Volvo XC90 replacement of the standard radio with the preservation of control from the buttons on the steering wheel, the operation of the factory amplifier, connecting the camera
When it comes to tampering with a Volvo’s factory audio system, there are always complications. Most often, owners of these cars are faced with installers refusing to take on the job.
A 2008 car arrived to us. The task was to install an Android car radio instead of the factory one, and connect a rear view camera.
Before disassembly, the factory panel of the Volvo XC90 looks like this:
The main nuance in replacing the standard Volvo XC90 radio is to preserve the sound of the factory audio system, which works through the factory amplifier. The standard amplifier is located under the front passenger seat. In order to preserve the sound of the factory speakers from the new radio, we used a CAN-Bus steering wheel button adapter with support for the standard Connects2 CTSVL003.2 amplifier.
The Connects2 CTSVL003.2 adapter comes with a long wire harness that is long enough to supply power from the amplifier to your new car radio.
During the installation process, it turned out that if you turn off the factory display of the standard radio, some important functions of the Volvo XC90 are not saved (for example, adjusting the side mirrors). Therefore, we left this display in the depths of the Volvo XC90 dashboard, connecting it to the new car radio using the CAN-Bus adapter Connects2 CTSVL003.2:
Often, in order to securely attach a new car radio to a car, our craftsmen have to be creative and come up with non-standard solutions, like for this Volvo:
Car Radio on Android for Volvo XC90
And here is the result – the 2DIN car radio is installed, the buttons on the steering wheel work, there is sound, all functions are active and work adequately. All that remains for the owner of this car is to enjoy the new possibilities of the new radio.
By the way, the car radio on Android was chosen budget, but very reliable – SWAT AHR-4182. We installed it in the dashboard of Volvo XC90 using the adapter frame for Volvo CARAV 11-437. To maintain the operation of the factory antenna, we used the antenna adapter CARAV 13-016.
Car radio 2DIN on Android for Volvo XC90
Rear view camera for Volvo XC90
As a rule, if you change the radio – install a camera too! The owner of a Volvo XC90 did the right thing and ordered the installation of a rear view camera at the same time as replacing the standard radio. The camera was chosen instead of the standard license plate light. The camera is almost invisible, the image from the camera is displayed on the radio screen (7 inches is enough for a good view):
And as the cherry on the cake – we implemented access to the USB connector (the SWAT radio has a rear connector) using a universal USB socket/extender Connects2 CTUNIUSB.6. The connector was brought out to a small pocket on the central console:
And a short video about how to control the new Android radio in the Volvo XC90 using the buttons on the steering wheel
