Hi guys, my 09 Fit is the stock radio - which for some reason in Canada, is all we get.....

I'm thinking of adding the USB connector next time I bring the car in for its checkup.

How much should this cost, canadian installed?

Now if i add my 16gig usb any issues?

what if the use has a combination of mp3s and computer files - does it flip out - in otherwords does it only like usb keys with mp3s and thats it?

finally with a iphone 3 or 4 any issues navagating the menus to play songs? does it also charge the iphone?

thx in advance

 

US Retail at Honda on the parts (usb module and wiring harness) is $206.00. It's probably an hour labor. Canadian? Maybe $400 installed.

It's a fairly easy DIY though. College hills will sell you the parts for $153 US (not sure how much tax you'll have to pay up there). They will ship to Canada but you'd have to call them for shipping rates.

It plays WMA and MP3 files equally well. I think it will play AAC (itunes encoded audio) too but I haven't tried this. I use a 16GB usb flash memory drive.

It is Ipod compatible but I don't know which generations. It does charge the Ipod. Your owners manual will detail compatibility for the USB module even though it was an option on your car.

Here's a thread I started in the ICE forum

 

i don't use the stock radio anymore, but...

no idea on the install cost. it's easy enough to take your stereo out yourself and just add the module and route it to the glove box.

16GB USB should work just fine.

i'm not sure if a combination of different formats will make the radio go nuts, i doubt it. someone who currently uses it will better answer this question.

navigating menus and songs can be a bit slow through the radio interface. you cannot navigate through your phone ipod.app unless you're jailbroken and have noaccessorysplash installed. and yes, it charges the phone.

 

The ideal solution would be to find someone that's pulled their stock radio with USB and doesn't mind parting it out. ay, Neil?

Worst case is you have to buy another wiring harness. I think these are about $50 sold separately. It includes the piece that goes in the glove-box to route the cable.

 

good suggestion. OP, if you can't find a local one, i'll sell you mine for a lot less than collegehills.

 

Neil, just to confirm you replaced the stock radio right and u want to sell your usb kit? Was yours the stock radio or the US model sport radio? Don't know if it makes a dif.

 

it's the sport radio but i think it's exactly the same radio. the base just doesn't have the module and USB cable as far as i know. can someone else chime in to confirm? or if you're comfortable, pull your radio out and take a pic of the rear for me. then we'll know for sure.

 

If you’re going to put this much work and money into it I’d seriously consider going aftermarket if I were you. For one thing, the stock USB interface is limited to recognizing about 500 files or folders, and you can easily exceed this limit with a 16 GB drive (it’ll just ignore any files/folders once you reach this limit). For another, it displays the files in the order they were added to the drive, and not in alpha-numeric order. These problems can be avoided by playing via an iPod, I believe, but then you come up against sound-quality issues. My $200 JVC unit produces a much better soundstage than the stock unit did (although for the best sound you really have to replace the stock speakers as well). The only thing I miss about the stock HU is its display, which I thought was excellent.

 

https://www.fitfreak.net/forums/2nd-...rade-pics.html this is the radio i have

In canada this is all we get, doesn't matter which fit model we purchased.

 

Thanks for the input Eugine.

My goal is the following:

- add usb kit
- change front speakers
- add subwoofer
- add amp

all with the base stock radio

doable?

 

yeah, they all look like that in the US as well. i'm pretty sure that all you need is the module and cable.

Eugene.Atget, does make a good point, too, so check out your aftermarket options before spending money. aftermarket radios will make your music sound that much better. i do miss the big buttons and the big knob of the stock radio, though.

 

adding a powered sub will require you to splice into the stock wiring of one of your rear speakers. i don't think it'll sound as good as a rear RCA preamp out of an aftermarket headunit.

 

understand...since the stock head unit is so BIG....I can't picture how a aftermarket radio would look - any pics?

 

there's plenty of pics in the ICE section. a double din looks right at home in the dash but a single din might be kinda weird.

my previous install:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/npanelo/4872920431/http://www.flickr.com/photos/npanelo/4872920431/ by http://www.flickr.com/people/npanelo/, on Flickr

i don't have current pics of my double din unit.

 

I found the sound that came from the stock HU fatiguing. I could listen for about and hour and then it would hurt so much that I had to stop and sit there in silence, glumly. I think that the digital-to-analogue decoder in the stock HU is of low quality, and that your ears have to struggle to hear the music, especially against the backdrop of the relatively high noise level in '09 through at least the '11 Fits.

I changed the HU first, and noticed a better soundstage and a less-fatiguing overall sound. Then I replaced the front speakers, and I remember clearly using the fader to switch from the front to the back speakers, and Jessye Norman sounded like she was singing over the telephone from the back speakers in comparison to the front. So I then replaced by back speakers. I’m much happier now.

On the whole I’d say that about 30% of what I perceive as sound-quality problems in the stock setup is due to the HU, and the remaining 70% is due to the stock speakers.

But everybody’s ears are different, and so this might not be a problem for you.

My advice, for what it's worth, is to replace the stock HU and speakers, but leave the stock wiring in.

 

Wrong. My Sport 09 came with USB. I use an 8 GB stick and no problems.

 

anyone want to get rid of their stock usb kit? please PM me - note i'm in montreal canada and include pricing please

 

is this all i would need to add to my base radio?
usb adapter attachemnt kit pn 08b28-tk6-100? i think it includes the female usb connector to plus in your iphone or usb key - just confirming thx

 

If you are going to do all of the above, you might as well upgrade the head unit too. Think about what you are going to spend on the USB, then think about what it would take for a decent line level conver so that you can hook up the subwoofer, then there's the splicing of wires in the car. Since you have to take out the head unit anyway, you are better off upgrading the head unit too where you won't need to get a line level converter for your amp/sub and can go directly from the head unit to the amp's line level inputs. You also may not need to upgrade the car's speakers right away if yogo with a new HU.

Plus, the stock HU isn't bad but with the rest of the upgrades above, you will be making it the lowest end component and you want it to be the best component. It's like trying to convert a slow car to a drag racer and upgrading the tires, adding suspension mods, a roll cage, and doing nothing with the engine. Lots of money and minimal improvement.

Go for a decent Double-din Head unit and upgrade other parts after that. You'd be surprised how much better the stock speakers sound with a decent head unit driving them. My wife's civic was like this. 300% better sound just by upgrading the head unit.

~SB

 

No, that's just the USB cable and assorted brackets, fittings and screws. It's an attachment kit specific to the Fit. It sells for $56 at Majestic

The major component is an electronic module (little silver box) that the USB cable plugs into, and this in turn plugs into the radio. This module is PN 08A28-0K1-100. It sells for $88 at Majestic.

College Hills sells the set (the attachment kit and the module) for $153.00. (note you can get both items separately at Majestic for less than this combo).

If someone sells you their used USB components, you may need to buy the attachment kit if they didn't remove all the wiring (the USB cable) and the piece that goes in the corner of the glove box. Since they didn't get a replacement piece for the glove box putting in an aftermarket radio, I suspect most just leave this in place.