carpet or black mats with grey carpets? any pics :p
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I've got grey carpet with Black mats. I been cleaning them with Autoglym interior cleaner which works very well. It's a nice day so I'll condition my interior today and clean my mats then get back to you with pictures :D
 
good man :D

ive only mine a week or so, and havent been back to my parents yet where all my detailing is done :cool:

so im trying to make sure i have everything as the garage did a crap job of 'valeting' it.

Have a porter cable sitting there waiting on me unopened!!

Do you mind me asking what dya use to clean the dash?
 
Cyrus said:
Do you mind me asking what dya use to clean the dash?
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I use the Autoglym interior cleaner which cleans all of the dash very well without giving it a horrid silicone shine that some cleaners do. It also cleans fabrics, carpets, roof linings and other stuff and does all of them very well!

For the leather I use the Autoglym leather cleaner, and the leather conditioner every few months.
 
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